Machine Building

Time to ride the wave of reshoring?

China's slowing economy means it is time to jump on the wave of reshoring says Mark Anderson of Fascia Graphics.

26th October 2015

Ten reasons for coding offline

Richard Pether, director at Rotech, explains why sometimes it simply makes sense to code offline, even for highly automated manufacturing and packing operations.

26th October 2015

How to use laser scanners correctly for machine safety

Dr Martin Kidman, a Safety Specialist with Sick UK, explains that selecting the correct safety equipment - such as laser scanners - will only get you half way to a safe machine; getting the rest of the way requires that the safety equipment is used correctly.

16th October 2015

Why do drives fail?

A drive could theoretically last for a lifetime, but only if properly taken care of. Modern variable-speed drives (VSDs) are exceptionally reliable these days, but they are not indestructible. That said, if you notice similar persistent or repeated trips in a VSD, then chances are that the drive is not actually the problem. If such trips are ignored (eg overtemperature), they can sometimes result in the failure of the drive. Here we outline some of the primary factors that can contribute to why variable-speed drives trip and/or fail.

15th October 2015

Designs for controlling hot processes - it's all material

Angled seat process control valves form an integral part of process engineering in a huge number of applications and getting the right specification can boost reliability and productivity. One of the most important factors is temperature, both of the process media under control and the ambient temperature. Ian Webster, Hygienic Segment Manager for UK & Ireland at Bürkert Fluid Control Systems, looks at the impact that temperature has on valve design and how to achieve the most cost-effective solution.

12th October 2015

Identifying metals in high-conductivity food products

Faced by the challenge of identifying hard-to-find metals in food products with high conductivity, metal detection companies are increasingly leveraging multi-frequency scanning. Fortress Technology has gone one step further unveiling at PPMA 2015 a high-performing system for wet products that is proven to be 100 per cent more sensitive and accurately picks up metal fragments half the dimension previously possible. Sales Director Phil Brown examines the science behind inspecting "˜wet' products using metal detectors and counts the costs of false rejects.

9th October 2015

Inspection kit that ticks the sustainable box

Right now manufacturers are trying to balance being more cost efficient, productive and competitive with investing in more sustainable line equipment. Given that we live in a throwaway society, the big question is how can a manufacturer of metal detectors assist food producers to be more sustainable with their equipment purchasing decisions? Sarah Ketchin, Managing Director, Fortress Technology, addresses this question.

9th October 2015

Sustainability in the packaging machinery market

Richard Pether, director of Rotech - designer and manufacturer of offline advanced carton feeding systems - reflects on the role of sustainability in the packaging machinery market.

9th October 2015

Technology helps machine builders offer improved availability

With today's end users within the food and beverage industry highly focused on overall equipment effectiveness (OEE), Omron's Robert Brooks argues that there are real opportunities for machine builders to gain a competitive advantage by approaching a machine design with a similar focus on one of OEE's core threads, availability.

8th October 2015

Five challenges of creating The Industrial Internet of Things

The promise of connecting everything within an industrial environment to get complete operational visibility and allow for the best real-time decisions will transform how we manufacture for years to come. The premise for this next industrial evolution is the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT), says Tony Paine, CEO of Kepware Technologies.

8th October 2015