Machine Building

Modular cable feed system from igus for safe shore power supply

In order to reduce the CO2, NOx, SOx and fine-particle emissions from the ship's engines while docked in port, more and more energy supplies are being provided directly from the shore. To manage these cables safely, igus has developed an alternative to traditional cable feed systems, the e-chain dispenser, which has already been successfully installed near Bergen, Norway.

15th November 2017

Vibration monitoring and analysis helps prolong equipment life

Schaeffler is providing route-based condition monitoring services to a cement works in Buxton, Derbyshire. By analysing the vibration data from a range of critical plant and equipment at the site, Schaeffler is able to detect damage to components such as rolling bearings and gears early, therefore reducing costly, unplanned downtime and prolonging the life of the equipment.

13th November 2017

Sensor Technology keeps hydraulic projects on course

Innovative TorqSense wireless sensors from Sensor Technology are playing an important role in new product development for Hydraulic Projects Limited (Hy-Pro), one of the UK's leading developers and suppliers of hydraulic drive units for marine steering and autopilot systems.

10th November 2017

Festo automation helps commercial production of battery modules

The trend for electric vehicles is clear, with many countries and manufacturers looking to adopt electric and hybrid drive technologies for future car propulsion. For example, Volvo has announced that it is switching from 100 per cent reliance upon the internal combustion engine to electric based propulsion. The recently completed London Taxi Company factory will be producing electric taxis, supported by a government funded network of charging points. In Europe, France has announced it wants all cars sold after 2040 to be electric.

10th November 2017

Renishaw vacuum casting technology accelerates innovation

Renishaw has collaborated with designer and manufacturer of automatic juicers, Zumex, to facilitate a faster development cycle and cut third party costs. Renishaw supplied a 5/01 PLC vacuum casting machine, as well as tailored machine training, so that Zumex could produce prototypes for its innovative juicer designs faster than ever before.

9th November 2017

Control capability drives pump selection at Fidia Farmaceutici

A European manufacturer of health products is benefiting from the control capabilities of peristaltic pumps from Watson-Marlow Fluid Technology Group (WMFTG). The pumps are being used for the precise metering of water-based buffer agents such as hydrogen chloride (HCl) and glycerol, at one of its production facilities on the island of Sicily.

9th November 2017

Condition monitoring services for crisp producer from Schaeffler

Schaeffler UK is providing route-based monitoring services to a UK-based producer of crisps. By analysing the vibration data from a range of plant and equipment at the site, Schaeffler is able to detect any damage to components such as rolling bearings and gears early, therefore reducing costly, unplanned downtime and prolonging the life of the equipment. In addition, Schaeffler provides regular thermographic surveys of electrical panels in order to detect faulty electrical components early.

8th November 2017

Sirius Shipping invests in onboard online monitoring

In order to increase control of rotating machinery onboard, Sirius Shipping is now investing in online monitoring from SKF. "We want to receive signals before anything happens so that we are better prepared to launch measures in plenty of time," says Stefan Johansson Technical Superintendent at Sirius Shipping.

8th November 2017

Hexapod motion platform for smartphone camera optimisation

Google engineers know that a shaky hand can ruin a selfie so they designed the shake out of the Pixel 2 camera using PI's H-860 high-speed hexapod system that accurately simulates motion with 6 degrees of freedom.

7th November 2017

Lenze Schmidhauser supports Formula Student Driverless

For the first time a new category featured on the programme of Formula Student in Germany - Formula Student Driverless. Electric powered racing cars without a driver but with full autonomous control raced over 10 laps of a cone-marked course at the Hockenheimring. Overall victory in this category was won by the team from the Academic Motorsports Club Zurich (AMZ) with a car using Lenze inverters to power the AC drive motors from the DC batteries. The inverters are part of the MOBILE range supplied by the Schmidhauser division of Lenze who manufacture drives for electric and hybrid vehicles.

3rd November 2017