The Leading Source for Industrial Maintenance News
FREE Email Newsletter
Daily industrial news and top headlines for plant and maintenance managers
Virgin Galactic To Unveil Passenger Spacecraft
December 7, 2009 3:24 am | by Alicia Chang, AP Science Writer | News | CommentsLOS ANGELES (AP) — After five years of secret construction, the cloak is coming off a privately funded spacecraft designed to fly well-heeled tourists into space. The long-awaited glimpse of SpaceShipTwo, slated for rollout Monday in the Mojave Desert, could not come sooner for the scores of wannabe astronauts who have forked over part of their disposable income for the chance to float in zero gravity.
Prevent Slip-Ups With A Slip Clutch
December 4, 2009 11:22 am | Articles | CommentsPreviously, a prominent food manufacturer was unable to run one of its production lines at its rated capacity because of difficulty in managing drive chain slack that affected indexing. The line handles rectangular packages weighing about 10 pounds each. Each item moves down the conveyor straightaway on its narrow side, but as it is picked up and indexed, it needs to be moved along its length.
Tiny Tools Key To Understanding Aerosol Dangers
December 4, 2009 11:10 am | by Fred J. Brechtel, Ph.D., Vice President, Brechtel Manufacturing Inc. | Articles | CommentsParticles thousands of times smaller than the diameter of a human hair transform materials, micro-sensors, and energy-producing processes. And they can also severely pollute air quality and the integrity of technology products, like integrated circuits. Airborne aerosols in the air we breathe can damage our health, especially particles containing trace amounts of metals — largely from burning fuel — can wreak havoc on our nervous systems.
Signage For Power Press Safety
December 4, 2009 10:49 am | Product Releases | CommentsDanray Products (Rockford, IL) has released a new safety sign for power presses, which addresses the main hazards created by moving slides and dies on power presses. It can be applied to mechanical, hydraulic, direct-drive (servo), and pneumatic power presses. The sign is a available in two sizes: 5” wide by 6” high and 8.
Tubing For Any Angle
December 4, 2009 10:48 am | Product Releases | CommentsNewAge Industries (Southampton, PA) now offers custom-designed and produced tubing and hose that can be heat-formed into specific shapes, useful for applications that involve multiple sections of fittings and clamps. A formed piece of tubing that is custom-made for a specific use greatly reduces the risk of kinking and flow impediment of fluid or air.
Simple, Predictive Hoist Maintenance
December 4, 2009 10:44 am | Product Releases | CommentsR&M Materials Handling, Inc. (Springfield, OH) has added the HoistMonitor to the option list of its RX and QX Quick Delivery offerings, which adds functionality to supervise and record key data that allows for more efficient planning and scheduling of predictive maintenance, inspections, and repairs.
Medical-Grade, Tough Silicone
December 4, 2009 10:43 am | Product Releases | CommentsMaster Bond (Hackensack, NJ) has created a two-component, room temperature-curing potting and encapsulation silicone, the MasterSil 151 Med, to withstand exposure to the vibration, impact, shock, and thermal cycling often required from medical devices. With a low viscosity of 1,500 cps, the 151 silicone is ideal for use in applications with complicated contours, according to the company.
Cisco Nabs Enough Stock, Approval For Tandberg Buy
December 4, 2009 4:05 am | News | CommentsSAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) — Cisco Systems Inc. said Friday it now has enough shares and shareholder commitments to take over Norway's Tandberg ASA, the world's largest videoconferencing equipment maker. Cisco had said Thursday that stockholders representing only 89 percent of the shares had accepted its $3.
Kraft Launches Hostile Cadbury Bid Across The Pond
December 4, 2009 4:00 am | News | CommentsLONDON (AP) — Northfield, Ill.-based Kraft Foods Inc. says it's taken its $16.3 billion (9.8 billion pound) hostile share-and-cash offer for Cadbury PLC straight to the British company's shareholders. The terms released Friday are broadly unchanged from last month's bid. Cadbury has two weeks to respond.
Obama Warming To Congressional Job-Boosting Bill
December 4, 2009 3:56 am | by Dee-Ann Durbin and Tom Krisher, AP Auto Writers | News | CommentsWASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama's options for spurring job growth may be limited by out-of-control budget deficits, but with the unemployment rate hovering at 10 percent he is warming to moves by his congressional allies for a jobs-boosting bill. Obama got some encouraging news Friday, with the government reporting that job losses in November fell to the smallest number since the recession's start and the jobless rate dropped, from 10.
Whitacre Names New North American Head For GM
December 4, 2009 3:52 am | by Dee-Ann Durbin and Tom Krisher, AP Auto Writers | News | CommentsDETROIT (AP) — General Motors Co. Chairman Ed Whitacre Jr. said Friday he is putting engineering chief Mark Reuss in charge of GM's North American operations in a management shakeup. Whitacre, in an address to employees Friday, also said he is recombining sales and marketing, placing them under Susan Docherty.
GM Shakes Up Management After Henderson Walks Out
December 4, 2009 3:45 am | by Dee-Ann Durbin and Tom Krisher, AP Auto Writers | News | CommentsDETROIT (AP) — General Motors Co. is set to announce another round of management changes at the troubled automaker that include new responsibilities for Vice Chairman Bob Lutz, two people briefed on the matter said Friday. Chairman and interim CEO Ed Whitacre Jr. will make the announcement in a video broadcast to company employees, the people said.
Toyota Unfazed By 4 Million Vehicle Recall
December 4, 2009 3:35 am | by Yuri Kageyama, AP Business Writer | News | CommentsTOKYO (AP) — The big danger for Toyota isn't the cost of the massive U.S. recall to replace gas pedals, but instead shrinking income from the surging yen, a top executive said Friday. Toyota Motor Corp. Executive Vice President Yukitoshi Funo acknowledged the cost was considerable for replacing gas pedals on about 4 million vehicles to prevent a problem of floor mats getting stuck and possibly causing sudden acceleration.
Build Anything With Flux-Cored Wire
December 4, 2009 3:25 am | Product Releases | CommentsHobart Brothers (Chicago, IL) are offering their Fabshield XLR-8 self-shielded flux-cored wire, which excels in structural steel construction with high deposition rates and good impact strengths. The XLR-8 wire is formulated to have low diffusible hydrogen levels—less than 6.
Plasma Cutter Lunchbox
December 4, 2009 3:24 am | Product Releases | CommentsMiller Electric Mfg. Co. (Appleton, WI) introduces the Spectrum 875, a compact plasma cutter in the 60-amp category, weighing in at just 52 lbs. and with dimensions of 13.75” by 8.5” by 18”, no more than a lunch box. Despite the compact size, the 875 offers a cut rating of 7/8” on mild steel at 10” per minute (ipm).
