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Daily industrial news and top headlines for plant and maintenance managers
Sustainability And Process In Sync
September 18, 2009 10:18 am | by Tracey de Morsella, Green Economy Post | Articles | CommentsIn the September issue of Harvard Business Review, authors Ram Nidumolu , C.K. Prahalad , and M.R. Rangaswami provide a framework for adopting sustainable practices to bring about the technological and organizational innovations that will ultimately yield top- and bottom-line returns, providing a competitive advantage when the recession ends.
Q&A with Joe Manone, Vice President of Rite-Hite
September 18, 2009 7:46 am | Articles | CommentsA. Our philosophy at Rite-Hite over the past 35 years has been product development and innovation with compelling new products that add value and solve problems for customers. That is how all of our businesses are set up. We’re constantly looking for new ways to solve problems at the loading dock, as well as other areas throughout plant and warehouse facilities.
Does Retraining Help?
September 18, 2009 6:17 am | by by Mike Collins | Blogs | CommentsIn manufacturing, the people losing their jobs are mostly skilled workers, some of whom are highly skilled. Their worry is whether they can find a comparable job that approximates their current income and benefits in the event of a lay-off. The big question is: Are the retraining programs sponsored by state and federal governments going to provide comparable jobs, or are they focused on finding any type of job that is available? An Attempt There are four different government programs that offer training and re-training: The Workforce Investment Act (WIA) : The Workforce Investment Act is the program with the biggest budget for training (approximately $7 billion per year), and was passed in 1998.
Methane Explosion Kills 12 In Polish Mine
September 18, 2009 4:22 am | News | CommentsWARSAW, Poland (AP) — A methane leak in a Polish coal mine set off an explosion that killed 12 miners on Friday, officials said. Edyta Tomaszewska, a spokeswoman for the state body that oversees Polish coal mining, said the explosion occurred 3,450 feet (1,050 meters) underground at the mine in the southwestern city of Ruda Slaska.
Opel To Funnel GM Technology To Russia
September 18, 2009 4:14 am | by Tom Krishner, AP Auto Writer | News | CommentsDETROIT (AP) — Last week's deal for General Motors to give up control of its money-losing Opel unit has a big downside: If the deal goes through, Russian automaker GAZ will get its hands on GM technology. Worse yet, GAZ, with cars that are light years behind most global automakers in quality as well as engines, transmissions and other technology, is likely to use what it gets from GM to compete against the Detroit automaker's Chevrolet brand in Russia.
Coca-Cola, IBM Top List Of Trusted Brands
September 18, 2009 4:10 am | by Emily Fredrix, AP Marketing Writer | News | CommentsConsumers lost trust in brands this year as the recession deepened, according to an industry report released Thursday, although longtime staples Coca-Cola and IBM retained their spots as the world's two most valuable brands. This is the first time the combined value of the world's top 100 brands as ranked by Interbrand, a branding agency, has fallen in the 10 years Interbrand has assessed them.
Canadian Abitibi Loses 1,500 In Streamlining
September 18, 2009 3:59 am | News | CommentsMONTREAL — AbitibiBowater announced Thursday that it will suspend production indefinitely at several Canadian and U.S. mills in a corporate streamlining that will affect about 1,500 Canadian workers. The cuts, which begin Oct. 31, reflect the insolvent newsprint giant's restructuring efforts under the bankruptcy protection laws in Canada and the United States.
LA Scoops Up $670,000 From Pfizer Fine
September 18, 2009 3:54 am | News | CommentsBATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — A judge's approval of a settlement agreement between the state and Pfizer Inc. means Louisiana will receive more than $670,000 from the drug maker over alleged improper marketing of an antipsychotic drug. Louisiana was among the states that reached a $33 million settlement with Pfizer, the world's largest drug manufacturer.
Energy Awareness
September 17, 2009 6:23 am | Product Releases | CommentsCoastal Training Technologies (Virginia Beach, VA) and DuPont Safety Resources have collaborated to produce a new training DVD, titled Energy Smart , which helps promote general energy awareness. A 7-day preview is free, and the video will soon be released in Coastal’s ClarityNet online courseware.
Be In Sync
September 17, 2009 6:22 am | Product Releases | CommentsThe TML_LIB_X20 motion control library from Technosoft (Cincinnati, OH) is a collection of high-level functions and blocks allowing the control of a Technosoft intelligent drive from a B&R PLC. With the TML_LIB functions, customers can control drives individually or grouped by sending commands for simple, complex, or synchronized moves.
Score-less Pipe Cutting
September 17, 2009 6:22 am | Product Releases | CommentsThe RIDGID (Elyria, OH) Press Snap soil pipe cutter expands the original RIDGID line of press tools by providing an easy way to cut cast iron soil pipe. The Press Snap eliminates the need for manual ratcheting when connected to a RIDGID press tool, and there is no need to score the pipe beforehand.
Custom Motion Control
September 17, 2009 6:21 am | Product Releases | CommentsLowell Corporation (Worcester, MA) has expended its capacity for designing custom motion control components, and can now provide customized solutions for a variety of applications: paper and metal processing machinery, conveyors, chain binders, and more. If a customer requires a non-standard motion control device, Lowell can typically fill the need by modifying an existing product in its line, by altering the shape or size of the drive, adding or removing teeth on a gear, or changing the configuration of a handle.
Congress Approves Green Vehicle Funding
September 16, 2009 12:07 pm | by Ken Thomas, Associated Press Writer | News | CommentsSeptember 16, 2009 WASHINGTON (AP) — Targeting more federal money to support the auto industry, the House on Wednesday approved an expansion of U.S. government-led research into making cars and trucks more fuel-efficient. The House plan would allow the Energy Department to spend up to $200 million more each year on research and development for advanced-technology vehicles and auto parts.
Biofuel Production From Algae
September 16, 2009 9:41 am | by David Rausen, Solix Biofuels | Articles | CommentsSeptember 17, 2009 The world’s dependence on finite, nonrenewable petroleum is at the heart of many of the environmental and energy challenges we face today. Additionally, transportation fuel use is a major contributor to global warming: more than 30 percent of the CO2 emissions in the United States come from the burning of petroleum fuel for transportation.
Virtual Forklifts To Clean Up Computer Screens
September 16, 2009 7:25 am | Articles | CommentsVia TirexiHD . Do you get home from work just wishing you could spend more time in a forklift? Now there's a way. Forklift Simulator 2009 allows users to take control of their own forklift after an extensive training session, allowing them to move around the plant floor and move the targeted pallets onto eagerly waiting semis.
