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Daily industrial news and top headlines for plant and maintenance managers
Smart'-er Industrial Vending
December 23, 2009 7:23 am | Product Releases | CommentsFastenal (Winona, MN) offers a solution to industrial vending with the SmartStore, which is managed by the customer’s local Fastenal store team and stocked with the products they use most. Installation requires only electricity and Internet access, according to the company. Advantages of industrial vending include: Reduction in consumption by tracking employee usage and setting limits.
High-Speed Die Grinders
December 23, 2009 7:22 am | Product Releases | CommentsDynabrade, Inc. (Clarence, NY) is introducing a series of air-powered Die Grinders, which feature high-quality steel housings. The grinders are available in either .5 or .6 hp air motors and use a rubber grip housing to insulate the operator from vibration and cold air transmission.
Occam’s Razor, Resharpened
December 23, 2009 6:18 am | by Mike Rainone, co-founder of PCDworks | Articles | CommentsThe Franciscan Friar William of Occam said it best about 700 years ago in the form of the principle of parsimony, which we now know as Occam’s Razor. William said, “entia non sunt multiplicanda praeter necessitatem,” which for you non-Latin speakers (and who is a Latin speaker these days?) means: “Entities must not be multiplied beyond necessity.
Boiling Up A Pot Of Conservation
December 23, 2009 6:17 am | Articles | CommentsAs part of its compliance with a PepsiCo corporate mandate on resource conservation, the Quaker Oats Bridgeview Division food manufacturing plant has installed two Miura Boiler LX200 gas-fired steam boilers to reduce fuel and water consumption, increase energy efficiency, and cut emissions.
Forget The Hybrid, Let's Start Composting
December 22, 2009 11:14 am | Articles | CommentsVertal, a British composting company, has introduced some of the most innovative technology when it comes to turning our organic waste — you know, that steak you couldn't quite finish last weekend — into energy. Unlike other technologies, the process is entirely self-heated, so the company does not have to use any energy in the composting process, which is called autothermal thermophilic aerobic digestion.
Hackers: Criminals Or Just Unemployed?
December 22, 2009 11:05 am | Articles | CommentsHackers can bring down government agencies, hijack websites, and snoop on private information. But sometimes, they're just looking for a job. At the U.S. Cyber Challenge, hackers battle each other in a multi-faceted battle — they have to exploit other systems while protecting their own. The contest isn't just about being able to hack into another system, but rather finding these intelligent and tech-savvy youth constructive and non-exploitative outlets for their hacking skills.
Making Candy Canes... As Hard As Steel
December 22, 2009 10:43 am | Articles | CommentsLike most anything else eaten during the holidays, most of us don't know where candy canes come from, or how they're made. Turns out it's not all that different from making steel. Just more... sweet. If you're having trouble watching this video, try downloading the latest version of Flash Player or contacting your IT department.
How An Engineer Puts Up Christmas Lights
December 22, 2009 10:35 am | Articles | CommentsChristmas lights are a trademark of the season, but some homeowners take the tradition a little further than others. While some settle for a single dim string on the bush beside their front door, others opt for something more luminescent. See what happens when a database engineer from Middletown, OH gets into the holiday spirit.
'Greening' Building-Sized Christmas Lights
December 22, 2009 10:25 am | Articles | CommentsEvery year, Hong Kong lights up for the holidays. That is, they decorate their high-rise buildings in millions lights, all in dazzling displays and patterns. For years, the bulbs were a drain on the city's electrical supply, until the designers began to switch to energy-efficient, long-lasting LED lights.
Boeing Acquires 787 Subassembly Plant
December 22, 2009 3:51 am | News | CommentsSEATTLE (AP) — Boeing Co. said Tuesday that it has purchased Alenia North America's 50 percent stake in a fuselage subassembly plant for its 787 Dreamliner. The transaction occurred through a Boeing subsidiary, making Boeing the sole owner of Global Aeronautica LLC. Further terms of the deal were not disclosed.
China Becomes World's Biggest Automotive Market
December 22, 2009 3:44 am | by Elaine Kurtenbach, AP Business Writer | News | CommentsCHENGDU, China (AP) — Minivan salesman Zhu Yi has a problem that most auto dealers elsewhere would happily swap for their own — he doesn't have enough vehicles to satisfy customer demand. "Sales are exploding," says Zhu, a 32-year-old manager at a General Motors Co. joint venture dealership in Chengdu, pointing to charts on his laptop that vividly plot the steep incline.
Boeing's Second 787 To Take Flight Today
December 22, 2009 3:39 am | News | CommentsEVERETT, Wash. (AP) — Boeing says its second 787 will take to the skies on Tuesday. The company has scheduled a test flight for the second jetliner at 8:45 a.m. The aircraft will take off from Paine Field in Everett, Wash., as long as flight conditions cooperate. About 25,000 people turned out for the first test flight last Tuesday.
Border Patrol Warns Against Illegally Imported Toys
December 22, 2009 3:36 am | News | CommentsSARAH LARIMER,Associated Press Writer MIAMI (AP) — U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials warned holiday shoppers Monday to stay away from toys that might be dangerous for children or break copyright, patent or trademark laws. Authorities last year seized more than 1,500 shipments of products that either failed to meet consumer safety standards or violated intellectual property laws, said Harold Woodward, director of the agency's field operations in Miami.
Ind. Attorney General Sues Recycler For Safety Violations
December 22, 2009 3:26 am | News | CommentsELKHART, Ind. (AP) — Indiana's attorney general is suing a northern Indiana lumber recycling plant with a history of environmental and worker-safety violations. The lawsuit filed Monday in Elkhart County seeks preliminary and permanent injunctions to halt open dumping of wood wastes at VIM Recycling Inc.
Small Calif. Town Haunted By Pollutants, Birth Defects
December 21, 2009 11:14 am | by Noaki Schwartz, Associated Press Writer | News | CommentsKETTLEMAN CITY, Calif. (AP) — Maricela Mares-Alatorre was well aware of the industrial and agricultural pollutants that surrounded her as she grew up in this tiny farm town just three miles from the largest toxic waste dump in the West. Her parents had founded People for Clean Air and Water two decades ago to successfully fight a proposed incinerator at the dump.
