Plant January-February 2012

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Volume 71, No. 01 January/February 2012

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OUT OF GAS Automotive industry plugs into electric vehicles

HIGHLIGHTS Product recall: Are you prepared?

Rethink materials management with TCOP R&D extends plant wireless reach PLM: Go to the cloud and save Technology Focus: Hydraulics and pneumatics

PM 40069240

NEW EXPANDED TECHNOLOGY SECTION

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® MD

N° 101

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No. 101

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Editorial

Electro-Motive: the greed factor

T

he zeal for financial reward that drives free-market machinery eventually creates monsters that are consumed by greed. One such creature, bright yellow and named after a bug, recently stalked and devoured the livelihoods of hard-working, middleclass people in London, Ont., and the potential repercussions of its behaviour are troubling.

Caterpillar Inc., a US mega-corporation that makes heavy industrial equipment, locked out about 460 unionized workers at its Electro-Motive Canada unit, a manufacturer of locomotives purchased in 2010, after the Canadian Auto Workers (CAW) union rejected the company’s final – and outrageous – contract offer. The take-it-or-leave-it deal that came through Caterpillar’s Progressive Rail Services subsidiary amounted to halving the average hourly wage of workers – most of them skilled – from about $35 to $18, eliminating pensions and gutting other benefits. After about a month, the company shut down the plant.

What kind of catastrophic financial crisis could Caterpillar be facing that would require such draconian concessions from its workforce?

Apparently there wasn’t one. In fact, Caterpillar reported boffo financial returns – a 60% jump in profits for a net income of US$1.55 billion – days prior to closing the plant.

And a pleased-as-punch CEO Doug Oberhelman noted that achieving the company’s financial targets could be attributed, in part, to the fine performance of Electro-Motive.

Yet the corporation accused the same unit of being inefficient, operating under antiquated work rules and having uncompetitive wage rates, which should be the beginning of a process that invites “bargaining in good faith.” It’s not good faith, however, to announce to people with valuable and much sought-after skills, such as welders and machinists, that overnight, their livelihoods will be slashed to the equivalent of a Costco warehouse employee who stacks bulk goods. Oh, and without the pension or remotely equivalent benefits.

Of course, this obvious lack of fairness and reasonableness is secondary to the sinister subtext. What is the motivation behind a contract offer that the CAW couldn’t possibly accept on behalf of its members?

The “offer”, which Caterpillar admits no other employer has ever dared table, wasn’t an offer at all, and it’s difficult not to conclude this was the plan when Electro-Motive was purchased 18 months ago.

The company is looking at locomotives, currently 4% of its sales, achieving five times the growth over the next decade. Now is the time to lay the foundation for super-sizing profits.

In the 1980s, 80% of its business was unionized. Today it’s about 10%, so unionized workforces do not appear to be part of the plan, nor, it turns out, does the Canadian operation.

The CAW thinks Caterpillar’s end game is to divert the work from Canada to its Muncie, Ind. operation where wages are much lower and a compliant state government has implemented laws that make it harder for unions to organize.

The Harper government was mute on Electro-Motive’s fate, but it should be very concerned that Canada’s branch plant operations are so vulnerable to pillaging.

Caterpillar is just another giant US corporation, like US Steel, that plunders Canadian jobs and manufacturing capacity, strips branch plants of assets, jobs and intellectual property, then retreats to more pliable jurisdictions, while poisoning management/ labour relations for everyone else. There will be little appetite from other workers for co-operation or concessions at bargaining time as mutual interest is lost to self-interest. Meanwhile, as decent paying jobs vanish bit-by-bit with an eroding manufacturing base, so too will Canada’s tax-paying middle class.

Caterpillar’s rapacious behaviour is a reminder of why there are unions, and as the industrial past has so clearly demonstrated, workers who feel exploited will eventually seek the protection of collective bargaining, even in places like Muncie where folks may be satisfied with $18 an hour – for now.

Joe Terrett, Editor Comments? E-mail jterrett@plant.ca.

Vol. 71, No. 01, January/February, 2012 Executive Publisher: Tim Dimopoulos 416-510-5100 tdimopoulos@bizinfogroup.ca Publisher: Michael King 416-510-5107 mking@plant.ca, mking@cienmagazine.com Group Editorial Director: Lisa Wichmann 416-510-5101 lwichmann@canadianmanufacturing.com Editor: Joe Terrett 416-442-5600 ext. 3219 jterrett@plant.ca Contributing Editors: Ron Richardson, Steve Gahbauer Art Director: Kathy Smith 416-442-5600 ext. 3215 ksmith@plant.ca District Sales Managers: Amanda Bottomley 416-859-4527 abottomley@canadianmanufacturing.com

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Catherine Martineau (Quebec) 647-988-5559 cmartineau@bizinfogroup.ca Deborah St. Lawrence 416-510-6844 dstLawrence@canadianmanufacturing.com Derek Morrison 416-510-5224 dmorrison@canadianmanufacturing.com Ilana Fawcett 416-510-5202 ifawcett@canadianmanufacturing.com Market Production: Barb Vowles 416-510-5103 vowlesb@bizinfogroup.ca Circulation Manager: Diane Rakoff 416-510-5216 drakoff@bizinfogroup.ca Editorial Advisory Board: Robert Hattin, Hattin Holdings • Ron Harper, Cogent Power • Greg MacDonald, Wentworth International Services • Roy Verstraete, Anchor Danly BIG MAGAZINES LP Vice-President of Canadian Publishing: Alex Papanou President of Business Information Group: Bruce Creighton

Cover: On the road with a Ford Focus Electric.

PHOTO:FORD

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Features

>> TRENDS

19 INDUSTRY REPORT Canada’s forestry industry is having a tough time. Mills are closing but there is some investment and two more years of relative softwood lumber peace.

EMERGING MARKETS A UPS survey shows SMEs are more interested in emerging markets.

>> MANAGEMENT

14 EXPORTING India is a nice place to visit and it’s becoming a better place to do business, but there are still some challenges.

IMPROVEMENTS FUNDING A $18.9 million CME program helps you get SMART about productivity improvements.

16 RISK Product recalls come out of nowhere. Put a plan in place, just in case.

>> OPERATIONS

17 MAINTENANCE Extend bearing life with the right lubrication strategy and avoid costly interruptions to production.

MOTORS Tips for checking motor health on- and off-line.

19 THINK LEAN Use total cost of procurement (TCOP) to save time and money on MRO and production items that aren’t consumed immediately.

>> SUSTAINABILITY

13 SUPPLY ALERT PwC reports growing demand for certain metals is making them harder to source. Are you prepared for shortages?

GREEN MANUFACTURING So who doesn’t like games? Use them to add to your sustainability wins.

>> INNOVATION

10 AUTOMOTIVE Emissions and energy efficiency demands are inspiring automotive manufacturers to plug into electric vehicles.

12 MICROSENSORS Researchers are using microsensors to extend wireless networks through automotive plants.

>> TECHNOLOGY

21 INDUSTRY IT Autodesk is making PLM accessible for all in the cloud.

22 PRODUCT FOCUS A showcase featuring hydraulics and pneumatics products.

24 PRODUCTS AND EQUIPMENT What’s new in industrial products, machinery and equipment.

Departments

4 Industry View 7 PLANT Pulse 8 Labour Relations

33 Events 34 Postscript

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protected by copyright and must not be reprinted in whole or in part without permission of the publisher. Publications Mail Agreement #40069240. Performance claims for products listed in this issue are made by contributing manufacturers and agencies. No responsibility for the accuracy of these performance claims can be assumed on the part of PLANT or BIG Magazines LP. Contents copyright© 2012 BIG Magazines LP, may not be reprinted without permission.

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Departments

>> Industry View

>> Bulletins Novocol Pharmaceuticals of Canada Inc. is investing $54 million over five years to expand and modernize its Cambridge, Ont. facility. The project includes converting an outdated production line into an R&D centre. The project will help the company develop new infection control products.

The Ontario government is kicking in a $10-million loan.

Video surveillance manufacturer Infinova, based in Monmouth, NJ, is acquiring March Networks Corp. for $90.1 million.

The Ottawa-based provider of intelligent IP video will be a wholly owned subsidiary of Infinova (Canada) Ltd., operating independently under its existing name and brands.

PetroBakken Energy Ltd. in Calgary is selling its 2.2% interest in its Weyburn, Sask. unit for $105 million as it moves to strengthen its balance sheet. Production amounts to 580 barrels of oil equivalent per day.

CSA Group, the testing and certification organization based in Mississauga, Ont., has opened a state-of-the-art laboratory in Hong Kong for manufacturing clients. Labs were also opened in Shanghai and Guangzhou.

Raytheon Canada Ltd. has been awarded a demonstration program by the Canadian Department of National Defence for its next generation high frequency surface wave radar (HFSWR).

The system, an over-the-horizon sensor that detects and tracks ship traffic within a nation’s 200 nautical mile zone, will be installed at Hartlen Point, NS. Pembina Pipeline Corp., a Calgarybased transporter of crude, natural gas and oils sands production, is buying up all the shares of Provident Energy Ltd., which operates a natural gas liquids infrastructure business. The transaction is valued at $3.2 billion. The combined companies will operate under the Pembina name.

Global auto parts giant Magna International Inc., targeting new markets for growth, has raised its sales expectations by up to 8% to between US$27.8 billion and $29.3 billion. Margins are targeted at about 5% on light vehicle production of about 13.6 million units in North America and 13 million in Europe. The Aurora, Ont.-based company forecasts complete vehicle assembly sales to be between $2.3 billion and $2.6 billion.

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Canada is not so global after all Study challenges accepted view: says US trade relationship smaller than we think

OTTAWA: Canada’s global trade presence may not be all it’s cracked up to be, according to a Conference Board of Canada study.

Adding Value to Trade Measures: An Introduction to Value-Added Trade suggests Canada is less trade-dependent than previously thought, has a smaller trade relationship with the US than commonly believed, and relies on the services sector for a much larger share of its trade.

“These findings challenge some of the core views about what Canada trades, who it trades with and how much it trades,” said Michael Burt, the Conference Board’s director of industrial economic trends.

The dichotomy arises from conventional trade measures that do not accurately gauge transactions when more than one country is involved in the production of a product. Applying what the Ottawa-based research organization calls “value-added trade measures” suggests Canada’s current description may not be accurate.

“Value-added trade may also help to explain in part why Canada was less affected by the recent global recession than other countries,” said Burt.

The term refers to the increase in worth of a good or service due to a specific step in the production process. It eliminates double counting, which occurs when inputs cross borders multiple times before becoming a finished product; and it allocates the value embedded in a traded product back to its source. For example, an

CVTech wins power contracts worth $38.3M DRUMMONDVILLE, Que.: CVTech Group Inc.’s energy subsidiaries have won contracts in the US and Canada totalling more than $38 million and employ 220 people.

CVTech, a management company based in Drummondville, Que. that operates in the power sector, reports its subsidiary Riggs Distler & Co. Inc. accounts for $21.5 million of the contracts.

One is a US$9.5-million contract for the installation of two rapid-start, coal-fired boilers at Veolia Energy North America’s Grays Ferry power plant in Philadelphia.

An $8-million engineering procurement and construction contract from a US-based electricity provider is for the installation of a 5-megawatt photovoltaic solar ground mounted system in southern New Jersey.

The third deal is a $4-million contract to install power poles for the Public Service Electric and Gas Co. in New Jersey.

Two other deals from HydroQuebec went to CVTech’s Thirau ltée and J.J.L. Déboisement inc. subsidiaries.

One worth $6.8 million going to Thirau involves the construction of a 37-kilometre 120-kV transmission line connecting a wind farm at Saint-Robert-Bellarmin to the Bolduc substation at Saint-Martin.

The second deal worth $10 million will see J.J.L. Déboisement control vegetation on distribution line right-of-ways.

Trade with the US: less than we think.

PHOTO: THINKSTOCK

exported car contains a variety of inputs including raw materials, engineering services and even electricity.

According to the findings, Canada’s share of global commerce fell from 3.1% to 2.9%.

Canada’s trade mix is also different. Services account for about 40% of Canada’s trade, compared to 16% using conventional statistics. Gaining increased prominence are business and financial services, as well as trade, transportation and communications services.

And Canada’s trade relationships have changed, particularly with the US, which has declined from 69% to less than 62%. Other regions increased their share of Canada’s overall trade, particularly Europe (more than 2%) and Japan (1%).

CBSA investigate silicate dumping

OTTAWA: The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) has initiated an investigation into the alleged dumping of potassium silicate solids from Pakistan.

Potassium silicate solid is an inorganic, nonhazardous chemical used in potassium silicate liquid, a common ingredient in drilling fluids for the oil and gas industry.

The investigation comes from a complaint filed by chemicals manufacturer National Silicates Partnership in Toronto that says the dumping and subsidizing of the chemical is harming Canadian production.

The Canadian International Trade Tribunal will begin a preliminary inquiry to determine whether the imports are harming domestic producers and issue a decision by March 6. The CBSA will also investigate whether the imports are being dumped and/or subsidized, and will make a preliminary decision by April 5.

Guy Hachey, Bombardier Aerospace president and COO (left) and Greg Thomas, president and CEO of PrivatAir, signing a CSeries aircraft order.

PHOTO: BOMBARDIER

Bombardier wins $309M CSeries sales TORONTO: Geneva-based PrivatAir has placed an order for a potential $636 million worth of Bombardier Aerospace’s CS100 airliners.

There is a firm order for five of the CSeries aircraft still in the design phase worth $309 million and an option to purchase five more for a total of $636 million.

PrivatAir, founded more than 30 years ago, operates a large fleet of commercial and business aircraft for private charter and private airline services that provides exclusive business class flights on behalf of several major network airlines. The company has ordered the aircraft as in the allbusiness class configuration.

The CSeries is competing in the 100- to 149-seat market. So far Bombardier has 11 customers for the more fuel-efficient aircraft that it claims will offer airlines a 15% operating cost and 20% fuel burn advantage.

Empire sells steel fabrication plants WINNIPEG: Empire Industries Ltd. is staying in the structural steel market, but it’s selling its Empire Iron Works structural steel fabrication operations in Winnipeg and its Hopkins Steel Works facility in Welland, Ont. The buyer is the Supreme Group, an Edmonton-based steel fabricator.

The transaction is valued at $3.8 million plus the value of selected working capital.

“The company remains focused on fabricated steel markets where it has unique advantages such as the oil sands market in Alberta,” said CEO Guy Nelson. Empire will continue to operate its Iron Works facility in Edmonton and its Dynamic Structures facility in Port Coquitlam, BC. The company also plans to introduce its fabricated steel into the Alberta industrial market from its joint venture in China.

Empire Industries manufactures specialized engineered products for the domestic and select international export markets.

It has a 49% ownership stake in ACE Industrial Services that operates in the oil sands industrial maintenance services market, and a 45% share of a Chinese joint venture company in the steel fabrication market in Asia.

The Supreme Group operates companies and business units throughout western Canada and the western US.

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Industry View << Departments

Ontario scores B- on regulatory reform

Red tape report card shows improvement in several provinces TORONTO: Ontario’s manufacturers can look forward to a little less red tape from the provincial government, according to research by the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB).

It has released national grades for Canada’s governments in its Red Tape Report Card and Ontario is making progress on being accountable for the 386,251 regulatory requirements it places on individuals and businesses, says the CFIB. The report card evaluates federal and provincial performance in political leadership, measuring the burden and constraints on regulators.

“For making progress in most of these areas, Ontario deserves CFIB proclaims BC red-tape cutting champ.

PHOTO: THINKSTOCK a B- for their performance – a big the regulatory burden on small business by 25% – improvement over the C- they got in 2011,” said commit to a new target.

Satinder Chera, CFIB’s vice-president for Ontario.

• Continue to measure and publicly report on The Canadian association representing small the number of regulatory requirements. and medium-sized businesses estimates that • Legislate the requirement to pubgovernment red tape costs Ontario licly report the number of regulations. businesses $11 billion each year.

NATIONAL RED TAPE CFIB assigns top marks to BC, However, red tape reform must REPORT CARD which recently passed first-of-its-kind continue, said Chera. “The on• BC (B+ to A) legislation requiring an annual report going proliferation of regulations • NL (B to B) on regulation. from the Ministry of Labour and • Federal (C+ to B) Several provinces and the federal the Workplace Safety and Insur• Quebec (C+ to B-) government improved their grades ance Board (WSIB) isn’t helping.”

• Saskatchewan (C+ to B-) over last year.

CFIB says Ontario must do the • New Brunswick (C- to C+) Nova Scotia’s grade took the bigfollowing in 2012: • Ontario (C- to B-) gest tumble, while Manitoba, PEI and • Deliver on Premier Dalton • Nova Scotia (B to D) the Northwest Territories all received McGuinty’s pre-election promise to • Alberta (F to D) failing grades for making little or no small business by making Labour • Yukon (F to D) progress. and WSIB regulations a focus for • Manitoba (F to F) Visit www.cfib-fcei.ca for a copy reform.

• PEI (D to F) of the CFIB’s Red Tape Report Card • Build on McGuinty’s previous • NWT (F to F) 2012. commitment to reduce by 2011

Polyurethane foam companies guilty of price fixing OTTAWA: A manufacturer of foam products and its affiliate pleaded guilty to participating in a polyurethane price fixing cartel that was active for more

than a decade.

The federal Competition Bureau said Domfoam International Inc. and Valle Foam Industries (1995) Inc. pleaded

>> Feedback

Taking back manufacturing I was encouraged by your TBM editorial and article in the November/December 2011 edition of PLANT magazine. We can take back manufacturing in Canada and the US. Raising awareness and getting people to think and work towards this goal is an important first step. We have the resources, the people, the education and a relatively stable business environment to get the job done.

I have set up the “Reshore Ontario” Group on LinkedIn to provide likeminded professionals with a forum for sharing their specific needs and available capabilities.

I encourage you to join our group and to invite others in your network to do so as well.

Together we can make a difference.

Norbert Friedel, P.Eng Waterloo, Ont. We’d like to hear from you. Send letters to jterrett@plant.ca with your name, address and phone number. Letters will be edited.

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guilty to conspiracy under the Competition Act and were fined $12.5 million for participating in the cartel.

Domfoam and Valle Foam admitted before the Ontario Superior Court in Ottawa they had agreed with competitors to fix the price of polyurethane foam products manufactured at their plants in Brampton, Ont., Delta, BC and Montreal over a period of 11 years.

The companies’ products are used mainly in carpet underlay, furniture and bedding.

This is the first conviction under Canada’s amended criminal price-fixing law, which reduced the burden of proof in line with competition laws in other countries.

Charges arose from the Competition Bureau’s investigation, which began in February 2010 after two companies approached it through the immunity and leniency programs.

Bri-Chem now producing 30-in. pipe

EDMONTON: Bri-Chem Corp., a manufacturer of oil and gas drilling fluids, steel pipe and piping products, has successfully manufactured the first 30-inch seamless steel pipe in North America at its Edmonton plant.

The Bri-Steel Manufacturing Inc. facility produced 150 tons of the standard thickness, seamless pipe at its thermal pipe expansion mill and is being shipped to customers in the US. The plan is to produce large-diameter pipe for the North American market.

Finished pipe produced at the mill will range in outside diameter from 14 to 36 inches and will be sold in single and double random lengths.

Whiting wins Argentine plant deal NIAGARA, Ont.: Whiting Equipment Canada Inc. has won a contract with the global mining giant Vale to supply equipment for a multi-million dollar greenfield potash plant in Argentina.

The company, a Niagara Falls, Ont. manufacturer of custom equipment for the chemical and metallurgical industries, said it will supply salt evaporators and potash crystallizers for Vale’s Potasio Rio Colorado plant in Argentina’s Mendoza Province.

In a statement, the company described the US$150-million to $300-million potash crystallization plant as the world’s first new greenfield mining project of its size in more than 40 years and is at the heart of Vale’s US$4.2 billion investment in Argentina.

Whiting Equipment Canada, a subsidiary of Whiting Corp. in Monee, Ill., will be using technology developed by sister company Swenson Technology Inc. First applied in Saskatchewan 50 years ago, solution mining uses water to dissolve potash

from deep underground ore zones. Salt and potash are separated from the brine through fractional crystallization and the water is removed from the slurries and pumped back into the well to dissolve more potash.

Construction of the plant is to begin in December 2012 and it’s to be operational by January 2014, producing 2.4-million tonnes of potash per year (tpa), with potential phased-in increases to 4.2-million tpa before 2020.

The new operation will increase world production by 5% in a current market of about 50-million tpa. Canada is the largest producer (35%) and China is the largest consumer (27%).

Whiting Equipment also makes equipment for materials handling and railways, mass transit, and other sectors for world markets.

Vale is one of the world’s biggest miners, with a focus on iron ore, nickel, potash and other minerals.

CAE logs $165M in simulator sales MONTREAL: CAE has sold five Level D full-flight simulators (FFS) worth more than $65 million to customers in Asia, and military contracts totalling more than $100 million.

The Montreal-based flight simulator and aerospace training company said the contracts include major upgrades to CC-130H full-mission and CH-146 helicopter simulators for Canada’s A CAE3000 helicopter mission trainer.

Department of National Defence;

PHOTO: CAE long-term support services for Professional Way in Malaysia’s AW139 full-flight simulator; two Tornado maintenance trainers for the German Air Force and Royal Air Force; and two contracts from undisclosed customers to provide a CAE 3000 Series helicopter simulator and related training services.

The Asia contracts include Airbus A320 and Boeing 737 simulators to Air China, a Boeing 737 to Shandong Airlines of China, an A320 to the new Cebu Pacific-CAE joint venture aviation training centre in the Philippines, and an A320 for Alpha Aviation Group’s flight training academy in the Philippines.

CAE also received contracts for CAE Simfinity integrated procedures trainers and for simulator update services from several airlines.

The company employs more than 7,500 people at more than 100 sites and training locations in more than 20 countries.

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Departments

>> Industry View

Teledyne DALSA sensors to guide rover on Mars

India Coast Guard using Obzerv cameras

WATERLOO, Ont.: Teledyne DALSA has sent its sensors on a trip to Mars, embedded in special cameras used on a roving laboratory launched Nov. 26 that will explore the planet’s surface.

The NASA-designed CCD sensors manufactured by Teledyne DALSA in Bromont, Que. will be part of the navigation and hazard avoidance systems on the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) Rover.

The Curiosity Rover will use four black and white Navcam A virtual MSL Rover demonstrating its curiousity.

PHOTO: TELEDYNE DALSA cameras mounted on a pan/tilt mast two metres above the to make its own safety choices. ground with a 45-degree field of view that will use visible light The cameras each have a 120-degree field of view and pairs of to gather panoramic, three-dimensional imagery providing a Hazcam images map out the shape of the terrain as far as three complementary view of the terrain. metres in front of the vehicle in a wedge shape that’s over four The black and white Hazcams mounted on the lower portion metres wide at the farthest distance. of the front and rear of the vehicle safeguards the rover against Teledyne getting lost or inadvertently crashing into unexpected obsta09 FLIR Complete Solutions e60 CIEN Feb12:8.125x10.875 1/31/12 11:50 AM DALSA’s Page 1Bromont semiconductor wafer foundry has supported NASA’s missions to Mars since 1997. cles, and works in tandem with software that allows the vehicle

Get the

QUEBEC: Obzerv Technologies Inc. has won a contract to supply 46 of its ARGC-2400 night-vision cameras to an Indian defence supplier.

Bharat Electronics Ltd., based in Bangalor, the capital of the southern state of Karnataka in India, will be integrating the electro-optic cameras into a multisensor coastal surveillance system.

The Quebec City company said each system to be supplied to Indian Coastguard will include: the ARGC-2400, a thermal imager, a radar station and meteorological sensors, all of which will be mounted on lighthouses and towers.

Radar and thermal imager equipment will detect intrusions from the sea, while the ARGC-2400 cameras will classify and identify those targets and provide “situational awareness” for potential countermeasures to a threat.

As a result of the 2008 Mumbai attack, India’s Coast Guard was mandated to implement surveillance for monitoring and identifying vessels day or night.

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Bombardier Aerospace has named former General Motors executive Mike Arcamone president of its commercial aircraft division, which is in the process of developing the company’s lightweight, composite and more fuel-efficient CSeries aircraft. The commercial division has also appointed Stephen Young vice-president, sales, aircraft leasing companies. He moves up from senior director.

Energy industry manufacturer McCoy Corp. in Edmonton has appointed Jim Nowotny senior vice-president of drilling and completions, replacing the retiring David Buck. Nowotny comes from Atwood Oceanics, an international offshore drilling company where he was director of marketing and business development.

Christopher Nutt has replaced the retiring Michael Blair as CEO of Automodular Corp., an automotive parts manufacturer. Nutt was president of the Ajax, Ont. company.

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Structural steel manufacturer Supermétal, based in Saint-Romuald, Que., has added Sylvie Boulanger to its management team as vice-president, technical marketing.

Previously she was Quebec regional manager of the Canadian Institute of Steel Construction (CISC).

Industrial valve manufacturer Velan Inc. in Montreal has appointed Stephen Cherlet COO. He was executive vice-president of operations.

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Economy << Departments EXPORTS AND IMPORTS $ billions seasonally adjusted 45

Exports Imports

43 41

SOURCE: STATISTICS CANADA

39 37 35 33 31 29 27

N J 2008

J 2009

J 2010

N 2011

Canada’s merchandise exports increased in November by 3.2%, while imports declined 0.8%. That created a trade balance with the world, switching from a deficit of $487 million in October to a surplus of $1.1 billion.

MANUFACTURING SALES

US to power ecocomic growth

T

seasonally adjusted

Current dollars 2002 constant dollars

SOURCE: STATISTICS CANADA

$ billions 56 54 52 50 48 46 44 42 40 38 36 34 32 30 N J 2008

J 2009

J 2010

N 2011

Manufacturing sales rose 2% in November to $49.6 billion, the fourth increase in five months. Gains came from machinery, petroleum/coal products and motor vehicles. Fourteen of 21 industries reported higher sales. Gains came from durable (2.4%) and non-durable goods (1.5%).

WHOLESALE SALES

$ billions 52 50 48 46

SOURCE: STATISTICS CANADA

44 42 40 38 36

Chained (2002) dollars Current dollars

34 32

N J 2008

J 2009

J 2010

ECONOMIC DE VELOPMENTS AND TRENDS

N

he rest of the world may be hanging by a thread because of malignant debt crisis eating away at the European economy, but the US is looking good.

Good enough, in fact, to power the world economy this year.

At least, that’s the view from Export Development Canada (EDC), Canada’s export credit agency, in its Global Export Forecast.

“Many risks still cloud the outlook, but the recent, steady and broad-based increase in US economic activity is a key development that suggests the US will be the world’s engine of growth in 2012,” said Peter Hall, EDC’s chief economist.

Aside from apprehensive consumers and business, the EDC identifies the key risks plaguing growth as heightened political turbulence (Iran), BRIC economies “softening” while financial issues are bogging down developed economies.

Yet the US is gaining momentum despite all the gloom in the rest of the world and Hall noted this progress is broadly based – not dependent on public stimulus.

Weakness in Europe will impede world economic advancement, but the EDC said the US and Japan will power the world ahead of last year’s pace and “enable emerging markets to stay their course.”

The forecast is 3.7% growth this year, slightly ahead of 3.5% in 2011. And momentum will accelerate barring unforeseen “interruptions.”

Canada will become more dependent on external factors to power economic growth as consumers pull back because of debt and a stretched housing market.

EDC noted weak commodity prices will pull down

trade numbers this year. Export growth will reach 6% compared to 11% last year, with energy trending flat, metals up 3.2% and the agri-food sector showing just 2.7% growth.

“However, in each case, weakening prices are a huge factor; volume shipments will still be growing strongly,” Hall said. “Success is more obvious in other sectors.

Higher US housing activity will help forestry exports to a 12% gain, the aerospace sector is in for a 16% boost, and the automotive industry can expect 21%.”

HIRING MODERATE IN Q1 Canadian manufacturers are forecasting a moderate hiring climate in the first quarter of 2012, and the best prospects overall can be found in Western Canada, according to the latest Manpower Employment Outlook Survey report.

The survey of more than 1,900 Canadian employers in all categories shows 16% plan to increase their payrolls in the first quarter, while 10% anticipate cutbacks and 71% expect to maintain current staffing levels.

The net employment outlook in durables manufacturing is 19%, up from the previous quarter’s 17%.

Manpower Canada, a human resources firm with offices in Toronto, said the results also reflect an improvement from the same period last year when industry employers reported an outlook of 13%.

In non-durables, the outlook is 13% (seasonally adjusted), up from 12% in the previous quarter and 6% over last year.

In Quebec the outlook is 14%, Ontario 13% and Atlantic Canada 12%.

2011

Wholesale sales fell 0.4% to $49 billion in November after six months of consecutive increases. Agricultural supplies and motor vehicles contributed to the decline. The biggest decline came from the miscellaneous subsector (4.4%).

Q3 CAPACITY UTILIZATION

per cent 85

81.1

83 81 77 75

79.5

73 71 69 69.4

67 65

I

II III IV I II III IV I 2008 2008

SOURCE: STATISTICS CANADA

84.3

79

II III IV I II III IV I II III 2009 2010 2011

Canadian industries operated at 81.3% of their production capacity in the third quarter, up 1.4% from the previous quarter. The increase came from 13 of the 21 major manufacturing industries. Transportation equipment was by far the largest contributor, rising 7.1% to 89.1% following 2.1% in the previous quarter.

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Departments

>> Labour Relations

Time to consider new economic directions

By Jim Stanford

R

ecession, deficits, and deindustrialization: it seems the economic challenges never end. The standard conservative approach to these problems is to grant the private sector more freedom and profits, then wait for corporations to deliver trickle-down progress to all of us – a recipe we’ve been following for a quarter-century.

Problem is, it hasn’t worked. Corporate taxes are down, profits are up and Canadian corporations are sitting on an

We need to do what’s necessary to put Canadians to work and “maximize our economic potential… ” enormous hoard of idle cash (more than a half-trillion dollars and growing), yet investment is still weak (and actually fell in the third quarter). Add to this our lousy trade performance productivity that ranks almost dead last among peer economies.

We can’t keep blaming the rest of the world for our problems. We need to do what’s necessary to put Canadians to work and maximize our economic potential, but the current policy approach is

simply not working.

In recent interviews with financial journalists, Canadian Auto Workers (CAW) union president Ken Lewenza addressed this failure, arguing that policy needs to head in a fundamentally different direction. He called for stronger controls over foreign investment (especially in resources) and urged Ottawa to deflate Canada’s overvalued currency, which is hammering manufacturing, tourism

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Many economists have advocated each one of the proposals advanced

by Lewenza, and many countries have successfully implemented them. Central banks in the US, UK and elsewhere used quantitative easing to stimulate spending when interest rate reductions weren’t enough, and countries such as Japan, Brazil and Switzerland acted to oppose speculative pressures driving up their currencies. So why does Canada accept the word of currency speculators as final and binding? Other oil producers, such as Norway, prohibit foreign takeovers of their resources and use public ownership to ensure citizens rather than global corporations get the maximum benefit from their own oil. Many use equity investments in key firms and industries (directly from the government, or indirectly through national development banks) to nail down domestic jobs and facilities.

If it works for Germany, France, Korea and other successful exporters, why is it “madness” to propose the same for Canada?

Albert Einstein defined insanity as “doing the same thing over and over again, and still expecting different results.” It appears the mantle of madness belongs more appropriately with those who still argue that free trade agreements, corporate tax cuts and union-bashing will finally deliver the prosperity that’s been promised for 25 years, but has yet to arrive.

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and services. He called for the Bank of Canada to stimulate spending through policy tools such as quantitative easing, since near-zero interest rates aren’t doing the trick. He even suggested Ottawa take direct equity positions in strategically important companies, including General Motors (which the government already partly owns) and other key firms, to maximize their presence in Canada.

These ideas (detailed in many documents from the CAW and other progressive organizations) represent a decisive break from the status quo and naturally raise eyebrows among those who accept the precepts of the current approach – namely, that what’s good for business is good for everyone. For example, the Windsor Star’s Chris Vander Doelen ridiculed these arguments as the ravings of a desperate union leader, calling Lewenza’s suggestions “madness” and “lunacy” (Nov. 25). His response was disrespectful, uninformed and undermines the quality of policy dialogue in Canada.

Jim Stanford is an economist with the Canadian Auto Workers (CAW) union, which represents 225,000 workers across the country in 17 different sectors of the economy, and he is a member of the CBC National News Bottom Line economics panel. E-mail cawcomm@caw.ca.

Comments? E-mail jterrett@plant.ca.

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Innovations

>> Automotive

Driving an

EV future

Cash-fuelled electric vehicle industry is about to surge North America’s automotive companies must meet CAFE targets and that means alternatives to combustion-only engines.

By Kim Laudrum

A

l Cormier has a vision. The president and CEO of Electric Mobility Canada, a not-for-profit in Mississauga, Ont. that would like to see the combustion taken out of transportation, dreams of a day when people from coast-to-coast will choose to drive cars with zero harmful emissions. He says the key to doing that and achieving more sustainability in transportation is to promote the development of electric vehicles.

That raises some interesting questions for manufacturers. Who’s going to make them and what’s in it for Canadian assemblers and auto parts makers?

Not that replacing full-on combustion vehicles won’t be a challenge. The infrastructure needed to recharge vehicles that run purely on battery power for a trip of more than 35 kilometres is almost non-existent. True, electric vehicle owners can plug in their cars at home – even using the existing 110-volt grid standard in most Canadian homes – and charge the car battery at offpeak time within about 12 hours, depending on the size of the battery pack. That would be enough for most commuters. Cormier notes the average Canadian daily trip to work is less than 30 kilometres. Installation of higher voltage systems would lessen the time. Anything from an upgrade to a 220-volt system, which is the same needed to run a clothes dryer, to 660 volts, which is what it takes to run a hot tub, would reduce charging times to between three and four hours.

But charging stations along highways will be needed to travel farther than 30 kilometres. North American standards for charger plugs were recently put in place.

He says soon it will be possible to charge an electric

vehicle in just five minutes, about the same time it takes to fill a conventional car tank with gasoline.

It’s important for people to switch to electric vehicles, says Cormier. It won’t affect their lifestyles, but it would reduce emissions, hence climate change. Hydro electricity is cheap, clean and abundant in most provinces, and we’re running out of cheap oil as growing industries in India and China ratchet up the price pressure on oil and gas.

Since 65% of Canada’s electricity is generated by hydro compared to just 20% in the US, he contends it just makes sense for Canada to push for electric vehicles.

But there is another reason for the automotive industry to look beyond internal combustion.

“We need to develop electric vehicles and hybrids to hit the 2016 environmental standards in NAFTA,” says Steve Rodgers, president of the Automotive Parts Manufacturers’ Association (APMA).

That goal requires automakers to reach corporate average fuel economy (CAFE) standards of 35.5 miles per gallon (mpg) by 2016. Last July, an increasingly tighter CAFE goal of 54.5 mpg by 2025 was announced. There is some consensus that reaching such a goal with the existing internal combustion engine technology alone would be difficult.

Governments are providing incentives to ignite sales.

Ontario offers a cash rebate of between $5,000 and $8,500 for grid-connected EVs purchased or leased after July 1, 2010 based on the vehicle’s battery capacity. The Quebec government offers similar tax credits.

EVs defined Hybrid electric vehicle (HEV): It uses an on-board rechargeable energy storage system and a fuel-based power source for vehicle propulsion. Capturing kinetic energy through regenerative braking recharges the batteries.

Plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV): An extension of hybrid vehicle technology, but with greater capacity and a different battery pack that recharges from the electricity grid. This allows for some electric-only driving, typically for distances between 20 and 60 kilometres, sufficient to meet the needs of most commuting and other urban-based trips. The electric-only range can be extended if recharging is available at work or shopping destinations. These vehicles get better fuel economy than a standard hybrid vehicle because they rely mostly on electricity for short trips.

Plug-in hybrids overcome the range limitation of a battery electric vehicle and thus eliminate one of the most important concerns that some consumers have about electric vehicles.

Battery electric vehicles (BEV): There’s no gasoline engine. All the power needs are supplied by the battery, which is recharged from the electricity grid. Electric motors and controls are similar to those of HEVs and PHEVs, but the battery has greater capacity because it provides all the range and power needed for acceleration and accessories such as air conditioning and heating.

BEVs have been available in small numbers for about 20 years, mainly in demonstration fleets. Although in the past there has been interest in them, full commercial introduction has been delayed because all elements of the technology were not ready at a performance level or cost that consumers would be willing to pay.

Recent progress in battery technology allows for improved vehicle range with reduced battery weight, and as a result several manufacturers will soon begin offering them.

Driving an electric vehicle: Electric motors are quiet and, unlike those with gasoline engines, have maximum torque available at low speed.

Source: Ontario Ministry of Transportation

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Now that the standards for the plug-in connection to electric cars are in place, the Canadian government is kick-starting the development of a potential network.

In September 2011 the feds announced the Eco Energy Innovation Initiative, a $97-million fund for renewable and clean electricity demonstrations – including infrastructure needs, such as charging stations for electric transportation.

Battery demand booming Auto parts maker Magna International Inc. and Magna E-car, which is a partnership between the Stronach group and Magna International, is investing $432 million to develop EV technology over the next six years.

Of this total, the of Ontario government is providing $48.4 million to bring to market emission-reducing cars such as battery-electric vehicles (BEV); plug-in hybrids (PHEVs), which combine battery-electric power with a traditional internal combustion engine; and hybrid vehicles (HEVs) powered by electric motors and gasoline. No wonder Magna head Don Walker commented: “There’s a lot of activity going on in the hybrid and electric space.”

IDC Energy Insights is predicting global production of lithium-ion batteries used in plug-in vehicles will almost quadruple in 2012.

Its report, Business Strategy: Lithium Ion Manufacturing Global Buildout – Supply and Demand Forecasts, says manufacturing capacity will grow 390% worldwide from 6,689 megawatt hours (MWh) in 2011 to 26,149 MWh in 2015.

The Farmingham, Mass. research firm says plug-in electric vehicles will require more than seven times the 2011 production level, rising to 17,331 MWh by 2015.

North America will lead the demand in the coming year, however Asia will quickly eclipse North America.

A lithium ion battery costs about $7,500. If battery costs fall as expected, IDC Energy sees global demand for batteries rising 447% from 5,411 MWh in 2011 to 24,191 MWh in 2015.

To meet this demand, manufacturers worldwide are engaging in one of the largest factory build-outs in world

January/February 2012

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Preparing Ford Focus Electric for the battery (right) at the Michigan Assembly Plant.

PHOTOS: FORD

technology such as lightweight panels and advanced composite structures – anything that can help improve lightweighting.

Stamping companies could see new work here. Firms with expertise in heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) could also benefit by providing systems for cooling batteries. And low rolling resistance tires will be needed because the weight distribution is different in battery-run cars.

Cormier anticipates electric vehicle sales will stimulate work for power conditioning systems, chargers, transformers, electronic and electric equipment.

Not buying the hype

history, which IDC Energy says is led by a combination of existing battery giants, such as Panasonic in Japan, Samsung SDI in South Korea, and Johnson Controls in the US, as well as emerging players such as A123 Systems in the US, Electrovaya in Canada and BYD in China.

Steve Rodgers points out there are emerging opportunities for auto parts makers who can provide critical EV

EV developments • Magna E-car developed a battery-powered compact Focus for Ford Motor Co. Other Magna divisions are doing research into lightweight components such as those made of aluminum and magnesium as auto makers try to cut weight in structural components to offset the heavy battery packs that will provide power for electric vehicles.

• Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada Inc. will build the electric version of its RAV4 crossover in Woodstock, Ont. • Dana Holding Corp. is investing $37 million to build heat exchangers for batteries at a plant in Cambridge, Ont. The province is contributing $2 million to the Dana program.

• Electrovaya Inc. of Mississauga, Ont. recently announced a government contribution of $16.7 million to support its $94.8-million expansion. Electrovaya’s advanced lithium-ion battery technology allows electric cars to drive farther on a single charge than those produced by other manufacturers.

Installing the upper battery.

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“No doubt (EV is) an important technology,” Rodgers says, although based on current battery technology, “it remains true that it will have a more limited impact on production volumes in the short-term simply because the range is not where it needs to be yet and the cost-benefit ratio just isn’t positive overall at this point. But that’s not to say we won’t continue to see improvements going forward.”

Not everyone is keen on the market potential of electric vehicles. Automotive consultant Dennis DesRosiers says he doesn’t buy the hype. It’s not because of the lack of infrastructure or concerns about the technology itself. He acknowledges the infrastructure is possible and the technology does meet the environmental requirements of the future. He just doesn’t see the consumer buying such low-range vehicles, citing declining sales of hybrid electric vehicles over the past decade and the consumers’ lack of enthusiasm for electric vehicles in general.

DesRosiers notes that car manufacturers have made inroads into improving fuel consumption per gallon. He cites Ford’s Ecoboost program as demonstrated in the new Ford Explorer, Chrysler’s Pentastar technology on its Grand Cherokee, and BMW’s diesel-fuelled, lightweighted X1 as examples.

“I believe all roads lead to electric vehicles,” says DesRosiers. “But I don’t think we’ll have 10% market penetration until at least 2040.”

Consumer affordability is key. Ford plans to roll out more electric vehicles in the near future but expects the higher price sticker will mean a smaller, niche market for these cars. While that market is developing Ford is concentrating on technologies like the EcoBoost engine that will help improve the fuel efficiency of its existing fleet. So notes Steve Ross, product marketing manager for sustainability and electrification for Ford Motor Co. Canada Ltd.

On the way to the next assembly point.

The Ecoboost engine, Ford boasts, can deliver 10% to 20% better fuel economy and 15% fewer CO2 emissions.

It offers similar performance to the larger-displacement engines, can be applied to existing gasoline engines, and will be implemented across Ford’s vehicle fleet.

“We are on track to equip as much as 80% of our global line-up and 90% of our North American line-up with EcoBoost engines by 2013,” Ross wrote: “That’s about 1.5 million engines.”

In addition to new engine and transmission technologies, Ford is introducing new electrical system improvements, weight reductions and better aerodynamics to deliver improved fuel-economy benefits for millions of drivers in the near term.

Continued on page 12

Hybrid highlights There are 23 hybrid (PHEVs or HEVs) now available in Canada, including Toyota’s Prius, which has been on the market for almost a decade. Here are some recent developments of note: Chevrolet Volt HEV Range: 40 to 80 kilometres on battery alone, extends to 500 kilometres with a generator.

Manufacturer’s basic price: $41,545 GM Canada announced the first shipments of the Chevy Volt, equipped with an on-board gasoline powered generator in September.

2012 Nissan Leaf BEV Range: 160 kilometres per charge Manufacturer’s basic price: $32,780

2012 Ford Focus EV BEV Range: Targeting 160 kilometres per charge Manufacturer’s basic price: $41,199 It’s capable of fully recharging in three to four hours at home using the available wall-mounted 240-volt charge station.

Microsoft aids charging at the cheapest utility rates. MyFord Mobile, a smartphone app and website, monitors key vehicle functions and charge settings.

Tesla ModelS BEV Range: 480 kilometres per charge Manufacturer’s basic price: $50,000 The company first introduced its much sought after Roadster Model with a $100,000 price tag. Orders for this year’s release of the Model S sedan have reached 6,500 at the more reasonable $50,000 asking price. Tesla’s CEO Elon Musk says he expects the company will turn a profit in 2013.

Introducing the zero emissions Focus Electric.

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>> Microsensor Networking

EV improvements Jonathon Wu at the microsensor level.

Continued from page 11

Between 2008 and 2013, Ford will have introduced 60 new or upgraded engines, transmissions and transaxles globally to meet more stringent environmental standards, Ross says.

In the US, Ford is investing billions of dollars in advanced technology vehicles thanks to a $25-billion federal incentive program offered through the United States’ Department of Energy (DOE).

Not to be confused with the auto bailout Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP), the DOE program gives direct loans to eligible applicants to produce advanced technology vehicles that meet tough new fuel economy standards. Ford, Nissan and Tesla were among the first companies selected to participate in the program.

Larry Nitz, GM’s executive director of vehicle electrification engineering with electric motor components.

PHOTO: GM

Ford expects to receive $5.9 billion through these loans. This is funding the transformation of the Michigan Assembly Plant, which once made SUVs but is now a flexible, small-car plant. The Michigan plant is producing the Ford Focus and three new EVs including the Focus Electric, and later this year, the next-generation C-MAX Hybrid and the C-MAX Energi – Ford’s first commercially available plug-in hybrid.

As well, Ford announced it expects to roll out the Fusion Hybrid, Fusion Energi (PHEV) and Transit Connect Electric by the end of the year.

With a car population growing five times faster than before with expanding economies in India and China, Cormier says oil prices will be pushed further in the coming years.

“Obviously we can’t cut back on oil everywhere. Air Canada won’t be able to fly electric planes,” he says. “But where it makes sense to make the switch, let’s do it.”

Kim Laudrum is a Toronto-based business writer who specializes in manufacturing issues. E-mail klaudrum@ rogers.com.

Comments? E-mail jterrett@plant.ca.

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PHOTO: AUTO21

and defence sensor networks and in wireless environmental monitoring systems, sensors are usually deployed in open fields or in the ocean where systems are essentially free from interference. In manufacturing, various sources of noise and vibration, plus diverse electrical and electronic systems, greatly influence the performance and efficiency of wireless systems. Because conditions are so different, significant research is needed to develop wireless networks that will work.

But it will take more than hardware to address the challenges posed by an automotive plant. New control software is needed to improve the flexibility and responsiveness of the manufacturing systems.

Since 2008, the AUTO21 Network of Centres of Excellence has supported a distributing sensing and control project for automotive factory automation involving researchers from the University of Windsor, the University of Calgary, and the University of Western Ontario. Several private sector firms and public sector partners also provide support. The goal is to develop an efficient shop-floor sensing and control system to support real-time decision-making.

Project researchers have already developed several technologies to address implementation challenges. Their framework involves matching the control model more closely to the physical system of widely distributed devices in an environment that’s prone to disruptions. With this model, control is achieved by the emergent behaviour of many simple, autonomous and co-operative agents that initiate their own activity.

Fitting multi-agent systems technology to manufacturing problems has led to many applications in this domain.

A node technology has been developed that’s capable of locating mobile objects in 3D co-ordinate space in real-time, indoor environments. In addition to location tracking, the technology also has data networking capability and is simpler and relatively more cost-efficient than existing solutions.

Recent technology innovations overcome impediments to Researchers are also working on a new wireless networking in automotive plants. class of intelligent devices and software modules that support plug-and-participate functionality with wireless connectivity. This

By Jonathon Wu involves the development of agent hosts based on Java and Jini technologies that plan and execute their actions and cooperate o be competitive in today’s business environment, manuto achieve increased productivity. facturers require systems that quickly adapt to change but Although Jini was originally developed by Sun Microsystems meet the increasingly stringent customer demand for highto support self-configuration within office computer networks, quality, customizable, low-cost products that can be delivered the project team focuses on its use in the resource-constrained, quickly. However, the inherent complexity of manufacturing real-time processors of industrial automation systems. A systems make it challenging to do so, but recent innovations in methodology for intelligent wireless connectivity is based on sensing technology show considerable promise of relief. self-organizing 802.11 networks integrated with the Java AppliNew devices contain multiple heterogeneous on-board sencations Development Environment (JADE) platform. sors that are networked through wireless links and are deEfforts are also underway to develop miniaturized smart camployable in large numbers. System-wide deployment of these era technology for use in quality control, assembly and robotic devices is referred to as distributed sensing, and the whole guidance. infrastructure is called a distributed sensor system.

Collectively, these innovations in technology are overcoming Wireless microsensor networking has been identified as one the impediments to establishing distributed sensing systems in of the most important technologies of the 21st century. Indeed, automotive plants. it has resulted in a data-rich environment with both temporally and spatially dense information providing unprecedented opJonathan Wu is a professor at the University of Windsor and portunities for improvements to product quality and productivleads the AUTO21 project “Distributed Sensing and Control ity in the automotive industry. for Automotive Factory Automation.” Visit www.auto21.ca.

But successful applications of smart sensors and communication protocols may not be effective in the harsh, uncertain, Comments? E-mail jterrett@plant.ca. dynamic environments typical of automotive plants. In military

Wireless that Works

R&D in distributed sensing cuts through the shop floor din

T

January/February 2012

12-02-02 2:02 PM

Supply Alert << Sustainability

Metals and minerals

scarcity

Be prepared for supply chain disruptions

PwC’s report says shrinking supplies of critical metals and minerals could seriously affect seven key industrial sectors over the next five years.

W

ith booming economic growth in developing economies adding to the worldwide consumption of natural resources, some critical metals and rare minerals are running short over the next five years, which will have a serious impact on manufacturers and their supply chains, according to research from PwC. The global consulting company surveyed large companies across manufacturing, chemicals, automotive, energy/ renewable energy, aviation, metals, infrastructure and high-tech hardware to see what impact shortages would have and where. It identified seven core-manufacturing industries that could be seriously affected: renewable energy, infrastructure, energy and utilities, automotive, chemicals, high-tech and aerospace. Of these, business leaders in the automotive, chemicals and energy sectors fear

they will be hit hardest.

Among the minerals and metals on the critical list include: • Beryllium. Used as a lightweight component in military equipment and in the aerospace industry.

• Cobalt. Industrial manufacturing uses it machinery and equipment such as jet turbine engines and automotive rechargeable batteries.

• Tantalum. Found in mobile phones, computers and automotive electronics.

• Flurospar. Used in construction, cement, glass, iron and steel castings.

• Lithium. Used in wind turbines and lithium-ion batteries powering hybrid cars.

Seventy-seven per cent of the 69 executives from companies in Asia Pacific, the Americas and Europe consider minerals and metals scarcity to be an important issue for their businesses, but they’re also concerned only 39% of their customers do. PwC said the chemicals and energy/ utilities sectors believe they will be severely impacted until 2016. Indeed, the percentage of chemical businesses that expect to be affected will triple over the next five years.

The report says the risk of scarcity across all sectors will rise significantly, leading to

>> Green Manufacturing

Playing to win: leveraging gamifcation

by Brett Wills

W

ho says games are just for kids? With the proliferation of social media, smart phones, tablets and other devices, many companies realize that leveraging “gamification” to engage employees, suppliers and other stakeholders involved in green and sustainability efforts can lead to epic wins.

Take the Partners in Project Green “People Power Challenge.” Companies in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) are awarded points for completing tasks across three categories in three different challenges related to energy, waste and water. A live leader-board shows which of them are currently “winning” and at the end of the game, the leaders in each challenge along with an overall leader receive cash prizes that go towards a green initiative suggested by an employee during the game. The result: companies drive employee engagement and awareness, receive innovative ideas for projects, have the opportunity to raise capital for green projects and have a positive impact on the environment.

The success of this program shows just how much interest there is in gaming. With

more than 500 million players in the world, harnessing this power will help raise green and sustainability programs to the next level.

Here are a few game ideas: 1. Carpooling. Set up a board or web page that connects employees and match up routes to encourage carpooling with points awarded based on distance travelled, trips taken, etc.

2. Acts of green. Similar to the CBC’s Million Acts of Green, employees are awarded points for completing acts of green at work or home.

3. Pay it forward. Looking at social sustainability, design a game that awards employees for completing random acts of kindness for colleagues or even strangers.

4. Biggest loser. Award employees points based on “losing” waste from their desks, work areas, departments, and across the plant for prizes or awards.

Brett Wills is the director of the Green Enterprise Movement and a senior consultant with High Performance Solutions in Cambridge, Ont. E-mail bwills@hpsinc.ca.

Lithium is used in electric vehicle batteries like this one.

PHOTO: THINKSTOCK

supply instability and potential disruptions in the next five years, but this will also create opportunities for competitive advantage. For example, the survey shows that while 80% of automotive respondents are currently worried about reserves running out, only 33% in aviation are.

Renewable energy (78%), automotive (64%) and energy and utilities (57%) are all currently experiencing instability of supply. Aviation, high tech and infrastructure sectors also anticipate rising supply disruptions from now to 2016.

Exploding prices When asked about other concerns reguarding scarcity, 84% cited an increase in demand, 78% said it was geopolitics, and 72% said extraction shortage.

PwC said prices for dysprosium (used in super magnets) and tantalum (used in electronics) have exploded in recent years. China currently supplies 97% of the world’s rare earth metals. With growing demand from its own manufacturers, it has tightened quotas for some rare metals used in high-tech products and reduced the number of companies allowed to sell abroad to 11 from 26.

Canada and other countries with rare earth metal deposits stopped mining them in the 1990s when lower-cost Chinese exports flooded world markets.

With surging demand and supply shortages, many countries, including Canada, are developing these resources and some will be producing within three years.

Survey respondents identified other ways to address supply concerns, chief among them resource efficiency, followed by alliances with suppliers, supplier diversification, more R&D, more re-use and more geodiplomacy. PwC said more extraction and relocating production scored less strongly.

Malcolm Preston, PwC’s global sustainability leader, said a key challenge for business will be drawing the line between collaboration and competitive advantage. “This is where strategic decision making meets sustainability. Getting this right will define the winners and losers of the future.”

For a copy of Minerals and metals scarcity in manufacturing: the ticking time bomb, visit www.pwc.com/sustainability.

Comments? E-mail jterrett@plant.ca.

Have you assessed your metals risk?

10 tips to prevent shortages 1. Develop a set of leading risk indicators that’s forward-looking and based on continuous monitoring and analysis of critical resources.

2. Identify all the different types of risk that could affect your supply chain and product portfolio, including factors such as physical risks (just not there), economic risks (volatile pricing) and geopolitical risks (political barriers).

3. Match risks with appropriate remedial measures such as inventory cushions and strategic stock piling, dual sourcing, dialogue with suppliers and R&D on the substitution of resources at risk.

4. Put effective systems in place across your supply chain to identify and act on early warning signs or, in the case of a sudden scarcity risk, to supply real-time information and enable fast implementation of preventive measures.

5. Consult suppliers and customers to investigate new business models to reduce resource scarcity risks.

6. Look for opportunities in your sector to take an integrated, sustainable approach to the supply chain.

7. Identify and promote the environmental, economic and social added value of your products and feed this back into product development.

8. Have modern process-control systems in place to manage production in ways that reduce or eliminate waste and, in turn, ensure minimal use of scarce resources such as energy, water, metals, minerals and other scarce inputs.

9. Evaluate the potential of initiatives such as extending product life, take-back programs, extended product responsibility and closing the loop in your product design to reinforce customer relationships and sustain revenue streams, as well as boosting environmental sustainability.

10. Have effective lifecycle assessment and ‘cradle-to-cradle’ strategies to design out or minimize harmful impacts and maximize benefits for any give production process.

Source: PwC

Comments? E-mail jterrett@plant.ca.

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Management

>> Exporting

India’s market potential A World of opportunity and contrasts

By Mark Drake

I

ndia! What images come to mind? Taj Mahal and other top tourist attractions; the world’s largest democracy; a huge population; and great wealth alongside extreme poverty? All of these for sure, but for me it also brings back memories of three years spent there as a young marketing manager. An exciting place in which to live; but to do business? Not so much.

India is now on the list of major potential markets for Canada, so what has changed in the last 40 years? In the 1960s India was a sclerotic, centrally governed country, well described by The Economist as “the licence Raj: a surreal mix of Soviet stupidity, British pedantry and Indian improvisation.”

Licences were required for almost everything (especially imports and exports) and its bureaucracy beat all others. Corruption was everywhere – especially in the contracting and construction sectors.

The tourist sites are still as wonderful, but the population has tripled to 1.2 billion, and above all the business climate has changed following a significant move towards liberalization in 1991. There followed an immediate influx of foreign investment, especially in the consumer goods area (think of all those consumers and abundant cheap labour), and also in telecoms, technology, air travel and health care.

However, government still looms large (40% of the top 100 companies are state-owned) and dominates in energy and finance – but (surprise!) usually with pathetically weak operations. Nevertheless, a strong entrepreneurial culture has developed under the new business climate and many company operations are vertically integrated to overcome the appalling infrastructure (especially transport and power).

Large Indian companies (many of them privately, even family owned) went international – think Infosys (ICT), Novelis (aluminium), Corus (steel), Tata, Mahindra and Reliance (conglomerates).

In a further move towards liberalization, India has promised to open up its huge retail sector to global chains like Wal-Mart (51%/49% with a local partner).

One challenge for them will be supplying profitable products that can be bought by the very poor while appealing to the growing middle class.

But that is not the only challenge.

There is still plenty of red tape to untangle, the courts are slow and often corrupt (a problem for intellectual property or contract enforcement issues), and restrictive import and export regulations remain. In spite of recent efforts to eradicate it, graft is ever-present. As Canada’s Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade (DFAIT) so deli-

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“

DFAIT’s forecasts suggest India will be the world’s third largest economy by 2050…

”

Iwan of Taj Mahal, one of India’s many big tourist draws.

cately puts it: there’s “low transparency in the contracting process.”

On the other hand, India continues to be a source of abundant cheap labour, which IBM has taken advantage of with 100,000 local employees. DFAIT points out that India also has some excellent higher education establishments that lead in mathematics, science and engineering, and they’re producing a large core of well-educated English speaking professionals.

Trade deal underway DFAIT’s forecasts suggest India will be the world’s third largest economy by 2050 and the Canadian government is keen to promote the country as a good market. Currently, annual twoway trade is only about $4 billion, but a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) covering trade in goods and services is under negotiation.

This should open things up, creating GDP gains of more than US$6 billion for each partner, particularly in the primary agriculture, resources, chemicals and transport equipment areas. For India the agreement would open up the Canadian market primarily for textiles. There is also a Foreign Investment Protection Agreement (FIPA) in place and both countries encourage mutual investment in goods and services.

As always, there is a wealth of information available at the click of a mouse.

First stop should be Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada (www. international.gc.ca) for a direct link to the Trade Commissioner Service (www. tradecommissioner.gc.ca). You’ll find information about trade agreements,

PHOTO: THINKSTOCK

bilateral relations, travel advisories, economic conditions in the market, plus detailed reports on important sectors of interest to Canadian companies. For example, recent reports (2010/2011) cover agriculture, automotive, life sciences (bio-industries and health care), education, power generation, environmental, ICT, metals, oil and gas transport and financial services. Register for these reports online.

Excellent economic information is also available from Export Development Canada (www.edc.ca). EDC offers all its usual services in India and has offices in Delhi and Mumbai. Another useful organization is the Canada-India Business Council (C-IBC) which has been going since 1982, and has among its 100 members most of the major players trading and investing in the Canada-India corridor.

Toronto is said to have the largest Indian population outside the subcontinent, so there should also be some good opportunities through links with this diaspora.

Finally, you’ll find a regular source of up-to-date information from Canadexport – a free monthly on-line publication by the Trade Commissioner Service (www.canadaexport.ca). In the Nov. 10 issue, for example, two important trade shows were listed: Petrocoal Congress in New Delhi, Feb. 15-17, and an ICT (primarily TV/broadcasting) convention in Mumbai, March 14-16.

India is a massive market, but like so many developing countries, it has challenges. Of course that’s what makes international trade such fun, and a visit to the Taj Mahal would certainly provide relief.

Mark Drake is former president of Electrovert Ltd. and the Canadian Exporters’ Association. E-mail corsley@ videotron.ca.

Comments? E-mail jterrett@plant.ca.

>> Improvements Funding

Get SMART about productivity $18.9M CME program for Southern Ontario companies

T

here’s $18.9 million available through a Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters program for companies in Southern Ontario planning productivity improvement projects.

Manufacturers that are exporting, planning to export, or selling into an export supply chain and planning productivity assessments or improvements can apply for the funding provided by the Federal Economic Development Agency (FedDev) through CME’s SMART Prosperity Now program.

Funding will help companies commercialize new technologies, enter new domestic and foreign markets, invest in sustainable and green technology, purchase new or upgraded equipment and technology, and implement efficiency improvements.

Assessments are eligible for funding of up to half the costs to a maximum of $5,000. Productivity enhancement projects are eligible for up to 33.3% of costs to a maximum of $75,000.

Projects under FedDev Ontario’s Prosperity Initiative must: • accelerate the adoption of new technologies, processes and skills; • diversify the regional economy by increasing the number of new industries or opportunities that will have a long-term impact on regional economic diversity; and • build a competitive advantage by creating or expanding economic clusters and enhance their global competitiveness.

CME will be hosting a series of workshops throughout the region in the coming months to help businesses navigate the initiative.

Check out the SMART program website at www.cme-smart.ca for details..

January/February 2012

12-02-08 11:16 AM

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Management

>> Risk >> HR

Resolving conflict Six steps to keeping the peace

By Mark Borkowski

O Food manufacturers are on the front line when it comes to ensuring the safety of their production.

PHOTO: THINKSTOCK

Ready for a

PRODUCT recall?

Develop a plan that protects everyone Make risk management a top priority that includes a recall strategy.

By Glenn Fraser and Cliff Trollope

A

reporter contacts your company to ask for a comment on a hazard alert for one of your products. You receive notice of a lawsuit from a legal firm. A consumer reports an illness caused by one of your products. When unexpected situations arise, suddenly your company’s reputation – even its survival – may be at risk.

Would you know what to do?

The risks and impacts associated with a recall are high. It can happen to virtually any manufacturer – regardless of how much attention is devoted to the product. Quality assurance may reduce recall risks, but it can’t eliminate them. This is especially true in the food and beverage sector, which is particularly vulnerable to recalls. With the rapid growth of Canada’s food processing industry, companies are at the front line when it comes to ensuring the safety of their production. (In fact, the federal government announced in December that it’s working on new food safety legislation to improve consumer protection.)

Make risk management a top priority and addressing a potential recall should be part of the strategy. It’s essential to reassure customers, regulators, retailers, distributors – even bankers and insurers – that doing business with your company is a safe undertaking.

A documented and practiced action plan will help protect your company and your customers, while limiting your liability if the worst happens. All aspects of the crisis must be managed. Your company’s recall plan will be specific to your organization’s needs, but it should include the following basic components: • Recall team. Identify the individuals and departments (for example, representatives from management, quality assurance, technical, legal, regulatory and communication) who would be involved in a recall and outline their responsibilities.

• Complaint process. A documented process identifies unsafe products and corrects problems. The process should encompass information gathering, investigation and taking appropriate action.

• Food safety plan. Food and beverage processors need a food safety plan to address stringent government policies and regulations. These plans relate to safe food handling and manufacturing processes, and ways to keep food secure throughout the supply chain.

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• Traceability system. It quickly tracks products from suppliers through processing and packaging to finished product and distribution. This is especially important for food and beverage processors that must limit the scope of a recall and facilitate the rapid removal of problem products from distribution.

• Production records. They’ll help you quickly determine the amount of product within or beyond the control of your organization by generating accurate distribution records with lot codes of each product produced.

Would your company survive a recall? Consider these questions: • Do you know what kind of impact a recall could have on your business and the reputation of your brand?

• Can you financially withstand the downtime caused by a recall?

• Have you calculated the effect of lost customer confidence and reduction in profit?

• Do you have a contingency plan to maintain operations in the event of a significant disruption?

• Have you identified areas of high risk or possible points of weakness or failure in your supply chain?

• Do you have a plan to mitigate or prevent these risks?

You need to identify and document the specific steps your company will take to identify problems with products, possible causes and solutions. These steps might include, for example, convening the recall team, conducting a risk assessment, stopping production or delivery, notifying appropriate regulatory bodies, and establishing internal and external communications.

Conduct tests through simulation exercises and update them on a regular basis to ensure your recall plan works when needed and the team has been properly trained.

Once you have documented and tested your recall plan, communicate it to employees and your supply chain partners. Their understanding will help to ensure a recall is conducted in an efficient, co-ordinated manner.

Don’t procrastinate when developing a plan. If a crisis arises there won’t be enough time to devise an effective solution. After all, when customers or consumers think about your brand, you want them to regard your products as healthy and trustworthy – not to recall that your products were recalled.

Glenn Fraser is the leader of the Greater Toronto Region Food & Ag Processing team of MNP LLP (www.MNP.ca). E-mail glenn.fraser@mnp.ca. Cliff Trollope is MNP’s Business Resilience Practice Leader. E-mail cliff.trollope@mnp.ca.

ne of the most challenging roles of an effective manager is that of “peacekeeper.” Resolving conflicts in the workplace takes negotiation skill, patience and a healthy dose of emotional intelligence.

Licensed mediator Susan Steinbrecher, an author and the CEO of management consulting firm Steinbrecher and Associates, recommends a conflict resolution model based on six basic steps and these golden rules: listen and respond with empathy; be involved – ask for the other person’s opinion, ideas and thoughts; and affirm self-esteem.

Her six steps are as follows: 1. Discuss the situation in a respectful manner. “John, I noticed you’ve been late a few times this week, which seems out of character for you – you’re always so reliable!” Don’t say, “You are always late.”

This just gets the person’s back up.

2. Be specific. If you say, “I noticed that on Tuesday, Thursday and Friday you were 30 minutes late,” John realizes you are aware of the situation and he has to address the issue. Listen and respond with empathy.

3. Discuss how a conflict (or problem) impacts you, the work group, or the project.

Ask, don’t tell. “John, I am not sure you are aware of the full impact of the conflict between you and Steve. The other employees are witnessing this, and it is making them uncomfortable…What do you feel is going on?”

4. Ask for the specific cause of the conflict. “John, from your perspective, what is happening here? You get along well with most everyone here so what is causing the conflict?” Empathize again after his response, rather than say, “Yes, but you’ve got to get along.” The word “but” negates everything positive you just said.

If you have use a conjunction, pick “and,” as in this example: “Yes, I can imagine the challenge this presents – and we need to come up with a solution. What ideas might you have?”

5. Ask for the solution. For instance, “What do you think you need to do to help solve this situation? What is your next step?” This brings in accountability.

6. Agree on the action to be taken.

Think of it as a recap. “So John, what I am hearing you say is that you are going to talk to Steve (discuss details). When were you thinking of doing that?” Close on a positive note and ask the person to get back to you on the outcome.

Mark Borkowski is president of Torontobased Mercantile Mergers & Acquisitions Corp. Visit www.mercantilemergersacquisitions.com. Susan Steinbrecher is the author of KENSHO: A Modern Awakening. Visit www. steinbrecher.com.

Comments? E-mail jterrett@plant.ca.

Comments? E-mail jterrett@plant.ca.

January/February 2012

12-02-02 11:37 AM

PHOTO: THINKSTOCK

Maintenance << Operations

Extending

BEARING LIFE HOW TO AVOID THE HIGH COST OF PREMATURE FAILURE Focus on specifications, proper lubrication and diligent on-site maintenance.

BY STEVE GAHBAUER

N

othing in a plant runs smoothly and efficiently without bearings, yet their important role is not always well understood so they frequently fail earlier than expected. The result? Costly lost production, although the bearings themselves are relatively inexpensive (typically less than 10% of the machine value).

The lifespan of ball or roller bearings (designed for either radial or axial loads) is influenced by many factors, but two of the most important are lubrication and contamination. According to Swedish bearing manufacturer SKF, 36% of premature bearing failures are caused by incorrect specs and improper lubricant application.

Some bearing companies and tribologists suggest the

>> Motors

HEALTH CHECK: ON- AND OFF-LINE

E

lectric motor analysis and testing is an excellent tool to prevent failures. A combination of on-line and off-line testing is necessary for a complete electrical predictive maintenance program. Together, they provide a picture of the motor’s health.

James Li, condition monitoring product manager at SKF Canada Ltd.’s head office in Toronto, contends the issue is not if a motor will fail electrically, but when.

On-line technologies test motors while operating, providing information about power condition and motor load, including specific diagnostic capabilities and overall system function.

Tests, many available in a networked continuously monitored system, include voltage transients, shaft grounding voltage and current, partial discharge, power and torque analysis, current signature analysis, winding temperature, ultrasound and thermography.

Critical motors at one or more sites can be managed from a single location and statistically analyzed trending limits automatically alert maintenance technicians of developing issues.

Off-line technologies test motors during shutdowns, measuring the integrity of the motor's electromagnetic circuit and

percentage is as high as 50%. Inevitably, any bearing deprived of proper lubrication will fail long before its normal service lifespan.

Because bearings are usually the least accessible machine components, wrong or neglected lubrication compounds the problem. Sealed-for-life bearings, automatic lube systems, and using only lubricants, tools and techniques recommended by bearing manufacturers will alleviate most problems.

Sealed-for-life bearings account for only a small portion of all bearings in use; all others are subject to contamination, a bearing’s worst enemy. Bearing manufacturers strive to improve designs that minimize opportunities for contamination that cause fretting and corrosion. Examples are SKF’s LGAF 3E anti-fretting agent and its LHRP 1 anti-corrosion agent. The former is a greasy, smooth paste specially developed to prevent fretting corrosion between metal surfaces in loose-fit arrangements. The latter provides long-term corrosion protection in both

How are your motors feeling?

PHOTO: THINKSTOCK

insulation system.

Tests include winding resistance, capacitance, insulation resistance, polarization index/dielectric absorption, power factor, breakdown voltage degradation, hipot (high potential) tests, winding inductance and impedance, surge impulse, partial discharge and core loss.

Here is a five-step optimal approach to off-line testing: • Start with low voltage tests of the winding.

• Test ground insulation with tests of increasing voltage.

• Test turn and phase insulation.

• Test stator core during rewinds.

• Test the rotor.

Information was provided at a MainTrain maintenance conference, developed and produced by the Plant Engineering and Maintenance Association of Canada (PEMAC). Most of the technologies are summarized in IEEE 1415 and discussed in various standards from IEEE, EPRI, NEMA, CSA and EASA.

>> Reading List

STLE HANDOOK V3

L

ooking for a handy guide to the wonderful world of lubrication?

The third edition of the Basic Handbook of Lubrication, published by the Society of Tribologists and Lubrication Engineers (STLE) is now available. The follow-up to the out-of-publication second edition oriented to veterans and newcomers sells for $125 to STLE members and $159 to non-members.

Compiled and edited by STLE’s Alberta Section, the 360-page handbook covers some 30 lubrication topics with contributions from 25 authors.

The book is available only through STLE. Order it online at www.stle.org.

STLE is offering the book in spiral-bound and perfect bound formats for the same price.

ferrous and non-ferrous metals. It leaves a stable rust protection film over metal bearing components.

About 16% of failures are the result of poor fitting.

Correct fitting tools and methods for properly mounting and dismounting bearings are available from suppliers. There is no need to use brute force. Simple fatigue accounts for another 34% of premature failure from overloaded machines, abuse, incorrect service or neglect. However, overstressed bearings emit early warning signals that are detected by hand-held instruments, hard-wired systems or continuous monitoring sensors.

Randy Ikonouye, engineering manager for industrial OEM and heavy-duty truck fleets at NTN Bearing Corp.

Canada Ltd. in Mississauga, Ont., recently delivered a presentation about bearing failure analysis and lubrication at the Toronto Section of the Society of Tribologists and Lubrication Engineers (STLE). He noted that although lubricant is an integral component of every bearing system, it’s often overlooked.

Reducing friction Bearing lubrication reduces friction, dissipates friction heat, prevents corrosion and extends service life.

Adequate (not too much, not too little, uncontaminated and properly applied) lubrication is vitally important.

Inadequate lubrication results in spalling or flaking and pitting, and cage failure (due to vibration and moment loading). Heavy and abrasive wear symptoms are excessive bearing heat and discolouration.

Damage is also due to water etching (water, moisture, snow or ice); rust and corrosion resulting from fretting; or contamination caused by improper lubricant storage, mixing incompatible lubricants, and/or not wiping grease fittings before lubrication. When any of these occur, take immediate action by: • keeping a sample of the lubricant; • getting the full story; and • relubricating when possible and at the right time.

Measuring grease noise assesses the quality of lubricated rolling bearings. The latest equipment for this is the Grease Test RigBeQuiet+ developed by the SKF Quality Technology Centre in Steyr, Austria. It assesses cleanliness and damping characteristics.

Bearings are important machine components. Correct choice and fit, the right lubricants and application, plus diligent onsite maintenance will go a long way to preventing premature failure and costly lost production.

For more details about bearing care visit www.ntn. ca, www.skf.ca, www.revolve.com, www.nsk-rhp.ca, www.canadianbearings.com and www.castrol.com/ industrial.

Steve Gahbauer, an engineer and Toronto-based freelance writer, is the former engineering editor of PLANT. E-mail gahbauer@rogers.com.

Comments? E-mail jterrett@plant.ca.

www.plant.ca

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PLANT 17

12-02-02 2:03 PM

Operations

>> Think Lean

Buying for MRO and

production

Rethink materials management by applying TCOP The total cost of procurement model will eliminate a lot of hidden costs and make your materials management process much more productive.

By Richard Kunst

T

here’s more to purchasing MRO and production items than getting the lowest price. Using the total cost of procurement (TCOP) model will help you rethink sourcing and materials management to achieve improved productivity and add to the bottom line.

When sourcing and developing longterm supplier relationships for regularly consumed products, a TCOP checklist identifies which customized services and guarantees to request in exchange for long-term commitments while guiding a materials-management team’s re-thinking and re-structuring of the materials, paper and information flow.

There are two main categories of procurement costs when a firm buys items that are not instantly consumed: buying and holding, which subdivide into buying costs (price, shopping time, paperwork, expediting, mistakes, internal handling to final consumption) and holding costs (storage space, financing of inventory, control, shrinkage, taxes, insurance).

This checklist suggests six separate costs that may be incurred to get physical goods to their final storage-usage point: • Price, the only instantly measurable element.

• Negotiating time to get a good price.

• There’s paperwork for every purchase.

• Expediting if goods arrive at the wrong time, place or specs are wrong.

• Fixing the mistakes, including downtime costs of other deprived departments.

• Internal handling and paperwork costs when goods are delivered to a general receiving area instead of the final consumption storage point.

Once goods get to the storage destination, buying costs stop and holding costs start. Inventory ties up space and capital.

It must be watched, counted and moved, so there are housekeeping and control costs. If while waiting to be used items are damaged, permanently borrowed or become obsolete, the investment is written off as shrinkage. And finally, the overall, average investment in inventory must be insured and taxed.

All of these elements can be lowered, if not eliminated. Here’s how: 1. Best price. Offer all of your volume on a class of goods to one supplier, and

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Six costs are incurred getting consumables to their final storage-use point.

request prices for differing lengths of commitment. Predictable volume allows the supplier to plan more efficiently to give you volume and cooperative-economics discounts.

2. Shopping time. It will drop to nearly zero if you hook up with one type of supplier. Wal-Mart requests suppliers eliminate outside salespeople and pass the commission on in lower prices.

Presumably they would be willing to pay for the cost of a sales representative on an as-needed basis.

3. Paperwork. Eliminating duplicate suppliers will cut down on the paper, but you can get rid of more using an electronic data interchange (EDI) order and billing system.

4. Expediting. Pick the best serviceproviding supplier and request perfect on-time and accurate shipments in exchange for the marriage commitment. If the supplier does occasionally slip, agree on appropriate penalty fees to offset the internal costs.

5. Mistakes. See 4.

6. Internal handling costs. Eliminate them with direct-to-consumption-point delivery. If this requires the supplier to make more and smaller deliveries, delivery costs will escalate and the price must be raised. Together find the optimal order size to balance the two factors.

7. All holding costs. They’ll approach zero if a supplier delivers goods just-intime, and there are many documented cases for this with manufacturing components.

Just-in-time should work for MRO items. Because the dollar amounts and space requirements are usually small, holding costs are not that significant.

More important are buying costs and

PHOTO: THINKSTOCK

the supplier’s transactional and delivery costs. A long-term, win-win deal means covering the supplier’s delivery costs, which will offset the holding-cost savings. If MRO inventory is turning over three times a year, work with suppliers to get 12 turns, but don’t expect to get magnitudes of 20 to 100 turns.

Look for three dimensions of productivity within any new purchasing relationship: • Efficiency. Do the same activities with more automation and less waste.

• Effectiveness. Look for ways to add additional value. Computerized inventory control systems have made reordering more time-efficient and effective. They lower investment in inventory

while boosting fill-rates and allow different departments and divisions to source needs already in-house instead of buying duplicate items.

• Transformational or structural productivity. This occurs when the underlying systems that organize and coordinate people and materials are redesigned to yield higher orders of economics.

Business Week magazine noted an auto company now issues cheques for goods at the receiving dock, allowing many people in payables to be redeployed and adding a fast-pay discount from the suppliers.

TCOP is also a great tool for evaluating your suppliers. It captures subjective results related to quality, delivery, service and cost and then quantifies them for every $1,000 of annual spend. It also provides a working agenda for suppliers on the path to improvement.

If you use TCOP to lower price and zero-out most of the other costs, a structural transformation should occur.

All of the activity areas touched could be downsized freeing up people’s time to pursue higher-level tasks.

Progressive firms are looking for bottom-up ideas and initiatives to achieve improved productivity. TCOP guides the re-thinking of supplier agreements and the entire material management process.

Richard Kunst is president and CEO of Kunst Solutions Corp., which publishes the “Lean Thoughts” e-newsletter. Email rkunst@kunstartofsolutions.com.

Comments? E-mail jterrett@plant.ca.

>> Tech Tip

Power factor testing

A

n electric motor’s power factor relates to the capacitance across the insulation system between the conductors and ground. The capacitance is a relationship between voltage to current. In a purely capacitive circuit that relationship is 90 degrees. Insulation systems are not perfect capacitors, so there is a loss. The power factor is 90 degrees minus the loss angle.

The vector that results from the power factor is referred to as the dissipation factor. All of these readings can be measured and used to determine the insulation-to-ground condition of the machine.

The IEEE Standard 286-2000 provides information on how to perform power factor tests in a variety of instances through the new machine and repair process. This testing is normally performed on form-wound machines (medium and high voltage) to verify a lack of insulation voids and to detect contamination in the insulation system.

The power factor tip-up test is based on the insulation power factor versus voltage plotted.

Then the tip-up is calculated between two voltage levels, usually 20% and 100% of line-to-line voltage values.

When performed on individual coils (resin-rich) the value should be less than a 0.5% change.

On an assembled machine that value should be less than a 1% change.

This test can be performed on any form-wound machine, but is usually performed on electric motors over 6,000 volts.

Source: Motor Diagnostics and Motor Health Newsletter, SUCCESS by DESIGN.

January/February 2012

12-02-02 2:04 PM

Industry Report << Trends Canada and the US extend the softwood lumber “peace” deal for two years as China beckons.

China is opening up as a new market for softwood lumber.

PHOTO: THINKSTOCK

A

slowdown in US residential construction and declining paper markets are making life difficult for manufacturers in Canada’s forest products industry. The past month has been rife with announcements from across Canada of mills either closing or on the brink. But at least Canada and the US have bought softwood lumber peace for two years.

The two governments have agreed to extend the 2006 agreement to October 2015 with no modifications or conditions.

That’s not necessarily a guarantee of peace. There have been 25 legal actions from the US side since the agreement was implemented.

The Forest Products Association of Canada (FPAC) is hoping to see the US housing markets improve and trade with China grows.

Canadian producers are looking to the east for markets other than the US, and business has been picking up in one of the world’s most populous countries.

The FPAC reports lumber exports to China rose 103% last year, and now represent 23% of total softwood shipments.

Canfor Corp. is one forest products company looking to China for business growth.

Canadian firms, with help from the BC and federal governments, have promoted the use of wood in construction in China, which traditionally has not used wood frame building techniques.

“We believe that demand for green, environmentally sustainable building materials will continue to grow in our core

FORESTRY: It’s tough out there More wood and paper mill closings, but some investment United States market and around the world, and that a bright and prosperous future is ahead for the BC forest sector and forest communities,” said Canfor CEO Don Kayne.

A TD Bank report in September said growing demand from China and a recovery in the US homebuilding market will come late in 2013.

But Canfor is closing two sawmills in

BC, idled following the collapse of the US residential housing market in 2008, although it’s investing $300 million in other facilities.

The Rustad Sawmill in Prince George and the Tackama Mill in Fort Nelson, both acquisitions (1999 and 2004 respectively), will no longer manufacture wood products, although the company says portions of the Rustad site will be used for trades

>> Emerging Markets

SMEs warming to emerging markets

UPS survey shows 21% looking beyond North America

A

lthough most of Canada’s small and medium businesses prefer to operate close to home, some are looking at emerging markets for export opportunities to supplement trade with the US, according to a UPS Canada study.

The Angus Reid survey shows 21% of SMEs say they will consider conducting business in emerging markets such as China, India or Mexico with some looking to broaden their export practices to other overseas markets.

UPS Canada attributes this interest to greater optimism about emerging markets. Fifty-nine per cent of the SMEs polled believe their burgeoning middle classes have a growing appetite for Canadian goods.

Respondents see demand highest for natural resources (86%) and professional services. Forty-four per cent cite green goods such as energy equipment while 31% identify consumer goods.

Just 4% of those who export to the US expect Buy American provisions to affect their activities. Thirty per cent say they won’t be affected.

The ranks of exporters will grow this year by 4% and join the 14% that expect to sustain current levels of exports. Of those expecting to export eventually, 8% intend to do so next year, 5% in 2014 and 4% in 2015.

“There’s definitely been a positive shift in small businesses’ perception of global trade,” said Nicolas Dorget, vice-president of UPS Canada in a release. “Hopefully the trend will continue, because the Canadian economy needs more businesses – regardless of size – to be engaged in building the country's international trade presence beyond North America.”

However, the survey also revealed SMEs like to source close to home with 62% of them saying they make the effort to support Canadian partners and suppliers, even if they are more expensive than those from overseas.

Fifty per cent of the SMEs intend to limit their business activity to their provinces over the next 10 years.

The survey sample was comprised of 552 small and medium business owners who are Angus Reid Forum panel members. Margin of error is +/- 4.1%.

training and education.

Approximately 200 people worked at Tackama and 150 at Rustad.

The company said the capital investment needed to bring the Rustad facility up to globally competitive operating standards is prohibitive so it will instead focus on a $300 million, three-year capital investment plan at other facilities “where smaller amounts of capital spending can realize significant improvements in cost performance and capacity.”

Canfor, which also has operations in BC, Alberta, Quebec, Washington state, and North and South Carolina, signed a deal to purchase Tembec’s BC Southern Interior wood products assets for $60 million. The Quebec forest products company is selling Elko and Canal Flats sawmills and 1.1 million cubic metres of lumber and cutting rights from Crown and private land.

The Vavenby sawmill in the BC Interior was also restarted after a $24-million upgrade.

The capital investment included a new canter line, a new grade optimizer in the planer and an upgraded planer feed system.

At full production, Vavenby will add 240 million board feet of SPF to annual capacity.

White Birch mill in peril In Quebec, all hope is not lost for the unionized workers at White Birch Paper Co. in Quebec City. At press time, the US-based company said it was closing the mill for good when workers overwhelmingly rejected company demands for 20% pay cuts and pension cuts of between 45% and 60%.

However, the company later agreed to negotiate with the union for an additional two weeks. White Birch also has mills in in Riviere-du-Loup and Gatineau.

In Nova Scotia, the idled NewPage Port Hawksbury paper mill in Cape Breton has granted 10 more weeks of creditor protection as its court-appointed monitor finalizes a sale to Pacific West Commercial Corp. It intends to restart one of the mills if the sale is approved.

Outstanding are a deal with the union on a collective agreement and pensions, and a deal with Nova Scotia Power on power rates.

Newfoundland and Labrador’s only paper mill is looking at job cuts. Kruger Inc., a Montreal-based producer of publication papers, tissue, lumber and other wood products, intends to reduce the 385-person workforce.

The provincial government said it will consider any plan except subsidies to save the mill, although the company confirmed it’s committed to the Corner Brook operation over the long term.

Comments? E-mail jterrett@plant.ca.

www.plant.ca

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PLANT 19

12-02-02 2:04 PM

Super Ion Air Knife™ Produces a laminar sheet of airow that oods an area or surface with static eliminating ions.

Super Ion Air Wipe™ The uniform 360° ionized airstream neutralizes and cleans continuously moving surfaces.

Prevent Shocks, Jamming, Tearing and Static Cling!

When the humidity is low, static electricity problems will happen.

• Materials tear, jam or curl

• Hazardous sparks or shocks

• Webs and films cling to themselves

• Product clings to itself, rollers, machine beds

• Electronic sensors fail, making false readings

• Dust attraction ruins surface finishes

Ion Air Gun™ Eliminates static and dust from parts prior to assembly, packaging, painting or nishing.

EXAIR manufactures a complete line of static eliminators to remedy common static problems. Many use our engineered airow products to minimize air use and noise while delivering maximum results by moving more static eliminating ions to the product surface.

Ion Air Cannon™ Ideal for hard to reach spaces or conned areas that require a concentrated ionized ow.

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@exair

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www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 107

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Industry IT << Technology

Autodesk 360 PLM aims to make product lifecycle management palatable.

>> Software

BY JOE TERRETT

NEWMARKET, Ont.: SYSPRO is partnering with Manufacturing Systems Corp. to integrate inventory tracking and shipping with its on-premises or cloud-based ERP offering for small and medium manufacturers and distributors.

Manufacturing Systems, a supplier of advanced supply chain execution software based in Newmarket, Ont., will contribute MSC COLLECT Warehouse Management, Shop Floor Data Collection and Shipping Systems.

MSC Warehouse Management covers functions such as order, pick, pack and ship, bin and location management, advanced load planning, rules based picking logic and license plating.

MSC Shop Floor Data Collection captures inventory movement and use, direct/indirect labour and machine data from PLCs. MSC Shipping Systems automates the preparation of shipping documentation, including docs required for export and hazmat. www.mfgsyscorp.com

ERP ADDS WAREHOUSE MANAGEMENT

N

ot so long ago Autodesk Inc. offered its digital prototyping tools as a better way for manufacturers (especially those in the small to medium space) to ramp up production efficiency and quality than product lifecycle management (PLM) software. The company considered its tools to be faster to implement and they offered a better ROI. PLM is essentially enterprise-wide gathering and management of all the data related to a product from inception to disposal, integrating people, processes and business systems. Yet for Autodesk, a global developer of 3D design, engineering and entertainment software based in San Rafael, Calif., it has been too expensive for regular folks; more for the big companies, though even for them, hugely costly and not particularly digestible. It’s geared to engineering, difficult to deploy and too complicated.

In fact, you can see Autodesk CEO Carl Bass diss PLM on a You Tube video posted a few years ago, where he says, among other things, “[It’s] bitter medicine…No one wakes up and says this is a great system, this is what makes us more competitive, this is what makes it fun to go to work, this is what gives us design innovation…”

Times have changed: product lifecycle management is no longer just for the big guys with the deep pockets.

The software company previewed Autodesk 36 for PLM, its new cloud-based product (available in the first quarter this year), at Autodesk University in Las Vegas Nov. 29, with much emphasis on getting full value from the software set.

“Why now?” asked Stephen Bodnar, vice-president of enterprise data and lifecycle management, at the launch.

“The issue has been a technical one and previous business models haven’t been there to attain the full value of PLM.” That has been an issue for Autodesk’s customers. Bodnar said the company surveyed 300 of them and most believe they’ve been missing out, largely because of the cost.

Bodnar wasn’t prepared to talk price points at the launch, but he offered a comparison to traditional PLM. Old way, providing access to 200 users across an enterprise would cost almost $6 million. Autodesk’s solution applied to this scenario adds up to about $500,000 for implementation, maintenance and subscription.

“Our approach to PLM is a sharp contrast to the decades-old technology

www.plant.ca

21.1-PLT.indd 21

Plugging into the cloud lowers PLM costs.

PHOTO: THINKSTOCK

PLM: It’s in the

CLOUD

AND NOW ACCESSIBLE TO ALL in the market today,” said Robert “Buzz” Kross, senior vice-president of the manufacturing industry group.

Indeed, the product was developed from the ground up and attempts to fill in the value gaps. You’ll find it in “the cloud” and it’s a service; you don’t own it, you pay for what you use. It’s faster, easily configurable, scalable and it covers a product’s complete lifecycle, including elements such as manufacturing, engineering, supply management, quality management, compliance management, sales and marketing, maintenance service, operations, customer management, planning, R&D, SDM and end of life.

PLM market is growing Global research firm IDC estimates the PLM software applications market will grow to $20.5 billion by 2015 and its June 2011 Manufacturing Insights Report identified the top three business benefits of cloud systems as: reducing total hardware spend; improving IT staff productivity and end user service levels; and reducing total spend on software licensing and maintenance.

Autodesk 360 for PLM will include:

• Autodesk 360 Nexus. It’s cloudbased and makes PLM business applications available to users anytime, anywhere.

• Autodesk Vault. It provides onpremise product data management software for engineering workgroups to organize, manage and track designs, engineering bills-of-materials and change processes.

• Autodesk Buzzsaw. Cloud-based supplier collaboration allows users to securely exchange designs and documents with external partners and distributed teams, regardless of their location, using any platform, smart phone to i-device.

Until recently, says Autodesk, PLM has been the near-exclusive domain of large businesses, mainly due to the high cost and expertise related to deploying and maintaining the systems.

“No company should be excluded from the benefits of PLM technology,” said Kross.

The Autodesk offering gives SMEs an opportunity to access all of those benefits at a much lower cost.

PLATFORM RAISES DATA CENTRE PERFORMANCE TORONTO: Ingersoll Rand’s Trane brand of “indoor comfort systems” has launched Tracer XT, a platform based on GE software technology that improves the performance and efficiency of data centres.

The world’s data centres are expected to consume 19% more energy in the next 12 months than they have in the past year, according to a global industry census conducted by DatacenterDynamics.

Tracer XT combines building controls and Trane HVAC expertise with GE Intelligent Platforms’ Proficy software for visualization, advanced analysis and modelling, remote monitoring and diagnostics.

The Toronto-based manufacturer of HVAC technology says the software app improves energy use and uptime, reduces operational costs, and optimizes lifecycle costs across building systems, which will increase profitability. www.ge-ip.com/datacenters

Industrial air quality control.

PHOTO: THINKSTOCK

Comments? E-mail jterrett@plant.ca.

PLANT 21

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cIen

Hydraulics & pneumatics WorKholdIng for hIgh prodUcTIon Configure just the right workholding system in high production machining environments with Kurt Manufacturing Co.’s hydraulic swing clamps, valves and pumps.

The single-cylinder swing clamps in upper and lower flange and threaded body mounting styles provide 475 to 6,000 lb. of clamping force with a maximum pressure of 5,000 psi. The swing and clamping cycle actuate in one continuous motion and direction is changed with a push/pull feature turning the clamping head left or right by 90 degrees.

A range of clamping options.

They’re designed for durability. Cylinder bodies are HRC 38-46 hardened tool steel with polished inner surfaces for an operating life of up to a million cycles. Pistons are hard chromed, polished and heat treated to HRC 60-63 to reduce abrasion and maximum wear resistance and guide rods with slots reduce clamp stress, while pins are HRC 38-40 heat treated for extra strength.

Kurt, a Minneapolis manufacturer of CNC machining, gearing and assembly products, suggests its hydraulic pump for use with its swing clamps. The pump provides peak 127 cu. in. (.54 gal) total capacity and 75 cu. in. (.32 gal) useable capacity. It has a one-hp motor (115/208-230 VAC), maximum amps 11.1 at 5,000 psi.

The external pressure relief valve is user adjustable from 500 to 5,000 psi and an internal valve set at 5,000 psi, with a decibel rating of 72 dBA at 2 ft. www.kurtworkholding.com www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 1

boosTer elImInaTes posITIoner saTUraTIon Emerson Process Management’s Fisher VBL pneumatic volume booster prevents positioner saturation as it increases valve-stroking speed.

The automation products manufacturer based in Marshalltow, Iowa has designed in faster valve response to rapid input signal changes. The VBL’s internal soft seats yield a tight shut-off to reduce unnecessary air consumption and eliminate saturation of the positioner relays.

Bypass restriction delivers fast actuator response. The restriction also allows finetuning of valve response to follow slow signal changes or provide on/off control, without impacting booster deadband.

The compact and lightweight VBL booster has an aluminum body with ¼

Faster valve response.

NPT input and ½ NPT connections. Internal diaphragms, upper and lower valves, and O-rings are made of HNBR. Maximum input signal pressure is 10.3 bar (150 psig) with an input to output ratio being fixed at 1:1. www.emerson.com www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 2

>> Lift Application Upender safely TIlTs sTeel coIls A manufacturer of medium and large power transformers asked Pentalift Equipment Corp. to supply an upender that tilts the steel coil at 90 degrees to begin the de-coiling procedure.

The Guelph, Ont. manufacturer of custom application lifting and positioning equipment designed a 60,000 lb. hydraulic upender to handle this process.

Both platforms are 8- x 16-ft. long.

To accommodate height restrictions during transportation one of the platforms was built in two pieces with final 90-degree tilt. assembly completed on-site.

To ensure safety, counter-balanced valves are hard plumbed to the double acting cylinders to prevent load runaway when tilting, or hydraulic hose failure.

The complete system is PLC controlled. www.pentalift.com www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 3

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Magnetic separation.

Three models for various needs.

vacUUm generaTors redUce fooTprInT

dUal magneTs redUce Wear

VU pneumatic vacuum generators from Pisco USA Inc., a Bensenville, Ill.-based manufacturer of pneumatic components, install directly inline into most existing systems with vacuum pads and devices.

These vacuum generators made of lightweight polymer (weighing 7 to 22 kg) reduce the system’s footprint.

Three models meet varying pressure requirements, including high vacuum, medium flow (Model H); medium vacuum, high flow (Model L); and high vacuum, low flow (Model E).

Service pressure (at 20 degrees C) is 21.8 to 102 psi (0.15 to 0.7 Mpa), vacuum levels (at 73 psi, 50 psi for E) range from -19.7 to -27.2 in.

Hg (66 to 92 kPa), and suction flow (at 73 psi, 50 psi for E) ranges from 0.25 to 0.9 SCFM (7 to 24 l/min ANR).

They come in metric and imperial sizes with six nozzles, including 0.5 mm and 0.7 mm diameters. www.pisco.com

A magnetic separation developed for highly abrasive products in pneumatic transfer applications eliminates wear and tear on the magnets.

Industrial Magnetics Inc., a Boyne City, Mich.-based manufacturer of magnetic assemblies, has constructed the housing with two, door-mounted magnetic plates positioned on opposing sides of a stainless steel tube matching the existing diameter of the processing line. Existing flow rate is maintained by keeping the magnets on the outside edge of the product stream rather than on the centre stream. This eliminates wear points.

The dual-magnets also reach through the entire product stream to capture metal contaminants from a fast moving flow.

Dual-doors for clearing tramp metal open fully outside the product flow providing complete access to the magnet face and prevent the accidental discharge of contaminants back into the processing line. www.magnetics.com

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classIfIer separaTes solIds Three Ways The stainless steel X-0839 Vibroscreen Two-Deck Sanitary Classifier made by Kason Corp., a Millburn, NJ manufacturer of separators and screeners, separates up to six tons per hour of bulk solid material into three fractions.

Measuring 30 in. (762 mm) in diameter, the dust-tight, gravity fed unit classifies bulk chemicals, minerals, plastics, foods, Three-fraction separation. dairy products, pharmaceuticals while the balance of material passes and other material ranging from dry bulk through to the next screen. On-size solids to solid-lade slurries. particles are moved to the periphery of Quick-disconnect clamps between the second screen and through another each screen frame provide rapid interior extended spout, while undersize paraccess for inspection, screen changes ticles go through a chute and out a third and wash down. An optional airlift extended discharge spout. device pneumatically raises any of the The unit operates on a batch or continscreen frames, so one operator to rapidly uous basis, and is equipped with sanitary perform what was previously a twoanti-blinding ball tray assemblies under person task. both screen decks to dislodge near-size Material is fed onto the centre top particles from screen apertures. screen and oversize particles are moved www.kason.com to the periphery in a spiral pathway, then discharged through an extended spout, www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 6

January/February 2012

12-02-02 2:09 PM

Product Focus << Technology Table handles heavy lifting Positioning heavy objects like oil piping into a welding cell will be a lot easier using Herkules Equipment Corp.’s 10,000lb., electric-hydraulic scissor lift table.

The EnKon Systems-branded lift has a lowered height of 16 in. with 30-in. of travel, a 48- x 96-in. platform and highstrength, thick, tubular steel scissors.

Herkules, a manufacturer of lifting equipment in Walled Lake, Mich., notes the pushbutton up/down control pedestal also contains the external power unit so the table with its large, heavy duty cyl-

inders, has a lower closed height. A check valve within the high-pressure gear pump head allows the operator to stop and hold the lift system at any position during normal operation.

Power comes from a 230 VAC, 30-hp motor with a NEMA-4 rating and a unidirectional flow control provides a secondary safety measure in case a hydraulic line is accidentally cut. www.enkon.pro

>> Supply Lines Digi-Key Corp., an electronic components distributor based in Thief River Falls, Minn., has added Dynastream Innovations’ products to its line of wireless monitoring products. Its ANT series of 2.4 GHz wireless networking products are made for ultra-low power networking applications in industrial automation and other applications.

KUKA Robotics Corp., a subsidiary of KUKA Roboter GmbH, is opening a new North American headquarters building in Shelby Township, Mich. The robotics company is also opening a facility in Mississauga, Ont. Subsidiary KUKA Robotics Canada will provide sales and engineering services at a fully equipped facility that includes spare parts, training and a demonstration area.

Lifts up to 10,000 lb.

www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 7

Pipe bending made easier Precise cold bending of standard gas (DIN 2440), black steel schedule 40 (ASTM A53) and stainless steel schedule 40 pipe is made easier with RIDGID’s manual hydraulic benders.

Durable piston seals prevent premature leaks to maximize uptime while bending indicators show the angle in real time, reducing the number of starts, stops and pipe removals to take measurements.

The handle minimizes the number of strokes needed to advance the piston and requires less effort per stroke, while a single-circuit hydraulic system with a return spring provides better control of the ram.

RIDGID, an Elyria, Ohio manufacturer of tools, offers two models: the HB382 (3/8- to 2-in. capacity) and the HB383 (3/8- to 3-in. capacity). www.ridgid.com Manual hydraulic bender.

www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 8

Improve feeder efficiency

pressure drop optimizes material flow density, improves material conveying The BT blow-through feeder/airlock efficiency and reduces total compressed optimizes bulk density and throughput air consumption. of hard-to-convey materials such as Housings, cast in North America, withfine powders and flakes that in highstand high temperatures pressure pneumatic conveying and handle applicaapplications easily over-aerate tions requiring and reduce material feed pressure difefficiency. ferentials up to ACS Valves, a valve fabricator in Caldonia, Ont., has designed the eight-vane rotary feeder/airlock with an integrated port on the return side of the valve housing that automatically vents air leakage. The resulting low, effective Handles hard-to-convey materials.

42 IS LESS THAN 28.

20 psig. They’re also CNC-machined to precise tolerances to ensure extended duty cycles by eliminating axial shaft movement, seal leakage and shortened bearing life.

Maintenance life is also extended by outboard bearings that are removed from the path of damaging and contaminating materials; and an ACS variable frequency drive modulates the feeder drive speed, reducing power requirements based on the fluctuating performance needs of the system.

Housings are available in cast iron, and 304 or 316 stainless steel in either 8- or 10-in. round flange sizes. www.acsvalves.com

Contact bolt o-ring sealing now available

NEW!

Metal wiper NEW!now available (viton wiper standard)

NEW!

!

NEWStainless steel

Internal quad wiper now available

internal parts now available

Up to 7500 psi maximum pressure for more compact clamp design

Compact design starting at 1.25" diameter

22-23-PLC.indd 23

Two Component EP41S-1 • Adhesive/Sealant/Coating/ Potting Compound • 100% reactive • Low viscosity • High bond strength • Electrically insulative

Double acting and locking work supports available

Every work support factory tested

Contact Swiftsure engineering to discuss your specific work support needs.

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SWIFTSURE

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16345 Westwoods Business Park Dr. • Ellisville, MO 63021 (636) 386-8022 • Fax (636) 386-8034 For Technical Support Call (800) 827-2526 • email engr@clrh.com

www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 109

www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 108

www.plant.ca

Epoxy Resists Acids, Chlorinated Solvents and Alcohols

60 different standard sizes and styles available supporting forces from 1500 lb. to 23,000 lb.

Designed for 500,000 cycles, tested over 1,000,000 cycles at full load

www.creform.com • 800-839-8823

CRE-362 3.25x4.75.indd 1

Enersys Canada, a manufacturer of stored energy applications for industry in Bolton, Ont., has appointed CD Nova Ltd. an instrumentation distributor based in Burnaby, BC, as a master distributor of its Odyssey brand of batteries in Western Canada.

Why Carr Lane Roemheld Work Supports?

Spring, fluid, and air advanced available

NEW PLACON CONVEYORS PROVIDE STABLE AND SMOOTH MATERIAL FLOW. ASK US FOR DETAILS.

Lumenpulse Inc., looking to expand the market for its LED lighting products in the Middle East and North Africa, is partnering with a UAE-based sales rep. Lightitude will represent the Montreal-based lighting manufacturer in the two regions providing on-site support.

www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 9

Removable sintered filter now available

Use less bracing, less joints and less assembly time building heavy-duty workstations, flow racks and carts with 42mm pipe & joints.

Creform ø42mm pipe is 2.5 times stronger than standard ø28mm pipe so you can increase capacities of structures while maintaining simple, open designs. 42mm/28mm joints allow use of all Creform 28mm accessories.

Industrial valve maker Velan Inc. has a record level of backlog orders to be shipped over the year, contrary to “insufficient” orders that it faced last year. The Montrealbased company says its order backlog is $653.6 million, but bookings in the quarter of $93.3 million were down 41.1% year over year due to the declining value of the euro compared with the US dollar. About 58% of the backlog is in euros.

12/6/11 1:52 PM

www.masterbond.com www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 110

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CIEN Cameras Video borescopes inspect on-site

You can put a price on workplace safety and efficiency.

Two 24-29battery-powered, flexible videoscope units from Two-way Titan Tool Supply Inc. provide articulation. portable, on-site inspections for a wide range of applications.

The borescope models offer two-way articulation (+120 degrees) with on-board image processing. They have a highresolution 3.5-in. LCD screen with 320 x 240 pixel resolution for clear images.

Four built-in LED lights with intensity control and automatic white balance enhance image quality, even highly reflective surfaces. The units include 5X electronic zoom control; 3- to 50-mm (0.118- to 1.97-in.) depth of field with a 65-degree wide field of view. The videoscopes operate in temperatures ranging from 23 to 150 degrees F (-5 to 65 degrees C) providing the still image storage format is JPEG 720 x 625 jpgs and 720 x 525 AVI video.

The camera uses a 1 GB SD card image sensor chip made by Omnivision (USA) for portable use. The videoscopes also connected to a larger monitor through an A/V plug or to a computer through a USB plug.

Both models have braided, stainless steel, waterproof insertion tubes (in different lengths), resistant to oil, fuel and 3.5% concentrated saltwater.

Titan Tool Supply in Buffalo, NY is a supplier of optical instruments and inspection equipment. www.titantoolsupply.com www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 10

It’s the cost of a Hannay Reel.

You demand a productive workplace.

One that’s as compliant with safety regulations as it is efficient.

And Hannay Reels deliver.

• Protect your hose and cables from unnecessary damage

• Rugged durability for lifetime value • Get work done faster and more efficiently

Our dedicated dealers know your business and will get it right the first time. To find the best reels money can buy, contact your local Hannay dealer at hannay.com or call 877-467-3357.

Made in U.S.A.

Powerful sensing.

MXG: EASY INTEGRATION Baumer Groups MXG board level cameras integrate into almost any small installation space.

The Southington, Conn. sensor manufacturer’s 28x28 sensor board allows each user to individually adjust the instrument to environmental conditions.

The cameras include four monochrome and four colour units, all with resolutions ranging from VG4 up to 4 megapixels. Three of the cameras feature powerful Sony CCD sensors and a fourth has the CMOSIS fourmegapixel CMOS sensor.

The first camera model available in the series will provide VGA resolution and a 140 frames/second transfer capability.

Baumer has a Canadian office in Burlington, Ont. www.baumer.com www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 11

Lubricants Software automates lubrication reliability

Find the reel you need at

hannay.com

Dedicated software is transforming industrial lubrication management from an error-prone manual chore into a reliable and predicable automated process. This is the aim of LUBE-IT, Generation Systems’ lubricationspecific tracking and management software. This program assures the right amount of lubrication is in the right place at the right time.

Each lube point and related tasks are inventoried, including location, capacity, activity type, procedure, frequency and shutdown requirements.

From the detailed information gathered and recorded,

24 PLANT

Getting lubrication right.

the software manages all lube tasks automatically and simplifies changes to any of the variables as needed. Once it has recorded all the lube points, the software takes the responsibility for hundreds of thousands lubrication tasks annually, essentially ensuring that none are left behind.

Using LUBE-IT software, reliability engineers and plant managers quickly view the details and history of any lube point, including notification of any equipment issues identified during the lubrication activity.

Generation Systems Inc., a provider of lubrication reliability software, is based in Issaquah, Wash. www.generationsystems.com www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 12

nanoceramic lubrication lasts DAYLube grease from the Dayton Progress Corp. provides longservice performance in a wide range of industrial and metalworking applications.

Nanoceramic particles act as submicroscopic ball bearings to provide friction reduction Friction reduction. and wear resistance across a wide range of temperatures.

The chemically inert product offers high load-bearing properties, a low dielectric constant, does not contain metal or silicone and is resistant to steam, acids and most chemical products.

Use it for production machinery, such as manual and CNC lathes and machine tools, conveyors, bearings, bushings, cables, cams, chain gears, lifters, robotic arms and manipulators, slides and wear plates.

DAYLube is available in tubes or jars in cases of 12 each of either size.

Dayton Progress Corp. based in Dayton, Ohio, is a manufacturer of die components. www.daytonprogress.com www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 13

Lube meter upgrade The new LL, SN and MN lubrication flow meter transmitters from Universal Flow Monitors are an alternative to the usual alarm switches.

The compact, noncontact and magnetically coupled units monitor rate of oil flow to Oil flow monitoring. keep bearings, drills and mills functional in the processing industries for flows ranging from 5 to 70 gpm. They provide local flow indication to assist in problem diagnosis and rapid response if the flow goes too low.

Mechanical flow switches connect to trigger equipment shutdown for protection against machinery damage or use the transmitter as input to the control system.

Universal Flow Monitors, a manufacturer of flow meters and controls, is located in Hazel Park, Mich. www.flowmeters.com www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 14

January/February 2012

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Products and Equipment << Technology Machining

Adhesives Tensile tough epoxy cures fast

Prototyp Proto-mx Ultra ball-nose end mill from cutting tool provider Walter USA in Waukesha, Wis. machines hard materials for enhanced performance and tool life.

This latest generation of solid carbide milling tools matches hard materials up to 70HRC in die and mould making, as well as general machining for duties from semiroughing to fine finishing.

The heat-resistant end mill comes in two diameter ranges: the standard versions from 3 to 12 mm and the mini versions from 0.1 to 2.5 mm for extremely small contours. The smaller range features excellent concentricity properties, essential during high-speed operation.

All diameters have two cutting edges and a 30-degree helix angle. www.walter-tools.com www.cienmagazine.com/rsc15

High laser reflectance.

No coating laser mirrors LRO molybdenum mirrors from Laser Research Optics for low- and high-power lasers do not require coatings to achieve >98.1% average reflectance at 45° AOI, with <1.9% absorption and scatter.

The company, based in Providence, RI, makes the CO2 laser mirrors from pure vacuum ARC-cast low carbon molybdenum. They come in ¼- to 1-in. sizes for low power lasers and 1- to 3-in. for high-power units with thicknesses from 3 to 10 mm.

Applications include laser engraving, marking, cutting, hole drilling and welding using lasers from 20 W to kilowatts. www.laserresearch.net www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 18

www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 20

PROTECT HYDRAULIC

With reliable standby power from Sommers…

MECHANISMS

Wire protection Get a good grip

Sumitomo Electric Carbide Inc.’s WFX shoulder milling cutters deliver “exceptional” part squareness, proclaims the Mount Prospect, Ill. manufacturer of cutting tools.

The new line includes a redesigned cutter with a 90-in. lead angle.

The series provides coarse, fine and super fine pitch cutter bodies in 2- to 8-in. diameters with high wear, fracture and adhesion resistance.

A newly developed multi-layer Super ZX coating structure on grades ACP200, ACP300 and ACK300 achieve 1.5 times longer tool life than conventional coatings. www.sumicarbide.com

Easily insert different diameters of cable in the same gland with Heyco Products Inc.’s Hybrid Liquid Tight Cordgrips.

For use in clearance or threaded holes, they have nickel-plated brass enclosures for more secure wire gripping.

They come in multiple sizes for flexible cord diameters ranging from .04-in. (1 mm) to 2.17-in.

(55 mm) with an articulated Wire nylon finger that protection. provides a large clamping and torsion-proof sealing area.

Cordgrips are IP68 rated for corrosion resistance and durability. The sealing gland is moulded in thermoplastic polymer elastomer material for maximum flexibility.

Heyco Products, based in Toms River, NJ, manufactures wire protection products and power components. www.heyco.com

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Fracture and adhesion resistant.

Shoulder milling squared

Tools FULL CONTACT Precision cuts Xuron Corp.’s 2175A Maxi-Shear Flush Cutter removes parts from plastic sprues without damaging them.

The high carbon steel model with internal spring uses “bypass cutting” to achieve a clean, flat cut, rather than squeezing and deforming the parts.

Shaped to provide full contact with the operator’s hand, the cutter has soft rubber grips and a glareeliminating black finish that’s easy on the eyes during extended use.

Xuron Corp. is a Saco, Me. manufacturer of hand tools for electronics. www.xuron.com www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 17

•

800.787.7325 e-mail: industrial@sealeze.com

www.sealeze.com

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expedited delivery from 10 kW to 1 MW Mobile platform with theft protection and GPS available on some units PMG excitation ±1% voltage regulation Continuous-duty ratings Remote start contacts Sound attenuated enclosures User friendly controls Service and PM Contracts are also available

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For more information about getting the power you need so it’s always “Business as Usual”, visit us online at sommersgen.com.

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UV16 UV curable epoxy from adhesives manufacturer Master Bond Inc. based in Hackensack, NJ, combines physical strength and fast cure rates to handle demanding bonding, sealing and coating applications. It adheres to a wide variety of substrates, including plastics, glass and many metals.

The one component, no-mix system cures in one minute or less at room temperature with commercial UV light sources.

Tensile strength: 4,100 psi.

This 100% reactive epoxy is uninhibited by oxygen and does not release any solvents or volatiles during the curing process. It cures in a thickness of up to 0.125 in. and has a 2% to 3% shrinkage rate.

Once cured, the adhesive has a tensile strength of more than 4,100 psi and a Shore D hardness over 75.

The product, available in syringes and pails, has a six-month shelf life in unopened containers. www.masterbond.com

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PLANT 25

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CIEN MATERIALS HANDLING GO6 handles 17,500-lb. loads.

CASTER CHOICES EXPANDED Colson Caster Corp. has further enhanced its 2 Series stainless steel casters to meet the challenging environments at food processing and manufacturing sites.

Available in swivel, rigid and brake-choice models, the caster and its components are made from polished 304-grade stainless steel and the fork assemblies have a double ball bearing raceway for Durable caster. greater durability.

With load capacities up to 325 lb., the 2 Series selection comes in 3-, 3.5-, 4- and 5-in. models.

Colson Caster Corp. makes standard and custom application caster and wheel products in Jonesboro, Ark. www.colsoncaster.com

The Anver VFPL4 is a below-the-hook assembly line lifter that provides low headroom and can be equipped with a variety of quick release, bolt-on suction pad attachments for lifting loads to 2,000 lb., depending on configuration. The unit is equipped with air- or electricpowered vacuum pumps, a vacuum gauge and an audiovisual vacuum leakage detector system.

Anver Corp., based in Hudson, Mass., is a manufacturer of materials handling equipment. www.anver.com

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Anver VFPL4 vacuum lifter.

WALKIE STACKERS RUN QUIET Mitsubishi Forklift Trucks, based in Houston, has added a 3,000 to 3,500 -lb. heavy-duty electric walkie stacker to its product line.

Operators exercise precise control at all speeds with the quiet-running PWT15 and PWT18 models thanks to an AC-powered drive motor and electric power steering option. The regenerative braking system also PWT stacker. enhances efficiency and control by smoothing out directional changes and reducing brake pad and component wear.

Use the forklift for repetitive stacking applications where travel distances are relatively minimal, such as storage and staging areas, skid, cart or worktables. www.mit-lift.com www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 22

VACUUM LIFTER FOR AWKWARD LOADS A hoist-operated ergonomic vacuum lifter from Anver Corp. handles awkward loads and will not drift, allowing one person to perform assembly, packaging and secondary operations.

Now smarter, faster and more powerful than ever before and still...

ew N

COATING THICKNESS GAGES

Hawk imaging system.

■

■

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A C-Mount configuration for two of Microscan Systems Inc.’s imaging products allows lens changes for handling high magnification tasks and wide fields of search.

The Renton, Wash. provider of barcode, machine vision and lighting solutions says the QX HAWK barcode imager handles industrial track and trace applications with powerful algorithms for reading virtually all linear and 2D barcodes. The Vision HAWK smart camera combines decode capabilities with a complete vision toolset for a broad range of inspection and identification tasks.

Both products have industrial IP65/67 housing (with lens cover) and built-in ethernet connectivity making them easy to incorporate into any production environment. www.microscan.com

Tharo Systems’ multifunction PA1200cw corner wrap label printer applies a label to two adjacent product surfaces: front and side or front and top.

The system uses the Tharo H-series direct thermal or thermal PA1200cw label printer. transfer printers, with print resolutions of 203 or 300 dpi. The unit has a print width of up to 4.4 in. wide and a print length of up to 13 in.

Tharo Systems Inc., a manufacturer of bar label printers and software, is based in Brunswick, Ohio. www.tharo.com

www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 24

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GET A HAWK’S EYE VIEW

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Nissan Forklift Corp. has added a heavy lift pneumatic tire model to its Platinum line of forklift trucks that handles loads of up to 17,500 lb. at heights of up to 26 ft.

The GO6’s turbo-charged diesel engine and an advanced fuel injection system with its two-speed automatic transmission delivers optimal power and fuel economy but fewer exhaust emissions.

The driver, sitting on a full suspension seat making good use of the hydrostatic power steering in the wideview carriage, has greater control and manoeuvrability.

And a seat-actuated power interrupt feature prevents lift and tilt functions when the operator is not on board.

An engine protection and warning system reduces the engine rpm when there’s too much heat.

Nissan Forklift Corp., a lift truck manufacturer, has US operations in Marengo, Ill. www.nissanforklifts.com

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26 PLANT

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www.reelcraft.com | 800-444-3134 www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 115

www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 116

January/February 2012

12-02-03 10:48 AM

Products and Equipment << Technology Measurement

Industrial Vacuum

Gauge chemical compatibility

Particle size analysis.

Analyzer sizes particles fast Fast and flexible, the Mastersizer 3000 laser diffraction particle size analyzer from Malvern Instruments takes the guesswork and effort out of particle size measurement, leaving the user free to simply apply the results most effectively.

It combines high optical performance with intelligent software to provide expert measurement and analysis capabilities – and does not need extensive training to operate.

Measuring particles from 10 mm to 3,500 microns, the system handles powders, emulsions, slurries and suspensions. It switches quickly and easily between wet and dry analysis to efficiently disperse robust or abrasive materials, such as cement, or the more fragile materials found in pharmaceutical and food ingredients.

Continuous data quality assessment verifies that each analysis has been properly carried out, maintaining the integrity of the information flow.

Malvern Instruments makes measurement and control instruments. Based in Malvern, UK, it operates through global subsidiary organizations. www.malvern.com www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 27

Vibration meter Where portability and ease of use are required, Columbia Research Laboratories offers the general purpose Model VM-300 vibration meter – housed in a plastic case and with a detachable probe – for periodic, yet routine checks of industrial equipment.

The unit provides acceleration, velocity and disVibration check. placement measurement modes plus a number of value enhancing features.

It’s powered by an internal battery in the field or from an external AC adapter. A precision low-voltage lockout circuit prevents erroneous readings resulting from a low battery and an automatic 10-minute timeout during operation will not allow the meter to drain the battery while unattended.

An optional printer connects to the VM-300 for permanently recording measurements.

Sensor manufacturer Columbia Research Laboratories Inc. is located in Woodlyn, Pa. www.crlsensors.com

Chemical compatibility isn’t an issue with the SG3 1.5-in. and SGZ 2.5-in. stainless steel pressure gauges from Dwyer Instrument Inc. with 304 SS housings and 316 SS wetted parts.

The gauges cover ranges from full vacuum to 300 psi and withstand ambient temperatures up to 304SS housing.

140 degrees F (60 degrees C).

An easy-to-open breather plug on top allows liquid-filled units to breathe, relieving any built up internal pressures.

The plug easily pops open and does not need to be entirely removed or cut like a typical gauge’s rubber plug grommet. Connections include bottom or back 1.8-in. NPT. Dwyer Instruments is a manufacturer of controls and instrumentation located in Michigan City, Ind. www.dwyer-inst.co www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 30

vacuum fills fast EXAIR Corp.’s Premium Reversible Drum Vac System fills a 55-gallon drum in less than two minutes.

The high-powered vacuum comes with a 30-, 55- or 110-gal. drum. With a simple turn of a knob, the same stainless steel pump empties the drum.

Two-minute fill.

This compressed airpowered system operates quietly at 86 dBA. There are no motors or impellers to clog or wear out.

EXAIR is a manufacturer of compressed air equipment based in Cincinnati, Ohio. www.exair.com www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 31

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easy to calibrate Palmer Instrument’s EDG digital pressure gauges with 2.5-in. dial faces display both positive and negative pressures on a LCD screen.

Accuracy is ±1% of full scale, while settable resolutions of 0.1, 0.2, 0.5 and one whole unit provide flexible Taking the readings. pressure.

With known pressure input, user-selectable single point calibration provides optimum accuracy. A standard 9-V battery is good for approximately 1,500 hours (8,000 cycles) and is easy to replace.

Palmer Instruments, based in Asheville, NC, manufactures precision temperature instruments. www.palmerwahl.com www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 29 www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 118

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PLANT 27

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CIEN Motion control

with locking pins. These very resilient and durable connections used in heavy load applications require no maintenance.

The drives are pre-lubricated during assembly, then enclosed in a heavy duty anodized aluminum housing, ensuring internal gears stay permanently aligned, lubricated and free from contamination. www.zero-max.com

Linear servomotor is really small Nippon Pulse America Inc.’s smallest linear servomotor (at 9 g and nearly friction-free) replaces piezotype applications.

There’s no backlash and virtually no fluctuation Runs quiet, in speed from the no backlash. quiet running S040D and its 4-mm linear shaft diameter motor with strokes as long as 40 mm. Use it in a high precision positioning application where a resolution of 0.09 nm is achievable.

Durable construction protects the motor in harsh conditions when it’s running in a vacuum or underwater.

The S040D is distributed by Electromate Industrial Sales in Woodbridge, Ont. www.electromate.com www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 32

Non-magnetic shafts.

www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 33

IMA55 delivers up to 3,000 lb. of force.

Longer life gear drives Heat-treated AGMA Class 10 spiral bevel gears and nonmagnetic stainless steel shafts are features of the right angle Crown gear drives from Zero-Max Inc., a Plymouth, Minn. manufacturer of servo motion control products.

The drives have precision-hardened and ground ball bearings that provide a long service life and handle speeds up to 2,000 rpm in most operating environments.

Internal gears are permanently mounted to the shafts

MORE actuator force

Change

is in the Air…

Canadian PLANT is evolving with a new look and enhanced editorial.

Tolomatic’s IMA55, a larger version of its integrated-motor, rod-style actuator, delivers up to 3,000 lb. of force with a standard ball screw for pressing, clamping, valve control, spot welding and volumetric filling applications.

The actuator’s top speed is about 12 in. per second and is available with a choice of motor windings optimized for 230 or 460 VAC in any incremental stroke length from 6 to 18 in. The skewed stator windings minimize the clogging of the motor and provide more efficient motion with improved force repeatability. A lead-screw system allows lubrication of the unit without disassembly.

Tolomatic Inc., based in Hamel, Minn., is a manufacturer of linear motion control products. The IMA55 is distributed by Electromate Industrial Sales in Woodbridge, Ont. www.electromate.com www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 34

Enhanced version of DSP library.

Signal processing updated Beginning with the January/February 2012 issue, PLANT and CIEN Magazine will be providing readers with more comprehensive coverage of what’s new in technology, products and equipment.

Powered by CIEN Magazine, which has been providing product news to Canadian industry since 1940, this exclusive New Technology section features product news, application stories and case histories that will improve the production efficiency and competitiveness of Canada’s manufacturing and process industries.

Serving you better with the most in-depth manufacturing editorial and now the latest in product technology!

Designed for aerospace and defence signal processing applications (such as radar, sonar and SIGINT), the CurtissWright Controls’ Continuum Vector is optimized for use with Intel’s new second generation Core i7 processors.

This updated system provides a rich set of signal processing subroutine building blocks. It speeds the development of embedded signal processing systems and eases the migration of hundreds of legacy platforms based on AltiVec-based DSP libraries to new Intel processor-based designs.

Curtiss-Wright Controls Inc., based in Charlotte, NC, manufactures motion control, flow control and metal treatment products. www.cwcembedded.com www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 35

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Products and Equipment << Technology SENSORS AND CONTROLS

PACKING MACHINERY

MULTIPLE CONTROL OF YOUR GAS FLOW

FILM THREADING FOR FOOD

Are you using multiple thermal mass flow controllers (MFCs) over a range of applications?

Standardize with one. Brooks Instrument’s GF40 and GF80 MFCs featuring the company’s patented “MultiFlo” technology each handle multiple gas flow measurement and control applications.

The units offer a highly configurable platform based on modular architecture, enabling drop-in replacement for quick and easy upgrades.

The Hatfield, Pa. manufacturer of advanced flow, pressure, vacuum and level solutions says users can Easy reconfiguration. reconfigure the MFC for a new gas and range without removing the device from the gas line. The controllers are also equipped with an independent diagnostic/service port to troubleshoot or change flow conditions without removing the MFC from service.

The valve technology provides minimum leak-by, maximum turndown and fast response, which reduces overall gas panel cost and increases throughput. Additionally, the measurement accuracy of every device is verified using traceable primary calibration standards. www.brooksinstrument.com

With its simple, single-pass, error-free film threading, Standard-Knapp’s 296TS continuum tray-shrink system handles challenging applications in the food and beverage industries.

The heavy duty, stainless steel system operates at speeds up to 80 trays a minute. If there’s a problem, the system’s diagnostic program automatically directs Automatic maintenance alerts. the operator to a fault screen. The 296TS also provides automatically scheduled maintenance alerts.

The system has an on-demand film-wrapping wand, an innovation controlled by a servomotor and sensor. The wand runs only when needed, eliminating wasteful wear and tear.

Standard-Knapp Inc., based in Portland, Conn., provides packing machinery for a variety of industries, including household chemicals, personal care and automotive. www.standard-knapp.com www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 39

www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 36

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with patented technology like EZ-Coil®. Reduces retraction speed by up to 80% slower than conventional spring driven reels

Safety Makes $ense

Networks heat control.

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CONTROL MULTIPLE HEATER SYSTEMS BriskHeat Corp.’s Centipede 2 controls multiple heater systems.

Each heater gets its own PID temperature and RTD sensor. Individual PID control improves temperature uniformity across the system.

Controllers network via a touch screen interface for easy global programming and monitoring.

Briskheat Corp. is a manufacturer of flexible surface heating elements and controls based in Columbus, Ohio. www.briskheat.com www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 37

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Generates position charge.

MORE OUTPUT FOR PRECISION SENSORS API Technologies Corp. has added a 4-20mA-output option to the analogue, PWR and serial output versions of its H009 hall effect position sensors.

The sensors convert relative changes in a magnetic field into an electrical signal to generate position change information for varied applications in the medical, wind measurement, green energy, robotics and military and aerospace markets.

Other options include: lead wires, lead lengths and terminations; HR370 High TB printed circuit boards; and JST and Molex terminals.

Special shaft, flange mounting and gear mounting configurations are also available.

Sensor supplier API Technologies Corp. is located in Grass Valley, Calif. www.apitechnologies.com www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 38 www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 120

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PLANT 29

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cieN SAFety

sHoTguN sPriNkLer coNTroL

HeAd geAr for womeN

The GCK-200CO-2000CO2 Gas Calibration Kit from Dwyer Instruments Inc. provides a reliable flow of carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide to its gas-sensing transmitters.

Packaged in a hard carrying case, each kit includes a span gas of 200 ppm carbon monoxide and 2,000 ppm of carbon dioxide, a reference gas of 99.99% nitrogen, a 0.5 LPM flow regulator and tubing.

Gas calibration kit.

A certificate of analysis and material safety data sheets are included for both gas cylinders.

Dwyer Instruments Inc., based in Michigan City, Ind., makes controls and instrumentation. www.dwyer-inst.com

Fire damage is expensive but so is the damage caused by an activated sprinkler head.

The SHUTGUN from Canadian Safety Equipment Inc., a safety equipment supplier located in Mississauga, Ont., is a simple and easy to use tool that will shut off Controls water damage. an individual sprinkler head if necessary, while leaving all others active.

Based on a design originated by a former Canadian fire chief to control sprinkler water damage, the unit includes a fusible link that reactivates the sprinkler if a fire rekindles. www.cdnsafety.com

The industrial workplace is not just a man’s world. Eye and head protection are now included in a new family of Gateway Safety products tailored for women.

The GirlzGear eyewear collection includes StarLite, Gumballs and Scorpion models in pink temple, pink mirror and tortoise shell are sized 10% smaller to better fit the female profile.

And the Serpent vented safety helmet provides more femalefriendly head protection in 10 colours with a rotating ratchet adjustment system that creates a custom fit for nearly any size head.

Gateway Safeway Inc. is a supplier of safety products located in Cleveland, Ohio. www.gatewaysafety.com

www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 40

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Female-friendly protection.

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The BBPBLD standard duty four-bolt mounting blocks from Quality Bearing & Components make machinery more efficient, functional and safer.

Consisting of a Mounting block. polyester housing and removable acetal bearing insert with 316 stainless steel balls, the blocks fit shafts ranging from 1.2 to 1-1/4 in. in diameter.

Plastic two-bolt flange mounting blocks with insert ball bearings are also available.

Quality Bearings & Components is a Garden City Park, NY distributor of bearings and bearings products. www.abcbearings.com www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 43

Inquire for product information Online through PLANT’s

AutomAtion

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Igus Inc.’s Chainflex CF11 and CF211 series data cables sport a smaller bending radius for demanding flexing applications on all types of automated machinery.

The continuous-flex cables save space on smaller machines while still delivering high speeds and a long service life.

The CF11 cables have an oil-resistant TPE-blend outer jacket. With the stability of its copper shield and stranded conductor, the cable delivers high-quality data transmissions. The same flexibility applies to the CF211, the lower-cost PVC version.

Headquartered in Germany, Igus Inc. has technical representatives across Canada. The company develops cable carriers, continuous-flex cables, plastic bushings, spherical and linear bearings and guides. www.igus.com www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 44

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Products and Equipment << Technology Power Supply High power for harsh conditions Anderson Power Products has added the SPEC Pak high power connector to its line of sealed power available for harsh environmental conditions.

Handling power from 75 to 260 A in an IP68-ratPower connections. ed rugged, weatherproof sealed shell makes it ideal for portable and test equipment; solar, wind and traditional power generation; traffic control equipment; as well as transportation, industrial, agricultural and military applications.

With a UL94 V-0 flammability rating and a UL 746 F1 weather-ability rating, it’s compatible with standard PG threaded sealing glands and has sturdy aluminum latches with lockout and tag-out capability.

The combination of housings, power, ground and signal contacts offer thousands of design options for demanding applications.

Anderson Power Products, located in Sterling, Mass., makes power connectors. www.andersonpower.com www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 45

25 W of switching power ConTech’s CM25 AC/DC switching power supply (in a metal cage chassis for free air convection cooling) delivers 25 W of fully regulated output in an assortment of applications thanks to an easily accessible terminal block and output voltage adjustment Voltage range of 88 to 264 VAC. potentiometer.

It has a universal input voltage range of 88 to 264 VAC and output voltages of 5, 12, 24 and 48 VDC, with efficiencies up to 83%.

Con-Tech, a supplier of power conversion products, is based in Concord, Calif., said UL 60950 patent approval is pending. www.contech-us.com www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 46

Space critical high power density The 12000RU AC/DC converters from MicroPower Direct provide high power density and long field reliability for space-critical applications.

The 20-W units have an ultra-wide input voltage range, efficiency to 89%, industry standard Long field pin-out and tight line/load reliability. regulation.

They’re protected in a metal case operate in extreme temperatures. The 12 models operate from 4:1 input ranges of 9 to 36 VDC, or 18 to 75 VDC, providing tightly regulated single and dual outputs of 3.3, 5, 12, 15, ±12 or ±15 VDC. MicroPower Direct is a supplier of power conversion products based in Stoughton, Mass. www.micropowerdirect.com www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 47

Power source ups welding performance The Aristo 1000 AC/DC inverter power source for heavy duty industrial environments from ESAB Welding and Cutting Products connects to a three-phase input voltage supply (from 380-575 V at 50 or 60 Hz) to deliver optimal welding performance using the least amount of power.

A welder can switch between power currents without

Switches go subminiature

stopping the welding process and connecting two components delivers more current.

Maximum usable weld cable length doubles without compromising weld quality. All cables are connected behind a door in front of the machine, making them easily accessible for service and well protected from damage.

The cooling fan only runs during welding, which results in less en- Energy saver. ergy required, lower noise levels and less dust inside the cooling channel.

ESAB Welding & Cutting Products, a manufacturer welding equipment and consumables, is based in Florence, SC with Canadian offices in Mississauga, Ont. www.esab.ca

C&K Components has expanded its RoHScompliant, IP-rated sealed switch product family to include a subminiature snap-acting switch in its TFS series that comes in two models.

Sealed switches.

One unit has quickconnect terminals and the other has moulded-in wire terminals. Both are sealed to IP67 ratings and provide an operating life of up to 100,000 cycles.

The Newton, Mass. industrial switch supplier’s AP Series and NP Series pushbutton switches handle one million cycles and the HP Series 10 million cyles. The KMT0 nano-miniature top actuated tactile switches provide more than 300,000 electrical and mechanical cycles. www.ckcomponents.com

www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 48

More power, small form Phihong’s low profile, open frame power supply is designed for devices that require more power in a small form factor.

The power supply company, based in Fremont, Calif., Open frame power. says its 160-W high power output and a small footprint allows OEMS to fit a lot of power into a limited space for IT and multimedia applications.

The PSA160 2- x4-in. PSU is available in 12-, 24-, 48and 56-VDC outputs and ready for use in 1U racks for a variety of networking applications. www.phihong.com

www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 52

CHANGING THE SHAPE OF PETROLEUM TRANSFER HOSE

www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 49

Switches More vehicle switch protection Cole Hersee plastic circuit switches housed in a sealed engineeredplastic body provide commercial vehicles with greater protection from the corrosive effects of winter-road salt brine.

The high amperage capacity 75920 Master Disconnect Switch Winter-protected. also guards vehicles from tampering, theft and battery drain. UL-approved, the units are rated for 12-48 V applications and allow multiple electrical configurations.

Cole Hersee is the commercial vehicle products division of Littlefuse Inc. in Chicago. www.littlefuse.com www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 50

Smart card for harsh connections A rugged smart connector from C&K Component, a supplier of tact, toggle, rocker and pushbutton switches based in Newton, Mass., has a built-in detection switch for machine-tomachine applications in Smart connections. harsh environments.

The IEC 512-certified CCM03 and CCM04 connectors are resistant to shock, vibration, humidity and extreme temperatures. Use them for asset tracking, automotive e-call and tracking, signage, metering, vending machine, security and remote monitoring.

Both series are available with standard gold-plated contacts, or with a specific inlay alloy for wear and corrosion resistance. www.ck-components.com

Plicord ® ExtremeFlex ™ Petroleum Transfer Hose The new Plicord® ExtremeFlex™ sets the standard for a flexible and lightweight designed hose.

With dramatic flex fatigue results, our lightweight, extremely flexible hose offers corrugated design at non-corrugated prices.

Superior product engineering, unique product design and longer hose life all add up savings for you.

For more info, call 1-888-275-4397 or visit www.goodyearep.com/ExtremeFlex The GOODYEAR (and Winged Foot Design) trademark is used

by Veyance Technologies, Inc. under license from The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company. Goodyear Engineered Products are manufactured and sourced exclusively by Veyance Technologies, Inc. or its affiliates. ©2011 Veyance Technologies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

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12-02-10 8:48 AM

CIEN Industrial Literature Reviews Hygienic Design Enclosures

full line of cord reels

MOST POPULAR VACUUM CUPS

Rittal’s new Hygienic Design (HD) enclosures provide the ultimate solution where cleanliness and sanitation are paramount. Crafted of stainless steel, they feature a smooth surface grain, internal hinges, washable gaskets and latches, and no crevices to trap debris or contaminates. www.Rittal.ca Rittal Systems Ltd. www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 122

Improve efficiency, safety and extend cord life with Reelcraft’s full line of light, medium and heavy duty power and light cord reels.

Keep power outlets and lights within easy reach or out of the way. Mount them on vehicles, floors, ceilings or benches.

Many different styles of outlets and lamps are available including the new triple tap receptacle and the LED lamp. www.reelcraft.com Reelcraft Industries, Inc. www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 125

Vi-Cas Manufacturing’s new 16-page, full colour brochure details the company’s most popular vacuum cups.

In addition to dimensional information (including lip diameter, height and mounting holes), the new literature shows photos of each cup to guarantee accuracy. Vacuum cups and accessories are used extensively in all types of packaging and labeling operations. www.vi-cas.com Vi-Cas Manufacturing www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 128

FORCE AND TORQUE MEASUREMENT CATALOGUE

Improve Efficiency in Drying Operations

ACCESSORIES – AIR AND DUST HANDLING SYSTEMS

Imada, Inc. offers a new force and torque measurement catalogue. Products include: mechanical and digital force gauges, manual and motorized test stands, special attachments, digital torque screwdrivers, wrenches, testers and calibrators, hardness testers for rubber and plastic, LED stroboscopes and handheld tachometer. Dealer inquiries invited. www.imada.com Imada, Inc. www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 123

New catalog from Spraying Systems Co. focuses on ways to reduce air consumption and noise with air nozzles.

Included are selection guidelines, technical references, application examples and performance data on nozzles, air knives and amplifiers that use compressed air and air knife packages that use regenerative blower air. www.spray.com Spraying Systems Co. www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 126

Reference for rotating unions

MILLIONS OF OPTIONS – 2012 WASHERS

Affordable Thermal Imaging

An updated catalogue for designers and users of coolant unions for machine tool, machining center, and transfer line applications.

This comprehensive reference guide offers detailed information for rotating union selection, installation, and maintenance, along with expanded product information. www.deublin.com/catrequest Deublin www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 124

Boker’s 2012 Washers Catalogue features 26,000-plus non-standard flat washer sizes.

The numerous outside/inside diameters, various thicknesses and over 2,000 materials offer endless possibilities. Materials include low-carbon sheet steel, various spring steels, stainless steel, aluminum, brass, copper, nickel silver and non-metallics. ISO-9001:2008 registered. www.bokers.com/cien Boker’s www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 127

The FLIR i-Series Pointand-Shoot Thermal Imaging Cameras brochure introduces the newly redesigned i3, i5, and i7. The brochure covers affordable entry-level infrared cameras ideal for equipping front-line plant technicians. www.flir.ca Flir www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 130

Antivibration

with no expensive seals to replace, no check valves to clog and no rotors and stators to wear out. Slurries are fully contained within the hose element and do not Quick hose replacement. come in contact with the pump’s moving parts, preventing abrasive wear.

Bredel products are produced by the Watson-Marlow Pump Group in Wilmington, Mass. www.wmpg.com

Mounts calm vibrations A new series of conical antivibration base mounts from Advanced Antivibration Components dampen shock and vibration Zinc-plated housing. for compression loads up to 1,632 kgf (3,598 lbf).

The V12Z06MA housing is made of zinc-plated steel with a nitrile rubber compound for pliability and elasticity.

Use them under controllers, large pumps, fans, motors, compressors and other medium load equipment.

Advanced Antivibration Components in New Hyde Park, NY is a supplier of antivibration products. www.vibrationmounts.com www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 53

Pumps Pump handles harsh slurries The heavy-duty Bredel SPX pump is designed for challenging environmental applications. It pumps abrasive and corrosive chemicals, such as lime slurries, at flow rates up to 350 gpm and pressures up to 232 psi.

Peristaltic hose pumps are virtually maintenance free,

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Fasteners Floating easier alignment PEM fasteners with “float” capability from Penn Engineering & Manufacturing Corp. make mating-thread alignment during attachment easier and provide design flexibility for tolerance applications.

Captive panel screws and self-clinching nuts install permanently in thin sheets.

Easy thread alignment.

This fully illustrated, 8-page catalogue features a wide variety of accessories including: stamped and rolled angle rings, blast gates, galvanized spiral duct, diverters, clean outs, nozzles, duct silencers, rotary air locks and exhaust fans. www.nrmurphy.com N.R. Murphy Ltd. www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 129

MAThread anti-cross threading technology corrects offangle installations, aligns components and slides through clogged internal threads.

Penn is a fastener manufacturer based in Danboro, Pa. www.pemnet.com www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 55

Coatings Release slip for steel tubing Applied Plastics Co.’s Hypotube PTFE Coating Service smoothly coats fluoropolymer to stainless steel and nitinol hypodermic tubing to achieve optimum release slip properties.

PTFE goes on the outside diameter with a ±0.0004-in. tolerance.

The coating service applies to spiral, skived, flare, crimped, ground and slotted hypotubes with marker bands at precise, user-specified intervals. Finished hypotubes are Available in green, chemically inert, bio-compatible and gray, black and blue. operate up to 288 degrees C. Applied Plastics Co. Inc. is a Norwood, Mass. custom manufacturer of coatings and wire. www.appliedplastics.com www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 56

January/February 2012

12-02-02 2:58 PM

Products and Equipment << Technology Plantware

DSCs added to Jumpflex line

Want to calculate O-Ring dimensions and tolerances? There’s an app for that from Trelleborg Sealing Solutions, a Fort Wayne, Ind. manufacturer of precision seals and bearings, and it recommends sizes and parts numbers too.

Enter the bore or rod/shaft diameter and receive calculation according to ISO 3601-1 Class B recommendations.

Measurements are available in both metric and inches to determine which Free app from materials are compatible with the iTunes. media application.

The O-Ring Calculator app is available free from iTunes or via the Apple App Store on the iPhone and iPod Touch. www.trelleborg.com

Six dedicated signal conditioners have been added to WAGO Corp.’s JUMPFLEX 857 line.

The DSCs support applications requiring conversion, isolation and/or amplification of just one signal type. There’s no need for grafting additional I/O to a PLC or an additional Spring-pressure connector. interface card to a VFD. To ensure safety and reliability, the DIN-rail mount DSCs provide three-way isolation (2.5 kV).

Operating temperatures range from of -25 to +70 degrees C, and carry approvals including UL/cUL, ULex, CE and GL. WAGO, based in Germantown, Wis., makes spring pressure connection products. www.wago.com

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Modem makes wireless connection

Data terminal goes mobile

Weidmuller Interconnection Inc.’s industrial ethernet modem (2.4 ghz, WiFi) drops easily into any existing network to provide wireless connections in process/automation applications. It connects to PLCs, DCS/SCADA, data loggers or field instruments with an RS232/485 or ethernet port/interface.

Built around the 802.11b/g standard, the new W1-MOD-E-G wireless ethernet device has a throughput speed of up to 108 Mbps, suited for support- Data transmission. ing vision and video applications. It features 400 mW of transmit power so it can broadcast more information over greater distances or through obstructions. The modem operates as router/bridge, access point/client and serial server (RS232/485).

Weidmuller, based in Richmond, Va., makes devices for the transmission of power, data and control signals in industrial environments. www.weidmuller.com

Take computing on the road with the TREK-753 mobile data terminal from AdvantechDLoG, a supplier of industrial computing devices based in Irvine, Calif.

Used in heavy duty hauling For harsh conditions. vehicles, this mobile computer operates flawlessly in transient power conditions.

Compact and with a flat panel touch screen, the terminal has an Intel Atom processor, increased memory, an analogue video input, GbE, and I/O ports. www.advantech-dlog.com

App for O-Ring calculations

www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 58

>> Events

FABTECH Canada 2012 SME March 20-22, Toronto Canada gets its own FABTECH show presented by the Society of Manufacturing Engineers (SME), Fabricators & Manufacturers Association, Intl. (FMA) and American Welding Society (AWS) featuring the latest technologies, tools and trends with a special focus on fabricating technology. Visit www. fabtechcanada.com.

Gasketing/Converting Expo 2012 GFA/IADD/FSA March 20-22, Orlando Manufacturers of gasket material, converting equipment, tooling, quality inspection equipment and software, and devices to complement upstream or downstream processing will be exhibiting at the show. Presented by Gasket Fabricators Association (GFA), the International Association of Diecutting and Diemaking (IADD) and the Fluid Sealing Association (FSA). Visit www.gasketfab.com/expo.html.

NPE 2012 SPI April 1-5, Orlando Society of the Plastics Industry presents an International Plastics Showcase with technical presentations and peer-reviewed papers,

www.plant.ca

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Computer delivers multi-digital flow Processors plug in up to six IO or communication boards for multiple flow streams, analyzers or additional network communication options with KROHNE Inc.’s modular Summit 8800 digital flow computer.

With its scroll-and-click navigation and touch screen graphic display, the versatile unit handles a wide variety

Ultrasound World VIII UE Systems May 14-17, Clearwater Beach, Fla. The Ultrasound World technology forum features presentations and short courses by users of the ultrasound technology covering a wide range of topics for condition monitoring and energy conservation. Visit http://209.200.118.95/resources/ultrasoundworld-viii-conference.aspx.

2012 CME National Lean Conference CME June 4-7, Winnipeg Thought leaders and practitioners share their insights and perspectives on continuous improvement, hosted by Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters (CME). Download the details at http://mb.cme-mec.ca, Upcoming Events.

PTDA Canadian Conference PTDA June 7-9, Victoria, BC Power Transmission Distributors Association (PTDA) hosts this Canadian event featuring education sessions, an industry showcase and networking. Visit www.ptda.org/CanadianConference.

www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 61

PC-based automation control

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keynotes by industry leaders, business development and training workshops, and sustainability discussion sessions. Visit www.npe.org.

of custody and process applications that include: metering oil, gas, wet gas, steam and water; bulk chemicals batching; heat exchanger metering and logging; and metering production processes in the pharmaceutical industry.

The large, easy-to-read colour display, with multicolour traffic-light guidance also simplifies operations and system maintenance.

And a removable multi-gigabyte memory card has enough capacity to store several years of flow information.

Network security is enhanced with multiple, redundant ethernet ports, while wide-area communication is possible using a range of common protocols.

KROHNE Canada in Toronto supplies measuring instruments used in processing. www.krohne.com

Beckhoff Automation’s TwinCAT 3 PC-based control software expands the potential of standard automation.

In addition to the object-oriented IEC 61131-3 extensions, IT programming languages are available in TwinCAT 3 via C and C+++.

The automation control company, based in Burnsville, Minn., notes the features in TwinCAT 2 and eXtended Automation Technology (XAT) continue in TwinCAT 3.

Its components integrate themselves directly in Visual Studio 2010 or installs iteself. This version adds the programming languages C/C++ and the connection to the Matlab/ Simulink world. A debugger with online monitoring functionality for the programming languages C/C++ extends beyond the normal debugMulti-lingual software. ging functions.

The software modules run in different languages within a common runtime, which improves their reuse once they’ve been written and tested. www.beckhoffautomation.com www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 62

Index of Advertisers RS# 105 . . . . . . .

106 & 109 . .

119 . . . . . . .

108 . . . . . . .

103 . . . . . . .

114 . . . . . . .

107 . . . . .

102 . . . . . . .

121 . . . . . . .

111 . . . . . . .

110 . . . . . . .

101 . . . . . . .

115 . . . . . . .

104 . . . . . . .

112 . . . . . . .

132 . . . . . . .

118 & 131 . .

113 . . . . . . .

133-135 . . .

120 . . . . . . .

116 . . . . . . .

117 . . . . . . .

Advertiser . . . . . .

. . . . . .

Acklands Grainger . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Carr Lane . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Cox Reels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Creform Corp. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

CSA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Defelsko. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Exair Corp. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Flir. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Goodyear Veyance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Hannay. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Masterbond Inc.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Omega Engineering Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . Reelcraft. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Rousseau Metal Inc.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Sealeze. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Sew-EurodriveI. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . SME. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Sommers Motor Generator Sales Ltd.. . . . Spraying Systems Co.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Vac-u-max . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Vi-Cas. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Workplace safety & Prevention . . . . . .

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. . . . . 9 15 & 23 . . . . 29 . . . . 23 . . . . . 7 . . . . 26 . . 20 . . . . . 6 . . . . 31 . . . . 24 . . . . 23 . . . IFC . . . . 26 . . . . . 8 . . . . . 5 . . . . BC 27 & 34 . . . . 25 . . . OBC . . . . 29 . . . . 26 . . . . 27 PLANT 33

12-02-08 11:31 AM

Departments

>> Postscript

Prepare for financial reckoning

By Gwyn Morgan

H

eadlines following the Sept. 11, 2001​terrorist attacks declared, “The world changed forever,” leaving us to enter the new millennium fearing for our physical security. The first year of the second decade of the millennium is shaping up to be when much of the developed Western world’s financial security was changed forever.

In both cases, events preceding these catastrophes foretold their occurrence.

More than a dozen serious Islamic

the US, we are witnessing a nation more divided than at “anyIn time in living memory… ” terrorist attacks occurred between 1993 and 2000, yet it wasn’t until the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in New York came tumbling down that the world woke up to the true threat of the terrorist scourge, setting off the “war on terror” that has claimed so many more lives.

Similarly, the march towards financial disaster started a decade before this current time of reckoning. Between 2000 and 2010, Great Britain went from

a fiscal surplus to a deficit of £163 billion, more than 10% of GDP. Portugal’s deficit grew to more than 9% of GDP, while Spain’s reached a stunning 16%.

Meanwhile, deficit spending drove Italy’s federal debt to over 120% of GDP. Then there’s the US, currently spending more than $3.4 trillion versus revenues of less than $2.2 trillion.

The year 2011 will be remembered for some of the largest countries in the

developed world becoming so burdened with debt their credit ratings fell below those ratings of countries long considered part of the “developing world.”

More than a decade of debt-funded growth in public service employment and social welfare programs set the stage for this financial calamity, leaving no other choice but to declare war on government spending. This war will be a kind of civil war, pitting those with a vested interest in public spending against those burdened with paying for it.

In the US, we are witnessing a nation more divided than at any time in living memory. Defending one battle-line are those who refuse to face the reality that social program entitlements are impossible to sustain, while on the other side we see a refusal to discuss even modest tax changes to increase revenues.

Meanwhile in Europe, from Athens to Madrid to London, public service unions violently strike against spending cutbacks and drive away business so vital to the public revenues that pay their wages.

Predictable failure “Canada represents a very important market for Fladder-Hansen & Hundebol Inc..

We participate with FABTECH wherever the event is located, and have come to expect very high results from the investment we make into the event.

FABTECH Canada is a logical next move and we are excited about the prospects it offers.”

Ben Barama, General Manager, Fladder – Hansen & Hundebol, Inc.

March 20-22, 2012 TORONTO CONGRESS CENTRE

THE FIRST EXCLUSIVE FABRICATING, WELDING AND METAL FORMING EVENT IN CANADA! Due to the growing success of FABTECH Co-Sponsors

North America's largest metal forming, fabricating, welding and finishing event, we are excited to announce the launch of FABTECH CANADA, which will be located in the heart of Canada's engineering and technology sector in Toronto, Ontario.

FABTECH CANADA is proud to bring the most relevant and important information on industry standards, new products and latest technologies to YOU.

Be a part of the 1st FABTECH CANADA event!

Official Media Partners

DON'T LET THIS OPPORTUNITY PASS YOU BY.

call: 1-888-322-7333 ext. 220 email: jsaperson@sme.org

fabtechcanada.com 34-PLC.indd 34

Then there’s the euro-zone, a saga full of events and players that could provide wonderful fodder for a comic opera were it not for the tragic consequences to those who depend upon its social programs and pensions, and to the vast numbers of unemployed youth.

Here again, failure of the euro-zone was predictable. A 17-country monetary union is akin to a large family having access to a single bank account. While some work hard and save their money, others slack off, knowing they can dip into the common bank account. Worse, the spendthrifts borrow more money to finance their irresponsible lifestyles and lenders while under the illusion the entire family will make good on those debts and hand over the cash.

The German solution is enforcement of fiscal responsibility on all member countries, but the chance of that working among 17 sovereign governments is no more likely than it would be among those 17 family members.

The first year of the second decade of this new millennium will go down in history as the year when much of the West was forced to its knees by the fundamental reality that every dollar, pound and euro of government debt must be borrowed from a lender who believes it will be paid back.

It will also be remembered as the year when China became the unlikely creditor that the once formidable United States of America depends upon to fend off financial Armageddon.

Gwyn Morgan is the retired founding CEO of EnCana Corp., a Canadian business leader and director of two global corporations. Distributed by Troy Media (www.troymedia.com).

Comments? E-mail JTerrett@plant.ca.

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January/February 2012

12-02-02 3:00 PM

MECHANICAL DRIVES DECENTRALIZED DRIVE SYSTEMS

MOVIGEAR® Movigear® is distinguished by its high level of system efficiency, a significant factor in reducing energy costs. The integration and coordination of all the drive components lead to a long service life and system availability. Movigear® is an intelligent system with its own control concept.

Its high-quality networking helps reduce startup time and supports monitoring and maintenance tasks. When combined with a functional user software, drive tasks can be solved as quickly and easily as possible.

In many industries and applications, implementing economical automation concepts means utilizing decentralized systems throughout. Long rows of control cabinets with complex wiring, expansive space requirements and long distances between control cabinet and motors are too rigid and not very economical. Only the combination of flexible, versatile, economic and target-oriented modules will provide an efficient solution. This is the reason why system operators opting for decentralized drive systems from SEW-Eurodrive are always ahead of the game.

Our Drive Solution Pyramid.

MOVITRAC® LTE B The range of functions provided by MOVITRAC® LTE B is particularly well adapted to less complicated applications. Its user-friendly design makes integration quick and easy, it also meets the high quality requirements of everyday requirements. The Movitrac® LTE B is also available in IP55/NEMA 12k making it suitable for special ambient conditions. These frequency inverters operate reliably and flexibly even when exposed to dust or water.

VFDs: RELIABLE, COMPACT & VERSATILE

SERVO PACKAGE: SIMPLE, FAST & DIVERSE

PSC Planetary servo gear units The low backlash PSC planetary servo gear units are designed for torque classes from 30 to 305 Nm. They are designed to offer the greatest possible flexibility and ROI, as not every application demands machines designed for maximum performance. These planetary servo gear units are the basis for versatile, dynamic, and above all cost optimized drive solutions.

MOVITRAC® LTX Simple, fast and diverse: as part of the Smart Servo Package, SEW-Eurodrive offers the new Movitrac® LTX servo inverter for universal use. It stands out with advantages such as ease of operation, short startup times as well as optimized costs. Available in two sizes and covers a power range from 750W to 505 kW. The Movitrac® LTX is particularly suitable for use in applications such as secondary packaging, handling, and logistics.

DECENTRALIZED CONTROL: MODULAR, FLEXIBLE & ECONOMICAL

The demands on material handling systems today have never been more wide ranging or more challenging.

That’s why SEW-Eurodrive offers drive solutions for every kind of industry application. From the simple to the sophisticated, our pyramid of solutions allow you to control costs and limit complexity by giving you the ability to tailor our products to the exact intelligence and performance specs you require. Reducing energy consumption is also an important imperative today for the modern production line. Just ask Coca-Cola, who achieved a sensational 75% reduction in energy consumption by incorporating 40 of SEW-Eurodrives’s revolutionary decentralized MOVIGEAR® units in a recent overhaul of a European bottling plant transport line.

Driving the world

Toronto (905) 791-1553

Montreal (514) 367-1124

Vancouver (604) 946-5535

www.sew-eurodrive.ca

www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 132

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12-02-02 3:00 PM

WINdJET ® AIR KNIvES PRovIdE EFFICIENT, EFFECTIvE dRyING ANd BloW-oFF A unique leading edge design enables WindJet Air Knives to produce a uniform, high volume, constant air stream along the entire length of the knife and eliminate common spotting and blotching problems.

The air knives, powered by blower air instead of costly compressed air, are available in different lengths and slot sizes. spray.com/airknives

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FoR CoMPlETE dRyING IN INdENTATIoNS ANd HolES, USE WINdJET AIR CANNoNS Our air cannons can be used in conjunction with or instead of our air knives to achieve thorough drying on unusually shaped parts.

The cannons provide a high velocity air stream – ideal for drying crevices and holes.

Choose from a variety of orifice sizes. spray.com/aircannons

A manufacturer wanted to reduce costly compressed air being used for drying and blow-off applications throughout its plant.

Changing from air nozzles and open pipes to WindJet® Air Knife packages eliminated the need for compressed air in these applications. The WindJet® packages use low-maintenance regenerative blowers that provide low noise operation and uniform, high-velocity air streams. Four systems are used to prevent steel sheets from sticking together and also for cooling and drying products before packaging.

The results: www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 134

• Compressed air use reduced by nearly 3800 scfm • Annual energy savings of more than $500,000 • System payback of less than one month

loW MAINTENANCE REGENERATIvE BloWERS Our blowers recycle a portion of the air flow which enables them to provide performance comparable to many multi-stage or positive displacement blowers. Producing a continuous, non-pulsating, oil-free heated air flow, our blowers provide dependable operation with minimal maintenance. spray.com/blowers

Learn more about this solution and how we can generate results for you at spray.com/results

UniqUeLy qUALified to GenerAte reSULtS: www.cienmagazine.com/rsc 135

Unmatched Global Engineering, Manufacturing and Technical Support Nozzles | Control Systems | Headers & Injectors | Research & Testing 800.95.SPrAy

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12-02-02 3:00 PM