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Volume 6, No. 03 November/December 2011

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QUANTIAM SHIFT Steve Petrone gets down to the nano level of coatings technology

PM 40069240

PHOTO: DANIEL WOOD

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Use confidence to create more value

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PHOTO: NORDAHL FLAKSTAD

Editorial

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C

anadian manufacturers have taken some stiff knocks over the past three years from the fallout of a high value dollar, chronic skills shortages, aggressive offshore competition, depressed markets, a disabled US economy, recurring rounds of Buy Americanism and potential global apocalypse.

And yet, when they were asked how they feel about their prospects in 2012 and beyond, for the third consecutive year they are expressing confidence and optimism. Indeed, PLANT’s Business Outlook 2012 survey found manufacturers – 71% of them small and medium enterprises – loosening the purse strings and investing in their plants.

The survey, conducted in partnership with global consulting firm and sponsor Grant Thornton LLP, questioned 367 senior manufacturing executives from across Canada on their investment intentions and their overall mood going into the next three years.

Looking at their prospects for 2012, 83% are confident about their forecasts but less so in three years (55%). They cite cost control as the biggest challenge for the year ahead, followed by growing their business, but productivity, staffing, innovation, quality and meeting demand are concerns.

An increasing percentage report that they’ll be hiring and adding lines of business, entering new markets and expanding their plants. And they’re investing – an average of nearly $1.4 million – almost 10% more than last year. Machinery and equipment top the investments list, followed by training, technology and R&D. While equipment is the top priority, R&D ranks in the top for about 20% of the companies.

These investments are tied to productivity improvements. More companies are training employees to improve productivity and 40% are applying lean manufacturing, although this represents a 7% decline from last year’s survey.

Their confidence is inspiring, but Canadian manufacturers need to channel it into productivity improvements and innovation.

Output, according to a recent Deloitte report, is 14% behind our US peers. When baby boomers start exiting the workforce, only strong growth in productivity will allow us to maintain the standard of living we presently enjoy.

Innovation also needs work. The Conference Board of Canada in its annual global analysis lists Canada as a solid “D” performer out of 17 peer nations.

There are several studies and reports that rank Canada’s innovation indicators and the general diagnosis is that we are good in some things but doing only middling or very poorly in other important areas, particularly when it comes to taking an idea from the drawing board to commercialization.

We do a poor job of producing trademarks-per-million of population. Trade marks indicate innovations that have made it to commercialization. Commercialization depends on adequately funded private sector R&D. Canada offers enticing R&D incentives based on 0.24% of GDP, which Deloitte says are among the most generous in the world.

Yet private sector R&D was only 1% of GDP (2008), the lowest business-to-government support per dollar in the OECD. So what’s the problem? The analysts are scratching their heads on this one, but several factors stand out. Since most of these companies are SMEs, those who would like to spend money on innovation are having trouble getting capital. Or they find it difficult working with universities, which are not sharing the risks.

Canadians would like to shake off the long-held perception that this is a country where we make our livings hewing wood and digging stuff out of the ground for others to add value and create wealth. If we want the prestige of being high on the value chain, we have to do more to create the value, rather than relying on others to do it for us.

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

Vol. 6, No. 03, November/December 2011 A supplement to Canadian PLANT 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

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9

Features

>> INNOVATION

5 Coatings Quantiam’s nano coatings technology is in production and the company is looking for customers in North America and Europe.

>> TECHNOLOGY

6 Software Autodesk 360 PLM is in the cloud and it will make product lifecycle management accessible to all.

>> INDUSTRY

7 Energy Oil sands developers collaborate on cleaning up tailings ponds using new technologies.

Ethanol may reduce greenhouse gas emissions, but it’s also generating $1.2 billion for the economy.

8 Energy Pundit Mark Milke makes the case for the ethical oil moniker.

>> OPERATIONS

9 Maintenance Avoid catastrophic failure by testing your motors for shorts, imbalance and power surges.

Departments

4 Industry View Events PLANT Pulse 10 Product Showcase 11 Postscript

Canadian PLANT—established 1941, is published by BIG Magazines LP, a division of Glacier BIG Holdings Company Ltd. Tel: 416-442-5600, Fax: 416-510-5140 80 Valleybrook Dr., Toronto, ON M3B 2S9 Privacy Notice: From time to time we make our subscription list available to select companies and organizations whose product or service may interest you. If you do not wish your contact information to be made available, please contact us via one of the following methods: Phone: 1-800-668-2374 Fax: 416-442-2191 E-mail: privacyofficer@businessinformationgroup.ca. Mail to: Privacy Officer, 80 Valleybrook Drive, North York, ON M3B 2S9 Subscriber services: To subscribe, renew your subscription or to change your address or information contact us at 1-800-387-0273.

Subscription Price: Canada $69.00 per year, Outside Canada $141.00 US per year, Single Copy Canada $5.50. Plant is published 6 times per year except for occasional combined, expanded or premium issues, which count as two subscription issues. Contents of this publication are

4 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 Canadian PLANT or BIG Magazines LP. Contents copyright© 2011 BIG Magazines LP, may not be reprinted without permission.

Canadian PLANT receives unsolicited materials including letters to the editor, press releases, promotional items and images from time to time. Canadian PLANT, its affiliates and assignees may use, reproduce, publish, re-publish, distribute, store and archive such unsolicited submissions in whole or in part in any form or medium whatsoever, without compensation of any sort. This statement does not apply to materials/pitches submitted by freelance writers, photographers or illustrators in accordance with known industry practices.

We acknowledge the financial support of the Government of Canada through the Canada Periodical Fund CPF for our publishing activities.

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Departments

>> Industry View NRGreen, GE recover waste energy CALGARY: NRGreen Power and GE will be implementing a technology that recovers energy from waste heat without additional emissions.

This new recovered energy project planned for Northern Alberta will produce power with the first global application of GE’s ORegen system, which recovers waste heat from gas turbine exhaust. It improves plant efficiency by as much as 50% and doesn’t require the use of water or on-site supervision.

The system, to be installed at Alliance Pipeline’s Windfall Compressor Station near Whitecourt, Alta., is the latest in Organic Rankin Cycle technology.

Construction begins in May. The NRGreen Power Limited Partnership, jointly owned by Veresen Inc. and Enbridge Income Fund Holdings Inc., is a developer of clean energy.

Project to modernize 550 LAV IIIs. PHOTO: GENERAL DYNAMICS LAND SYSTEMS

LAV IIIs get $1B upgrade EDMONTON: The Canadian Government has awarded a contract worth $1 billion to General Dynamics Land Systems-Canada to incorporate a comprehensive upgrade package into the Canadian Army’s fleet of LAV III combat vehicles.

The project will modernize 550 vehicles, the government said, enhancing their mobility, survivability and firepower while extending the fleet’s lifecycle to 2035.

Survivability upgrades include double-V-hull technology, developed by General Dynamics Land Systems-Canada engineers, as well as add-on armour protection and energy-

attenuating seats.

Much of the work will be done at General Dynamics’ facilities in Edmonton and London, Ont., as well as the company’s network of more than 400 Canadian suppliers. The work is expected to wrap up in 2017.

A more powerful engine, a more robust driveline and suspension and a height management system will boost automotive performance, handling and payload capacity. The 25 mm turret’s crew safety and ergonomics will be improved with larger hatches; improved fire control; thermal, day and low-light sights; and data displays.

Purchasing B2B

Startec tech going into ACTL CALGARY: Startec has been commissioned to provide refrigeration technology to the Alberta Carbon Trunk Line (ACTL) – the province’s first major carbon capture storage (CSS) program – that will liquefy CO2 from a fertilizer plant near Redwater, Alta.

The Calgary-based company specializing in refrigeration, compression and processing solutions, said the CO2 from the un-named plant will go through centrifugal compressors and then to a Startec refrigeration unit where it will be liquefied

for pumping into the ACTL. The 240-kilometre pipeline will transport CO2 to conventional oil recovery projects throughout central Alberta where it will be injected into oil reservoirs allowing tough-toextract oil to flow more freely.

The Alberta Carbon Trunk Line (ACTL) by Calgary-based Enhance Energy Inc. is the world’s largest carbon-capture and storage project.

At full capacity, the 240-kilometre pipeline gathers, compresses and stores up to 14.6 million tonnes of CO2 per year, the equivalent 2.6 million cars taken off the road annually.

CanwEl buys treated wood plants

Economic developments and trendS West to lead growth in 2012

A

fter posting modest economic growth in 2011, Canada’s western provinces will lead the country over the next two years, according the Conference Board of Canada’s autumn provincial outlook.

The Ottawa-based research firm is forecasting private sector activity to pick up in the provinces, offsetting somewhat “sharp declines” in government infrastructure spending; however, if the EU debt crisis spreads globally, risks to its forecast “will remain elevated.”

Barring an EU calamity, the Conference Board is projected GDP of 2.1% for this year and 2.4% next year.

Saskatchewan will have the fastest rising economy with growth of 5.1% this year, fuelled by potash and the expansion of oil and gas extraction.

Next year growth will settle at 2.8%.

Alberta is riding and energy wave with growing demand in emerging markets keeping oil prices high. GDP growth this year will be 3.1% and rise to 3.6% in 2012.

BC’s economy is predicted to grow at a more modest pace with the decline of government infrastructure spending, offset by a mild bump in consumer spending for 2.6% this year and 2.5% next year.

Setbacks in Manitoba’s agriculture sector this year have been moderated by growth in the other goods-producing industries with gains in wholesale trade and transportation for 2.1% this year. Manufacturing will continue to hum with continuing demand for buses and aerospace products for a 2.6% gain in 2012.

Ontario’s GDP will rise by 1.8% this year and by 2.2% in 2012. Quebec’s economy is expected to grow by 1.8% next year, a slight improvement from the 1.5% forecast for 2011.

Central and Atlantic Canada will be hampered by sluggish growth in the US, weak consumer spending and fiscal austerity measures.

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VANCOUVER: CanWel Building Materials Group Ltd. is adding pressurized lumber to its repertoire with the purchase of treatment plants from NorthWest Wood Preservers in Prince George, BC. A letter of intent covers the purchase for an undisclosed amount through CanWel’s subsidiary CanWel Building Materials Ltd. in Vancouver. The deal includes four operating treating plants and several distribution centres located across Canada.

CanWel, one of Canada’s largest wholesale building-material distributors, said the acquisition is expected to close in the fourth quarter of this year.

Enbridge is partners with CEDF EN on the power project.

PHOTO: THINKSTOCK

Enbridge buys into $330M wind project MONTREAL: Enbridge Inc. is investing $330 million for co-ownership of the 300-megawatt Lac Alfred Wind Project in Quebec.

The Calgary-based energy company and CEDF EN Canada Inc., a renewable energy developer in Montreal, will share the project 50-50.

The project, located in Quebec’s Bas-Saint-Laurent region, will consist of 150 wind turbines supplied by REpower,

made with locally manufactured blades, towers and converters.

Construction will get underway in two phases starting in June 2012 and will be completed by December 2013. When fully operational, the project will generate enough electricity to power 70,000 homes.

Hydro-Quebec will buy the power under a 20-year power purchase agreement and construct a 30-kilometre transmission line to connect the project to the grid.

$1M deal to treat mine water VANCOUVER: BioteQ Environmental Technologies Inc. has secured a $1-million contract with an unnamed global mining company for a mobile water treatment plant at a mine site in Canada.

BioteQ, will design and install a mobile plant that applies process to remove and recover dissolved metal from mine water to eliminate waste sludge.

The plant will be delivered in the first quarter of 2012.

BioteQ’s ion-exchange technology removes dissolved heavy metals and sulphate.

>> Events MODEX SM 2012 MHIA Feb. 6-9, Atlanta The Material Handling Industry of America (MHIA) presents the supply chain event for manufacturing, distribution and supply chain professionals. Educational sessions will run concurrently with more than 500 exhibitors showcasing material handling and supply chain management solutions and educational sessions. Visit www. modexshow.com.

2012 Lean and Six Sigma Conference ASQ Feb. 27-28, Phoenix, Ariz.

Choose from more than 40 concurrent sessions, hands-on workshops, and networking opportunities at this quality event presented by the American Society of Quality (ASQ). Visit http:// asq.org/confrences/six-sigma.

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). FABTECH Canada will feature the latest technologies, tools and trends with a special focus on fabricating technology.

Visit www.fabtechcanada.com.

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 Manufactruers & Exporters (CME). Download details at http://mb.cme-mec.ca/download. php?file=gtvi0shh.pdf.

November/December 2011

11-12-02 12:32 PM

Coatings << Innovation

A Quantiam

leap

Edmonton nano plant produces innovative catalyst coatings Quantiam CEO Steve Petrone makes the jump from R&D and testng to full production.

PHOTO: NORDAHL FLAKSTAD

Quantiam’s CAMOL process has achieved commercialization with recent shipments from its pilot plant going to North American and European customers.

By Nordahl Flakstad

A

t Quantiam Technologies Inc., which in August moved into new quarters in Edmonton’s Research Park, you enter through a large, open and bright area flanked to the south by a two-storey picture window. Daylight descends on lab-frocked employees located at modern office workstations and beside arrays of laboratory equipment positioned throughout this 12,000-square-foot space.

Visitors may wonder whether they really are in a manufacturing plant that produces and applies innovative catalyst coatings. Indeed, manufacturing does take place beyond a set of blue doors leading to the production floor. In some ways, this lab/office front-end is symbolic of Quantiam’s evolution. Since CEO and CTO Steve Petrone founded Quantiam in 1998, it mostly operated in R&D mode, but this November the doors have swung open, leading to full production.

With the recent shipments from its pilot plant and orders for the new plant going to North American and European customers, Quantiam can rightfully say that its pioneering catalyzed-assisted manufacture of olefins (CAMOL) process finally has achieved commercialization. Those deliveries represented the end of the beginning for a small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) launched a dozen years ago as a one-man operation.

Twenty years ago, Petrone, a McMaster University doctoral graduate in surface chemistry, was recruited to Alberta after the Sherritt Gordon (now Sherritt International Corp.) launched Westaim Corp. The advanced material initiative based in Fort Saskatchewan near Edmonton chalked up various technical successes before Sherritt divested its interest in the late 1990s.

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By then, Petrone, along with colleagues, had recognized that matter at the angstrom (a sub-nano measure amounting to less than one billionth of a metre) are very unique and can provide great commercial utility. “That was a key driver for the company,” he says.

Another impetus grew from pure frustration. “I couldn’t figure out why nobody was getting it. Here’s this emerging opportunity globally and we as Canadians were missing the boat. I started the company and began working towards where we are today.”

Having started his career in a corporation with $10-billion in annual revenues, an amused Petrone notes he then proceeded to work for a series of companies, each with

a more modest revenue stream than the previous one. In Quantiam’s early days, that modesty pretty much descended to the nano level in terms of corporate cash flow.

“You can’t go from nothing to manufacturing a new product,” says Petrone. That meant for the first five years he and the Quantiam team he had gradually assembled sold “brain power” in the form of analytical and consulting services rather than product.

Fortunately one key buyer for that know-how was NOVA Chemicals Corp., a major petrochemicals producer active in Alberta. In 2001, NOVA partnered with Quantiam on a project to improve petrochemical processing and operational efficiencies while curbing energy use (and with it, CO2 emissions). The key lay in deploying the catalysis technology Quantiam had developed to petrochemical furnaces that produce olefins, chemical building blocks used in making plastics.

Eighteen million dollars in total R&D, with $5 million from Sustainable Development Technology Canada (SDTC) and Industry Canada Technology Partnerships Canada (TPC) helped advance the project, with NOVA and Quantiam funding the balance. That allowed Quantiam to set up a 14,000-square-foot, half-scale pilot manufacturing facility in Edmonton. Initial NOVA field demonstrations followed in 2006. The typical life cycle of a petrochemical furnace is about five years, which means the new full-scale coating plant is coming on stream just as the first products from the pilot plant near the end of their useful lives.

Petrone sees his company’s nano-processes as amounting to a “disruptive” and “quantum” shift. Rather than building incrementally upon past technologies for coating and surfaces designed to withstand extreme conditions, Quantiam’s products and processes amount to a totally new departure. It entails applying catalyst coatings to components – at this point typically tubes and fittings employed in petrochemical furnaces.

Launching into new processing and production also meant – apart from its vacuum-heat treatment furnace – Quantiam itself had to design and make most process Continued on page 6

The sad state of patent protection

A high-tech SME leader’s impatience is growing

W

hen it comes to protecting intellectual property, Steve Petrone, CEO and CTO of catalyst coatings maker Quantiam Technologies Inc., has encountered a sometimes steep and usually frustrating learning curve over the past decade.

The Edmonton executive considers Canada a “weak link” in patent protection. So much so, he believes “it’s time Canada either joined the G7 or risk staying quasi-Third World when it comes to intellectual property protection.”

In Canada, it’s just too hard to take cover under patent protection – particularly if you’re an SME with bright ideas but lacking in lucre.

Petrone cautions, “Unless you’ve got $5 million in your pocket to defend a patent, you really should think twice about patenting.”

“At Quantiam, we strive to keep manufacturing technology a trade secret, as best as we can.” Then, Petrone adds, ”As an SME, we generally do not patent. However, on any technology where we are engaged with much larger stakeholders – such as NOVA Chemicals, BASF Canada, SDTC, Industry Canada – we have an obligation to secure patent protection.”

Quantiam does seek patent protection for products or processes that it believes could be reverse engineered. Beyond that, it sticks to the bare minimum. Obtaining patents takes time, effort and money. But the more daunting challenge for an SME lies in the cost of defending a patent – likely against a multinational with deep pockets.

In such instances, the federal government at best assumes a stance of detached indifference. Given the many risks most SMEs already face – be it financing, property acquisition and staffing – for Petrone, it would be comforting to know that the Government of Canada is in an SME’s corner ready to assist with strong intellectual property protection within our borders.

Canadian PLANT WEST 5

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Innovation

>> Coatings

Technology

>> Software

A quantum shift Continued from page 5

and manufacturing equipment.

To serve customers, Quantiam sources specialized alloy parts worldwide and brings them to its Edmonton plant for coating – a procedure that includes processing the components to temperatures ranging from 1,000 to 1,200 degrees C in a vacuum-heat treatment furnace to create the unique coating microstructures that provide the product benefits. The $1.3-million furnace, the largest of its kind in Western Canada, along with a smaller unit, are pivotal pieces of equipment. A further manufacturing step entails welding the coated furnace components into coils, currently done outside of Alberta.

The selling unit for such coated product is a square inch of coating. Quantiam’s initial plant had a coating capability of one million internal square inches. That’s enough capacity to deal at one go with the coating needs of most petrochemical furnaces whose internal surface areas range from 150,000 to one million square inches. The Edmonton facility can handle up to three million square inches of coating at a time but could easily be scaled up to deal simultaneously with 12 million square inches of orders. Similarly, the new purpose-designed plant allows for quick doubling of the current 22,000 square feet of production space.

There are about 1,500 petrochemical furnaces worldwide (Canada has approximately 50, with 38 in Alberta). Petrone estimates about 35% of his potential market lies in North America (mainly Alberta, Ontario and the US Gulf Coast), 25% in Europe and 15% in the Middle East.

“We are serving Europe from here but it’s challenging,” Petrone admits. “Growth requires that we also have manufacturing elsewhere.”

Beyond the area of energy materials, promising growth potential exists in targeting the same technology platform and coatings to “wear and corrosion” applications.

Tubulars used in oil and gas exploration and production are prime targets. A wear and corrosion product line is about two years from commercialization. In perhaps five years or more, Petrone foresees the energy materials division expanding to serve the “methanol economy” as hydrogen and methanol/ethanol become more central to our energy mix (including for vehicles).

Commercializing CAMOL Quantiam currently has 24 employees. The company has been quite successful in recruiting advanced expertise (mainly PhDs) internationally. Having the National Institute for Nanotechnology (NINT) at the University of Alberta has been a drawing card. However, hiring qualified production personnel sometimes has proven difficult.

An undergrad engineering degree or certification in nano-engineering technology (now available through the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology) are preferred prerequisites. On-the-job training sometimes is possible but has its limitations in the specialized, advanced field of nanotechnology.

The staff is now divided fairly evenly between R&D and production. In the next few years, that ratio is expected to skew toward production, where 90% hiring is anticipated.

“We have yet to exceed $5 million a year in revenues,” says Petrone. “But now that we have this facility and full-scale manufacturing, we can exceed that. Our benchmark is that we have to see at least $50-million in annual revenues per product line within five to seven years – and with attractive margins.”

By 2014 or 2015, Quantiam is expected to go public. The investor base widened in December 2010. At that time, BASF Venture Capital GmbH, a subsidiary of the German-based chemical conglomerate BASF SE, and private investment fund, Ursataur Capital Management LP of Toronto invested a total of $6 million in Quantiam. In September, Quantiam with BASF Canada Inc. launched a separate company, BASF Qtech Inc., to commercialize the CAMOL technology worldwide.

Petrone stresses the intent is “to fully exploit our technology globally” while at the same time safeguarding production technology. The latter, more than the resulting products, represents one of the company’s key competitive advantages and gives it perhaps a five-to-ten year buffer against possible copycatting and some protection for its intellectual property. Petrone isn’t counting on government for help. (See sidebar.)

Reflecting further on the past decade of growth and development, he observes: “On the technology side, we were always confident we could attain the materials and processes we needed. The greatest challenge was cash and staff. We think we have great growth prospects but we still have massive challenges obtaining reasonably priced capital, and finding staff.”

Still, perseverance has paid off and, Petrone says, “I believe we currently have the first advanced manufacturing facility based on nanotechnology in Canada.”

Despite public funding commitments to R&D through NINT, he characterizes Canadian nano-manufacturing as minor league compared to advances in the US, Germany, Japan, China and even Russia. In short, Canada is in danger of being left behind and never being able to catch up.

Quantiam may remain number one in Canadian nano-manufacturing, but without a major government commitment to share the costs, risks and rewards of innovation in this field, the Edmonton company may become a lonesome leader.

Nordahl Flakstad is an Edmonton-based freelance writer. Contact him at nordahl@ flakstad.edmonton.ab.ca.

Autodesk CEO Carl Bass speaking at the general session of Autodesk University.

PHOTO: AUTODESK

PLM: It’s in the

cloud

And now accessible to all Autodesk 360 PLM makes product lifecycle management palatable.

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: PLM is no longer just for the big guys with the deep pockets.

Autodesk previewed its new PLM product at Autodesk University in Las Vegas Nov. 29, with much emphasis on getting full value from the software set.

“Why now?” asked Stephen Bodnar, vicepresident 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 in the market today,” said Robert “Buzz” Kross, senior vice-president of the manufacturing industry group.

Indeed, the product (part of Autodesk 360), 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.

Autodesk 360 for PLM will include: • Autodesk 360 Nexus. It’s cloud-based and makes PLM business applications available to users anytime, anywhere.

• Autodesk Vault. Available now, it provides on-premise 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.

Autodesk’s answer to PLM will be available during Q1 of 2012.

Link to http://usa.autodesk.com/ and search Autodesk 360 PLM.

Comments? E-mail JTerrett@plant.ca.

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November/December 2011

11-12-02 12:32 PM

Energy << Industry

Settling the tailings pond issue

Taking time out of the reclamation project

An aerial view of Suncor’s tailings reclamation project at Wapisiw Lookout near Fort McMurray, Alta.

PHOTO: GLOBAL FOREST WATCH

Oil sands developers collaborate using new technologies for faster cleanup of toxic tailings.

By Kim Laudrum

Y

ou would be hard pressed to find oil sands developers sharing a sandwich, much less competitive, innovative technology. But that’s just what is happening in Alberta thanks to tough environmental directives aimed at accelerating the clean up of toxic tailings ponds.

Directive 74, announced in February 2009 by the Energy Resources Conservation Board (ERCB), set out new enforceable regulations of tailings operations associated with mineable oil sands. The directive was launched in response to public concern prompted by, among other things, the death of 1,606 ducks on a Syncrude tailings pond in April 2008.

Over the last two decades oil sands mining operators were not meeting the targets set out in their applications. These targets outlined when the companies would return their toxic waste pools to land that could be walked on and ready for the reintroduction of plants and wildlife.

“The [ERCB] realized something needed to be done,” said Davis Sheremata, an ERCB spokesperson.

Directive 74 gave the board a stick to hit those oil sands mining companies. “If they didn’t meet targets by that date, we could begin enforcement,” Sheremata says. A mine could be shut down, for example, until it’s compliant.

Tailings ponds are created during the extraction of bitumen from the sticky sand. Alberta boasts the world’s second largest reservoir of oil, but most of it (80%) can’t be drilled conventionally – it’s embedded in sand and clay. Only 20% of the bitumen is close to the surface.

This is open-pit mined, which creates the tailings ponds.

For every barrel of bitumen (sticky heavy oil) that’s mined, two to four barrels of fresh water are required to extract the bitumen from the sand. Most of this water is taken from the Athabasca River.

Once the bitumen is extracted, the fine clay particles, sand, residual bitumen and used water are deposited into tailings ponds. Unfortunately, the fine clay tailings don’t settle. They become slurry, like wet quicksand.

No one knows exactly how long it takes for the mature tailings to settle before people can use the land again – at least 40 to 50 years, if not more. The

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original tailings ponds from the 1960s haven’t settled without some kind of intervention. No tailings ponds have been certified reclaimed.

The volume of toxic sludge created each year in Alberta is expected to grow 30% by 2020, according to Jennifer Grant, oil sands program director for the Pembina Institute, an environmental watchdog. In 2006, tailings ponds covered 50 square kilometres. Now they cover 170 square kilometres. The concern is that seepage could spew wastewater into groundwater or around containment dykes. This could present water quality risks to downstream users.

“It’s an urgent and growing concern,” says Grant.

Yet oil sands production is ramping up.

The Canadian Energy Research Institute (CERI) puts current oil production at 1.7 million barrels per day (bpd) and notes this is expected to hit 2.1 million bpd by 2015, 4.8 million by 2030 and 4.9 million by 2035 – almost triple today’s output.

Faster drying process Innovation holds a hint of promise that the problem could be tackled. Suncor is investing more than $1 billion from 2010 to 2012 on a new technology called tailings reduction operations (TRO), which converts fine tailings more rapidly into a solid landscape suitable for reclamation.

In this process, the mature fine tailings are mixed with a polymer flocculen, then deposited in thin layers over sand beaches. The result is a dry material that’s reclaimable in place or be moved to another location. This drying process occurs over a matter of weeks.

In September 2010, Suncor applied TRO technology and completed an early stage of surface reclamation at Pond 1, the company’s first storage pond for oil sands tailings when commercial operations began in 1967. Now named Wapisiw Lookout, the 220-hectare site is located at Suncor’s mining operations north of Fort McMurray, Alta. The company has planted oats, barley, shrubs and trees for regeneration purposes and some birds have returned to the site.

“The tailings pond isn’t really reclaimed until it’s been certified as reclaimed. That takes a number of years to address whether or not the long-term solidity of the soil is going to impact

revegetation,” says Grant.

“It’s early days yet to fully evaluate that particular technology (TRO), but it’s certainly a promising technology by the sounds of it.”

Suncor and six other oil sands companies announced plans in December 2010 to work together in a unified effort to advance tailings management. The others are Canadian Natural Resources Ltd., Imperial Oil, Shell Canada, Suncor Energy Inc., Syncrude Canada Ltd., Teck Resources and Total E&P Canada.

Suncor intends to share details specific to its TRO process with industry competitors so the environmental benefits of the innovation can be maximized. Canadian Natural Resources Ltd. tested a technology that involves injecting CO2 captured from its operations into the tailings to alter the clay chemistry, reducing the volume of water by 75% and creating dry, stackable tailings.

“Oil sands companies have invested $4 billion over the last two years to become compliant” with Directive 74, says Sheremata.

There are currently 16 tailings ponds in operation in Alberta, with four more on the horizon, according to Sheremata.

Syncrude’s Mildred Lake East In Pit, and Suncor Millennium/Steepbank’s Pond 5 are the next two tailings ponds slated to be returned to trafficable surface by 2016 and 2017 respectively.

Better management of tailings ponds

will do much to erase the industry’s black eye. And it’s encouraging to see the industry working together to resolve this issue, even environmentalists will attest. It should be pointed out that despite the environmental concerns, oil sands development – which is expected to almost triple by 2035 – would contribute significantly to Canada’s economy over the next 25 years.

What does such growth mean? It means “more money, more jobs, more contribution to the GDP than even the large contributions previously forecast,” says Don Thompson, president of The Oil Sands Developers Group.

Oil sands supports 75,000 jobs in Canada. That is expected to grow to more than 900,000 in 2035, Thompson points out.

He writes, “Over this 25-year period, the total GDP impact as a result of new oil sands projects is estimated to be $2.1 trillion for Canada, and $521 billion for the US.” A huge impact, whatever way you look at it. The challenge for oil sands developers is to ensure these economic benefits are not won at the expense of the environment.

Kim Laudrum is a Toronto-based business writer who specializes in manufacturing issues. Contact her at klaudrum@rogers.com.

Comments? E-mail JTerrett@plant.ca.

Ethanol use cuts GHG emissions Shortening the time of reclamation projects

A

new report by the Conference Board of Canada (CBOC) suggests ethanol can reduce greenhouse gas emissions and that federal renewable fuel standards will likely increase Canadian production, which is currently about two billion litres a year.

The study assesses the economic impact of the industry in Canada, its environmental and health effects and the balance between the energy required to produce ethanol and the amount of energy generated. It also looks at the policy objectives underpinning government support of the ethanol industry and its future opportunities.

Ethanol blends of 10% reduce GHG emissions by 4% to 6% compared to gasoline.

If a 100% ethanol blend were available, GHG emissions could be reduced by 62%, depending on production technologies and energy sources.

The economic impact of ethanol use comes from plant construction, operations and government financial support. Canada’s ethanol industry is worth about $1.2 billion a year.

Government support is estimated to average $260 million annually from 2006 through 2012.

Revenues for government of about $925 million are generated during the construction of ethanol plants, while annual operations add another $240 million to government coffers.

CanadianManufacturing.com

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Industry

>> Energy

Ethical oil

It’s not anti-free trade

Oil sands production is not only in the best interests of Canada and the US, it’s ethical by almost any measurement.

By Mark Milke

M

any of the people who criticize the term “ethical oil” can’t stand oil extraction on principle, or they have a narrowly selective view of human rights. For example, Amnesty International argues Alberta’s oil sands harm aboriginals, despite the fact the energy sector employs many northern

natives and has a superior environmental record compared to most regions.

Criticism of the ethical oil tag cropped up from those who worry the label abandons the principles of free trade.

Financial Post editor Terence Corcoran made this point when he wrote that the label’s backers appear “to have co-opted the liberal left’s concerns about rights.” As a free trade proponent who has written a comparison of oil-producing countries on civil, economic and political freedoms, I am happy to co-opt the left on rights.

American environmental lobbyists who

demand a ban on Canadian oil imports do not consider what transporting more crude oil by ship could potentially do to the ocean environment (think Exxon Valdez or last year’s BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico). Nor, do they ponder their inconsistency when it comes to human rights, which allows them to oppose Canadian oil but not Saudi oil.

In contrast, no one who favours free trade thinks Saudi oil should be banned, despite Saudi Arabia’s human rights record. It’s always a mistake to conflate individual action with state action. It’s also a mistake to talk about boycotts. No one is seriously suggesting Canadian or US governments ban Saudi oil.

The point of free markets and freedom in general is that people should have maximum room to make choices based on their own priorities, which most often, but not always, include price.

Equal comparisons If you want to buy higher-priced coffee because you think that will help the poor, that’s up to you. If some company pollutes a river, is it not better to initiate a public campaign to shame them into changing behaviour rather than asking government to step in? Similarly, if an oil company decides it wants to develop Canadian reserves as well as fields in authoritarian jurisdictions, despite a country’s human rights record or lack of stability, that’s a matter between that company and its shareholders.

Calls for a boycott that are in error or malicious should be countered, but in the public sphere, away from the coercion of the state. Private initiative is both preferable and a marker of the laudable freedom that exists in an open society.

Some worry the ethical oil tag will lead to a trade war. But not every exception to a rule leads down that slippery slope.

While there are a few common-sense exceptions to the rule of unhindered trade, they should be rare, restricted and justified. For example, on security, Canada does not sell nuclear technology to Iran.

But rare exceptions do not invalidate policy preference and do not inevitably lead to a protectionist world. Sometimes exceptions are just that: exceptions.

In any event, the ethical oil moniker is not about state action. It’s about informing the public about why, from the perspective of trade, continental security, human rights and even on some environmental measurements, oil sands production is, in that larger context, not only in the best interests of Canada and the US, but ethical by almost any measurement.

Mark Milke directs the Fraser Institute’s Alberta office and is author of In America’s National Interest – Canadian Oil: A Comparison of Civil, Political and Economic Freedoms in Oil-Producing Countries. Visit www.fraserinstitute.org.

Comments? E-mail JTerrett@plant.ca.

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Maintenance << Operations

Motor

testing Tips for avoiding failure

Check surge protection, shorts and imbalances.

T

esting equipment should always be a priority, and the electric motors responsible for driving mechanical motion in your plant are high on the todo-list. The following tips will keep them running: Power surge protection. Surge capacitors and lightning arrestors need to be checked periodically to prevent catastrophic failures. Here are some basic procedures to evaluate the condition of a capacitor: 1. Visually inspect it for cracks, bulging, swelling, leaks or other signs of damage.

2. Short the primary to ground while the case is also mounted and grounded.

Ground the capacitor before testing for 10 to 15 minutes before testing.

3. Use a capacitance instrument to measure the value. It should be very close to the value on the nameplate.

4. If the capacitor does not have an internal discharge resistor (noted on the nameplate) use a high potential test and bring the voltage close to the rating of the capacitor. Then increase the voltage slowly. The current value on the DC high potential tester should drop rapidly to zero around the rated voltage. If the capacitor has a discharge resistor, the value will show at the test voltage. A no-go in both cases means the capacitor is defective.

5. Discharge the resistor and repeat for each resistor.

Use a DC high potential tester to check lightning arrestors for the following: 1. Note the clamp voltage.

2. Connect the tester’s leads of the high potential tester should be connected to the primary and base of the arrestor.

3. If the arrestor clamp voltage is given in AC volts, convert to the DC value by multiplying the AC voltage by the square root of two.

4. Increase the voltage until the current of the high potential tester increases rapidly. This voltage value should be close to the DC clamp voltage. If there’s a significant difference, replace the arrestor.

5. Repeat for each arrestor.

Testing for AC/DC shorts. Detection of shorts is one fault of the challenges most maintenance people evaluating AC and DC motors must deal with. Many will attempt to use milli- or micro-ohm testing to detect winding faults, but DC ohm testing will only detect one if a conductor is broken or the fault has welded with other conductors.

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Insulation breakdown is far more serious than damp windings, and a decision may have to be made on what the operating risk is for a machine.

When an insulation system breaks down, the circuit resistance may remain high through that point, higher than the rest of the circuit, and/or may only allow a higher DC leakage current. This is referred to as a reactive fault. It can only really be excited with AC power, which “exercises” the insulation system.

Voltage techniques The damaged insulation will react quickly in full voltage applications and trip at some point. With reduced voltage techniques, AC at higher than normal frequencies will detect changes to the insulation system. Therefore, inter-turn insulation testing must use either a higher impulse voltage for insulation system weakness or low-voltage testing for dielectric degradation. Low-voltage tests in accordance with IEEE 1415-2006 will detect issues that include inductance, capacitive impedance, phase angle and current/frequency response.

With DC armatures, some do bar-tobar testing with DC resistance measurements. As with AC systems, this will not detect damaged insulation systems and most turn shorts. Measure current from bar to bar while the armature is on a growler. Alternatively, a lower-voltage surge, capacitive impedance, inductance, phase angle or I/F must be performed. In all cases, you are looking for a repetitive pattern. Deviations indicate a short.

Operating in humid conditions. In environments that have high humidity, a combined use of insulation resistance and polarization index can be done to make an informed decision about the

risk of operating an electric motor.

In a brand new electric motor, moisture from humidity will have some effect on low-voltage, random-wound machines, and a limited effect on medium-voltage, form-wound machines.

These effects become more pronounced as an insulation system ages due to fractures and other factors. This means a good insulation system may have a very low resistance after temperature correction.

Insulation breakdown is far more serious than damp windings, and a decision may have to be made on what the operating risk is for a machine. If the winding is damp, it may start and dry once it’s operated; if the insulation system is breaking down, the fault may require rewinding or cleaning, dipping in varnish and baking. Follow the insulation resistance with a polarization index reading.

If the polarization index is about two or less, chances are the insulation problem is due to moisture, but the risk would be less than for a machine that shows a low insulation resistance reading and a polarization index of four or better.

Electric motor current imbalance.

A common misconception is that there is a field current unbalance limit. Part of the NEMA MG-1 standard relates to manufacturers’ final testing in a system that has balanced voltage and impedance. In the field, voltage unbalance, phase impedance and power factor balance all have an impact.

If you find the current is unbalanced, verify the cause by rotating the phases from A to B, B to C and C to A. This

PHOTO: THINKSTOCK

maintains the motor’s direction of rotation. Re-measure the current. If it moves with the phase, it’s a supply issue; if the unbalance stays with the same motor T-leads, it’s a motor issue. In some cases the phase unbalance will disappear or reduce, which is okay.

How not to tension motor belts.

Tensioning motor belts by ampere draw can be misleading. Doing so on a motor/ fan combination until the current matches the nameplate seems to make sense until you realize that most belt systems are only about 50% loaded. The result is lots of bad bearings and machining and motors lasting days instead of years.

Belt tensioning, in fact, has a definite impact on system efficiency. Even slight over or undertension will reduce system efficiency by more than 2%. Looking at energy consumption also provides immediate and measurable data that demonstrates the impact. The loss in efficiency is an increase in friction that directly relates to unnecessary wear on components, including bearings, belts and sheaves.

A more accurate measurement of condition can be made by using electrical signature analysis equipment to record kilowatts before and after adjustments.

This takes the place of calculating the demand and makes the measurements far more accurate.

Gleaned from MotorDoc newsletters with permission from Dr. Howard Penrose, CMRP, Success by Design.

Comments? E-mail JTerrett@plant.ca.

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Departments

>> Product Showcase

>> Plantware

A range of applications covered.

RELAY LINE EXPANDED AutomationDirect has expanded its line of industrial relays to accommodate a wider range of applications.

APR40 power relays, available in SPDT, DPST and DPDT models with open-construction design and highpower contacts, switch up to 40 A with a maximum contact voltage up to 600 V. H782/H750 hazardous location electromechanical relays are hermetically sealed plug-ins for hazardous factory locations that are resistant to high vibration and shocks. Relay coil voltages cover 110/120 VAC, 220 VAC, 12V AC/DC and 24V AC/DC. The Solid State Relay (SSR) line adds AD-SSR6 Class 6 panel mount relays that withstand high-load ratings from 10 to 75 A in a hockey puck-type housing. AD-SSR8s offer energy efficient current switching in a space-saving, slim housing. Input ranges include 90 to 280 VAC and 3 to 32 VDC. And AD-HSSR8 HAZLOC solid state relays are Class 8 and approved for Class 1, Div. 2 (Groups A, B, C, D).

Switching types include DC switching for DC loads and Zero Cross for resistive AC loads.

AutomationDirect is a Cumming, Ga. supplier of automation products. www.automationdirect.com/relays

GC8000 process gas chromatograph.

BUILT-IN MAINTENANCE

RUGGED WORKSTATION

Yokogawa Corp. of America is offering something new in its GC8000 process gas chromatograph: built-in automated maintenance functions.

The instrumentation manufacturer, based in Sugar Land, Tex., provided the GC8000 with a 12-in., colour touchscreen HMI and powerful predictive diagnostics, but its analytical capabilities are also enhanced. Parallel chromatography is now practical with the GC Module concept. By setting up virtual GCs within a single analyzer, all chromatograph settings, displays, and data are segregated for easier maintenance.

Built-in graphic overview screens show each of the individual modules. www.yokogawa.com

The VisuNet 900 operator workstation from Pepperl+Fuchs is built to withstand the harshest oilfield operating conditions, including high shock and vibration.

Its 15- or 19-in. monitors are encased in a thin, rugged NEMA 4/4x stainless or painted slim steel housing made for Class I, Division 2 hazardA VisuNet 900 workstation. ous area installations.

Heat is mitigated without venting or cooling fans, and the touchscreen is glove-friendly. For those working outside, transflective models provide clear outdoor viewing.

Standard connectivity is Cat 5 or fiber-based KVM monitors, Ethernet Remote Network monitors or Full Panel PCs. Pepperl+Fuchs is a Twinsburg, Ohio manufacturer of process automation technology. www.pepperl-fuchs.us

PRECICE OPTICAL POSITIONING

FLASHPOINT TESTER

GE404 optical absolute encoders from Baumer will withstand any aggressive cleaning processes the food and beverage industry can dish out.

Housings are made of class 1.4404 or 1.4435 V4A stainless steel, while Viton seals provide long-term resistance to chemical agents and high temperatures.

Baumer, a sensor manufacturer based in Southington, Conn., said the leakproof and IP67-compliant encoders resists harsh washdowns with aggressive cleaning agents over its entire service life. ShaftLock bearings minimize machine downtime by enduring vibration and high shaft loads that occur during processing and cleaning. Optical sensing allows high, 14-bit single-turn and 12-bit multi-turn resolutions, delivering precise positioning at up to 10,000 rpm. www.baumer.com

The Miniflash Touch adds a colour screen to the Grabner Instruments line of testers from Ametek Petrolab Co. to determine the flashpoint of liquids and solids, correlating with the D93 Pensky-Martens method.

Its temperature range is from 0 to 400 degrees C and typical applications include Miniflash Touch tester. the fast screening of pharmaceuticals, aroma products, paints, varnishes, engine and lubricating oils and to determine the composition of solid wastes and unknown mixtures of liquid hydrocarbons.

The large colour screen runs on Microsoft Windows software and features an intuitive menu navigation that requires no training. Communication is hassle-free with USB, Ethernet, LAN, RS232, LIMS and PCs, and the unit has nearly unlimited storage capacity for programs and results.

Ametek Petrolab is a manufacturer of electromechanical devices based in Broken Arrow, Okla. www.petrolab.com

HAZARDOUS CONNECTIONS The 750-606 supply module from Wago Corp. permits one WAGO-I/O-System node to serve hazardous and non-hazardous environments by separating intrinsically and non-intrinsically safe sections. This provides hazardous applications with fieldbus-independence and a cost-effective connection to sensors/actuators in Zones 0 and 1.

The 24 VDC module monitors the power supply to downstream WAGO EX-i I/O. Its on-board diagnostics and Wago’s 750-606 supply auto-reset fuse minimize in-the-field service. Ten seconds after a fault is cleared, the electronic fuse automatically module. re-activates output voltage. On-unit LEDs indicate an open circuit and if the upper/lower limits have been exceeded.

WAGO is a Germantown, Wis. supplier of spring pressure connection technology. www.wago.us

EARLY WARNING FOR LUBES AMOT USA’s Metal Particle Detector (MPD) provides early warning of impending machinery failure. The on-line, continuous wear debris monitor signals the presence of metal particles in lubricating oils and alerts operators to perform oil condition checks. It covers all conductive materials, including non-magnetic particles, in non-conductive fluid lubrication systems.

It also verifies filter system performance and failure, confirms system flushing, detects high corrosion and abrasion wear, identifies improper machine repair, eliminates sampling errors and confirms corrective maintenance.

It’s compact with a corrosion-resistant stainless steel body – no moving parts – and it installs simply in a side stream of the lube oil/fluid for gas or diesel engines and reciprocating or rotating compressors, pumps, turbines, transmissions and gearboxes. A unique grid-sensing patented technology detects all conductive materials, including non-magnetic particles, in non-conductive fluid lubrication systems.

AMOT USA is a Houston-based manufacturer of specialised mechanical, hydraulic, pneumatic, electric and electronic control components for a wide range of industries. www.amot.com

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November/December 2011

11-12-02 12:34 PM

Postscript << Departments

SMEs in Alberta a key economic driver

BY TODD HIRSCH

T

hese days, business headlines tend to be dominated by big picture stories: crisis in Europe, the US debt, volatile stock markets. But lost in this ocean of alarm are the very positive stories from businesses on the streets where we live and work. Small businesses remain the lifeblood of many communities in Alberta – and their stories are too often lost or ignored.

ATB Financial and Alberta Venture magazine partnered to prepare a survey of 380 small business reporting revenue of between $30,000 and $5 million to better understand the challenges, successes and attitudes among our entrepreneurial class.

The first trend identified? Small businesses in Alberta are growing: 68% of them have increased their revenue over the past five years. Only 20% saw any kind of decrease, and 13% saw no change. This is extremely positive considering the market conditions of the past five years. Between 2006 and 2011, the global economy was knocked pretty hard and even Alberta’s economy experienced a severe recession in 2009.

Another interesting finding is that small businesses tend to be . . . small.

Nearly 65% of the respondents have five or fewer employees, and about 30% have total annual revenue of less than $100,000. Many of these are self-employed proprietors.

Alberta is known for its entrepreneurial spirit and in every downturn (such as in 2009) the number of self-employed individuals soars. Layoffs from big corporations don’t keep Albertans down for long; rather than sitting around with nothing to do, they strike out on their own, setting up professional consultancies or starting their own businesses with the skills and knowledge they’ve acquired.

That most small businesses continued to grow their revenue “over the past five years speaks to their energy and vitality... ” of small businesses are experiencing a shortage of access to financial credit – 26% report having only some of the business credit they require, and 14% report no access to business credit at all.

Yet looking ahead, these businesses tend to be optimistic about their prospects. More than half (52%) plan on hiring new employees within the next six months. Nearly 29% report experiencing “considerable growth” and another 35%

report “business is stable and maintaining market position.” Only 2% expect to wind down or reduce the size of operation.

And the No. 1 area companies expect to invest in over the next year? Marketing, with 56% planning to increase their efforts. Investment in people ranks a close second. That speaks to optimism, ambition and confidence in the product or service the business is offering.

Small businesses provide employment and growth opportunities for thousands of individuals. Their flexibility to changing conditions and ability to feel the pulse of their communities makes them indispensable to Alberta’s dynamic economy.

Todd Hirsch is senior economist with ATB Financial in Edmonton and Alberta business columnist with Calgarybased Troy Media.

Comments? E-mail JTerrett@plant.ca

Change

is in the Air…

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

Pride of ownership Small businesses also appear to like what they’re doing. Forty-two per cent report that what they enjoy most about owning a business is the pride they take in providing service to the community.

Independence is also important, with 20% claiming that being their own boss is what they enjoy most.

But it hasn’t been all sunshine and rainbows. The survey reveals some serious concerns and constraints on growth, including lack of time. Small businesses are ambitious, but 60% reported time was insufficient to get everything done.

Half of them reported not enough time to spend on “big picture” strategy and business planning.

As well, a third of small businesses are reporting shortages of skilled labour – a ghost of pre-recession Alberta that appears to be coming back to haunt businesses as the economy is picking up. Over 40% report problems in retaining key employees. And about one-third

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Beginning with the March 2012 issue. PLANT WEST 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, these exclusive New Technology sections will feature 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!

Canadian PLANT WEST 11

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THE WAY CAM WORKS:

KEEP THE THIRST TO BUILD, CREATE AND MAKE.

CAM MARSHALL President and CEO, Global Flow Inc.

BUSINESS BANKING IS ABOUT A SHARED PERSPECTIVE. At Canadian Western Bank, we see the world the same way as our customers.

As a result, we take the time to understand your industry and provide banking solutions suited to your business needs. Discover insights and learn more at theworkingbank.ca.

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