Celebrating Another Year Of Innovation And Accomplishment. Industry Continues To Set The Standard For Quality And
Connector to Cable Sealing May Determine System Life
Turbine Flow Meters: 5 Critical Design Features
The Power Of The Transfer Of Knowledge For Engineering Firms New Omron offer for the e-mobility industry
Smartreach Comau Responds To The Lightweight Components Market For Highly Versatile Machining
The electric vehicle market is developing more dynamically. However, one of the challenges for the industry remains the issue of charging, and leading manufacturers worldwide are committed to delivering increasingly efficient solutions. One of them is Omron, whose new relay offer has been added to the TME catalog. In this article, we introduce the G9KC series.
• E-Mobility Development
• Top Quality and Compact Design
• G9KC Relay Characteristics
• Applications of G9KC Relays
For some time now, there has been increasing talk of phasing out emission-heavy combustion engine cars from the automotive market and replacing them with electric alternatives. In line with adopted directives, almost worldwide, including in the European Union, countries have committed to eliminating or fully replacing traditional fuel-powered vehicles with electric ones in the next several years. The world’s largest car manufacturers, following these trends, are launching more and more electric models. Considering that the first combustion engine car was built in 1876, and that this technology—albeit with many modifications and improvements—has been serving drivers globally for so long, the transformations of the past decade are truly revolutionary. Electric vehicle charging stations are springing up rapidly, and ever more advanced models of electric vehicles are powered by energy-efficient and increasingly capacious batteries.
The development of e-mobility has reached the point where electric cars can now be found almost everywhere around the globe. Their users, accustomed to the convenience of refueling at common gas stations, expect to “fill up the tank” quickly and get back on the road as soon as possible. Therefore, to ensure electric vehicles do not fall behind their combustion counterparts, charging stations are faced with the challenge of recharging vehicles in the shortest possible time while maintaining the necessary safety standards for both the user and the battery being charged.
Taking on the responsibility of satisfying extremely demanding customers and meeting high-set goals, the high-quality electronic components manufacturer, Omron, has decided to develop a solution that will support the advancement of chargers dedicated to electric vehicles, while significantly raising current standards.
Relay with an additional type B auxiliary contact
The G9KC, a 4-pole, 40-amp PCB power relay, is one of the latest achievements from one of the leaders in the electronic components industry. The manufacturer has also provided an option with an additional auxiliary type B contact. In such cases, the product name will include the designation “1B.”
What sets this solution apart from its market counterparts? According to the manufacturer, this relay features lower contact resistance, which results in reduced temperature inside the device’s housing. This lower temperature also positively affects the longevity of other electronic components located nearby. Previously, thermal management posed a significant limitation in terms of available charging power. The Omron relay enables the charging of electric vehicles with a power capacity of 22kW. A particularly important advantage is the product’s ability to be mounted on a PCB (printed circuit board). This solution minimizes the size of the charging station and reduces costs. The mass production of PCBs equipped with G9KC relays ensures the highest quality of workmanship and speeds up the entire production process.
The manufacturer guarantees top quality, compliant with global standards, as evidenced by its adherence to IEC standards for electric vehicle charging solutions (IEC 61851-1, IEC 62955). The auxiliary contact solution also meets the IEC 60947-4-1, F.7.2 standard.
It is also worth noting that the G9KC is certified by UL/CUL, TUV, and CQC, ensuring the safety of the relay’s use.
The TME catalog features four models of Omron G9KC relays. These include basic versions as well as those equipped with an additional auxiliary contact, available with nominal coil voltages of 12V and 24V. Apart from differences arising from the type of coil used—such as resistance, current, and power consumption—the entire series of relays shares the following technical specifications:
• Maximum contact current: 40A;
• Operating temperature: - 40 ÷ 85°C;
• External dimensions: 58.5 x 35.5 x 47.5mm;
Technical Specifications Depending on Coil Voltage:
• Coil Resistance:
• For the 12V version: 28.8Ω;
• For the 24V version: 115Ω;
• Coil Current:
• For the 12V version: 417mA;
• For the 24V version: 208mA;
• Coil Power Consumption:
• For the 12V version: 5W;
• For the 24V version: 613mW.
As mentioned earlier, the G9KC relay is used in 3-phase electric vehicle charging stations, but it is also suitable for other applications that utilize 3-phase alternating current. These may include uninterruptible power supplies (UPS), inverters for photovoltaic installations, or industrial inverters.
The high quality of Omron’s products has helped build a brand that inspires great trust among customers. The relays from the new G9KC series represent the highest global standards in terms of quality, durability, and performance. They are sure to perform well in even the most demanding applications. By purchasing G9KC relays, the user is guaranteed safety both for themselves and for the entire installation that works with these relays.
Text prepared by Transfer Multisort Elektronik Sp. z o.o.
ODU connectors are ideally suited for mission critical military applications and their extreme environmental conditions. But the connectors on their own are not the whole story. In this article, ODU describes how they also offer overmoulding to ensure the highest-integrity sealing between their connectors and cables.
Where reliability is paramount, the cable to connector entry points are often the most significant areas of potential failure, particularly over prolonged periods of time.
This is unacceptable under the extreme conditions in which military operations may take place, where immersion in water, exposure to dirt and dust, high humidity, extreme temperatures, shock and vibration are the norm.
Of course, a variety of generic back-shells are widely available to fit on the rear of the connector to control the point between cable and connector. However, ODU provides the highest-integrity sealing between their connectors and the chosen cables, by also offering custom over-moulding according to international standards and beyond.
ODU offers a wide variety of connector families, many of which are capable of operating in harsh environments. Among them are the ODU AMC® and the ODU MINISNAP® series.
Special over-moulding technologies ensure watertight as well as dirt-proof seals when an ODU connector is mated with its receptacle.
A combination of O-rings, potting and over-moulding is used to meet the IP68 specification. ODU has raised the bar by defining waterproof products to be capable of immersion at a depth of 2 meters for at least 24 hours, in accordance with the IEC 60529:2013 standard.
Some members of the ODU AMC® family even meet the more rigorous IP69 specification, in which they are subjected to high-pressure jets from a steam cleaner.
Although push-pull connectors such as the ODU AMC® and ODU MINI-SNAP® are not specifically covered in MIL DTL 38999, both these ODU connector families actually outperform the MIL spec and usually offer a space-envelope and weight saving by providing the required number of contacts in a smaller shell-size.
Poor quality reception, listening fatigue and constantly having to wear a headset in or around one’s ears –these are common issues associated with military communication systems.
To address this challenge ODU, working with a special US Navy unit, helped its customer with the development of an advanced headset system. Combining a watertight, noise-absorbing microphone with bone conductors and electronic headphones, the system enables users, for the very first time, to be able to easily remove the headphones from their ears while the radio reception continues uninterrupted. This is possible by bone conductors which enable the radio communication to be transmitted directly into the inner ear via the bones of the skull.
An ODU AMC® connector ensures reliable transmission of the signals. The circular connector connects the headset with the push-to-talk housing. This solution offers a non-reflective surface, protection class IP 68 water tightness, durability of up to 5,000 mating cycles and a break-away function that protects the connected equipment in the event that the cable or any component becomes snagged on some immovable object. It allows for easy disconnection of the connector with one pull on the cable. The ease of handling and reliability enabled the headset to fully meet the requirements of military and security technology.
A compact dual-band radio for use in military and security technology applications. It is reliable, lightweight, uses very little power, has integrated GPS and can handle extreme environmental conditions - meeting the most demanding military standards for electrical, mechanical and environmental conditions.
A 16-pole ODU AMC® Easy-Clean plug connector is used to connect the radio’s headset to the functionselector unit. The plug is over-moulded to meet the IP 68 specification and to offer a flexible bend relief to protect the cable in use.
When designing electronic equipment that may be exposed to harsh environments, it is important to consider every point of possible leakage between the exterior and interior of the equipment.
For customers requiring true hermetically sealed (gastight) connectors, ODU offers customized solutions in which glass to metal seals are incorporated in the product, in this example: Weighing Systems used in Quarries
ODU manufactures custom hermetic connectors for load cells used in stationary truck scales. These weighing systems in the raw material quarrying sector are equipped with a number of individual load cells. Trucks are weighed before and after being loaded, in order to determine the net weight of raw material they are transporting.
A glass seal between the connector shell and shielded cable ensures that no dust or dirt can infiltrate the unit in its harsh outdoor environment, while also helping to make the entire weighing-scale unit tamper proof.
In the second of the two-part turbine series, Titan Enterprises shares the five critical design features for Pelton wheel turbine flowmeters.
The design challenge for turbine flowmeters based on the working principles of this type of radial turbine is primarily straightforward: simple electronics versus complex precision engineering.
In developing a cost-efficient and reliable Pelton wheel turbine flowmeter, Titan Enterprises considers five critical design elements:
1. Excellent linearity and repeatability
2. Long operational life
3. In-line meter connections
4. Good chemical resistance of materials
5. Ease of manufacture
1. Linearity and repeatability
Good linearity and excellent repeatability are essential in any turbine flowmeter, and one of the more subtle critical design areas is that of the radial clearance of the turbine in the housing. If the radial clearance is too small there is a constant drag with the chamber wall that causes problems with linearity and changes in fluid properties. Too large a clearance and the chamber volume becomes unacceptable and the entrainment of gasses becomes problematic. The same is true with the side clearances. There are a series of solutions to turbine drag as the chamber velocities start to become laminar.
Titan use a hexagonal chamber that permits the formation of vortices which reduce the drag and assists the linearity into the laminar flow region. Other turbine designs use square chambers or square chambers with posts in the four corners, effectively generating the space for eight vortices.
With known fluid properties and careful calibration techniques, variations affecting linearity and repeatability can be ‘calibrated out’. Designing-out some of these issues to give good flowmeter performance ensures the resulting solution doesn’t become overly expensive.
The linearity and repeatability are also linked to the design of the bearings. Here, special care must be taken in both bearing design and choice of materials to ensure long, reliable operational life. The most common fluids used in these devices are water-based and many bearing materials would not be suitable for long term use due to the poor lubricating qualities of water, increasing wear. Add to that the requirement of aggressive chemicals and the bearing material options are further reduced.
With low flow rates and the energy available from the fluid minimal, the bearings must also be of low friction and able to maintain the original level of friction for the operational life of the meter. For a domestic coffee machine for example, this may only be four hundred hours of use so a simple metal spindle in plastic housing would be sufficient. Whereas the operational life of flowmeters used in medical equipment is more likely to be 4 years plus, so a more durable bearing material like sapphire or ruby would be more suitable.
The loads on the bearings can be quite high so there is a trade-off to consider between bearing life, low friction and the meter’s lifespan. A ball and cup bearing would give low friction and excellent low-end performance when new, but the wear on the extremely small contact area would soon result in turbine precession affecting linearity and repeatability.
Titan utilise a sapphire spindle and bearing arrangement, and together with their recommended installation, this ensures the flow devices continue to operate within specification for years.
3. In-line meter connections
With a rotating turbine, the lower density gasses tend move towards the spindle and can stay there under certain conditions effecting the meter linearity and life of the bearings. One solution is to extract the fluid axially on the centre line of the turbine’s rotation, leaving the inlet and outlet connections at 90° to each other. This 90-degree inlet to outlet orientation is not always acceptable and can cause problems for installation. However, this can be solved with a complicated housing but this will result in a retained fluid volume increase, as well as compromising the bearing arrangement.
Some flowmeter manufacturers run the incoming stream at an angle so that it wraps its way around a wider than normal blade and exits at a corresponding angle to the inlet jet, one whole revolution later. Two hundred and seventy degrees of wrap-around is also quite common but this tends to leave the inlet and outlet on the same ‘face’ of the device or requires the incorporation of a manifold system.
Titan chose the in-line radial design, i.e. the inlet and outlet are opposite each other, for 3 key reasons:
• Ease of installation for the customer
• Lower manufacturing costs which result in a costeffective meter
• To minimise the pressure drop within the customer’s piping system
4. Good chemical resistance of materials
The turbine itself seems like a simple element but it must also be carefully considered. Low mass is important, so a polymer is often used in turbine manufacture, and occasionally the turbine’s density is matched to the fluid to fractionally reduce bearing load at start-up. A potential issue here is that the turbine’s rotation must be detected somehow. Optical detection allows for no extra mass increase to the turbine, but liquid measurement is restricted to optically clear fluids and any build-up of deposits on the optical path can stop detection.
Some manufacturers use curved or tapered blades on the turbine. If magnetic or inductive detection is required, a suitable magnetic material insert is necessary, and this should be overmoulded to protect it from aggressive chemicals.
Titan produce the majority of their turbine devices in NSF-approved PVDF (suitable for food and medical applications), and overmould the magnets to ensure long-life in the most corrosive chemical environments.
To ensure ease of manufacture, the design should integrate the latest innovations in moulding and machining technologies, accommodating various flow ranges and simplifying production. From the outset, components should be designed for easy interchangeability and made from high-grade materials to enhance durability and streamline assembly. This approach not only optimises manufacturing efficiency but also ensures consistent quality and performance.
To conclude, a Pelton wheel turbine is not just the simple paddle in a chamber. It is the perfect device for cost effective low-flow measurement and the choice available is extremely wide from the $1 meter for your coffee machine, through to a device costing tens of thousands for demanding industrial use.
As with all flowmeters, it is essential to ensure you are choosing the correct sensor for your application. When specifying a flowmeter, Titan Enterprises recommends the following considerations:
• Is the flow range, pressure, temperature and chemical resistance acceptable for your application?
• Is the flowmeter cost-effective over the lifetime of the installation?
• Does it have the performance required for the application and will it maintain that performance over the operational window?
• Are the suppliers/manufacturers knowledgeable in their technical capabilities and honest in their specifications?
Visit Titan Enterprises’ website for full technical information on Titan’s turbine flowmeters.
To discuss your specific OEM application, please contact Titan Enterprises on +44 (0)1935 812790 or email sales@flowmeters.co.uk.
• SmartReach Comau combines high flexibility with unwavering stiffness and accuracy
• Designed for high-speed, one-setup overall machining of large lightweight structural frames, megacasting underbodies, battery casings and more
• Automotive, aerospace, energy and other markets can all benefit from this flexible and dynamic machining solution for better productivity and scalability
• ESG design significantly reduces energy use as well as environmental and worker safety risks
As automotive manufacturers look to increase sustainability and lower costs, there is a growing demand for large structural components made of lightweight metals that can deliver better fuel efficiency, battery power range and higher cost-effectiveness. Comau has thus enriched its next-generation machining portfolio with SmartReach Comau, a new paradigm in enhanced machining productivity, designed specifically for effective and efficient machining of large size lightweight components such as underbodies, and battery trays made by mega casting or stamping technologies. Thanks to its unique combination of flexibility, dynamics, stiffness and accuracy, the application of SmartReach Comau caters to the automotive, aerospace, energy, and other industries, where the 5-axis flexible machining solution of oversized light material components is widely required.
Dynamic and agile machining with unwavering stiffness and accuracy
SmartReach Comau is not a traditional robot machining unit but was conceived as a CNC (Computer Numerical Control). With its linear X axis, reinforced rotary axes with double encoders and other specifically designed configurations, it delivers high-end CNC
level performance in terms of dynamics, stiffness and precision. In a single part clamping posture of the part, the agile high-speed spindle can easily reach compound angles and access any side of large or multifaceted parts without frequent recourse to angular heads. In this way, it’s easy to realize one-set up machining, the key to megacasting and large lightweight parts machining (clamping the parts too many times will cause part deformation and loss of tolerance). Furthermore, by including all the machining operations into one station within the machining line, the multi-machine parallel machining can reduce line stop risk due to one machine failure.
With its modular structure, the machine can be easily reconfigured into mono, twin spindle or multi spindle configuration, with one frame to multi-frame (frame extendable without limit), to work with different configurations of turntable (A axis, B axis single, double tables). The standard configuration with one frame has a 3000x1890x1000mm stroke, and with this flexibility the machine can adapt to different part sizes and different production needs.
Real 5-axis continuous machining with CAD CAM and Programming G Code for machining programing and CT simulation, easy for fast model change. Furthermore, the modular structure ensures easier reconfigurability and simple access to the installed machine, resulting in shorter mean time to repair (MTTR) compared to market standards, thus saving time, money and resources. Most maintenance activities can be done at ground level for major operation safety and enhanced ergonomics.
By using MQL or dry machining, SmartReach Comau saves coolant and reduces waste, which helps protect the environment. Thanks to its special machine architecture, developed in full compliance with Comau’s ESG strategy, there is much less energy consumption during machining operation, compared to traditional vertical or horizontal CNC machines. In this way the energy saving can reach up to 40%.
SmartReach Comau reflects the global automation specialist’s increasing focus on diversification and allows Comau to address important markets for which high flexibility and high precision are non-negotiable. Backed by a longstanding history of bringing high-end reliable machining solutions to the market, SmartReach Comau addresses what the company believes will become a significant market in the next several years.
“SmartReach Comau, which reflects our increasing focus on diversification, will allow us to address important markets for which high flexibility and high precision are non-negotiable,” explained Stefania Ferrero, Chief Marketing and Solutions Portfolio Officer. “Backed by our longstanding history of high-end reliable machining solution providers, we have innovatively evolved both our technology path and our resource competencies to address what we believe will become a significant market for Comau in the next several years.”
www.comau.com
Articulated Pipework Torsion In Hoses
Rotating Cylinders
Swivel joints allow pipework to pressure 1/4” to 40” and beyond.
Vacuum to over 20,000psi.
Stock and bespoke production.
Unique bearing/seal design for longer life.
ISO 9001 CE marked where applicable.
Tel: +44(0)1663 735003
E-mail:
Chromacity Ltd reports how its Chromacity 520 femtosecond laser system is being used for rapid, non-contact, non-destructive characterisation of semiconductor thin films.
Picosecond laser ultrasonics, or picosecond ultrasonics, is a technique for studying materials using high frequency acoustic pulses generated and detected by ultrashort optical pulses typically <1 ps in duration. The technique can be used to characterize materials with nanometre spatial resolution making it a ‘go to’ technique for accurately measuring the thickness of semiconductor thin films.
Using this technique – semiconductor device developers can determine the quality of the bonding between a film and a substrate, which gives information about a device’s mechanical properties. This information is critical as the overlay and alignment of a lithographically defined pattern on top of an underlying layer is fundamental to device performance. The picosecond ultrasonic technique is particularly valuable to semiconductor device production flows where there may be an opaque layer that interferes with the measurement. In such cases, conventional methods of alignment using light fail.
The Chromacity 520 is a robust and reliable 520 nm femtosecond laser system that can be used as a fixed wavelength source to deliver ultrashort pulses with high average powers in the green spectral region. This compact, high-performance laser does not require water cooling and comes with a simple user interface, making it one of the easiest and affordable laser sources to operate. The compact housing of the Chromacity 520 enables simple system integration.
To learn more about advanced semiconductor metrology using a Chromacity 520 femtosecond laser system, please click here. For further information please contact Chromacity Ltd. on +44-131-449-4308 / sales@chromacitylasers.com.
In the UK, productivity is languishing, and workforce shortages are significant. No sector understands this more than manufacturing, which had a staggering 74,000 vacancies in 2023,[1] contributing to the increasing cost of production.
Despite automation offering clear solutions, the UK is currently ranked 24th in terms of the number of robots utilised per every 10,000 manufacturing workers.[2]
During a recent OMRON webinar, Stuart Coulton, the company’s UK and Ireland marketing manager, and George Brown, technical services manager for robotics, safety and vision, argued that it was time to change all that.
“There are clear issues that we need to address, and advanced solutions can play a pivotal role in helping UK manufacturing overcome some of these,” said Coulton. “There are some really easy wins with simple applications of automation.”
One of these areas is feeding, the majority of which, Brown explained, is still carried out manually. “Moving a product from bulk storage onto a machine can be
a mundane, repetitive job. It puts a lot of physical stress on the operator, and makes them vulnerable to repetitive strain and ergonomics injuries, he said, adding this made it a difficult role to recruit for.
Manual feeding also presents operational challenges. It limits production to working hours, for example, and human error is inevitable, particularly when facilities are understaffed. This can lead to quality issues or unplanned slowdowns and stoppages, all of which can impact on the bottom line.
Said Coulton: “It is very expensive now to produce things in the UK. A key reason for this is that we are, compared to other economies, still very reliant on human labour to fulfil certain tasks. It really does make sense for us to start to look at automated feeding and robotics as a viable solution.”
Automated feeding involves using robotics to move goods or components to machinery for further processing. It can improve overall operational efficiency (OEE) in a number of ways. It removes manual stress from workers, increases production time from working hours to 24/7, and introduces a consistency that enhances quality. Collaborative robots (cobots), which work alongside human workers, can be easily programmed to move between processes, increasing cycle time and boosting throughput. Some cobots incorporate vision sensors that allow them to identify “landmarks,” or physical objects that help them navigate and locate themselves.
Some traditional forms of robotics have been prohibitively expensive, requiring factory refurbishments and detailed programming skills to set up and manage. Advanced, modern cobots, however, are different.
They have no rails, operating independently, and easily integrate with existing machinery. They are relatively affordable, and their ability to seamlessly move between machines and lines accelerates their ROI. Training employees to programme and deploy cobots is quick and straightforward, meaning they do not tend to require advanced in-house skillsets. In terms of safety, they feature a ‘collaborative mode’, which slows the cobot’s movement speed if its human colleagues get close.
In addition, said Brown, adopting robotics enhances a manufacturers’ reputation as an innovative organisation, helping to attract employees and clients alike.
Adoption top tips
Robotic adoption may seem like a daunting process, but it doesn’t have to be.
Brown said: “The key thing is not to jump in at the deep end. Think about what the most possible, feasible applications might be and go from there.”
Organisations can scale up their automation programmes as and when they achieve ROI, he added. “It introduces scalability. It might be that you have three operators doing feeding in one area, so perhaps you start off with one cobot and two staff. You make sure the technology fits and operates, then maybe the second robot comes in, and you can deploy your operators elsewhere.”
Change management is also important. ‘Taking people with you’, he said, was key to ensuring acceptance on the factory floor. That includes involving staff in the use case selection and implementation plans, and demonstrating how the technology is intended to assist, not replace, them.
Crucially, any manufacturing operation considering adopting automated feeding should talk to the experts. “We can work with you on proof-of-concept studies and we can walk the line with you to understand your pain points. Ultimately, we can help you to match the right technology to your challenges, and help you plan the right route to success,” said Brown.
Watch the Webinar: https://industrial.omron. co.uk/en/news-events/events/transformingmanufacturing-on-demand
[1] Food Manufacture. (2023). UK manufacturing job vacancies at almost two-year low. Available at: https://www.foodmanufacture. co.uk/Article/2023/07/04/UK-manufacturing-job-vacancies-dropto-74-000 Last accessed: 18 October 2024.
[2] Engineering Update. (2023). Global robot report highlights UK’s urgent need to increase automation. Available at: https://engineeringupdate.co.uk/2023/02/02/global-robot-report-highlights-uks-urgentneed-to-increase-automation-engineering-global-robotreport/ Last accessed: 18 October 2024.
The transfer of knowledge between industries and sectors involves adapting skills, processes, best practices, technologies and insights from one industry and applying them in another, often with necessary modifications.
The application of this innovative approach is accelerating, as businesses realise the capabilities it offers in leveraging improved efficiencies and empowering organisations to harness already proven solutions.
By fostering collaboration and sharing expertise, businesses can unlock new opportunities and drive growth in today’s competitive landscape.
Despite industry, sector and location, thousands of businesses face the exact same challenges, from supply chain disruptions and workforce and talent shortages, to cost control and margin pressures.
Despite common conceptions, no business challenge is unique. Organisations globally encounter changing customer expectations and are impacted by the continuous need for innovation to remain competitive. The transfer of knowledge offers the capability for businesses to learn from each other’s mistakes and challenges, which is even more important in today’s rapidly technologically advancing state.
When an organisation looks outside of its own industry, it enables it to identify and adapt existing, tested
solutions to achieve more rapid and effective results. There is an array of benefits unlocked when businesses utilise the transfer of knowledge, including;
• Reduced learning times resulting in a quicker return on investment (ROI)
• Better planning and fewer unknowns, particularly in the finance and operating departments
• Smarter allocation of resources and talent
• Improved team collaboration
• Improved decision making
• Cost savings, including time, research, development and physical product
Transferring knowledge across different sectors is a valuable way to encourage learning and innovation. By sharing insights and best practices, various fields can benefit from each other’s expertise, leading to new perspectives and ideas. Although some methods may not always be the most effective, exploring an array of approaches can enhance understanding and encourage creative solutions to widespread challenges. This crosssector collaboration promotes a culture of openness and continuous improvement, ultimately building a more interconnected and resilient organisation.
There are many instances that demonstrate the transferring of knowledge, with digital twins being one of the key examples that have been utilised and adapted across different sectors. The engineering and manufacturing industries were early adopters of digital twin technologies, utilising them to optimise production lines. Meanwhile, the aerospace and defence sectors depend on digital twins to enhance the design, testing and maintenance of complex systems.
In the engineering sector, projects typically involve complex supply chains that include multiple suppliers and subcontractors. Currently, the industry is encountering challenges, such as skills shortages and limited resource availability. On top of this, there is significant pressure to adopt digital technologies to enhance efficiency and reduce costs.
There is a real opportunity to identify current pain points in the engineering sector and look for comparable scenarios in other industries to reduce the legwork.
Personally, across my career, and more recently as a performance improvement consultant, I have been lucky enough to undertake work in a wide range of industries including automotive, aerospace, defence, construction, FMEG and oil and gas, as well as working with a broad range of manufacturing operations. In every situation, I could see similar challenges and issues which enabled me to bring learnings from other industries to help drive rapid improvements.
Recently my business partner, Peter Ahye, our partner Aerogility, and I collaborated with HS1 and Network Rail High Speed to conduct a proof of concept for an AI Enterprise Digital Twin. This project aimed to optimise and enhance maintenance and renewal planning. We sought to adapt an existing planning tool that has been successfully utilised in the aerospace industry and assess its applicability in the rail sector. The proof of concept was a great success.
If I could share any advice for businesses looking to effectively transfer knowledge to the engineering sector it would be;
• To understand the problem you are trying to solve and be clear about what success looks like
• Look at other industries to see who may have had to deal with a similar problem and how they managed to combat it
• Determine which elements of the problem and potential solution need adjusting to fit the engineering industry
• Test the potential solution through a proof of concept (PoC) or a similar model to ensure a successful transition
• Ensure a high level of focus on the people and change agenda to aid the successful adoption and ongoing sustainability of the improvement
Many companies think that their challenges and issues are unique to them, which leads them to attempt to solve these problems without learning from others. This mindset is a significant barrier to effectively transferring knowledge and hinders progress.
Organisations should focus on anticipating potential crises rather than simply reacting to them as they occur. For instance, if a company in your sector announces job cuts, you should consider what steps you can take to prevent a similar situation within your own organisation. Being proactive in this way can help reduce the impact of a crisis on your business and make it easier to navigate challenging situations.
To learn more about how the transfer of knowledge can help your business please visit: www.hexconsultants.com.
To find out more, please message Sue directly on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/suedale-williamssupplychainspecialist
Celebrating another year of innovation and accomplishment. The engineering industry continues to set the standard for quality and distinction!
This November, the Princess Royal Training Awards honoured 52 recipients investment in training their people, resulting in exceptional organisational These Awards, the ultimate symbol of excellence in learning and development attract more and more organisations each year, eager to achieve this
recipients for their organisational benefits. development (L&D), this royal accolade.
The increasing popularity of the Awards can be attributed to an array of factors: royal recognition, a prestigious ceremony, membership of an outstanding alumni network of 600+ members and unparalleled support throughout the process. Precision engineering organisation and Award recipient EDM Zone Ltd stated:
“We have won lots of awards in the apprenticeship realm, but we believe this one to be the pinnacle of apprenticeship awards. It’s the best you can get.”
Even better, the Awards are completely free, and entrants don’t compete, they simply need to demonstrate how their training meets the Awards’ standards.
Ultimately, the true value is in the transformative impact of the Awards and training commitment on organisations. In a recent Alumni survey*, 93% of organisations reported a boost in employee engagement and wellbeing due to investment in learning, 91% saw an increased ability to demonstrate the value of skills to their organisation’s social value and 84% expressed enhanced confidence in their organisation’s culture and training approach.
The manufacturing and engineering sector has a strong history of participating in the Princess Royal Training Awards and 2024 has been no exception, with an increase in both applications and Awards for the sector.
programme that
Addressing an aging workforce, they have recruited 1,500 trainees across various levels, creating sustainable talent pipelines.
Bentley Motors was also recognised for its Retail Academy which was transformed into a digital platform during the pandemic. This has doubled UK retailer engagement in training to nearly 16,000 participants and significantly reduced costs, supporting their goal to become the world’s most sustainable luxury car brand.
These organisations - along with Lotus Cars, Monnickendam Diamonds Ltd, Sharing in Growth UK Ltd, Tecniq Ltd and Xtrac - join the many manufacturing and engineering sector organisations acknowledged over the years by these prestigious Awards.
In 2025, the Awards celebrate a decade of honouring training excellence. If you are keen to be recognised for your organisation’s dedication to training during this special year, why not register your interest?
The Awards are open from 2 December 2024 until 31 March 2025.
*City & Guilds (2024) Impact Report 2024: The impact of skills on lives.
NOX and SOX emissions haven’t gone away. Neither have their polluting effects.
From the EU’s National Emission Ceilings Directive to the Clean Air Act in the United States, several major global powers have taken bold steps to reduce pollutants in the air around us. Why, then, is the second suggested Google search term related to acid rain “is acid rain still a problem”?
Here Dr Alexander Krajete, founder and CEO of emissions revalorisation specialist Krajete GmbH, explains how the manufacturing industry contributes to acid rain, the effects on human health, infrastructure and the
Acid rain is an umbrella term that refers to precipitation with dissolved nitric and sulphuric acid, but can include carbonic acid and alkaline components too.
Chemical, petrochemical, metal and many other types of manufacturing release nitrogen and sulphur oxide (NOX and SOX respectively) emissions. These come from combustion, refinement and processing of materials such as coke, crude oil and ammonia. The emitted gases dissolve into atmospheric moisture and fall to earth as acid rain.
The more obvious consequences of acid rain, such as direct harm to landbased and aquatic animal populations and damage to crops, have drastically reduced in regions where serious efforts have been made to address pollution. This has bred the idea that the problem itself has disappeared. Unfortunately, that is not true.
The clouds of acid rain still linger
Although
NOX and SOX emissions fell by 48 per cent in the European Union
Inhaling acidic gases causes respiratory concerns for all animals, including humans, irritating the respiratory tract and exacerbating pre-existing conditions, such as asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
Any concrete or carbonate-based structures suffer too. Factories and facilities in areas with heavy acid deposition will endure significant maintenance expenses, as well as costly disruption to goods output and transport through degradation of infrastructure if buildings and bridges are damaged.
The non-human world perhaps stands to lose the most. Alteration of soil chemistry, such as soil acidification, the loss of buffering capacity and mobilisation of toxic aluminium cations, affects all life forms that depend on it. Inevitably, this radiates up the food chain.
Aquatic eco-systems suffer greatly from acid rain — atmospheric deposition and terrestrial run-off of nitrogenous material into lake and marine habitats results in eutrophication (over-enrichment) of plants and algae.
Overgrown during life, these organisms die and decompose, leaching dissolved oxygen from the water around them and starving aquatic life in the area of it. This leads to so-called ‘dead zones’ where aquatic life struggles to survive.
Why is acid rain still a problem?
One reason for the persistence of the acid rain phenomenon is the global community’s fixation on carbon dioxide emissions. The warming effects caused by increased atmospheric CO2 levels are enormous, with manufacturing and production accounting for 12 per cent of global carbon emissions in 2021. Great progress has been made to reduce emissions there.
However, this has led to some neglect by fossil fuel processors and combustion engine manufacturers to mitigate other emissions, such as NOX and SOX. This is mostly true in countries where regulations are less stringent.
A second factor is the destructive approach usually taken to treating captured NOX and SOX emissions. Sacrificial reactions involving NOX, such as selective catalytic reduction (SCR), can release other species such as NH3. These both have their own harmful effects and SCR has a lower particle capture limit of ten ppm, meaning it cannot eradicate emissions entirely.
How should we deal with small-particle emissions?
Milder physisorption techniques are increasingly being used to capture NOX and SOX emissions without unwanted reactions and side products. The emissions gas abatement approach uses an adsorptive surface to bind pollutant particles without a chemical reaction, relying on weak surface bonding.
These weak intermolecular forces enable simple, lowenergy release of the pollutants from the saturated adsorber, either through rinsing or mild heating. By collecting small-particle atmospheric contaminants in this way, two large benefits are conferred.
Firstly, the amassed emissions are purified as part of the process. This means they can be repurposed within a company’s production cycle or sold onto a third-party with great financial efficiency. This could be NOX as a pre-cursor for industrial nitric acid supply or production of nitrogen-rich fertiliser for agriculture.
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Integration of Prism Embedded Software and Hadron 640R+ Payload to Provide Cutting-Edge Thermal Sensing and Air-to-Ground AI Capabilities.
Teledyne FLIR, part of Teledyne Technologies Incorporated, today announced it has been selected by Red Cat Holdings, Inc., to provide thermal imaging and Artificial Intelligence (AI) embedded software for its Black Widow™ small unmanned aircraft system (sUAS). Red Cat was selected as the winner of the U.S. Army’s Short Range Reconnaissance (SRR) Program of Record after an evaluation process completed by the Army Project Management Office for Uncrewed Aircraft Systems, Army Maneuver Battle Lab, Army Test and Evaluation Command, and Army Operational Test Center. The U.S. Army’s current acquisition objective is for 5,880 systems, with each system consisting of two aircraft.
Red Cat incorporated Teledyne FLIR’s NDAA-compliant Hadron™ 640R+ longwave infrared and mega-pixel visible camera module and its Prism™ AI embedded perception software into Black Widow, a highly capable, rucksack-portable sUAS designed for operation in Electronic Warfare (EW) environments. Black Widow’s fully modular architecture enables swift adaptation to diverse mission requirements, including SSR and secondary payload operation.
“We are proud to be selected by Red Cat to support the Black Widow with unparalleled tactical capabilities for the U.S. Army’s SSR Program,” said Paul Clayton, Vice President, Teledyne FLIR. “This collaboration provides the Black Widow with superior yet compact dual thermal-visible imaging along with AI software libraries that enable classification, object detection, and object tracking to complete the mission day or night.”
“The Hadron 640R+, with its best-in-class thermal vision, will play a key role in helping the warfighter Dominate the Night™ with the Black Widow,” said George Matus, CTO of Red Cat. “We are thrilled to continue our longstanding relationship with the world
leader in thermal imaging technology, enabling Red Cat to accelerate deployment to the U.S. DoD and its allies across the globe.”
The International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR)-free Hadron 640R+ provides a 640×512-resolution thermal
camera with industry-leading thermal sensitivity and a 64-MP resolution visible camera in a size, weight, and power (SWaP) optimized package. Paired with Prism AI embedded software, the combination can enable high-precision object detection within applicationspecific classes, multiple object tracking, motion target indication, and more.
Military+Aerospace Electronics magazine recently recognized Teledyne FLIR’s Prism digital ecosystem as a Platinum Honoree, its highest award for innovation in defense and aerospace.
To learn more about Teledyne FLIR, visit www.flir.com/oem
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