Around the Industry

The International Society of Automation (ISA) announced today that it is partnering with The Manufacturing Institute to bring automation and control systems certifications to the National Association of Manufacturers

The University of Birmingham has launched a global search to appoint up to 50 Birmingham Fellows to enhance the University’s existing academic strengths and to contribute to a growing culture of collaboration.

NRG Big Cajun Power Plant in Ventress, Louisiana, USA, has bought DN 300 Larox wafer knife gate valves to its fly ash application. Big Cajun II comprises three coal-fueled steam units, which generate 1,700 megawatts of baseload or load-following generating capacity.

Omega Engineering Services were proud to be awarded the Supply Chains for the 21 st Century (SC21) Bronze Award in May 2011. SC21 aims to accelerate the competitiveness of the aerospace and defence industries. It encompasses collaboration, partnering and alliances, and encourages working together with openness, honesty, integrity and trust. The SC21 vision is to inspire “exceptional performance by setting the highest standards for relationship management through the extended enterprise to create value and sustainable competitive advantage”.

Borri Ltd, a leading supplier of high-efficiency Uninterruptible Power Supplies (UPS), has announced the appointment of new managing director Ian Tucker.

Microsource, Inc., a Giga-tronics Company have announced that it has been recognized as Supplier of the Year in the Avionics category by The Boeing Company. Giga-tronics' Microsource was one of the 16 companies honored May 18, 2011 for distinguished performance in working with Boeing.

Altair Engineering, Inc., a leading global provider of simulation technology and engineering services, today announced that it has signed an agreement with Montréal-based Bombardier Aerospace under which the aircraft manufacturer will expand its use of the HyperWorks suite of computer-aided engineering tools as a strategic solution for computer modeling of airframes and conducting finite-element analysis.

Across Europe manufacturing is being automated as a way to both compete against imports from ‘low cost’ economies and to ensure consistent output quality. However ‘greenfield’ projects are rare and the vast majority of automation projects are retrofits, upgrades and extensions. Here, John Browett of the CC-Link Partner Association (CLPA), looks at how the upgrade of systems using open networks can provide major cost benefits, while also improving system performance.

Cortus today announced that Certicom, a wholly owned subsidiary of Research In Motion Limited (RIM), and an industry leader in Elliptic Curve Cryptography (ECC) security has licensed the Cortus APS3 CPU for use in their hardware security technology.

Dreieich, Germany – 7th June 2011 – Arrow Electronics has been named ‘Distributor of the Year’ for Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) by Amphenol InfoCom. At a ceremony in Barcelona, Arrow was recognised for its outstanding commitment to partnership and its excellent performance.