Around the Industry

With help from the Learning & Skills Council, more than 20 manufacturing companies from the Plymouth area are now working closely together and in conjunction with local schools, colleges, universities and business support organisations, as part of a new initiative to improve local training provision in the area, while also improving the image of manufacturing to attract more youngsters into the profession.

Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. announces that it has been selected by APP Pharmaceuticals Inc. (formerly known as Abraxis Pharmaceutical Products) for a three site multi-phase rollout of Thermo Scientific Darwin LIMS. Darwin, a purpose-built laboratory information management system (LIMS) for pharmaceutical manufacturing R&D and QA/QC, will be deployed in all three of APP's manufacturing facilities located in New York, Illinois and Puerto Rico.

Catalog Data Solutions (CDS) today announced that Ohio Nut & Bolt Company has adopted the CDS eCommerce module on top of the already deployed CDS CAD model download solution.

WYKO has signed an exclusive agreement with leading conveyor systems manufacturer System Plast to act as its sole route to the spares and maintenance market in the UK and Ireland. WYKO will supply spares across System Plast’s product range, comprising conveyor chains and components, sprockets and idlers, bearing supports, levelling pads and structural components, as well as technical support services.

Schaffner Ltd, the international leader in the field of electromagnetic compatibility, announces the winner of the 2007 Farnell/Schaffner/University of York award for best EMC project. This year’s winner is James Johnson for his project considering the safety and environmental requirements of electronic equipment on railway rolling stock.

BEAMA director Dr Howard Porter has fully endorsed the sentiment and views expressed in the Green Alliance’s new report – ‘Teaching homes to be green – Smart homes and the environment’. Speaking at the report’s launch (Royal Society, 20 November ’07), attended by keynote speaker Stephen Timms MP, Minister of State for Competitiveness, Dr Porter ssaid: “Smart Homes tend to be associated with leading edge technology rather than their environmental benefits. But, Smart Homes have much to offer and this report rightly explores this much-neglected aspect.

Catalog Data Solutions today announced the public release of its new CDS Spare Parts Catalog™ product, available in an on demand business model. Key capabilities include easy interactive online navigation and advanced graphical, photographic and exploded part drawing search assisted by tabular attribute and part sorting, optional RFQs and E-commerce - a data sheet on the product is available from the products page at www.catalogdatasolutions.com.

ChargeBox® is a truly innovative piece of equipment that enables users to recharge devices such as mobile phones, portable media players (Ipods), PDAs and handheld games consoles while these are in a safe locker. When users are away from home, they can leave their device charging in the knowledge it is secure and then collect it at their convenience.

The recent Scientific Computing Reader’s Choice Awards confirmed that Adept Scientific (Letchworth, Herts) supplies the best computer software products available with six of their suppliers winning awards.

Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. has signed an agreement with Caracas-based Controval, C.A. to operate an authorized sales center for Thermo Scientific informatics solutions in Venezuela and the Caribbean. Under the terms of the partnership, Controval will be providing professional sales services to local customers in a number of industries, which Thermo Fisher has long served, including Pdvsa Oil and Gas and Pdvsa Refinery, Intevep Pdvsa, Pequiven, Cvg Fmo; Sidor; Venalum and Biotech.