Ceramic Industry articles from October 2008

Ceramic Industry archives from October 2008

Soccer in the rain.(INSIDE CI)
October 1, 2008... While standing in a steady rain watching my six-year-old niece's first-ever soccer game over the weekend, I had an epiphany of sorts. But first, a little background: The game was played at a large soccer complex, so the sizes of the fields went...

International calendar.(Conference news)(Calendar)
October 1, 2008... Oct 13-16 Solar Power Conference & Expo ** San Diego, Calif., www.SolarPowerConference.com Oct 14-16 SSTI 12th Annual Conference ** Cleveland, Ohio, www.ssti.org Oct 16-29 14th Annual Manufacturing in Mexico Summit ** Saltillo,...

C5 Medical Werks reaches million mark.(IN THE NEWS)
October 1, 2008... C5 Medical Werks recently announced that it shipped its one-millionth ceramic implantable component based on unit shipments to the orthopedic, brachytherapy and electro-implantable market segments in June 2008. The company's state-of-the-art...

Saint-Gobain breaks ground on $15 million R&D Center expansion.(IN THE NEWS)
October 1, 2008... Saint-Gobain recently conducted a groundbreaking ceremony to mark the start of work on the expansion of its Research & Development Center in Northboro, Mass. Expected to be completed by the spring of 2009, the $15 million expansion will provide...

Pilkington Automotive to expand windshield production in Brazil.(IN THE NEWS)
October 1, 2008... The NSG Group recently announced plans for a significant expansion of its automotive glazing capacity in Brazil with the construction of an additional windshield production line adjacent to its existing facilities at Cacapava, near Sao Paulo....

Ferro acquires grinding fluids business from Fluid Logic.(IN THE NEWS)
October 1, 2008... Ferro Corp. has purchased a grinding and fabrication fluids business for brittle materials from Fluid Logic LLC, of Portland, Ore. While 2007 sales of these fluids were not at a level material to Ferro, the company sees opportunities for growth...

Almatis to invest in new calcined alumina facility in China.(IN THE NEWS)
October 1, 2008... Almatis is establishing a full-scale calcines production facility in China, bringing total investment in the production and processing of calcined specialty alumina products in the region to $50 million. The new plant will be integrated with...

O-I to close Lavington glass container plant.(IN THE NEWS)
October 1, 2008... Owens-Illinois, Inc. (O-I) recently announced that, as a result of the ongoing review of its global manufacturing footprint, the company will close its glass container plant in Lavington, British Columbia, on October 31, 2008. Existing...

Southeastern Section fall meeting to focus on sustainability.(IN THE NEWS)
October 1, 2008... The Southeastern Section and the Whitewares and Materials Division of the American Ceramic Society will hold "Sustainable Materials, Sustainable Manufacturing" October 27-29, 2008, at the Downtown Doubletree Hotel in Nashville, Tenn. The...

Praxair Surface Technologies expands coating facility.(IN THE NEWS)
October 1, 2008... Praxair Surface Technologies, a wholly owned subsidiary of Praxair, Inc., recently announced the completion of a major expansion at its Indianapolis-based ceramic coating facility, which is used to coat aircraft engine components for General...

Sun Chemical increases North American Specialty Inks prices.(IN THE NEWS)
October 1, 2008... Faced with continued increases in raw materials and operating costs, Sun Chemical's Specialty Inks Group increased prices by 6-10% on all products sold in North America, effective September 1. "The printing ink industry continues to experience...

Coming to acquire Optimum Manufacturing.(IN THE NEWS)
October 1, 2008... Corning Inc. recently announced that, through a subsidiary, it has signed an agreement to acquire Optimum Manufacturing Corp. for inclusion in its Specialty Materials segment. Located in Charlestown, N.H., Optimum is a manufacturer of...

Demand for Piezoelectric Crystals and Crystal Devices on the rise.(IN THE NEWS)
October 1, 2008... According to a new market research study from Innovative Research and Products (iRAP) titled "Piezoelectric Crystals and Crystal Devices-Types, Materials, Applications, New Developments, Industry Structure and Global Markets," the 2007 global...

MTL announces deal with Trelleborg.(IN THE NEWS)(Microsphere Technology Ltd.)(Brief article)
October 1, 2008... Microsphere Technology Ltd. (MTL) has signed an intellectual property license deal worth in excess of $1 million with Trelleborg Engineered Systems, part of Sweden's Trelleborg Group AB. Trelleborg and MTL, which specializes in the coating of...

Spheric Technologies, Inc.(PEOPLE IN THE NEWS)
October 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Spheric Technologies, Inc. recently announced the hiring of Robert Desberg as director of Sales and Marketing. Desberg has experience in engineered powder, metallurgical and wrought materials for products in the...

Saint-Gobain Ceramics.(PEOPLE IN THE NEWS)
October 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Susan Munyon, marketing assistant for Saint-Gobain Ceramics in Worcester, Mass., has been named a fellow by the International Microelectronics and Packaging Society (IMAPS). Munyon, a Saint-Gobain employee since...

Ferro Glass Systems.(PEOPLE IN THE NEWS)
October 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Ferro Glass Systems has named Sean Weir product manager of the SpecTruLite[R] line of heavy-metal-free organic inks and coatings. He will be responsible for sales and marketing, managing technical service for...

Owens-Illinois, Inc.(PEOPLE IN THE NEWS)
October 1, 2008... Owens-Illinois, Inc. (O-I) recently announced that David H. Y. Ho has been appointed to serve on the company's board of directors. Ho has spent over 20 years in the telecommunications industry. Since 2007, he has served as chairman of the...

Worldwide Superabrasives.(appointment of Dan Herzog)(Brief article)
October 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Dan Herzog has joined Worldwide Superabrasives as regional sales manager, taking responsibility for customers in the Midwest region of the U.S. Herzog brings approximately 40 years of experience in the superabrasives...

Sauereisen.(appointment of Luis F. Granes in National Association of Corrosion Engineers)(Brief article)
October 1, 2008... Luis F. Granes, Latin America manager for Sauereisen, was recently appointed president of the National Association of Corrosion Engineers (NACE) Pittsburgh Chapter. Granes has been a NACE member since 1987. In addition to his new position, he...

Sweco.(appointment of David M. Sorter)(Brief article)
October 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] David M. Sorter was recently appointed president of Sweco, a business unit of M-I LLC. Sorter will lead the industrial businesses of Sweco and United Wire, as well as the ES manufacturing operations. He joined Sweco...

Owens Corning.(PEOPLE IN THE NEWS)
October 1, 2008... Owens Corning recently announced the appointment of Karel K. Czanderna as group president of its Building Materials segment, which includes the insulation, roofing and asphalt, masonry products, and construction services businesses. Czanderna...

Nilfisk CFM.(appointment of Joe Wintsch in Nilfisk of America Inc.)(Brief article)
October 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Nilfisk CFM has named Joe Wintsch its new director of sales for North America. Wintsch will be responsible for driving sales efforts in the U.S., Canada and Mexico. His responsibilities include overseeing the...

Rigaku Americas Corp.(appointment of Wes Hardenburg)(Brief article)
October 1, 2008... Rigaku Americas Corp. (RAC) recently announced that Wes Hardenburg, the company's chief financial officer since 2000, has succeeded Paul Swepston, Ph.D., as president and chief executive officer (CEO). Swepston, who joined the company in 1996,...

National Association of Manufacturers.(PEOPLE IN THE NEWS)
October 1, 2008... Maureen Davenport was recently named senior vice president (SVP) of communications for the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM). Davenport will play a key role in the development of the NAM's strategic direction and will also lead all of...

Phoenix Award Committee (PAC) Chairman Paul Guttmann, U.S. Silica Co., recently thanked all out-going members for their contributions and years of generous service.(PEOPLE IN THE NEWS)
October 1, 2008... Phoenix Award Committee (PAC) Chairman Paul Guttmann, U.S. Silica Co., recently thanked all out-going members for their contributions and years of generous service. In particular, Guttmann thanked Pat Battersby, Emhart Glass, for the excellent...

Lead bill passes.(Decorating News)(Conference notes)
October 1, 2008... The U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate passed the Conference Report to H.R. 4040, the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act, by an overwhelming majority and President Bush recently signed the bill, which includes a provision...

EPA attempts to change TSCA reporting of ceramic materials.(Decorating News)
October 1, 2008... The Society of Glass and Ceramic Decorators (SGCD) has been in contact with the American Chemistry Council (ACC) regarding an effort by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to call into question long-standing EPA guidance on using...

Country of origin marking rule changes proposed.(Decorating News)(Brief article)
October 1, 2008... The U.S. Department of Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has proposed a rule that would change how importers determine country of origin status for imported goods. The proposed rule would adopt guidelines created under the North American Free...

SGCD Long Range Planning Committee meets.(Decorating News)
October 1, 2008... SGCD's Long Range Planning Committee met in Pittsburgh August 17-19 to begin the process of determining a vision for the future of the organization. A mission statement is in the process of being completed. Chaired by SGCD Board Member Chad Yaw...

Deco '09 program completed.(Decorating News)(Society of Grass and Ceramic Decorators )
October 1, 2008... The SGCD has released the preliminary program for Deco '09, to be held in Las Vegas March 28-31. Several changes in the program are planned for 2009. There will be no banquet, but there will be a networking lunch on Sunday and an awards...

Obituary.(Decorating News)(James Keegan)(Obituary)(Brief article)
October 1, 2008... The SGCD mourns the passing of James Keegan on August 1. Keegan pioneered the use of heat release decal application and is a past winner of the Frank S. Child Award. He worked many years in our industry for Pfaltzgraff and Franklin Mint, and...

Molecules on the move: researchers are mimicking transport across cellular membranes with manmade carbon nanotube membranes that are 100,000 times smaller than a human hair.(CERAMIC innovations)
October 1, 2008... Molecular transport across cellular membranes is essential to many of life's processes, including electrical signaling in nerves, muscles and synapses. In biological systems, the membranes often contain a slippery inner surface with selective...

Window of opportunity: large sapphire crystals are increasing in demand for many of today's industrial applications.
October 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Industrial applications experts in the semiconductor and aeronautical fields are specifying single-crystal sapphire plates and windows over 14 in. in diameter for their product designs. In addition, the semiconductor...

Cool composites: motorsport, aerospace and military applications will soon benefit from the opportunity to use lightweight composites in high-temperature environments.
October 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Composite materials, despite their generally high cost, have gained popularity in a number of high-performance products because they are lightweight yet strong enough to withstand harsh loading. With over 50% of the...

Join in: if the gap between basic research and new small-scale applications can be closed, it would lead to a greater market penetration by innovative metal-ceramic assemblies.
October 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The joining process is an integral part of metallized ceramics, which play an important role in many advanced applications of high-tech ceramics. Large-scale processing, mostly for electronic applications, has been...

The ultimate in sustainable packaging.(special section: glass manufacturing: GLASS WORKS)
October 1, 2008... In December 2007, the Sustainable Packaging Coalition and Packaging Digest sponsored a survey of 1255 people involved in packaging and found that sustainability is an ongoing concern for those who manufacture and use packaging. But how do they...

Glass breakthrough: despite its solid appearance, glass is actually a "jammed" state of matter that moves very slowly.(special section: glass manufacturing: GLASS innovations)
October 1, 2008... Imagine a plane with wings made out of glass. Thanks to a breakthrough in understanding the nature of glass by scientists at the University of Bristol, such a craft could become a possibility. Despite its solid appearance, glass is actually a...

Advancing flat glass: a new study forecasts increasing demand for advanced flat glass.(special section: glass manufacturing)
October 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] According to Advanced Flat Glass, a new report from The Freedonia Group, Inc., demand for advanced flat glass is projected to increase 5.0% annually to $7.2 billion in 2012. Gains will derive from a variety of...

Spray it or: a new spray-on refractory offers multiple benefits over traditional brick.(special report: refractories: PRODUCT PROFILE)
October 1, 2008... Magneco/Metrel, Inc.'s Metpump [TM] spray-on nano-particulate refractory line is now available for recirculating fluid bed (CFB) construction and repair. "An exclusive development of Magneco/Metrel, this is advanced refractory technology with...

Recycling spent aluminum oxide: Washington Mills has developed a process that enables it to collect spent aluminum oxide and recycle it back into the manufacturing process.(special section: resource management: SUCCESS STORY)
October 1, 2008... Over 150,000 tons of fused aluminum oxide is consumed annually in the U.S., and only a very small portion of that tonnage is recycled. Prices for the raw materials used in manufacturing fused aluminum oxide have spiked to historically high...

Recession-proof the sale of your company.(special section: resource management)
October 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] As this article is being written (May 2008), the U.S. has either just entered a recession or is on the precipice of one, and the length and depth of the current financial crisis is unknown. In addition, the second...

Gold ceramic.(WHAT'S NEW)
October 1, 2008... Kyocera Corp [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] A new fine ceramic has been developed that features a color that closely resembles 18-karat gold. The material was created by raising a brightness level approximately 5% (approximately 3.6 points)...

Vertical dryers.(WHAT'S NEW)
October 1, 2008... Sacmi New vertical dryers have been developed for customers who produce large sizes but do not want to make the production line too long by inserting a horizontal dryer. At 14 m high, the EVA 414 dryer represents an effective response to...

Pressed refractory shapes.(WHAT'S NEW)
October 1, 2008... LECO Ceramics [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] This company recently purchased and installed a 1250-ton hydraulic press and high-temperature kiln (capable of firing product to 1760[degrees]C) in order to offer pressed refractory and...

Laboratory circulation attritor.(WHAT'S NEW)
October 1, 2008... Union Process, Inc. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The Q-03, a small bench-top laboratory-sized circulation grinding mill, was developed so users can perform lab trials with the advantage of the circulation grinding system using much smaller...

Portable grinding and injection system.(WHAT'S NEW)
October 1, 2008... Sturtevant Inc./Bulk Conveyor Specialist, Inc. (BCSI) A portable grinding and injection test system was recently developed for S[O.sub.2] and S[O.sub.3] mitigation in coal-fueled power applications. The Simpactor[R] grinding unit is used to...

Updated impactors.(WHAT'S NEW)
October 1, 2008... Stedman [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The Grand Slam[TM] secondary horizontal shaft impactor now features two product developments: a new grinding path and an apron adjustment system. The Crush Plus[TM] grinding path system creates a third...

Ferrite beads.(WHAT'S NEW)
October 1, 2008... Murata Electronics North America This company recently introduced what are reportedly the world's smallest ferrite beads, measuring 0.4 x 0.2 x 0.2 mm. According to the company, the 01005-sized BLM02 series is ideal for noise suppression...

Spot repair gun.(WHAT'S NEW)
October 1, 2008... DeVilbiss [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The SRi[TM] spot repair gun offers the fit and feel of a full-size spray gun combined with the pattern range and versatility needed for invisible, top-quality spot repairs. Now available in both...

Single-pass honing machines.(WHAT'S NEW)
October 1, 2008... Sunnen Products Co [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The new VSS-2 series Single Stroke[R] honing systems offer accurate spindle alignment combined with flexible, easy-to-use controls. Spindles on VSS-2 machines are independently factory-aligned...

Diamond Etch Ink.(WHAT'S NEW)
October 1, 2008... Inkcups Now Corp. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Diamond Etch ink imitates an engraved look on glass items such as champagne glasses, travel mugs and souvenirs. The ink mimics a sand-blasted or laser-etched appearance using pad or screen...

Optical lapping pitch.(WHAT'S NEW)
October 1, 2008... Meller Optics, Inc. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] A line of petroleum-free optical lapping pitch that helps to maintain the purity of the polishing media and substrate is available. Made from all-natural wood resin, which helps prevent...

Environmental transmission electron microscope.(WHAT'S NEW)
October 1, 2008... FEI Co The Titan[TM] 80-300 environmental transmission electron microscope (ETEM) is a solution for chemical research at the atomic scale and is a significant advancement in the study of materials and processes important in the fields of...

Vacuum check valves.(WHAT'S NEW)
October 1, 2008... Anver Corp. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] A full line of leak-proof, one-way vacuum check valves that are designed to optimize vacuum pump performance in a wide range of material handling systems is now available. CheckVac[TM] valves are made...