Ceramic Industry articles from September 2005

Ceramic Industry archives from September 2005

Fuel cell characterization: nature of the solid oxide fuel cell.(Advertisement)
September 1, 2005... CHALLENGES FACING FUEL CELL DEVELOPMENT The current dynamic interest in fuel cell (FC) technology reflects strong technological and economical implications. This technology offers more advanced, more efficient and more environmentally...

Hot tools.(INSIDE CI)(Editorial)
September 1, 2005... Energy and labor costs are only going in one direction these days--up. Manufacturers that are struggling to balance their profit-and-loss statements do well to evaluate these two areas for possible improvements. Fortunately, a number of new...

International calendar.(Calendar)
September 1, 2005... SEPTEMBER *18-21 2005 NATAS Conference, Sheraton Universal Hotel, Universal City, Calif., (916) 922-7032, www.natasinfo.org 19-20 Refractories for Industrial Applications, Ft. Mitchell, Ky., (732) 238-1600, e-mail info@cfpa.com,...

Lenox to be sold to Department 56.(CERAMICS IN THE News)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2005... Brown-Forman Corp. has agreed to sell substantially all of Lenox, Inc. to Department 56 for $190 million. In February, Brown-Forman announced it was exploring strategic alternatives for Lenox, including a possible sale. During this process, the...

Corning announces additional diesel plant investment.(CERAMICS IN THE News)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2005... Corning Inc.'s board of directors recently approved an additional capital expenditure of approximately $100 million for expanded capabilities at the company's new clean-diesel products manufacturing facility in Erwin, N.Y. This investment is in...

Refractron updates website.(CERAMICS IN THE News)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2005... Refractron Technologies has updated its website at www.refractron.com to include information on the company's complete line of advanced dense and porous ceramics, as well as its machinable ceramics and ceramic powders. According to the company,...

Akron Porcelain acquires Universal Clay.(CERAMICS In the News)
September 1, 2005... Akron Porcelain and Plastics Co. recently announced its acquisition of the assets of Universal Clay Products, Sandusky, Ohio, a custom molder of industrial ceramics serving the foundry and electrical industries. "The acquisition will complement...

FMC Lithium raises prices.(CERAMICS In the News)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2005... FMC Lithium has implemented a price increase of 15-20% for its complete range of lithium salts (specific increases depend on product and packaging). The salts include lithium carbonate ([Li.sub.2]C[O.sub.3]), lithium hydroxide (LiOH), lithium...

ACIMAC offers summary of Italian ceramic machinery industry.(CERAMICS In the News)
September 1, 2005... ACIMAC (the Association of Italian Manufacturers of Machinery and Equipment for Ceramics) recently unveiled a summary of its 13th Annual National Statistical Survey of the Italian ceramic plant and machinery industry. The survey shows sector...

J.M. Huber acquires AluChem's ATH business.(CERAMICS In the News)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2005... J.M. Huber Corp. recently announced its acquisition of the alumina trihydrate (ATH) business of AluChem, Inc. Huber's acquisition of AluChem's ATH business represents a strategic fit with Huber's existing ATH business, which is a part of the...

EGP and University of Toledo earn grant.(CERAMICS In the News)
September 1, 2005... Engineered Glass Products (EGP) and its research partner, the University of Toledo, were recently awarded a 2005 Third Frontier Wright Project Award. The state of Ohio recently issued nine Third Frontier awards to public and private research...

Alcoa to double its Alumina capacity in Jamaica.(CERAMICS In the News)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2005... Alcoa recently announced that its board of directors has approved plans for the company's Alcoa World Alumina and Chemicals (AWAC) affiliate to join with the Government of Jamaica to expand the Jamalco alumina refinery in Clarendon, Jamaica....

Ceradyne opens new ceramic armor and automotive ceramic component manufacturing facility.(CERAMICS In the News)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2005... Ceradyne recently celebrated the grand opening of its new 115,000-square-foot facility in Lexington, Ky., which manufactures lightweight ceramic body armor systems for the military and silicon nitride technical ceramic components for diesel...

Mohr Corp.(People IN THE NEWS)
September 1, 2005... David Stockley has joined Mohr Corp. in a sales and service capacity related to the company's liquidation projects in the UK. He brings 33 years of ceramic manufacturing experience and six years of second-hand ceramic machinery marketing and...

Stedman.(People IN THE NEWS)(Tom Meyers is appointed as regional sales manager)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2005... Stedman recently hired Tom Meyers as a regional industrial sales manager for the northern half of the U.S. He brings 18 years of experience in industrial sales for metal finishing, cleaning and drying systems to the position. Myers earned a...

Alcoa.(People IN THE NEWS)
September 1, 2005... Jon Erik Reinhardsen has joined Alcoa as president, Primary Growth. He succeeds Mike Baltzell, who retired September 1. Reinhardsen most recently served as group executive vice president of Aker Kvaerner ASA, an international contractor within...

Guardian Industries Corp.(People IN THE NEWS)(Jim Gresehover is appointed as director)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2005... Jim Gresehover has been named director of International Development for Guardian Industries Corp. In this new position, he will be responsible for exploring expansion opportunities for Guardian's glass, automotive and building products...

Ionic Fusion Corp.(People IN THE NEWS)(Paul Thoen is appointed in advisory board)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2005... Paul Thoen, Ph.D., an associate research professor at the Colorado School of Mines, was recently appointed to the Ionic Fusion Corp. advisory board. "Having Dr. Thoen join our advisory board affords us a wealth of knowledge about new...

Don't chase sales--chase profits.(SUCCESS STRATEGIES)
September 1, 2005... Ever heard the saying, "A penny saved is a penny earned?" While that might be true in your personal finances, a penny saved in business can be like earning 20 pennies. For example, let's say you have $10 million in annual sales with earnings of...

Investing in ceramics: still standing: after 80 years in business and a number of operational changes, Riedhammer is poised to provide new firing solutions to the ceramic industry.
September 1, 2005... Riedhammer GmbH, based in Nuremberg, Germany, has produced more than 8000 kilns of virtually every type for a range of sectors. A sampling from The Guinness Book of World Records is a testament to the company's prolific output: largest kiln...

Improving operations with thermal imaging.(Cover Story)
September 1, 2005... Glass manufacturing was one of the first industries to use non-contact infrared (IR) temperature measurement, and many of today's infrared sensor designs evolved directly from this industry's diverse needs and harsh operating environments....

Batch kilns for binder removal: binder burnout and firing used to require two separate pieces of equipment--a low-temperature oven and a high-temperature kiln. A new technology allows both operations to be performed in the same furnace.
September 1, 2005... Binders have always been an integral part of ceramic production. From the first time our prehistoric ancestors made simple earthenware shapes for cooking, they saw that clays rich in organic materials were easier to form and held their shape...

Elemental advice: Jack Davis, president of I Squared R Element Co., Inc., shares some strategies for getting the most out of your heating elements and heat processing systems.(Interview)
September 1, 2005... Jack Davis has had a lot of experience with heating elements. The president of I Squared R Element Co., Inc., in Akron, N.Y., started out with Carborundum Co. in 1961, in what was at that time Carborundum s Globar division (now owned by...

Improving zirconia ceramics though thermoanalytical characterization: thermoanalytical characterization of zirconia ceramics during binder burnout and sintering can help manufacturers optimize these processes and improve the quality of their finished products.(SPECIAL SECTION: THERMAL ANALYSIS)
September 1, 2005... Zirconium dioxide (Zr[O.sub.2]), better known as zirconia, exists as a monoclinic, tetragonal and cubic crystal modification. The most familiar and commonly used modification is the cubic form, which occurs for pure zirconia only at...

Modernizing: glass viscosity measurement: today's technology and software provides glass technologists with fast, easy, accurate, reproducible and powerful viscosity measurement capabilities.(SPECIAL SECTION: THERMAL ANALYSIS)
September 1, 2005... From the 1920s to the 1980s, most major glass companies had large R&D departments, flexible budgets and many highly trained scientists, engineers and technicians to perform analyses and ensure high quality. These highly skilled individuals...

Particle sizing technology.(NEW Products)
September 1, 2005... Particle Sizing Systems The AccuSizer FX is a single particle sizing technology that works at much higher concentrations than typical particle counters/ sizers, according to the company. The AccuSizer FX monitor allows users to quickly...

Heating element system.(NEW Products)
September 1, 2005... Kanthal This company has supplied its Superthal heating modules fitted with its Super CS elements as part of a forehearth redesign project in a major glass plant. Part of a two-year project to improve production efficiency, increase...

Small media mill.(NEW Products)
September 1, 2005... Union Process The DMQ-Mill[TM] Small Media Milling System is the focus of a new four-color brochure, which outlines the advantages of circulation grinding and features drawings that illustrate how the circulation grinding process works....

Jigs and fixtures.(NEW Products)
September 1, 2005... Pred Materials International, Inc. This company is a Zikusu Industries distributor in North America for jigs and fixtures that are used for brazing lead or pins on ceramic packages for LSI. (High-powered MPUs are covered not with...

Vitroceramic material.(NEW Products)
September 1, 2005... Saint-Gobain Quartz MICAVER[R] HT is a new moldable vitroceramic that combines the benefits of plastics and ceramics. The new material features plastic's "moldability" and the ability to integrate inserts (metal or ceramic parts) directly...

Cage mill.(NEW Products)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2005... Stedman The H series multi-cage mill is available in two-, four- or six-row designs in four sizes up to 250 tons per hour. The new design features include air cannons, heaters and a hydraulic ram. The air cannons are mounted at the intake...