Plant Engineering articles from December 2005

Plant Engineering archives from December 2005

Square D upgrades site with education, training.(www.squaredservices.com)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... Square D Services for Schneider Electric has revised its Web site to provide more diverse content, along with a revamped structure that allows for more intuitive navigation for users. In addition to a more detailed list of service product and...

Get answers about fluorplastics online.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... A new on-line forum established to provide users with access to information regarding fluoroplastic and fluoropolymer products, including their properties, applications, and sources of supply is being sponsored by TexLoc, Ltd. of Ft. Worth, TX....

Online registration for Daratech PLANT 2006 open.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... Online registration is now open for Daratech's three-day conference. Daratech PLANT 2006 will be January 23-25 in Houston. Key industry players and top executives from the leading process manufacturing companies will they offer business...

The road to excellence.
December 1, 2005... While there's a lot to be said for continuous improvement, every once in a while it's nice to stop, look around and survey what has been achieved. At manufacturing facilities such as Chrysler's Belvidere, IL assembly plant, such a survey...

Go infrared--without going in the red.
December 1, 2005... Inspect worn motors, pumps and conveyors A large distribution company launched a wide-scale infrared scanning program to monitor the vast number of conveyors, drive systems, motors, pumps and winding systems throughout the plant. ...

Integration of building system planning on agenda for ASHRAE annual meeting.(FORUM)
December 1, 2005... In designing buildings, professionals should work together to determine points of integration between various building systems, architecture and the environment. Only when this integrated design is achieved will buildings become truly...

Manufacturing to vets: we want you!(FORUM)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... The Manufacturing Institute has announced a new alliance with RecruitMilitary LLC to promote the hiring of military veterans by manufacturers in the United States. "We are proud to be able to help the men and women who have served in the U.S....

Grainger signs on as NMW sponsor.(National Manufacturing Week)
December 1, 2005... W.W. Grainger Inc., North America's leading distributor of facilities maintenance supplies, will be a sponsor and participate in the 2006 National Manufacturing Week, to be held March 20 through March 23 in Rosemont, IL. "We couldn't be...

Maverick acquires GE Automation Services.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... Maverick Technologies has acquired the automation services division of General Electric, expanding Maverick's reach into new markets. "We are very excited about this acquisition," said Maverick chairman and CEO Paul J. Galeski P.E. "The...

Registration open for NA 2006 conference.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... When the 2006 Material Handling & Logistics Show and Conference, known as NA 2006, opens its doors on March 27 at Cleveland's I-X Center, it will include an educational conference featuring a free executive forum that will provide expertise...

Gasket industry's first trade show is March 29-31.(FORUM)
December 1, 2005... The Gasket Fabricators Association, with the endorsement of the Independent Sealing Distributors, will be sponsoring the first trade show ever devoted exclusively to the gasket industry. The Gasketing/Converting Expo '06 will be held March...

Siemens Energy and Automation acquires Acuity CiMatrix.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... Siemens Energy and Automation has acquired RVSI Acuity CiMatrix, a division of Robotic Visions Systems, Inc. headquartered in Nashua, NH. Siemens Automation and Drives is a leader in factory automation and has made a commitment to strengthen...

Rockwell Automation to acquire Datasweep.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... Rockwell Automation Inc. announced in November it will buy Datasweep Inc., a privately held manufacturing production management software solutions. Located in San Jose, CA, Datasweep currently serves major customers in the pharmaceutical,...

Devcon, Permatex to merge.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... Devcon, which manufactures compounds and products for plant and equipment maintenance, repair, overhaul and protection, will merge with the industrial products group of Permatex, a Connecticut-based producer of gasket cements, threadlocking...

AMT names new chairman.(FORUM)
December 1, 2005... The Association for Manufacturing Technology elected its 2005-2006 officers and directors today at its 2005 Annual Meeting in Washington, D.C. Douglas K. Woods, president and CEO of Liberty Precision Industries, Rochester, NY, was named...

Baldor releases Ethernet guide on motion, machinery control.(FORUM)
December 1, 2005... Baldor has published a guide to the use of Ethernet in real-time motion and machinery control applications. The free 28-page document is designed for automation engineers and managers, and introduces the technology in a way that contrasts the...

Groups are honored for "green" building effort.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... The U.S. Green Building Council honored the 2005 recipients of the Leadership Awards, at USGBC's Annual Greenbuild Conference and Expo on Nov. 10 in Atlanta, at a ceremony to be held at the Tabernacle in Atlanta, Ga. The LEED individual...

NAM: high gas prices causing layoffs.(FORUM)
December 1, 2005... High natural gas prices are beginning to cause significant job losses, salary freezes and lost market share for U.S. manufacturers, according to the results of a national survey released Thursday by the National Association of Manufacturers....

Distributed control market eyes strong growth.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... The Distributed Control Systems market, primarily buoyed by growth in developing countries such as China and India and a slowdown in hardware price declines, has experienced healthy growth between 2003 and 2004. This growth is expected to...

Congress to fund MEPs.(FORUM)
December 1, 2005... Congress has approved $106 million for the Manufacturing Extension Partnerships, which serve 14,000 businesses each year and are credited with helping retain more than 50,000 manufacturing jobs in the U.S. in companies and generating more than...

For Ray Dreyfack, it's not 'retirement' but a new chapter.(HUMANSIDE)
December 1, 2005... All good things must come to an end. That includes my almost four decades of writing The Human Side for PLANT ENGINEERING. I long have had, and still have, a warm feeling in my heart for this magazine and its excellent staff. I hope my efforts...

In tight financial times, build a plan, not resentment.
December 1, 2005... The edict came down from above. Profits in recent months had been drab. Customer orders were down. Dividends had been cut and shareholders were griping. On top of that, plant productivity was marginal and costs too high. The edict was clear: No...

Make adjustments to keep valuable people in place.(HUMANSIDE)(Brief Article)(Interview)
December 1, 2005... Nothing can be more gut wrenching to managers than a key employee's announcement that he has decided to quit. It was just such a decision one day that changed maintenance supervisor Frank Etri's expression from cheerful to dour. Minutes...

Union literature distribution: fair, but within the rules.(HUMANSIDE)
December 1, 2005... In an Ohio plant, during a meeting at union headquarters chief unit representative Alan Burke was approached by Union Vice President George Romanoski who had a troubled look on his face. "Alan, I don't have to tell you that the labor...

Pick the proper form of discipline.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... Enough is enough, maintenance foreman Harry Cooper decided one day. The object of his decision was Mechanic Ralph Morgan, a marginal employee at best and one of Cooper's most flagrant hiring errors. For three years he had put up with the...

Uniform charge can't cut pay too far.(HUMANSIDE)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... The company's image was important to management. Customers, prospects, suppliers visited the plant on a regular basis. With this in mind employees were required to buy uniforms bearing the company logo. The charge was reasonable since the...

Excused absences, so no excuse to withhold raise.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... Electrician Grade II Henry Komatu looked forward to receiving his paycheck. As one of the most productive employees in the maintenance department, there was no doubt in his mind he would get the quarterly merit increase he so clearly deserved....

Using 3-D modeling keeps boiler project moving.(MANAGEMENTSIDE)
December 1, 2005... When a Midwestern college took a look at its need for a system of four new boilers in a 100-year-old facility, it was more than an issue of just getting more efficient steam production through the system. "They needed to upgrade their...

Four task categories to understand in undertaking preventive maintenance.(MAINTENANCE CONNECTION)
December 1, 2005... There are four basic factors behind the decision to define and choose preventative maintenance actions: [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] 1. Prevent or mitigate failure occurrence 2. Detect onset of failure 3....

Top Plant 2005: DaimlerChrysler, Belvidere, IL.(Cover Story)
December 1, 2005... Top Plant means more than just a place where things are manufactured well. A true Top Plant takes all of the innovation available today--mechanical and human--and brings it together to build products efficiently, productively and safely. It...

Wiese.(CORPORATE PROFILE)(Wiese Planning & Engineering )(Company Profile)
December 1, 2005... * About our company Wiese Planning & Engineering is among the largest materials handling dealers in the United States. Founded in 1944 by Harold Wiese and managed today by his son Chip Wiese, Wiese celebrated its 60th anniversary in 2004....

Inhouse imaging programs pack power into predictive maintenance.(MAINTENANCE & MANAGEMENT)
December 1, 2005... In any industry, optimizing production equipment uptime is essential for increasing productivity and competitiveness in the marketplace. How? Secure the reliability of key production assets and prevent failures through predictive maintenance....

Create a checklist for air compressor rental.(MECHANICAL ENGINEERING)
December 1, 2005... There are many reasons to rent air compressors and compressed air equipment. They range from the need for temporary air while on-site units receive maintenance to fulfilling extra demand for compressed air due to a special project. ...

IR leak detection.(NEW PRODUCTS)
December 1, 2005... The ThermaCAM P25F IR cameras from is designed for high-temperature industrial furnace applications. It can help ensure safe operation by monitoring all types of furnaces, heaters and boilers, particularly in the petrochemical and utility...

Clamp meters.(NEW PRODUCTS)
December 1, 2005... The LK60 Low Current Leakage Clamp Meter is a pocket-sized current clamp for maintenance professionals and contractors that offers a wide range of AC leakage current measurements ranging from as small as 1 A (for non-invasive checks of...

Portable IR camera.(NEW PRODUCTS)
December 1, 2005... The Pro320 series of portable infrared cameras uses the 320-X-240 Vanadium Oxide microbolometer sensor and feature a 5-inch color display. The camera also comes with the SmartView software, a suite of analytical, management and reporting tools....

Software upgrade.(NEW PRODUCTS)
December 1, 2005... The release of new Activeworx v2.6 software provides enterprise grade security information management for leading security products, such as firewalls, vulnerability assessment tools, and more. The latest version expands on Activeworx's...

Leakage current meter.(NEW PRODUCTS)
December 1, 2005... The TRMS Clamp-On Leakage Current Meter Model 565 is designed to measure low AC currents, which are typically leakage currents in ground conductors. Low currents are measured using the 60mA and 600mA ranges. Leakage current measurements up to...

Radar level transmitters.(NEW PRODUCTS)
December 1, 2005... In applications requiring non-contact measurement of liquid levels, the LVRD500 radar transmitters can be used where vapor, dust or a foaming surface prevents ultrasonic measurement. The radar sensor uses microwave pulse technology to track...

Safety controller.(NEW PRODUCTS)
December 1, 2005... An alternative to multiple safety relays that take up panel space is the new compact Telemecanique Preventa XPSMC safety controller. It can perform the various functions of up to 20 different safety relays and provide real-time status and...

Digital-to-analog converters.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... Eight new multi-channel monolithic digital-to-analog converters pack the highest concentration of analog signal processing performance in a single device to resolve design challenges in industrial and instrumentation applications. New...

Low-flow meters and controls.(NEW PRODUCTS)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... Emerson Process Management's latest models of its Brooks Instrument QUANTIM Coriolis family of low-flow meters and controllers have a NEMA 4X/IP65 weatherproof package, and are fully approved for service in Class 1 Division 2/Zone 2 or Class 1...

LCD monitor.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... The Stealth' VU SV-1700-HB high brightness LCD monitor is a sunlight readable display designed to operate in extreme ambient light conditions. The 17-inch diagonal monitor has a brightness rating of 1300 Nits, roughly 5 times the brightness of...

System upgrades.(MSE-Tetragenics)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... MSE-Tetragenics has upgraded its Plant Control System, including hardware and software updates. It provides monitoring and control capabilities for a wide variety of industrial applications. Controls include all facets of generation and...

Chemical anchor.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... The HIT HY 150 MAX Chemical Anchor provides maximum performance in a wide range of base materials and applications. It offers up to 20% higher load capacities than previous models and may be used in oversized holes up to 1/4-inch larger than...

Electric linear actuators.(NEW PRODUCTS)
December 1, 2005... The SLME electro-mechanical ball screw-driven linear actuator utilizes a fine pitch ball screw and recirculating ball bearing guide to achieve high accuracy and repeatability. The ball tracks each have four contact points providing high dynamic...

The Model 460 Voltage Monitor.(Product Mart Showcase)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... The Model 460 Three Phase Voltage Monitor combines unsurpassed motor protection and control with finger-safe wiring, DIN rail compatibility, and LED fault indication. It can be connected directly to the three phase lines without fuses,...

All-Products Catalog.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... New 12-page brochure shows the complete line of industrial and commercial fans and blowers along with steam heating products. Convenient charts assist in matching application requirements to fan capabilities by presenting flow and pressure...

Small 2 X 4-inch magnet lifts 300 pounds!(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... Eriez' new RPL Series of Rare Earth Lifting Magnets offer incredible lifting power in a small package. The RPL 3, smallest in the line, measures only 2-1/2" X 3-1/2", weighs just 7 lbs yet has a 300 pound lifting capacity! RPL SafeHold[R]...

AutomationDirect[R] 2005 catalog.(Literature Guide)
December 1, 2005... AutomationDirect's 2005 free catalog offers 5500 industrial automation products for incredible prices. The expanded 1800-page volume features product descriptions, photos, technical information and price lists for PLCs, AC drives/motors,...

SERIES V enhanced design VFD Cable!(Literature Guide)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... When It Comes To Variable Frequency Drive (VFD) Cables... Round Is Definitely Better! Alpha Wire's round geometry INDUSTRIAL SERIES-SERIES V VFD Cables are clearly different and better than traditional convoluted cables. Acceptable for use...

OSHA provides hurricane recovery materials, tips.
December 1, 2005... Informational materials produced by the Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration are helping employers and workers better address safety and health hazards associated with hurricane clean-up and recovery. "Our...

Power transmission standard comment period extended.
December 1, 2005... OSHA's written comment period on updating the standard for the construction of electric power transmission and distribution installations has been extended to Jan. 11, 2006. The update is designed to make it consistent with the revised general...

Site-Specific Targeting focuses on high-injury work sites.(A VIEW FROM WASHINGTON)
December 1, 2005... The Site-Specific Targeting program is OSHA's main programmed inspection plan for non-construction worksites that have 40 or more employees. The SST directs enforcement resources to those worksites with the highest rate of injuries and...