Plant Engineering articles from January 2009

Plant Engineering archives from January 2009

A long days' journey into Azerbaijan.
January 1, 2009... Bob Vavra, Editor The long, strange trip from Bangalore, India to Chicago takes 18 hours in the air and a couple more on the ground transitioning from plane to plane and gate to gate. At least that's how it's supposed to work. If...

Sustaining an energy plan.
January 1, 2009... By Bob Vavra, Editor Don't let lower prices keep you from conserving resources The startling plummet of energy prices in the last quarter of 2008 may be the only silver lining in the dark cloud of manufacturing's recession. Costs for...

Change and innovation focus of EASA event.(Electrical Apparatus Service Association)(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... Staff KEYWORD: EASA The Electrical Apparatus Service Association (www.easa.com ) will hold its annual convention and exposition June 14-16 at the Renaissance Grand Hotel & America's Center in St. Louis. The 2009 convention theme is...

Surge protector.(Ferraz Shawmut Inc.)(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... Staff Surge-Trap surge protection devices, with TPMOV technology, are designed specifically for point-of-use overvoltage protection in industrial power applications. Approved for Type 1 and 2 applications, the devices feature both visual...

Motor control center.
January 1, 2009... Staff The Allen-Bradley Centerline 2500 motor control center, with ArcShield option, provides arc flash protection in a low-voltage MCC per IEC/TR 61641:2008 for arcing durations up to 300 milliseconds. Built-in DeviceNet network and...

AC motors.(AutomationDirect has introduced ac motor line)(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... Staff The IronHorse general purpose ac motor line features the industrial-duty cast-iron C-face style. Available in 1 to 100 hp, all motors have a base speed of 1,800 RPM and are electrically reversible. The TC frame TEFC motors feature...

Pushbutton switches.
January 1, 2009... Staff Series 95 color-changing pushbuttons are available in three sizes and feature one normally-open, self-cleaning, gold-plated switch element rated at a minimum 1 mVdc/100 [micro]A and maximum 48 Vdc/50 mA. Independent LEDs indicate...

Demand response offers opportunity to manufacturers.
January 1, 2009... By Pete Scarpelli, Schneider Electric Unlike other commodities, electricity must be consumed almost immediately after it is created. As such, electricity needs to be in a constant balance between supply (generation) and demand...

Making the electrical grid smarter.
January 1, 2009... Staff The Department of Energy's effort to modernize the U.S. electrical grid is headed by the Office of Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability. The office's multi-agency Smart Grid Task Force is responsible for coordinating standards...

ASHRAE conference blows into the Windy City.(Conference news)
January 1, 2009... Staff Held partly in conjunction with AHR Expo, ASHRAE hosts its 2009 Winter Conference Jan. 24-28 in Chicago. Opening Sunday and running through Tuesday at the landmark Palmer House Hotel, the conference moves to the lakefront for its...

Zumtobel Lighting joins consortium.
January 1, 2009... Staff Highland, NY-based Zumtobel Lighting Inc. (www.zumtobel.us ) has joined the Emerge Alliance (www.EMergeAlliance.org ), a consortium whose focus is to address the growing need for flexibility, efficiency and sustainability. ...

Key plant strategies and solutions the focus at 2009 Manufacturing Summit.
January 1, 2009... Staff Manufacturing's economic recession brings more challenges every day, and plant managers need to be armed with the best information and the best strategies to meet those challenges. The 2009 Plant Engineering Manufacturing Summit is...

Intergraph, PAS integrate products.
January 1, 2009... Staff Intergraph is integrating its SmartPlant Enterprise plant configuration solution, SmartPlant Instrumentation, with the PAS Integrity/DOC4000 product family to provide plant owners with a consolidated view of their control...

Strategies to optimize compressed air systems.(Kaeser Compressors Inc.)
January 1, 2009... By Wayne Perry, Kaeser Compressors In most plants, no compressed air means no production. Keeping the air system up and running is normally the responsibility of the maintenance crew. When more capacity is needed, purchasing steps in and...

DOE funding alternative vehicle technologies.
January 1, 2009... Staff KEYWORD: TECHNOLOGY The U.S. Department of Energy, in hopes of spurring further research and development of alternative vehicle technologies, recently announced the selection of six cost-shared research projects. The DOE will...

Stepper drives.
January 1, 2009... Staff The STM series of stepper drives combines stepper motor, drive and controller technologies into a single device. The S model offers control options such as step and direction, analog input, joystick control and serial host commands....

Hydraulic torque wrench.(TorcUp has introduced hydraulic torque wrench )(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... Staff The Ultra UT series hydraulic torque wrench features multi-axis swivels and a laser-engraved torque chart. Featuring Vascomax mechanical components, the tool offers a torque range of 127 to 11,000 foot-pounds. Its patented mono-body...

IR cameras: The new tool for emission leak detection.
January 1, 2009... By R.G. Benson, FLIR Systems Inc. Since the beginning of the industrial age, the world has used natural resources to enable manufacturing and production. The use of gases, and the chemicals that produce them, have been pivotal in this...

Maintaining healthy levels of indirect MRO inventory.
January 1, 2009... By Don Scheibenreif, W.W. Grainger Inc. Do you know the value of your on-hand indirect materials? Do you know how often they turn? Do you know your optimal stocking levels? Chances are you don't, and it could be costing you thousands of...

Contact-cooled compressors offer increased efficiency.
January 1, 2009... Staff With features such as a smaller footprint than previous offerings, easy installation and intelligent controls, the family of contact-cooled compressors from Ingersoll Rand can assist in the ongoing quest for energy efficiency in a...

Explore new options to bring cleaner air to the plant floor.
January 1, 2009... By Mike Harris, Air Quality Engineering Inc. Indoor air quality is an increasingly important responsibility for plant managers. Fundamental concerns include fiscal responsibilities for energy conservation and waste minimization, and...

Filtration white paper a guide to cost savings.
January 1, 2009... Staff KEYWORD: DONALDSON High Quality Compressed Air Filters, Is High Quality Filtration a Luxury? , is a white paper on the importance of high-quality compressed air in the manufacturing facility. "The purpose of the paper is to...

Johnson Controls offers energy solutions.
January 1, 2009... Staff KEYWORD: JOHNSON GREEN The emphasis at the Greenbuild Conference in Boston in November was energy efficiency, and Johnson Controls was among the vendors presenting efficient solutions for the manufacturing sector at the...

Non-chemical solutions for cooling towers address financial, environmental issues.
January 1, 2009... By Abby Harris, VRTX Technologies Facilities around the world that use cooling towers and evaporative condensers are trying to reduce water consumption and sewer charges while maintaining effective cooling water treatment. Many areas of the...

Air compressor.
January 1, 2009... Staff The ShopTek lubricated rotary screw air compressor combines rotary screw technology in a compact belt-drive package suitable for light manufacturing and numerous other applications. Available in eight models ranging from 5 to 20 hp,...

Brass check valves.
January 1, 2009... Staff Series BICV brass inline check valves are suitable for use with an array of service mediums. They incorporate a soft seat for bubble-tight shutoff and are spring-loaded for rapid reseating at high and low temperatures. The valves...

Feeling the pinch.
January 1, 2009... By Bob Vavra, Editor Economy lowers optimism even as compensation hits new highs The 2008 Plant Engineering Salary Survey once again paints a vivid picture. The numbers are one story, but that story is not just about compensation....

Squeeze play.(Editorial)
January 1, 2009... Bob Vavra, Editor Salaries were on the rise in 2008, but so were concerns over the economy They manage different kinds of plants of different sizes with different levels of complexity. Yet plant managers share a common language and...