Minister sees smart factory up close

What opportunities are hiding behind Industry 4.0? Where do the current challenges lie in the international marketplace? What significance do medium sized companies have?

The Minister for Economic Affairs for Baden-Württemberg, Dr Nicole Hoffmeister-Kraut, shed some light on these questions among others during a seminar at gripping systems and clamping technology specialist Schunk’s premises in Lauffen, Germany. After the seminar, the minister was invited to witness the capabilities of high-tech components from Schunk at close quarters – from fully automated production up to direct collaboration between humans and robots.
For further information www.schunk.com

Hypertherm wins court case in China

Hypertherm, a manufacturer of industrial cutting systems and software, has won an important intellectual property court case in China. A repeated Chinese counterfeiter was brought to court for manufacturing and selling counterfeit Hypertherm consumables.

After thorough investigation, the court ruled in favour of Hypertherm and sentenced the main suspect to three years in prison. His accomplice was sentenced to serve one year. Both will also have to pay fines of $25,000 and $7500 respectively. Examples of protected Hypertherm trademarks include Hypertherm, Powermax, HPR, FlushCut, HyAccess and ProNest.
For further information www.hypertherm.com

Mazak apprentices win three training awards

Apprentices at Yamazaki Mazak have scooped an unprecedented three prizes at the annual Worcestershire Group Training Association awards ceremony. The three apprentices, all of whom are now working full-time at the Mazak facility in Worcester, picked up their awards at a special event held at Worcester Rugby Club.

Bethany Addis, 17, won Engineering Apprentice of the Year, the first ever female winner of the award. Harry Fuller, 17, who is in the second year of a four-year apprenticeship, won the Personal Development Award as part of his sheet metal apprenticeship. Finally, Joe Kennie, 21, won the Post-First Year Craft Apprentice of the Year Award. “These three awards are testament to the ‘can do’ attitude of all our apprentices, their enthusiasm and willingness to learn,” says Richard Smith, European group managing director at Yamazaki Mazak.
For further information www.mazakeu.co.uk

Tangier turbine blade plant inaugurated

Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy (SGRE) has officially inaugurated its new rotor blade factory in Tangier, an event chaired by Morocco’s Minister of Industry, Investment, Trade and Digital Economy, Moulay Hafid El Alamy, and Markus Tacke, CEO of Siemens Gamesa.

The first plant of its type in the region, the facility will produce B63-10 blades with a length of 63 m for export to Europe, Africa and the Middle East, as well as for local projects. Employing 600 people, the 37,500 sq m plant is ready to produce other blade models in the future, which could reach up to 75 m. The company’s blades are based on licensed technologies and made of composite materials.
For further information www.gamesacorp.com

Doors set to open at Metalex 2017

The 31st edition of Metalex is set to get underway this week (22-25 November) at the BITEC venue in Bangkok, Thailand. With over 90,000 attending the show in 2016, this year the organisers are expecting to welcome more than 100,000 visitors through the exhibition doors over the four days, which is why the show is recognised as the ASEAN region’s largest international machine tool and metalworking technologies trade fair.

In total, 64,000 sq m of exhibition space will be filled with 3300 brands and 11 international pavilions. In addition, Metalex will host several conferences and seminars by leading industry technologists and associations. This intensive programme is seen as a true think tank for the metalworking community where creativity, vision and strategy join forces to
raise productivity and efficiency.
For further information www.metalex.co.th