EDITORIAL ROUNDUP

£130k Grant 

TextureJet has been awarded a £130,000 Innovate UK grant to accelerate the development of ArcSlice, the company’s new and disruptive surface-finishing technology platform for composite and polymer surfaces. Awarded through Innovate UK’s ‘Advanced Manufacturing Supply Chains: Potential High Growth SMEs’ competition, the funding will support an intensive nine-month project designed to move ArcSlice another significant step towards commercial deployment. The ambition is clear: to help manufacturers improve process consistency and product quality while reducing waste, time and cost.  

More information www.tinyurl.com/33tysxey 

UK Steel DG

UK Steel has appointed of Peter Brennan as its new director-general, taking over the leadership of the trade association at a pivotal moment for the UK steel industry. Brennan succeeds Gareth Stace, who steps down after 12 years as director-general but will remain with UK Steel as an adviser for a short transition period before leaving the organisation. Having worked at the heart of UK Steel’s policy and advocacy work, Brennan brings extensive knowledge of the industry and the challenges and opportunities facing UK steelmakers.  

More information www.uksteel.org 

IPercept Raises $16.5m Funds to Redefine CNC Service 

Stockholm-based IPercept has raised a $16.5m to redefine CNC-specialised industrial service in Europe and the USA. The round was co-led by Isogon Ventures and 2150. The company’s existing investors – Luminar Ventures, RunwayFBU, J12 Ventures and AI.Fund – all participated. IPercept’s patented plug-and-play MRI for CNC machines unlocks scalable data, so operators can now see inside critical machinery at a component-level like never before. It essentially enables CNC machine tools to report their own mechanical condition. With this funding, IPercept will scale its operations, grow partnerships and extend its data platform. 

More information www.ipercept.io 

Nasmyth Secures Air Inlet Manifold Contract for Coolbrook

Nasmyth has been awarded the first Air Inlet Manifold contract by Coolbrook for its pioneering RotoDynamic Heater (RDH) technology, marking an important new programme for Nasmyth within the industrial and energy sectors. The contract follows several months of close collaboration between the two companies and will see Nasmyth produce a key element of the RDH system. It provides Nasmyth with an opportunity to apply its established precision engineering, fabrication and extensive manufacturing expertise to this fast-growing multi-million pound market. 

More information www.nasmyth.com 

Made Smarter Teams Up With Toyota

Made Smarter South East, the Government-backed technology adoption programme, has teamed up with the Toyota Lean Management Centre (TLMC) to bring manufacturing and continuous improvement expertise directly to SME factory floors. Together the organisations have developed a two-day programme tailored to SMEs, helping manufacturers improve processes, eliminate waste and boost productivity before investing in new technology. 

The programme was successfully piloted in Buckinghamshire, bringing together 14 manufacturers hosted at Ercol in Princes Risborough factory. Day one combined expert-led workshops and practical exercises with a factory tour, while day two took the learning directly into selected businesses. 

More information www.tinyurl.com/4zxthect