Fast-growth green-tech business Katrick Technologies has joined the Manufacturing Technology Centre as a Tier 1 member. Katrick’s patented suite of technologies uses the power of oscillation to provide profitable zero-carbon electricity and power saving.
The MTC will support Katrick Technologies’ next generation of infrastructure and help the company bring its patented technologies to market. Over the next year, Glasgow-based Katrick Technologies will work alongside the MTC to develop further its novel urban wind device and related business activities.
For further information www.the-mtc.org

Wayland Additive, developer of the Calibur3 metal additive manufacturing (AM) system, has installed its technology at the Hilda B Hewlett Centre for Innovation, part of No 71 Inspection and Repair Squadron based at RAF Wittering in Cambridgeshire. Equipped with world-leading 3D printing and scanning equipment, the opening of the new centre marks the Royal Air Force’s first steps into advanced component manufacturing.

AM is a brand-new capability for the RAF and will ultimately provide a breakthrough in its ability to design and produce its own aircraft spares on demand. Will Richardson, CEO at Wayland Additive says: “Calibur3 overcomes common problems with metal AM, and uses the NeuBeam process that delivers on all of the advantages of metal electron beam powder bed fusion technology while overcoming the troublesome issues that have traditionally limited wider adoption.”
For further information www.waylandadditive.com

Unison Ltd, a UK manufacturer of tube bending machines and the inventor of all-electric tube manipulation, has recruited several former employees of now-defunct Preston-based Addison Forming Technologies Ltd (formerly known as Addison McKee). Already working at Unison are former Addison Forming Technologies international sales manager Andy Worthington, proposals engineer Luke Gibson, software engineer Bill Watson and machine tool designer Dan Gallagher. Unison expects further new starters in the coming weeks.

“With new Unison tube bending technologies and software solutions in the pipeline, new markets to break into, and exciting long-term strategic plans, we took the decision to recruit as many former Addison team members as we could justify and, in doing so, keep their considerable skills in the UK,” says Unison’s joint managing director Alan Pickering. “We simply couldn’t sit back, do nothing and allow such talent to be wasted or enticed overseas.”
For further information www.unisonltd.com

A new report from IDTechEx ‘Polymer Additive Manufacturing 2023-2033: Technology and Market Outlook’, finds that polymer 3D printing is moving beyond prototyping to high-value adoption by end users, propelling its growth to $21.1bn in 2033. Among the sectors that will drive this growth include automotive, medical devices and consumer goods. IDTechEx’s new report forecasts future revenue, install base and materials demand for the polymer AM market, while carefully segmenting the polymer AM technology and materials market by 10 process categories, three material form factors and 17 individual material categories.
For further information www.IDTechEx.com/polymerAM

Industrial products supplier Eriks has completed a £21m infrastructure investment, headlined by a state-of-the-art fulfilment centre to improve its product range along with the speed and accuracy of supply. ERIKS’ new Fulfilment Centre of Expertise (FCE) in Oldbury is now fully operational with its 11,000 sq m warehouse space backed by one of the most advanced warehouse management systems anywhere in Europe. It has 21 vertical lifts, more than 400 m of high-speed conveyors, sophisticated scanning and weighing systems for every order, and Industry 4.0 configured IT infrastructure with real-time monitoring.
For further information www.eriks.co.uk