Food Manufacturing

The 'I's have it - the three pillars of automation

As the trends towards digitalisation and the mobile information society gather momentum, consumers are demanding more information about the origin and content of the products they buy. Furthermore, they expect products, information and services to be increasingly targeted and personalised. This is how Omron sees the future.

27th September 2016

The benefits and challenges of IT/OT convergence

The convergence of industrial automation and communication is an integral part of the growing Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT). In the modern industrial realm, automation should provide a consistent way of executing tasks and processes - including those usually associated with information technology (IT). As a result, the operational technology (OT) used to support manufacturing processes is experiencing significant changes. Here, Martyn Williams, Managing Director of COPA-DATA UK, explains the changing responsibilities of IT and OT.

16th September 2016

Automatic monitoring of mobile harbour equipment

The increasing globalisation of the world economy is pressurising ports, docks and harbours into handling ever-increasing volumes of cargo, so mobile harbour equipment has to work efficiently and reliably at all times. Tony Ingham of Sensor Technology Ltd explains how monitoring the work rate of cranes, loaders and unloaders means their performance can be optimised and downtime for maintenance can be scheduled for minimum disruption to operational requirements.

14th September 2016

Motors: the tip of the iceberg for drivetrain efficiency?

Fuelled by the introduction of more stringent IE efficiency classes, manufacturers are chasing headline efficiency figures which could only have been dreamed of just 10 years ago. There's no denying that this is a positive thing for industry, but is motor efficiency just the tip of the iceberg?

2nd September 2016

Upgrading process safety with compact control valves

Manufacturers in the food and beverage industry are finding that they need to upgrade the safety on their process plant. Fortunately, compact valves and relatively simple changes to control circuits make this a straightforward task.

11th August 2016

High-speed polymer gearboxes deliver material gains

The ongoing development of advanced, heat resistant materials such as polymers is increasingly providing today's machine designers with practical and effective products. A good example of this is the high-speed polymer gearboxes developed by ROTALINK which have been successfully used for diverse applications, ranging from welding wire feeders to coffee grinders.

20th July 2016

Retrofit safety using innovative control valves

The food and beverage industry has embraced automation - partly due to the necessity of reducing production costs, but also to help meet food safety standards and personnel safety legislation. By taking a modular approach to automation, plant owners can gradually introduce new technologies and expand the number of automated processes, in order to maintain productivity and keep up with the latest safety legislation.

14th July 2016

Maximising heat exchange efficiency reduces costs

A heat exchanger is simply a device for transferring heat from one fluid or gas to another. Yet choosing the best suited heat exchanger for a particular application is not that simple and requires the supplier to fully understand your process and products so that the system delivers optimum performance throughout its working life.

7th July 2016

A comparison of blue and red laser triangulation sensors

Although red laser triangulation displacement sensors have been in use for more than 20 years, blue laser versions are also now available. Before selecting which colour to use, it is important to understand which type performs best on which target materials, says Chris Jones, Managing Director at Micro-Epsilon UK.

6th July 2016

Lee Spring provides customer assist service to UK manufacturing

Across applications from engines to vehicle trim, kids toys to sophisticated medical devices and sensitive instrumentation to valves of many types, the Lee Spring capability to quickly create application-specific springs and spring components such as fourslide parts is putting a spring in the step of UK manufacturing industry.