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6 Mar 2016

UK to have the World’s Largest Offshore Wind Farm

There is always mixed feeling when discussing the pros and cons of wind energy and in the UK it’s had its fair share of debate.

Whatever your view news last month confirmed that the North East of England will house the largest offshore wind farm in the world when the Dong Energy Hornsea project is complete.

The multi billion pound project will occupy more than 400 square kilometres, will be situated about 120km off the Yorkshire coast and is it’s anticipated it will power more than a million homes.

The project will not only provide clean energy but will also create jobs and more financial security. It is expected the project will create around 2000 jobs during construction with up to 300 further jobs once operational.

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27 Feb 2016

Electroplating at PRV Engineering

Components that are designed to carry heavy electrical currents all need some form of electroplating if they are to perform effectively. There’s the side effect of an improved decorative look, but the reasons these components are plated are far more important than the look. Electroplating is essential to the functioning of the component. It helps in the following areas

  • reduced corrosion
  • enhanced strength
  • reduced friction
  • increased solderability
  • benefits to conductivity
  • help with paint adhesion

All these things mean a longer lifespan and less risk of failure. Advances in modern technology means that electroplating has become a critical part of the manufacture of components that will have an electrical current passing through them. When it comes to modern technology, in some areas it’s viewed as critical.

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19 Feb 2016

Robotic Arm to help Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy Sufferers

Researchers in the Netherlands have developed a robotic arm that improves the lives of people with Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy.

The A-Gear robotic arm is the result of development work by a team of people from 4 different universities; the University of Twente’s MIRA research centre, the VU University Medical Centre Amsterdam, Delft University of Technology and Radboud University Medical Centre. It is the first prototype that can support independent operation of the arm whilst still being discreet and body connected. The A-Gear can easily be worn under clothing and so there is less stigma attached to its use.

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12 Feb 2016

Excellence in the supply chain

Your supply chain is your way of getting your goods or services to end consumers from obtaining raw materials to delivering the final product. The size of a supply chain will depend on the type of business you are. Small businesses may not have too many suppliers to deal with, where as a large or multi national company may have hundreds of suppliers to manage on a daily basis.

Supply Chain Management

Supply chain management is all about optimising your business operations to ensure speed, efficiency and cost effectiveness. Today, ethical sourcing and sustainability also play a major part in decisions about supply chain partners. The wider economic and environmental issues are a factor for many companies when considering applicants to their supply chain, as well as how the applicant manages their own business. Your values and how you perform as a business is just as important as your ability to deliver an end product.

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5 Feb 2016

3D Printing in Space

Back at the end of 2014, the world was amazed to hear from NASA about the final test phase of a 3D printer in space. The printer, which had been used on the ground prior to its launch into space, went to the International Space Station on a resupply vessel in September of 2014. A ratchet wrench printed from a design file transmitted from the ground was completed in December. The wrench along with a number of other things printed was then sent back to earth in 2015 for rigorous testing.

In December 2015 another resupply vessel went up to the International Space Station and on board this time was the European contribution to 3D printing in space – a Portable on Board 3D printer. The printer, measuring 25cm on each side and weighing just 5,5kg prints objects made from polylactic acid (PLA). PLA is a plastic that is made from renewable resources and is also biocompatible and biodegradable. It was built by Altran Italia in partnership with Thales Alenia Space and the Italian Institute of Technology under the direction of the Italian Space Agency, ASI.

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30 Jan 2016

Low maintenance resources could be costing you money

Whatever industry you’re if you are running machinery it’s essential that it’s maintained and serviced regularly. If this doesn’t happen you leave yourself open to mechanical failures, delayed deadlines and ultimately loss of income or lost customers.

Despite manufacturers knowing this a report at the end of last year from Bosch Rexroth in conjunction with the Institute of Engineering and Technology revealed that the maintenance budgets of more than 50% of the responding manufacturers had stagnated or even reduced over the last 5 years.

This is a worrying statistic when you consider that many manufacturers have not only increased the amount of machinery and equipment they use, but that machinery has also increased in complexity.

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22 Jan 2016

UK Car Manufacturing at a 10 Year High

Cast your mind back a few months to all the bad news surfacing in the automotive industry and you would be forgiven for expecting to see reports saying that 2015 was a bad year for the industry.

There were product recalls due to faulty airbag units which impacted the likes of Toyota, Ford, Nissan and Honda. Then there was the Volkswagen emissions scandal. At the end of 2015 it was estimated that 11 million cars were recalled due to the emissions issues alone and UK sales of some of its brands fell sharply in October and November.

However, despite these problems throughout the year, the UK car manufacturing industry has continued to do well and is re-establishing a reputation for quality, manufacturing excellence and innovation. So well in fact, that it hit a 10 year high in 2015 and exported more vehicles than ever before.

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14 Jan 2016

Southern Manufacturing and Electronics 2016

In a few weeks time, from the 9th to the 11th of February the Show Centre at Farnborough will again be hosting the Southern Manufacturing and Electronics show.

The show is one of Europe’s top events in engineering technology. It has over 800 exhibitors and showcases an incredible array of machinery, electronics, components and production hardware as well as specialist engineering services.

PRV Engineering be attending the Southern Manufacturing and Electronics Show again this year and will be located on stand S86.

The show attracts engineering sub contractors from across Europe and there will be live demonstrations of the latest technologies and tools and examples of every kind of component as well as complete automation solutions. You’ll be able to see every kind of production aid from hand tools to CAD/CAM software and there’ll even be industrial furniture, flooring and lighting. Basically, if you want o improve efficiency, increase profitability and grow your business, Southern Manufacturing & Electronics 2016 is for you.

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6 Jan 2016

Engineering the Medical Advances

There are increasing numbers of stories and innovative ways in which 3D printing is being used in the medical profession. From component parts of prosthetic limbs to facial reconstructions, there are regular news stories highlighting just how ground breaking some of these developments are.

While these stories are fascinating and uplifting, we don’t hear too often about all the success and changes to people’s lives that more common procedures bring. Hip and knee replacements have become so common now that we tend to forget just how life changing these operations are for people. We also forget the engineering that went in to the design and development of these medical advances and artificial systems originally and the continued development into improvements that goes on today.

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28 Dec 2015

Round up of Manufacturing and Engineering News of 2015

As we approach the year end, we thought we’d take a quick look back at some of the top manufacturing and engineering news of 2015.

We started 2015 with the great news that the new Hitachi Class 800 trains were being introduced into the UK rail network with testing due to start in the spring of 2015. That wasn’t the only good news. In addition to the new stock entering the UK network the bulk of the fleet was also going to be manufactured here in the UK with a new facility being built in Newton Aycliffe, County Durham. The factory which represents and £82bn investment was completed on schedule in September 2015 and has resulted in 730 new jobs in the area.

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