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INDUSTRY NEWS

2019-07-11PV:3527

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Saint Gobain has sold its SiC Division to OpenGate Capital for an undisclosed amount. The business will be renamed Fiven A/S. Fiven is a leading company in the manufacture of silicon carbide grains and powders with branches in Norway. Belgium. Brazil and Venezuela. OpenGate is a private equity firm established in 2005 in Los Angeles with offices in Paris that subsequently acquired 30 other companies including Sargent and Greenleaf from Stanley Black and Decker.


Purdue University announced a plan to create an industry/university consortium focused on metal surface finishing. The organization named the Center for Surface Enaineerina and Enhancement (CSEE) will serve consortium members, establish a knowledae base for metal finishing, and educate future leaders for that indus try. Purdue appointed Dr. Mark Gruninger as the Manaaina Director for CSEE in the enaineering school. Gruningel will develop relationships with potential consortium companies. He had served as President of Praxair Surface Technologies, a Fortune 500 leader for surface finishing. Jack Champaigne, known for work in shot peening is alumnus of Purdue and played a key role the development of CSEE.


The development of CSEE creates a bridge between surface finishing using grinding wheels and surface finishing produced by peening and blast cleaning. technologies that have been traditionally centered on distinc and independent markets. llustrating the merging of technologies, articles on residual stress and hardness measurement appear in the latest issue of the Shot Peener, a periodical published by Jack Chamaigne, Elec-.tronics Inc. Purdue University reports Chamaigne will fund research for three projects related to shot peening at CSEE.


Expect to see more states follow Maine where lawmakers recently passed a law banning Styrofoam, the familiar white material used for everything from food containers to packing materials. The problem is that Styrofoam fills landfills where it will take millennia to decompose and clogs our oceans and streams with trash.Styrofoam consumes petroleum, absorbs and holds pollutants, and is difficult to store or ship. Alternatives are available, but most reauire further development to be economical. A new cellulose nanocrystal foam or Hemp Bioplastics are among the most promising replacement technologies. News releases.


Saab Global Defense and Security Company will invest $37 million in a facility to manufacture training aircraft needed by the US Air Force. The facility will create jobs for 300 starting in 2020 near Purdue University Saab is both a partner and supplier for Boeing, a key sponsor for the project.


Potential shortages of rare earth minerals (REM) are back in the news. REMs are important to countless products including cell phones, computers, and other electronic devices- some critical to national security. A small amount of REMs are needed to make premium abrasives. As was the case 10 years ago, China supplies over 80% of REMs used in the US. Industry watchers predict China will restrict or eliminate REM exports to the US in the tit-for-tat of tariff wars. SiC and More.


Gleason, a machine tool builder headquartered in Switzerland, acauired the assets of the Faessler gear honing business in February. Faessler's parent company Daetwyler Industries has been producing gear honing machines and related hardware under the Faessler brandname, Gleason is a leading manufacturer of gear echnology with operations in the US. Brazil, Germany. Switzerland, India, China and Japan.


How about ogy opuununr to ous usumuuutuus meus oneuup applying the concepts behind Uber to renting machine tools? McPond, a peer-to-peer platform based in Chicago, lets manufacturers list idie machines that are available for rent. The website for McPond has a list of machines available-though no grinding machines are apparent. "Access over ownership is the trend of he future." according to a cofounder who has 35 years in manufanufactring industry.


Ford Motor Company will cut its European workforce by 20% and close factories in money-losing regions as the company gears up to make future electric and driverless cars. By 2020 the company will have only 18 companies in its European footorint. A January announcement about the downsizing didn't specify the extent of the job cuts and plant closures, which now include the Bridaend enaine factory in South Wales, a transmission plant in France and an assembly site in Russia, Impact of Ford's action on the abrasives industry includes.changes in sales of consumables and trickle-down pressures on supply channels.