Standing at one of the platforms of Southern Cross Station in Melbourne, it’s hard not to admire the massive dune-like roof structure that makes the train station feel like a modern airport. When the landmark station – formerly known as the Spencer Street station – was revamped ahead of the Melbourne Commonwealth Games in 2006, … Continue reading Efficiency at its peak with the right drill and tap solutions →

During a crisis or challenging economic circumstances, there is an explosive proliferation of information about what to do and what effects the crisis may have. Much of this information is speculation and unfounded rumour, and even the official information is broadly targeted and irrelevant for some. Thus, having accurate information in a crisis is a … Continue reading Insights for intelligence →

Anthony Wong, Regional Director – South Pacific Region, Rockwell Automation Automation and remote operations are on the move. Nowhere was this more clear than at our recent Rockwell Automation On The Move – a unique event where from 3-4 March we saw 119 customers attend 15 breakout sessions in Auckland, New Zealand, engaging with new … Continue reading An intuitive shift towards greater automation →

Key topics such as system availability, operational effectiveness and return on investment come to mind when thinking of an airport’s baggage handling system as a critical asset. Taking into account the initial outlay for a brand new system, alongside the projected operational and maintenance related investments, it is no doubt a long and complex journey … Continue reading Getting the most out of your baggage conveyor system →

By Rob Stummer, Asia Pacific CEO, SYSPRO In Australia, two people die, and 145 people are injured every day by unsafe consumer products, according to the ACCC. This amounts to a cost of at least $5 billion to the economy, including medical costs, lost wages, and lost productivity, not least to say the hidden costs … Continue reading The Ten Most Famous Product Recalls of the Last 5 Years →

The Australian cattle dog has become iconic in the Australian agricultural landscape because of their unique attributes. Energetic, hardworking, and intelligent, the dogs, bred originally from a combination of English drovers’ dogs and dingoes, are tough enough to work for hours in harsh Australian conditions. In many ways, the Gates Predator v-belt mirrors these qualities, … Continue reading The belt that keeps on working →

Traditionally, end users look at their operations holistically. They are not concerned with the day-to-day operations of just one machine but rather with how the factory operates – as a whole. Compressed air is typically consumed in these factories in large amounts, across various applications and machinery. When looking to deploy efficient air management systems, … Continue reading A little saving can go a long way – efficient air management for end users →

Processes in building material manufacturing often involve high temperatures and critical stresses. Cement, tile and brick production processes require hammer mills to crush the aggregate material into smaller pieces and then vibrating screens to classify these crushed particles by size. Similarly, chipping the wood that goes into plywood laminates involves putting huge logs of wood … Continue reading Low-friction roller bearings keep machines working longer →

Companies will experience periods of increased production, as well as periods of slower or stopped production. It’s the nature of being in business. Understanding the implications of these business shifts for compressed-air installations (the powerhouse behind a facility’s production) is key for ensuring that compressors remain functional and efficient. Here are guidelines to ensure your … Continue reading Compressed air guidelines for varying production levels →

Manufacturers’ Monthly spoke with Total Construction about Building Information Modelling and how it will revolutionise architecture for Australian businesses. Imagine clicking through the model for your new home or office and being able to learn exact details like window materials or when the air conditioner was last cleaned. That is the direction architecture planning is … Continue reading Why Australian manufacturers need to build up to BIM 7D →

The new AMI812x series of integrated servo drives expands the compact drive technology portfolio (up to 48 V DC) from Beckhoff by extremely compact devices for distributed field installation. The integration of servomotor, output stage and fieldbus connection in a space-saving design makes the drives ideal for automation outside of control cabinets in the motion power range up … Continue reading AMI812x combines servomotor, output stage and fieldbus connection →

The TwinCAT 3 Lighting Solution, which is easy and convenient to configure via Excel files, simplifies all work steps from engineering to maintenance. All typical lighting controls are integrated in the system, and the number of DALI lines is unlimited. Fast functional changes, address changes, system expansions or cross-DALI line groupings can be carried out … Continue reading TwinCAT 3 Lighting Solution: flexible lighting solution →

Melbourne chocolate makers, Chocolatier Australia improved traceability and productivity through automating their manual traceability process with insignia. In 1985, David Grisold opened a small chocolate-making operation in an old suburban post office in Melbourne, Australia. He had a humble wish and a bold vision – to manufacture premium chocolates using the world’s finest ingredients. Almost … Continue reading Chocolatier Australia automated manual traceability process with insignia →

Rotating Bearings tend to be the ‘star’ components of production machinery, with the importance of their role discussed often. However, industry expert John Tawadros points out that linear bearing guidance systems are just as essential, particularly in production environments where high dynamic loads and contamination can impact production efficiency. “The linear bearing systems function in … Continue reading The quiet achievers in production machinery →

Flexiroc and Tyre Stewardship Australia join forces to ramp up Australia’s use of end-of-life tyres. Australian entrepreneur Gary Bullock has come up with an ingenious way to make buildings fire and blast-proof. His invention, Protectiflex, is a concrete material that combines recycled rubber tyres and composite fibres in a cement matrix that can be sprayed … Continue reading New flexible solution for old rubber tyres →

In February this year, the construction of a new facility for Bosch’s Manufacturing Solutions and Rexroth businesses began. The company will invest $17 million on the new facility. On completion, this will see the end of a five-year project to consolidate all of Bosch’s Victorian businesses to its 12-hectare Clayton campus. Bosch’s Manufacturing Solutions division … Continue reading Investing to support Australian manufacturers →

Industrial carbon dioxide (CO2) serves a variety of key applications across industries. It is widely used in the food and beverage industries for carbonation of liquid drinks. It can also be used as a shielding gas in welding processes or as a refrigerant with a lower global warming potential than traditional HFCs. There is an … Continue reading Fuelling the industry with a clean gas →

While infrared thermography is predominately used as a form of condition monitoring on electrical and mechanical systems, it can also be used to identify safety hazards. This specialised service – thermographic analysis – is especially useful for manufacturers of building materials, particularly producers of cement, glass, timber and plasterboard, to ensure onsite machinery is performing … Continue reading A hot take on thermal transparency →

By Seth Deland, Mathworks While having an estimate of the time until failure is useful, even more valuable is information that describes the type of failure expected to occur (the root cause). Models that predict the type of failure can be trained on historical failure data, however, engineers commonly experience a lack of failure data … Continue reading The Perplexities of Predictive Maintenance: Generating and Leveraging Failure Data →

The robust components IO-Link temperature sensor, plug-in power supply with interchangeable adapter, Ethernet and sensor cable ensure fast and user-friendly connection of the automation technology to the IT world. 4-port IO-Link master with IoT core and MQTT interface Start-up package for IoT applications for download IO-Link parameter setting software “LR DEVICE” on USB stick Including … Continue reading Starter kit 4-port IO-Link master with IoT core and MQTT interface →