Materials & Fasteners
Invest in science or risk relegation from the economic premier league. That was the stark warning contained in a new report published last week by the Royal Society. The august institution believes that the UK will face decades of slow economic decline unless it invests heavily in research - one of its few genuine areas of economic competitive advantage. The...
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The Winner of the DBA Inclusive Design Challenge 2010 is Clinic, one of London’s largest independently owned creative agencies. Their project, called Sage & Onions: the Experience Exchange, is an inspired communications initiative aimed at stimulating activity and community participation amongst people of all ages. The not-for-profit grassroots scheme encourages members of the public to trade their time and skills with each other in a way that fosters shared...
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India’s Gas Turbine Research Establishment has used fused deposition modelling to create what many believe to be the most complex rapid-prototype assembly ever created. It took the organisation only 30 days to produce 2,500 components from ABS plastic using just two FDM-based Stratasys Fortus machines
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Design fundamentals for plastics injection moulders: Part II (01/03/2010)
In the first of this two-part series by Marc Freebrey we studied the benefits of consistent wall thickness, rib design and gating. In this issue we will look at three more product design fundamentals for plastics injection moulders – draft angle, part radii and boss design The need to add draft angle to a model is well understood, but often ignored during the design stage. While this may seem like a trivial task, if the taper is not added at the right point within the...
2010 EPMA Awards for Excellence in powder metallurgy (25/02/2010)
The European Powder Metallurgy Association (EPMA) has launched its current Awards for Excellence in Powder Metallurgy competition. These are open to all EPMA members and are for major achievements in successful commercialisation, or innovation, of a product, material, equipment or process. There are three categories: Components: covering all types of powder metallurgy (PM) products: structural...
UK government to offer £5,000 subsidies to electric car buyers (25/02/2010)
Pioneering motorists will receive up to GBP5,000 to buy an ultra-low carbon car, and the roll-out of supporting infrastructure will begin in selected regions, the government announced today (Thursday, February 25). The Plug-in Car Grant will be distributed directly to the consumer at the point of purchase and will be available across the UK from January 2011, by which time a range of eligible vehicles is expected to be available.
Battery-powered handgun installs M6 and M8 studs and nuts in 3mm sheet (19/02/2010)
Profil (UK) has introduced a battery powered handgun capable of installing M6 or M8 anchor studs and nuts in materials up to 3.00mm thick. With a maximum setting force of six tonnes, the portable installation tool is ideal for low volume production applications, as well as prototype assemblies and vehicle repair work. It is also suitable for general sheet metal fabrication, heating, ventilation and ducting, domestic appliance manufacture, building industry, agricultural...
Clear, two-part structural adhesive will not affect clarity of bonded transparent materials (19/02/2010)
Eurobond Adhesives has introduced a clear, two-part structural adhesive called Penloc GTi CLEAR. It will be available from April and gives designers a lot of flexibility when designing and manufacturing products with transparent properties. The adhesive has all the same high-performance characteristics as Eurobond’s standard pink and green structural adhesive product Penloc 1-1, which includes fast cure speeds, high strength and the ability to bond a...
Metal foam could replace rigid materials in medical implants (19/02/2010)
Researchers at North Carolina State University (Raleigh) have developed a 'metal foam' material that exhibits similar elasticity to bone. The material could eventually be used in a new generation of biomedical implants, preventing the bone rejection that often results from more-rigid implant materials such as titanium. Lighter than solid aluminum, the metal foam can be made of 100% steel or a combination of steel and aluminum. In a...
A new standard in high temperature bioplastics (17/02/2010)
Biome Bioplastics has introduced BiomeHT 90, the first of a new range of high temperature bioplastics that will provide significant benefits over existing alternatives, including superior temperature performance and greater rigidity. With a softening point of greater than 90 degrees C, in both dry and wet conditions, BiomeHT 90 exceeds the performance of alternative bioplastic products by 20-30 degrees C. A demonstration video is available for viewing at the company's...
Cycle helmets that 'imitate the scalp' on sale within a year (16/02/2010)
A British invention that allows cycle helmets to imitate the way the scalp moves over the human skull when it receives a glancing blow has been welcomed by the Environmental Transport Association (ETA). Existing cycle helmets work in a similar way to the skull by protecting against direct blows, but in the event of a crash the Phillips Head Protection System behaves like a synthetic ‘scalp’ that is able to move, and thereby reduce, the risk of serious...
Helping a vital industry through difficult times (12/02/2010)
The Automotive Assistance Programme (AAP) was launched a little over a year ago to help mid-sized firms serving the automotive supply chain weather the economic crisis. Under the scheme, the government announced a package of measures, including loans of more than £2bn. It was summarily dismissed by the industry as being too little, too late. Earlier this month, the government announced a further extension to its car scrappage...
Inclusive design: facing a demographic challenge (08/02/2010)
Today, half of the entire UK population is over 47 years of age; and in just ten years time, more than half of us will be over the age of 65. In a recent survey carried out by Age Concern/Help the Aged, 46% of over-65s believed they had been ignored in the technological scramble. The products and services they sought were either too complex to set up or use, or simply weren’t able to meet basic needs arising from failing eyesight, hearing, strength, dexterity and...