Amn october 2013 by Doug Green

ASIA MANUFACTURING NEWS • OCTOBER 2013

SUCCESS THROUGH INNOVATION www.asiamanufacturingnewstoday.com

October 2013 • $8 per copy • $40.00 digital per annum

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ASIA MANUFACTURING NEWS • OCTOBER 2013

Editorial OCTOBER 2013

Developments leading the world

here are lots of positive developments of late to give us pride and confidence in manufacturing in Asia.

Take for example the Alstrom hydropower site in Tainjin, China which was recently inaugurates so the company can tap into China’s increasing hydropower needs and grow its hydropower business throughout the region (Page 4).

9 HYPERTHERM

INTERVIEW WITH ASIA MANUFACTURING NEWS

or 40 years, Hypertherm has been a pioneer in advanced high temperature metal cutting technologies. Established in 1968, the company has grown over the years to establish a presence in all five continents across the globe. Our goal has always been to create technologies that allow users to cut confidently, and that reduce the cost of cutting metal.

Or the Korean researchers who have developed a novel bio-inspired composite electrocatyst outperforming platinum. The material has outstanding durability and electrocatalytic activity using ORR in an alkaline media offering better performance than a commercial PVC catalyst (Page 8).

NEWS❒❒❒❒❒❒

Or the direction for Hypertherm who produce industryleading automated and manually-operated laser and plasma cutting systems. This company is committed to being a leader in thermal cutting solutions and you can read more in The Interview on Page 9.

6 AUTOMATING DELIVERY IN JAPAN

There are some inspiring developments in energy for transport too. Take for example the OLEV electric vehicle which can be charged while in motion or when stationary (Page 12) or the foldable micro electric car coming out of South Korea (Page 13) which can be used as either as a personal car or part of the public transport system. And there’s lots more inspiring stories to read about in this issue. Finally, need to mention it, the US Shutdown. America continues to function from crisis. They get one thing back on track and then something else causes a problem. They are just settling down, about to pull out of military regions with their crippling costs – human lives and financial – and now this. In Asia we need to concentrate on the challenge at hand and hopefully not get caught up in the drama of it all. Of course there is financial risk. But hey, isn’t there always?

4 ALSTOM INAUGURATES

HYDROPOWER INDUSTRIAL SITE IN TIANJIN, CHINA WITH CTC SOLUTION

8 CHEAPER CATALYSTS FOR ELECTRIC VEHICLES

10 CONSTRUCTION EXPENDITURES IN CHINA GROW 8.5% ANNUALLY

11 DIRECT NITROGEN FIXATION FOR LOW ENERGY COST CONVERSION

12 ELECTRIC BUSES RECHARGED RIGHT FROM THE ROAD

13 FOLDABLE MICRO ELECTRIC CAR 14 JOINT LABS GEARED TOWARDS HIGH VALUE MANUFACTURING

15 VIETNAM IS ASIA’S NEW TECH MANUFACTURING HUB

16 NANOMATERIALS SIZED UP FOR STRENGTH

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ASIA MANUFACTURING NEWS • OCTOBER 2013

17 NEW PARTNERSHIP

FOR GREATER MANUFACTURING PRECISION AND PRODUCTIVITY

o bolster the economy, the government of Singapore has acknowledged the need to promote higher productivity in the manufacturing industry and recognises that this must be achieved with a low dependency on manpower.

29 DHL OBSERVES

CHANGES IN AFRICA’S TECHNOLOGY MARKET

ompetition within the technology sector is becoming more intense and Asia’s importance as both a manufacturing location and a consumer market is growing. However, although Asia is still key to the sector, Africa has also witnessed an explosion in technology adoption recently and is set to develop as a region.

NEWS❒❒❒❒❒❒

19 NEW FEATURES ADDED TO

30 NUM EXPANDS ASIAN PRESENCE

PRONEST SOFTWARE

20 TOFU-LIKE CRYSTALLINE

CATALYSTS FOR CLEAN ENERGY

21 VALEO CONFIDENT ABOUT CHINESE MARKET

22 WORLD CLASS DAIRY PLANT UNVEILED IN VIETNAM

23 NOVEL TECHNOLOGY TO PRODUCE GASOLINE

24 ELECTRONICA INDIA 2013 SUCCESSFUL

25 21ST INDONESIA MOTOR SHOW PRESENTS CHALLENGES

26 FARO EDGE SCANARM ES WITH ENHANCED TECHNOLOGY

28 CHINA HSBC PMI FALLS TO 11-MONTH LOW

31 JANRAIN OPENS NEW ASIA PACIFIC OFFICE

32 TRANSMISSION DEVELOPER

ATTRACTS OVERSEAS INTEREST

34 MANUFACTURING MOVING AT THE SPEED OF BUSINESS

Asia Manufacturing News is published bi-monthly and offers the reader business information and news. Asia Manufacturing News welcomes editorial contributions and encourages readers to share their reflections and views with us. Asia Manufacturing News uses information provided in good faith. We give no guarantee of accuracy of the information. No liability is accepted for the result of any actions taken or not taken on the basis of this information. Those acting on the information and recommendations do so entirely at their own risk. Managing Editor: Doug Green phone: +64 6 870 9029 Advertising: phone: +64 6 870 9029 Web Master: Dan Browne. SUBSCRIPTION: NZ $80 per year for the printed version. NZ $42 per year digital. Subscription payment or general contact can be made to: Words, PO Box 1109, Hastings, New Zealand. words@xtra.co.nz Please email or fax us your credit card details. Fax: +64 6 878 8150 Or by posting a cheque to the above address. Digital Subscription payment available at: words@xtra.co.nz Single copies NZ $8.00 www.asiamanufacturingnewstoday.com

ASIA MANUFACTURING NEWS • OCTOBER 2013

developments

Alstom inaugurates hydropower

lstom’s largest hydropower industrial site was inaugurated in Tianjin, China on September 17 in the presence of Patrick Kron, Chairman and CEO of Alstom, and Jérôme Pécresse, President of Alstom’s Renewable Power Sector. With an investment of €100 million on this new facility, Alstom aims to further tap into China’s increasing hydropower needs and grow its hydropower business throughout the region. The inauguration of Tianjin’s new site marks the completion of an upgrade programme, without interruption of the production. It includes an upgrade of the existing hydropower industrial facility and the construction of a new production area as well as a global technology centre (GTC). Today, the Tianjin site is equipped with first class facilities and covers an overall area of 250,000 square meters. It houses approximately 2,000 Alstom employees including over 400 engineers. Alstom supplied recently, from its Tianjin site, four 800 MW class units to China’s Xiangjiaba hydropower plant. The most powerful hydroelectric generating units in the world were delivered in a record time for such large machines – at an average of one unit every two months. Alstom is the only manufacturer who delivered such powerful units already in commercial operation. Thanks to the completion of the Phase II project, the new site has 19 critical heavy machines including two new and state-ofthe-art gantries. It will be able to deliver on an annual basis up to 26 turbine and generator units. The new global technology centre will address the research and development needs of the Asian market for all types of hydropower equipment. www.asiamanufacturingnewstoday.com

Its major activities include R&D in mechanics, hydraulics and electrical disciplines for hydropower turbines and generators as well as scale model tests of Francis and Kaplan turbines. The new GTC in Tianjin is part of Alstom’s global R&D network and closely linked with its European teams notably in Grenoble (France). The new workshop can achieve a yearly CO2 emission reduction of over 10,000 tonnes1, thanks to numerous architectural innovations such as ground-source heat pumps, double insulation, heat recovery systems, rainwater recycling, natural light and solar photovoltaic panels that provide electricity for heating, cooling, lighting and ventilation for the entire factory. “As a global leader in power generation, Alstom has used its advanced and reliable

technological expertise to equip many important power projects in China. The inauguration of the Tianjin site represents a key milestone for Alstom’s development in the country. This world class factory will allow us to accelerate Alstom’s contribution to China’s sustainable development,” said Patrick Kron, Chairman and CEO of Alstom. China represents the world’s largest generator of hydroelectricity. According to the country’s 12th Five Year Programme of Energy Development, China will further promote hydropower and by 2015 the total capacity of conventional hydropower and pumped storage power station will reach 260GW and 30GW respectively. China plans to install 30GW of conventional and 10GW of pump storage hydro plants by 2015. Present in hydro activities in China for 18 years, Alstom has accumulated a 20% market share of the total Chinese installed capacity of large hydropower equipment.

developments

ASIA MANUFACTURING NEWS • OCTOBER 2013

r industrial site in Tianjin, China On top of the booming Chinese market, there is also huge potential throughout Asia. Asia was the world’s top source of hydroelectricity in 2009, producing more than 26% of the world’s total hydropower. By 2035, these countries are expected to account for 85% of additional global capacity. For instance, there are 10 GW of potential hydropower projects in Laos and more than 30 GW in Myanmar. “The new site illustrates Alstom’s commitment to bring our technology strengths and innovations to local customers. Tianjin site now offers a hydropower full value chain with

a complete array of activities. It will play a pivotal role in the future growth of Alstom in China and the Southeast Asia market” said Jérôme Pécresse, President of Alstom’s Renewable Power. Alstom is the world leading hydropower equipment supplier and service provider. With over a century of experience and extensive know-how in the hydropower industry, Alstom hydropower turbines and generators installed worldwide represent more than 25% of the total hydropower capacity. Alstom is a global leader in the world of power generation, power transmission and rail infrastructure

and sets the benchmark for innovative and environmentally friendly technologies. Alstom builds the fastest train and the highest capacity automated metro in the world, provides turnkey integrated power plant solutions and associated services for a wide variety of energy sources, including hydro, nuclear, gas, coal and wind, and it offers a wide range of solutions for power transmission, with a focus on smart grids. The Group employs 93,000 people in around 100 countries. It had sales of over €20 billion and booked close to €24 billion in orders in 2012/13. u

Community Planning, Sustainable Business and Waste Minimisation Strategies www.envision-nz.com

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ASIA MANUFACTURING NEWS • OCTOBER 2013

technology

Automating delivery in Japan with CTC solution

escartes Systems Group has announced that Goto AZ Planning, a leading home care rental company in Japan, has automated its home delivery operations with a combined cloud-based solution from Descartes and ITOCHU Techno-Solutions Corporation (CTC), a Descartes ‘United by Design’ partner. The cloud-based home delivery solution, called Supply Chain Network Controller, includes Descartes’ Reservations, Route Planner and Mobile applications. It allows Japanese retailers to quickly deploy a comprehensive home delivery solution that starts with real-time delivery appointment scheduling during the customer ordering process and finishes with Android-based mobile proof-of-delivery at customer receipt. Currently, Goto AZ is using Descartes’ Reservations and Route Planner solutions as part of its overall delivery system. “At Goto AZ Planning, we aim to provide our customers with what is needed such as the information, the service and the products when they are needed,” said Sae Hamaguchi, Senior Director of System Planning at Goto AZ. “Our delivery system’s innovation allows us to clearly know the status of each resource and share the planning information between the sales drivers at the customers’ sites and the operators at the call centre. And that can drastically reduce the workload of the people who are in charge of the route planning and dispatching.” “We’ve worked with Descartes to deliver a cloud-based solution for the Japanese market that provides differentiated customer service,” said Shun Ando, General Manager, SaaS division of CTC. www.asiamanufacturingnewstoday.com

“Because of our prepackaged approach and the solution’s comprehensive functionality and cloud infrastructure, customers are able to quickly adopt the superior home delivery capabilities and cost reduction benefits.” “Our alliance with CTC extends Descartes’ advanced home delivery solution to include Japanese retail market requirements, such as prebuilt consumer delivery appointment scheduling screens that can be embedded directly in the customer’s website or point-ofsale systems, “said Chris Varney, Vice President Global Alliances & Channels. “We’re pleased that the combination of our unique home delivery technology and CTC’s cloud-based service is delivering significant value to customers like Goto AZ Planning.” Goto AZ Planning was established in 1991. The company operates retail stores in western Japan and provides delivery of the home care products, bedding and water dispensers direct to homes and facilities for the elderly. Its aim is to support the family member to have a more comfortable life by caring for the elderly.

Established in 1972, ITOCHU Techno-Solutions Corporation (CTC) provides advanced IT solutions to enhance enterprise network systems, and offers various outsourcing services, such as operations by its own data centres. CTC supports such market segments as telecommunications, broadcasting, finance, retail, distribution, manufacturing, education, government, medicine, pharmaceutical, chemicals and apparel. CTC has formed partnerships with hundreds of leading IT companies from all over the world. These partnerships range from those with global multinational IT companies to those with highly focused venture businesses. Around 7,000 people work for CTC throughout Japan, and our service edge lies in offering one-stop 7 x 24 support in approximately 100 service centres. Descartes provides on-demand, software-as-a-service solutions focused on improving the productivity, performance and security of logistics-intensive businesses. Descartes has over 147,000 parties using its cloud based services. Customers use modular, software-as-a-service solutions to route, schedule, track and measure delivery resources; plan, allocate and execute shipments; rate, audit and pay transportation invoices; file customs and security documents for imports and exports; and complete numerous other logistics processes by participating in the world’s largest, collaborative multi-modal logistics community. u

ASIA MANUFACTURING NEWS • OCTOBER 2013

10THOUSANDTREES.com u

Continues page 27

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ASIA MANUFACTURING NEWS • OCTOBER 2013

technology

Cheaper catalysts for electric vehicles ULSAN, SOUTH KOREA:

orean researchers from Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST) have developed a novel bio-inspired composite electrocatalyst outperforming platinum.

Li-ion battery and Zn-air battery.

The research team developed an inexpensive and scalable bioinspired composite electrocatalyst, iron phthalocyanine with an axial ligand anchored on single-walled carbon nanotubes, demonstrating a higher electrocatalytic activity for oxygen reduction than the state-of-the-art Pt/C catalysts as well as an exceptional durability during cycling in an alkaline media. Electrocatalysts for oxygen reduction are critical components that may dramatically enhance the performance of fuel cells and metal-air batteries, which are perceived to be the power for future electric vehicles. Currently Pt and its alloy are known as the most efficient catalysts for activation of the

oxygen reduction reaction. However, their application is limited due to high costs and scarce reserves. Scientists worldwide are looking for better catalysts which outperforms platinum, costs less and has a simpler production process. The UNIST research team led by Prof. Jaephil Cho, dean of the Interdisciplinary School of Green Energy, UNIST, demonstrated a new strategy to rationally design inexpensive and durable electrochemical oxygen reduction catalysts for metal-air batteries and fuel cells. The research team designed a new class of ORR catalysts using

Diagram of synthesis of new catalyst. www.asiamanufacturingnewstoday.com

pyridine-functionalized carbon nanotubes (CNTs) to anchor FePc molecules and provide the axial ligand for the iron centre. At the same time, the CNTs provide an easy pathway for fast electron transfer from the current collector to the ORR active sites. The resulting material, bioinspired FePc-Py-CNTs catalyst has shown outstanding durability and electrocatalytic activity for ORR in an alkaline media, offering better performance than a commercial Pt/C catalyst. Compared to other unpyrilysed metal macrocycles catalysts, this bio inspired FePc-Py-CNTs catalyst has achieved a much longer cycle life , reaching more than 1,000 cycles in a durability test. “I believe the FePc-Py-CNTs catalysts is a technologically promising candidate for practical applications in metal-air batteries and alkaline fuel cells,” said Prof. Cho. “The origin of the enhanced performance for this bio-inspired catalysts in aromatic macrocycle, provides important insight into rational design of metal macrocycles catalysts for other applications such as solar harvesting and catalysts for other redox reactions.” The fellow researchers include Ruiguo Cao, Ranjit Thapa, Hyejung Kim, Xioadong Xu, and Prof. Noejung Park from UNIST and researchers from Pohang Accelerator Laboratory (PAL), Loa Alamos National Laboratory and Georgia Institute of Technology. The research was supported by the Converging Research Centre Program through the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology (MEST), Korea. The Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning (MSIP), Korea is also acknowledged. u

the interview

ASIA MANUFACTURING NEWS • OCTOBER 2013

Hypertherm: Interview with Asia Manufacturing News

Setting the standard for cut quality and weldability, we produce a wide range of automated and manually-operated laser and plasma cutting systems. Hypertherm systems are trusted for fast, precision metal cutting and reliability that results in increased productivity and profitability. Today, Hypertherm has more than 1,300 associates along with regional operations and partner representation worldwide. Your company has constantly been name of the best place to work in America. Please tell us about your company’s focus on HR development. We adopt a culture that has been driven by our founder and CEO, Dick Couch. We focus on not only our customers, but also on the development and well-being of our associates. Hypertherm believes in developing our employees by ensuring that each one is well-trained to perform with accountability to their

responsibilities. Hypertherm also engages our associates through an annual survey. Our leaders take the results of the survey and work on improving the respective areas to close the gaps identified. These measures are communicated regularly with the associates. Each Hypertherm associate is an owner of the company through stock grants. This ownership fosters a culture that is best described by our motto “Think like a customer and work like an owner”. Tell us about Hypertherm’s strengths At Hypertherm, our experience gives us strong advantages in expertise and brand recognition. However, we still continue to invest significant time, resources and labour in research and development to produce patented technologies that enhance productivity and improve cut quality. Hypertherm is committed to being a leader in thermal cutting solutions in order to provide endusers with the best. We regularly conduct voice-of-the customer surveys to find out what our users want, and then manufacture systems that can meet their needs in the most effective way. What advantages does Hypertherm’s plasma cutting bring to manufacturing? Plasma is very versatile in terms of both material thickness and the types of metals it can cut. The technology is suitable for any

Rafael Barrera, Marketing Manager, Asia Pacific

ferrous or non-ferrous conductive material, and metal that is in any condition – even rusted, painted, or grated. This means that Hypertherm equipment is suitable for numerous applications. With plasma cutting, the main appeal is productivity and economy on a larger scale. In addition, there are other benefits such as application technologies and automation that add value and enhance profits and productivity benefits for the enduser. What are the recent initiatives undertaken by Hypertherm? Our new tagline “Built for Business” emphasises the creation of synergy between our CAM software, Torch Height Control, CNC and cutting power sources. We want to show our customers that from the start to the end, Hypertherm’s integrated cutting solutions make it easy to achieve consistent results by enabling end users to optimize cutting performance. We have also recently updated our Hypertherm ProNest CAD/ CAM Software, which facilitates fabricating or cutting to achieve better cut quality, productivity and profitability for businesses. www.asiamanufacturingnewstoday.com

ASIA MANUFACTURING NEWS • OCTOBER 2013

constuction news

Construction expenditures in China grow 8.5% annually

onstruction expenditures in China are expected to rise 8.5 percent per annum in real terms through 2017.

Ongoing urbanisation and industrialisation, rising income levels, further population and household growth, and the government’s continuing efforts to expand and upgrade physical infrastructure in the country will support healthy growth in construction spending. However, growth will moderate notably from the 16 percent annual gains during the 20072012 period, when gross fixed capital formation was boosted by the government’s stimulus program to counter the global financial crisis in 2009. This program ended in 2011, and increases in construction spending along with fixed investment will see a significant slowdown. Construction expenditures in China are nearly equally split among residential buildings, nonresidential buildings, and nonbuilding structures. Each of these segments accounted for around one-third of the total construction market in 2012. Nonbuilding construction will see the fastest growth, advancing 9.2 percent annually in real terms through 2017. Increases will benefit from state-led efforts to expand and upgrade the country’s transportation infrastructure. Utilities construction will also contribute to nonbuilding construction spending gains, particularly in fast growing urban areas, as the government continues to expand and improve access to such infrastructure as water supply, sewage treatment, rubbish disposal, and gas distribution. www.asiamanufacturingnewstoday.com

Further efforts to increase the country’s power generation capacity and improve electricity transmission networks will also drive spending on nonbuilding construction in China through the forecast period. Inflation-adjusted nonresidential building construction expenditures are forecast to rise 8.4 percent per year through 2017. Growth will be led by strong gains in industrial building construction. The manufacturing

sector in China will continue to expand quickly, benefiting from robust increases in consumer spending for manufactured goods, accommodative government policies, and foreign direct investment. Spending on residential buildings is projected to grow at an annual pace of 8.0 percent in real terms through 2017. Market gains will be primarily driven by continuing population migration from rural to urban areas and supported by rising personal income levels. u

ASIA MANUFACTURING NEWS • OCTOBER 2013

energy management

Direct nitrogen fixation for low energy cost conversion SOUTH KOREA:

simple, low-cost and eco-friendly method of creating nitrogen-doped graphene nanoplatelets (NGnPs), could be used in dye-sensitised solar cells and fuel cells. The work, carried out at Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST) in South Korea, could be a step towards replacing conventional platinum (Pt)-based catalysts for energy conversion. The search for economically viable alternatives to fossil fuels has attracted attention among energy communities because of increasing energy prices and climate change. Solar cells and fuel cells are to be promising alternatives, but Pt-based electrodes are expensive and susceptible to environmental damage. Nitrogen fixation is where nitrogen (N2) in the atmosphere is converted into ammonia (NH3). Fixation processes free up nitrogen atoms from their diatomic form to be used in other ways, but nitrogen does not easily react with other chemicals to form new compounds. The most common method of industrial nitrogen fixation is the Harber-Bosch process,

which requires extremely harsh conditions, 200 atm of pressure and 400 °C of temperature. The UNIST team previously reported that dry ball-milling can efficiently produce chemically modified graphene particles in large quantities. This research, in Scientific Reports, presents another innovation to improve the materials. Along the way, the research team discovered a novel nitrogen fixation process. They focus on modifications with nitrogen, developing a technique with direct nitrogen fixation, carbon-nitrogen bond formation, at the broken edges of graphite frameworks using ballmilling graphite in the presence of nitrogen gas. The research was led by JongBeom Baek, professor and director

of the Interdisciplinary School of Green Energy/Low-Dimensional Carbon Materials Center, UNIST, Liming Dai, professor of Case Western Reserve University and Noejung Park, professor of the Interdisciplinary School of Green Energy, UNIST. “Nitrogen is the most abundant constituent in air and it is inert diatomic gas while graphite is the most thermodynamically stable form of carbon allotropes,” said Prof. Baek. “It is an extreme challenge for the C-N bond formation directly from graphite and nitrogen.” This research was supported by World Class University (WCU), US-Korea NBIT, Mid-Career Researcher (MCR), Converging Research Center (CRC) and Basic Research Laboratory (BRL) programs through the National Research Foundation (NRF), of Korea funded by the Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning (Minister Choi Mun-Kee), US Air Force Office of Scientific Research through Asian Office of Aerospace R&D (AFOSR-AOARD), and AFOSR. u

Direct Nitrogen Fixation on Graphene Nanoplates. www.asiamanufacturingnewstoday.com

ASIA MANUFACTURING NEWS • OCTOBER 2013

transport

Electric buses recharged right from the road DAEJON, KOREA:

he Online Electric Vehicle (OLEV) is an electric vehicle that can be charged while stationary or driving, thus removing the need to stop at a charging station. Likewise, an OLEV tram does not require pantographs to feed power from electric wires strung above the tram route.

Following the development and operation of commercialized OLEV trams (at an amusement park in Seoul) and shuttle buses (at KAIST campus), respectively, the City of Gumi in South Korea in August provided its citizens with OLEV public transportation services. Two OLEV buses will run an inner city route between Gumi Train Station and In-dong district, for a total of 24 km roundtrip. The bus will receive 20 kHz and 100 kW (136 horsepower) electricity at an 85% maximum power transmission efficiency rate while maintaining a 17cm air gap between the underbody of the vehicle and the road surface. OLEV is a groundbreaking technology that accelerates the development of purely electric vehicles as a viable option for

www.asiamanufacturingnewstoday.com

future transportation systems, be they personal vehicles or public transit. This is accomplished by solving technological issues that limit the commercialization of electric vehicles such as price, weight, volume, driving distance, and lack of charging infrastructure. OLEV receives power wirelessly through the application of the “Shaped Magnetic Field in Resonance (SMFIR)” technology. SMFIR is a new technology introduced by KAIST that enables electric vehicles to transfer electricity wirelessly from the road surface while moving. Power comes from the electrical cables buried under the surface of the road, creating magnetic fields. There is a receiving device installed on the underbody of the OLEV that converts these fields into electricity. The length of power strips installed under the

road is generally 5%-15% of the entire road, requiring only a few sections of the road to be rebuilt with the embedded cables. OLEV has a small battery (onethird of the size of the battery equipped with a regular electric car). The vehicle complies with the international electromagnetic fields (EMF) standards of 62.5 mG, within the margin of safety level necessary for human health. The road has a smart function as well, to distinguish OLEV buses from regular cars—the segment technology is employed to control the power supply by switching on the power strip when OLEV buses pass along, but switching it off for other vehicles, thereby preventing EMF exposure and standby power consumption. As of today, the SMFIR technology supplies 60 kHz and 180 kW of power remotely to transport vehicles at a stable, constant rate. After the successful operation of the two OLEV buses by the end of this year, Gumi City plans to provide ten more such buses by 2015.u

transport

ASIA MANUFACTURING NEWS • OCTOBER 2013

Foldable micro electric car

DAJEON, KOREA:

ooking for a parking space for hours at a busy shopping mall or being stuck on roads jammed with cars releasing large amounts of carbon dioxide are all-too-familiar scenes for city dwellers.

Armadillo-T is a small and light pure-electric car that can fold in half for convenient parking.

A group of researchers at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) recently developed a possible solution to such problems: a foldable, compact electric vehicle that can be utilised either as a personal car or part of the public transit system to connect major transportation routes within a city. In-Soo Suh, Associate Professor of the Graduate School for Green Transportation at KAIST and his research team introduced a prototype micro electric car called “Armadillo-T,” whose design is based on a native animal of South America, the armadillo, a placental mammal with a leathery armour shell. The research team imitated the animal’s distinctive protection characteristic of rolling up into a ball when facing with threat from predators. Just as armadillos hide themselves inside the shell, Armadillo-T tucks its rear body away, shrinking its original size of 2.8 meters (110 inches) down to almost half, 1.65 meters (65 inches), when folding.

Armadillo-T is a four-wheel-drive, all-electric car with two seats and four in-wheel motors. Since the motors are installed inside the wheels, and the 13.6 kWh capacity of lithium-ion battery pack is housed on the front side, the battery and motors do not have to change their positions when the car folds. This not only optimizes the energy efficiency but also provides stability and ample room to drivers and passengers. Once folded, the small and light (weighs 450 kg) electric vehicle takes up only one-third of a 5-meter parking space, the standard parking size in Korea, allowing three of its kind to be parked. With a smartphoneinterfaced remote control on the wheels, the vehicle can turn 360 degrees, enhancing drivers’ convenience to park the car, even in an odd space in a parking lot, the corner of a building, for example. Professor In-Soo Suh said, “I expect that people living in cities will eventually shift their

preferences from bulky, petroengine cars to smaller and lighter electric cars. Armadillo-T can be one of the alternatives city drivers can opt for. Particularly, this car is ideal for urban travels, including car-sharing and transit transfer, to offer major transportation links in a city. In addition to the urban application, local near-distance travels such as tourist zones or large buildings can be another example of application.” The concept car has loads of smart features on board, too: the cameras installed inside the car eliminate the need for side mirrors and increase the driver’s ability to see the car’s right and left side, thereby reducing blind spots. With a smartphone, the driver can control Armadillo-T and enable remote folding control. The car has a maximum speed of 60 km/h, and with a ten-minute fast charge, it can run up to 100 km. Professor Suh explained that the concept of Armadillo-T was originally initiated in 2011 as he focused his research interest on the sub-A segment of personal mobility vehicles (PMVs), which are smaller and lighter than the current compact cars, as a new personalized transport mode. “In coming years, we will see more mega-size cities established and face more serious environmental problems. Throughout the world, the aging population is rapidly growing as well. To cope with climate, energy, and limited petroleum resources, we really need to think outside the box, once again, to find more convenient and eco-friendly transportation, just as the Ford Model T did in the early 1920s. “A further level of R&D, technical standards, and regulatory reviews are required to have these types of micro vehicles or PMVs on the market through test-bed evaluations, but we believe that Armadillo-T is an icon toward the future transport system with technology innovation.” u www.asiamanufacturingnewstoday.com

ASIA MANUFACTURING NEWS • OCTOBER 2013

advanced manufacturing

Joint labs geared towards high value manufacturing SINGAPORE:

he Singapore Institute of Manufacturing Technology (SIMTech), a research institute of the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), and the National University of Singapore (NUS) Faculty of Engineering is launching two joint research labs in precision motion systems and industrial robotics.

This collaboration brings together the local research community to build capabilities and develop technologies to boost productivity and gear up for high value manufacturing in the medtech, aerospace, marine & offshore and precision engineering clusters. The Joint Labs are launched in conjunction with a new A*STAR Industrial Robotics Research programme. This programme brings together researchers from SIMTech, Institute for Infocomm Research (I2R), NUS, Nanyang Technological University (NTU), and other local and overseas universities and research institutes for multi-disciplinary collaboration. The programme builds on existing robotics capabilities across the local research community, and aims to advance the performance and capability of robotic platforms for industry adoption to improve productivity. The manufacturing industry is a significant pillar of the Singapore economy and contributes close to a quarter of its GDP . In recent years, the industry is facing problems such as increasing labour costs, lack of skilled labour and low productivity. The Joint Labs will develop technologies and capabilities to improve workforce productivity in the medtech, aerospace, marine www.asiamanufacturingnewstoday.com

& offshore and the precision engineering clusters where automation is currently lower compared to automotive and semiconductor manufacturing. The Joint Labs aim to boost automation in such industry clusters, by enhancing the capability, performance, and intelligence of precision machines and robotic systems to allow for higher throughput, higher accuracy, and greater human-machine cooperation on unstructured manufacturing shop-floors. In addition to delivering cuttingedge technologies, the Joint Labs will serve as platforms to nurture R&D manpower for the industry, transforming them into centres of excellence in their respective technical areas to benefit more industry sectors. Several outcomes are expected from the research collaborations: • For industrial robotics, an easyto-use human-robot interface, with more than 50 per cent reduction in teaching and programming time compared to current robotic programming platforms, will be developed to propagate the application of robots in manufacturing. • For the aerospace industry, characterised by large work pieces, high precision and better surface finishing, the Joint Labs aim to develop a reconfigurable robot work cell for flexible redeployment. It is projected that the marine & offshore industry can benefit from more than 50 per cent productivity improvement in robotic welding and weld inspection systems. • In the area of precision motion systems, the technologies for high-speed and high-precision linear motion stages, wide-format roll-to-roll machines, and multiaxis nanopositioning systems will be developed. These will help

local companies build high-end machines and complex equipment for high value manufacturing. Said Dr Lim Ser Yong, Executive Director of SIMTech, “Currently, manufacturing companies are seeking automation solutions to improve productivity. With the new Joint Labs, companies have an added avenue to leverage on the combined expertise of SIMTech and NUS to develop automation technologies and solutions to achieve higher productivity and value-add. SIMTech has contributed successfully to the automation of work processes in the aerospace and marine industry clusters through R&D partnerships with aerospace and marine conglomerates in the areas of robotic finishing, robotic aircraft wing inspection and robotic welding systems, respectively.” Professor Lim Seh Chun, Deputy Dean of NUS Faculty of Engineering said, “The Joint Labs aim to forge a pyramid of strength in the fundamentals and methodologies of current and future technologies through the synergy of upstream and downstream research evolving industrial trends. Given the Faculty’s expertise and strengths in precision motion and robotics, I am confident that our latest collaboration with SIMTech will fulfil a spectrum of industrial needs in the manufacturing sector.” u

ASIA MANUFACTURING NEWS • OCTOBER 2013

advanced manufacturing

Vietnam is Asia’s new tech manufacturing hub

t all started in 2010. Intel built its $1 billion chip manufacturing plant in Ho Chi Minh city, Vietnam. Vietnam’s electronic manufacturing dream had arrived. Gone would be the days of textile and food exporting. People were saying hello to a hi-tech Vietnam. But later in 2011 and early 2012, the dream was dwindling, as the economy was shot and there was an environment that didn’t play well for foreign investors, and that was turning people off. The latter half of 2012 saw a change, with electronics factories popping up everywhere as you can see in the list below (dollar figures indicate amount each company has committed to its Vietnamese factory):

• Bujeon Electronics (from South Korea), $10 million, October 2012

• Brother Vietnam (Japan), $25 million, December 2012

• Nidec Seimitsu (Japan), $40 million, July 2012

• SOC Vietnam (Japan), $62.5 million, November 2012

• JBL (USA), $100 million, June 2012

• Terumo BCT (USA, Japan), $94 million, May 2012

• Fuji Xerox (Japan), $120 million, November 2013

• Nokia (Finland), $300 million, early 2013

• Samsung Electronics (South Korea), $2.2 billion by 2020, November 2012

Intel’s Brian Krzanich makes a speech at the start of construction ceremony of the Assembly and Test Facility of Intel’s chipset products at Saigon High Tech Park, Ho Chi Minh city, South Vietnam, in 2007. / Le Quang Nhat, AP

Of course, the most significant newcomers in this list are Samsung and Nokia. Nokia is still the dominant player in the Vietnamese mobile market and Samsung contributes 10 percent of Vietnam’s exports. Besides Nokia, most of these electronics manufacturers are from South Korea and Japan. The main draw for companies from these two countries is the low labor wages. In some cases, Vietnamese workers can be paid as little as one-third of Chinese labor costs. Cheap labor is Vietnam’s new brand.

products and bigger companies like TOSY building robots for the global market, we’re on the cusp of a hardware-oriented Vietnam. It wouldn’t be a surprise if by 2016, a major Vietnamese hardware maker will build and operate its own factory. u

And so armed with this low-cost labor, Vietnam will soon become known for hi-tech manufacturing. Textiles are no longer Vietnam’s biggest export. With small companies like Setech Viet building small consumer domestic www.asiamanufacturingnewstoday.com

ASIA MANUFACTURING NEWS • OCTOBER 2013

advanced manufacturing

Nanomaterials sized up for strength

xperiments and numerical simulations show that miniaturised ultra-small platinum cylinders weaken when their constituents are reduced in number.

Miniaturising microscopic metallic objects while enhancing their strength is critical to developing high-performance devices that integrate transistor-like electronics with mechanical components. When these objects consist of small crystals, or grains, such as polycrystalline nanopillars, their mechanical behaviour is difficult to predict because the grains vary in size and orientation. Researchers from the California Institute of Technology, USA, and A*STAR Institute of High Performance Computing (IHPC), Singapore, have now determined how miniaturisation and intrinsic granular structure impact the deformation of ultra-small platinum cylinders. The team used a combined experimental and computational approach to overcome the knowledge gap hindering the production of reliable micro- and nana-electromechanical devices. Team member Zhaoxuan Wu from IHPC explains that this approach allowed them to reduce the size of the experimental samples to tens of nanometers. It also allowed them to perform large-scale atomic simulations on comparable nanostructures, which provided a means to directly link structure and mechanical properties. “This is rarely achievable in such studies,” he notes. The researchers first generated a template by depositing a polymer film on a gold-coated silicon surface and perforating it with nano- to micrometerwww.asiamanufacturingnewstoday.com

For the first time scientists succeeded in determining the exact spatial arrangement of each single atom in a nanoparticle. The yellow spheres are the graphically depicted atoms that form the silver nanoparticle, which is about two nanometres in diameter.

sized cylindrical holes. Next, they synthesised the metal nanostructures in these holes from a platinum precursor solution. Dissolving the template then produced nanopillars that displayed well-defined grains of similar sizes and grain boundaries, or interfaces. Compression experiments on the nanostructures showed that the thinnest nanopillars remained almost cylindrical under low pressure but weakened dramatically, and bent irreversibly, under high pressure. In contrast, wider nanopillars exhibited a smoother deformation and delayed failure. This ‘smaller is weaker’ trend is contrary to the fate observed for metallic single crystals: they become stronger with smaller diameters. Wu and co-workers also found that reducing the number of grains across a nanopillar’s diameter weakened the structure. In agreement with their

experimental results, the researchers’ numerical simulations revealed that the compressed nanopillars gradually underwent reversible and subsequent irreversible deformation (see image). Moreover, the simulations indicated the origin within the nanostructures of the irreversible deformation and dislocation motions. The nanopillars contain a high density of grain boundaries that promote the formation of dislocations. These dislocations, through which a specific type of deformation develops, propagate across an entire grain or from one grain to another inside the cores. Close to the nanopillar surface, the grains easily slide against each other to create atomsized steps, reducing material strength. “We are further examining the effects of microstructural flaws and oxidations on the mechanical behaviour of nanomaterials,” says Wu.u

technology

ASIA MANUFACTURING NEWS • OCTOBER 2013

New partnership for greater manufacturing precision and productivity

oint laboratories created by A*STAR and the National University of Singapore are to advance Singapore’s manufacturing industry through robotics and automation.

The manufacturing industry is a key component of Singapore’s economy, accounting for around a quarter of the country’s annual gross domestic product. While the industry has enjoyed steady growth over the years, it increasingly faces challenges — particularly in the form of rising labour costs, a shortage of skilled labour and slower outputs. To bolster the economy, the government of Singapore has acknowledged the need to promote higher productivity in the manufacturing industry and recognises that this must be achieved with a low dependency on manpower. In response, the A*STAR Singapore Institute of Manufacturing Technology (SIMTech) and the National University of Singapore (NUS)’s Faculty of Engineering have signed an agreement to establish two joint laboratories focusing on research into precision motion systems and industrial robotics. The main emphasis of the new laboratories will be to develop advanced robotics and automated solutions

to boost output and quality in the manufacturing sector — an aim that is aligned with A*STAR’s Industrial Robotics research program. “SIMTech focuses on industrial robotics for surface finishing, aircraft wing inspection and welding systems for the aerospace and marine industry,” says Lim Ser Yong, executive director of

SIMTech. “With the new labs, the manufacturing industry will have an additional avenue to leverage on the combined expertise of SIMTech and NUS to achieve higher productivity.” Located at NUS, the two laboratories will bring together a multi-disciplinary team that draws on expertise in the fields of mechanical, electrical and control engineering and computer science. Technologies will be developed for the medical technology, aerospace, marine and offshore and precision engineering industries, where

The A*STAR and NUS joint laboratories will focus on the development of industrial robotics, such as this robotic polishing system.

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ASIA MANUFACTURING NEWS • OCTOBER 2013

manufacturing

use of automation is not as athe widespread as in the automotive and semiconductor sectors. A major bottleneck in the adoption of robotics technology by local companies has always been the time-consuming nature of training staff in programming for robotics. To this end, the joint laboratories will develop an intuitive robot teaching method over the next three years. Using current platforms as a reference, the overall target is to reduce the time required to teach a worker how to program a robot by at least 50 per cent. To build on existing robotics capabilities in the marine and

www.asiamanufacturingnewstoday.com

offshore industries, novel robotic welding and weld inspection systems developed by the laboratories will be introduced, affording a two-fold increase in productivity and quality consistency. In the aerospace industry, where high precision in large-scale components is crucial, the teams will create a robotics system that can be quickly and easily reconfigured to perform various tasks.

downstream research will complement evolving industrial needs.”

“We hope to forge a pyramid of strength in the fundamentals and methodologies of current and future technologies,” says Lim Seh Chun, professor and deputy dean of the NUS Faculty of Engineering. “The synergy of upstream and

“Given the faculty’s expertise and strengths in precision motion and robotics, I am confident that this new collaboration with SIMTech will fulfill a spectrum of industrial needs in the manufacturing sector,” adds Lim. u

In the long term, SIMTech and NUS plan to establish the two laboratories as centres of excellence, bringing benefits to their targeted sectors not just in the form of cutting-edge technology, but also by providing education and training for a new crop of researchers.

manufacturing

ASIA MANUFACTURING NEWS • OCTOBER 2013

New features added to ProNest software

new software update to Hypertherm’s ProNest CAD/CAM software will make it even easier for companies that fabricate or cut metal to increase the cut quality, productivity, and profitability of their operations.

The update is available at no charge to customers with a current ProNest subscription. Current subscribers simply need to log-in to the ProNest online knowledge base, then select the “download” option. A few of the features found in the new update include: 1. Improvements to the software’s scribe text function so customers can add varied information to parts such as a heat number or customer ID. In addition, the new changes allow customers to easily select the font they would like to use on their parts. 2. Tab enhancements for people who cut with laser. The enhancements include lead out on tabs, the ability set a maximum size for tabbed profiles, and to lock undertravel on start point “tab” leads.

ProNest has been the industry’s leading nesting software for two decades, offering best-in-class performance and reliability with a straight-forward, easyto-use design. ProNest is also a component of Hypertherm’s Built for Business™ Integrated Cutting Solutions, providing support for True Hole™, True Bevel™ and Rapid Part™ technologies. Hypertherm designs and manufactures advanced cutting products for use in a variety of industries such as shipbuilding, manufacturing, and automotive repair. Its product line includes

handheld and mechanised plasma systems and consumables, as well as fiber laser and waterjet products, in addition to CNC motion and height controls and CAM cutting software. Hypertherm systems are trusted for performance and reliability that result in increased productivity and profitability for hundreds of thousands of businesses. The New Hampshire based company’s reputation for cutting innovation dates back more than 40 years, to 1968, with Hypertherm’s invention of water injection plasma cutting. The associate owned company, consistently named one of the best places to work in America, has more than 1,300 associates along with operations and partner representation worldwide.u

3. A new Customer Experience Improvement Program. This new program collects information about people are using ProNest in an effort to identify which ProNest features to improve. “Our culture at Hypertherm is to continuously improve,” explains Derek Weston, the product manager for Hypertherm CAM. “The people using ProNest software day in and day out are a great source of ideas and we work hard to listen to our customers and make improvements they will find valuable.”

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ASIA MANUFACTURING NEWS • OCTOBER 2013

energy

Tofu-like crystalline catalysts for producing clean energy

rofessor Jian-Ren Shen of Okayama University is recognised for his pioneering research on clarifying the fundamental reaction mechanism that governs photosynthetic water splitting, a process with fundamental importance in understanding how oxygenic photosynthetic organisms, such as plants, use energy from sunlight, water, and CO2 to survive.

“I first started research on photosynthetic proteins in the beginning of my doctorate project,” says Shen. “Our findings published in 2011 were based on x-ray diffraction experiments of large, high quality single crystal of so-called ‘photosystem II’ (PS II) at Japan’s SPring-8 synchrotron radiation facility at Harima. The ability to produce large sized, single crystals of PS II, an extremely large membraneprotein complex, was critical for determining the crystalline structure of this protein complex to a resolution of 1.9 Angstroms. These results are the culmination of 20 years of my life spent on the development and improvement of the process to produce such large crystals.” Professor Shen’s initial research on photosynthesis was focused

on clarifying the effects of air pollution on plants. The objectives of this research necessitated clarification of the fundamental mechanism underlying photosynthesis, which in turn required the production of a high quality crystal of PS II. “After many years of exhaustive experiments and uncountable failures, we eventually succeeded in producing large, ‘tofu-like’ single crystals of PS II with dimensions of 0.7 x 0.4 x 0.1 mm,” explains Shen. “This was a major breakthrough that led to the ultra-high resolution analysis of PS II.” Recent reports on the crystallographic analysis of PS II can be traced back to the early 2000s but the results yielded only ‘fuzzy’ images because of imperfections in the samples.

The catalytic core for photosynthetic water-splitting www.asiamanufacturingnewstoday.com

Professor Jian-Ren Shen

In contrast the 2011 findings by Shen and colleagues yielded unprecedented images of the core of the PS II protein, showing the existence of cubic-core of four manganese atoms, five oxygen atoms, and a calcium atom, which constitutes the heart of plant life (Science 2011, 334, 1630). “This cubic structure of Mn4CaO5 acts as a catalyst for the water splitting reaction induced by sunlight,” explains Shen. “These results have many important practical applications including the possibility of synthesizing artificial catalyst to dissociate water into oxygen and hydrogen to produce electricity in fuel cells, for example.” Indeed there is increasing interests in ‘artificial photosynthesis’ for the production of energy. But Professor Shen says that his group will focus on basic research on the reaction mechanism of PS II. “Our next goal is to clarify the so-called ‘intermediate structure’ of PS II,” says Shen. “To do so we require even higher resolution x-ray diffraction experiments at both space and time levels. We are planning to use the SACLA X-ray Free Electron Laser (XFEL) facility in SPring-8 to achieve this. This will enable us to look at the movement of atoms during photosynthesis.” u

energy

ASIA MANUFACTURING NEWS • OCTOBER 2013

Valeo confident about Chinese market

PARIS, FRANCE:

aleo has officially inaugurated the Valeo Nanjing expansion plant in Yangtze Delta Region, Nanjing, one of China’s major automotive manufacturing bases. This inauguration marks a milestone in Valeo’s strategy of continuous development in Asia and consolidates its position as a global leader in transmission systems. Reducing CO2 emissions and boosting the Group’s presence in Asia and emerging countries are the two pillars of Valeo’s global strategy. The Nanjing plant extension is a further step to accompany the company’s growth in China, alongside their 22 existing plants, four new plants and two other extensions being built this year”. On top of current activity for clutches and torque converters, the Nanjing plant will also be the first site in the world for Valeo to produce double-clutch systems. In order to meet the increasing global demand for CO2 emission

reduction, auto suppliers are developing advanced transmission technologies.

extended (Foshan, Wuhan and Nanjing) and four other new ones are under construction.

Valeo double clutch system is able to improve energy efficiency during power transmission which leads to better fuel economy.

Valeo is an independent industrial Group fully focused on the design, production and sale of components, integrated systems and modules for the automotive industry, mainly for CO2 emissions reduction. Valeo ranks among the world’s top automotive suppliers.

In 2011, Valeo Nanjing was awarded by the Jiangning Environment Bureau “Green Company” certification for its outstanding environmental behavior. It has also been recognized by Shanghai GM for its excellent work in the Green Supply Chain Project. Valeo has received strong support from Nanjing Municipal People’s Government since its establishment.

With operations in 28 countries through its 123 plants, 20 research centers, 36 development centres and 12 distribution platforms, the Group employs 73,000 people.u

Valeo’s footprint in China can be traced back to 1994. In line with its “Becoming Chinese in China” philosophy, Valeo China has been playing an important role in the local market. Based on its know-how and rich experience, Valeo is gradually improving the production capacity in China. Today it includes 22 sites. In 2012, three new plants were opened (Guangzhou, Wuhu and Huadu). In 2013, three plants are being

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ASIA MANUFACTURING NEWS • OCTOBER 2013

food manufacturing

World class dairy plant unveiled in Vietnam

etra Pak has inaugurated the world’s most advanced liquid dairy plant in automation and integration in Vietnam with Vinamilk, the country’s number one dairy manufacturer.

Known as the Vietnam Milk Factory, this major new facility, which covers 20 hectares in Binh Duong Province with an investment of US$110 million and has an annual capacity of 400 million litres of milk in the first phase, features the industry’s most advanced technologies including: • 9 Tetra Pak® A3 / Speed Lines, • 8 Tetra Pak® A1 / Lines, • the complete iLineT XT solutions with 14 laser guided vehicles with IWMS, Intermediate Warehouse Management Software, and • the state-of-the-art Tetra PlantMaster Tsystem, which enables Vinamilk to have entire control of the plant from incoming raw materials to the processed, packaged and palletized products.

www.asiamanufacturingnewstoday.com

“The Vietnam Milk Factory is by far the most advanced plant in automation and integration that Tetra Pak has ever built,” said Bert Jan Post, Managing Director of Tetra Pak Vietnam. “And thanks to the Tetra PlantMasterT system, all of the individual machines are working together ‘as one’ to deliver optimal performance, with factory-wide integration ensuring high levels of efficiency and uncompromising food safety.” Commenting on the announcement, Madam Mai Kiu Liên, Vinamilk’s Chairwoman and General Director said, “Vinamilk’s mission is to provide world-class quality milk products at an affordable price. This new plant has laid solid foundation for Vinamilk to achieve our goals to become one of the world’s top

50 dairies with over $3billion revenues by 2017”. Vinamilk is the largest dairy manufacturer in Vietnam with 48.7% market share (Nielsen data) grown from a state-owned enterprise to a world-class public company with many strategic international investors. During the past 37 years in business, Vinamilk has set a mission to provide the most nutritional foods to Vietnamese people. To meet the market’s increasing demand, Vietnam has launched a wide variety of value added milk products. According to Kantar World Panel data released in May 2013, Vinamilk’s liquid milk is the country’s number one brand consumed by 94% of Vietnamese households. Below: Vinamilk, a dairy company based in Vietnam, has opened a new $110m liquid milk processing and packaging facility, Vietnam Milk Factory, in Binh Duong province.

developments

ASIA MANUFACTURING NEWS • OCTOBER 2013

Novel technology to produce gasoline

major scientific breakthrough in the development of renewable energy sources and other important chemicals. The research team succeeded in producing 580 mg of gasoline per litre of cultured broth by converting in vivo generated fatty acids. Daejeon, Republic of Korea: For many decades, we have been relying on fossil resources to produce liquid fuels such as gasoline, diesel, and many industrial and consumer chemicals for daily use. However, increasing strains on natural resources as well as environmental issues including global warming have triggered a strong interest in developing sustainable ways to obtain fuels and chemicals. Gasoline, the petroleum-derived product that is most widely used as a fuel for transportation, is a mixture of hydrocarbons, additives, and blending agents. The hydrocarbons, called alkanes, consist only of carbon and hydrogen atoms. Gasoline has a combination of straight-chain and branched-chain alkanes (hydrocarbons) consisted of 4-12 carbon atoms linked by direct carbon-carbon bonds. Previously, through metabolic engineering of Escherichia coli (E. coli), there have been a few research results on the production of long-chain alkanes, which consist of 13-17 carbon atoms, suitable for replacing diesel. However, there has been no report on the microbial production of short-chain alkanes, a possible substitute for gasoline. In the paper (entitled “Microbial Production of Short-chain

Alkanes”) published online in Nature on September 29, a Korean research team led by Distinguished Professor Sang Yup Lee of the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) reported, for the first time, the development of a novel strategy for microbial gasoline production through metabolic engineering of E. coli. The research team engineered the fatty acid metabolism to provide the fatty acid derivatives that are shorter than normal intracellular fatty acid metabolites, and introduced a novel synthetic pathway for the biosynthesis of short-chain alkanes. This allowed the development of platform E. coli strain capable of producing gasoline for the first time. Furthermore, this platform strain, if desired, can be modified to produce other products such as short-chain fatty esters and shortchain fatty alcohols. In this paper, the Korean researchers described detailed strategies for 1) screening of enzymes associated with the production of fatty acids, 2) engineering of enzymes and fatty acid biosynthetic pathways to concentrate carbon flux towards the short-chain fatty acid production, and 3) converting short-chain fatty acids to their corresponding alkanes (gasoline) by introducing a novel synthetic pathway and optimization of culture conditions. Furthermore, the research team showed the possibility of producing fatty esters and alcohols by introducing responsible enzymes into the same platform strain. Professor Sang Yup Lee said, “It is only the beginning of the work

Metabolic Engineering of Escherichia coli for the Production of Short-chain Alkanes (gasoline) from Renewable Biomass

towards sustainable production of gasoline. The titre is rather low due to the low metabolic flux towards the formation of short-chain fatty acids and their derivatives. “We are currently working on increasing the titre, yield and productivity of bio-gasoline. Nonetheless, we are pleased to report, for the first time, the production of gasoline through the metabolic engineering of E. coli, which we hope will serve as a basis for the metabolic engineering of microorganisms to produce fuels and chemicals from renewable resources.” This research was supported by the Advanced Biomass Research and Development Center of Korea (ABC-2010-0029799) through the Global Frontier Research Program of the Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning (MSIP) through the National Research Foundation (NRF), Republic of Korea. Systems metabolic engineering work was supported by the Technology Development Program to Solve Climate Changes on Systems Metabolic Engineering for Biorefineries (NRF-2012C1AAA001-2012M1A2A2026556) by MSIP through NRF. u www.asiamanufacturingnewstoday.com

ASIA MANUFACTURING NEWS • OCTOBER 2013

events

Electronica India 2013 successful

lectronica India 2013 and productronica India 2013 ended on a high-note with 11,589 trade visitors. Around 250 exhibitors, representing 525 companies, showed their products, solutions and services at the trade fairs from 4-6 September 2013.

Both exhibitors and visitors were extremely satisfied with the outcome of the show. The shows also featured a live SMT production line for the first time ever that produced a live mobile phone that remained the centre of attraction for the visitors. In parallel to the exhibitions, two conferences and one seminar took place. A total of 250 delegates attended them. The LEDMA conference focussed on LED technologies and was powered by eminent speakers from the LED industry. The second version of SMALED provided attendees with unique opportunity to examine, learn and debate business-critical manufacturing issues through industry discussion, technical collaboration and information sharing with international experts in the field. The seminar by ELCINA on Enabling a Competitive Eco-System for Electronics Manufacturing EMS and Automotive Electronics touched upon topics of automotive electronics and potential and reality of EMS. The conferences and seminar provided attendees with unique opportunities to network, learn and connect with key industry speakers and personalities. According to Mr.Bhupinder Singh, Deputy CEO, MMI India Pvt. Ltd. “It has been testing times for everyone weathering the current Indian economy. However, I am pleased to say that once again, the exhibitions have held its position as the meeting-point for the electronics industry across Asia. Our motto to provide a boost and www.asiamanufacturingnewstoday.com

keep the Industry on the move has been fulfilled. “There is a new opportunity which India offers to companies in the field of electronics system design and manufacturing. The government has a new set of policy initiatives which make India an attractive destination. The initial response from industry has been very encouraging, both from multinationals and Indian companies. “Events such as electronica India and productronica India provide a good platform for stakeholders to understand more about the new opportunities and weave their future plans to take advantage of the same” says Dr. Ajay Kumar, Joint Secretary Department of Electronics & Information Technology, Ministry of Communication & Information, Government of India. Major players like Kaynes, EMST, NMTronics India Pvt Ltd, iNETest Technologies (I) Pvt Ltd, Leaptech Corporation and Agilent Technologies showed the latest innovations the industry has to offer. With their participation they demonstrated India’s strength in ESDM and underlined India’s status as a growing electronics powerhouse with the industry set to touch a USD 400 billion demand by 2020. “Electronics manufacturing is a sunrise sector and the market will grow exponentially, however, manufacturers need to be cautious while entering into mass manufacturing, due to supply chain, inventory and cash flow Limitations.B2B business can only grow through segment specific

trade fairs and electronica India and productronica India have been able to contribute to the success of all stake holders in this business‚” said Mr.Sharath Bhat, Sr. Vice President, Kaynes Technology India Ltd. In their 14th year, the events have proven to be one of the best places for electronics professionals to exchange information and develop business opportunities in India. Electronics industry leaders from around the world and throughout the value chain met in India to gain expert insight into the technology trends and market movements shaping the ESDM industry. The trade fairs got immense support from various electronic associations like Electronic Industries Association of India (ELCINA), Consortium of Electronic Industries of Karnataka (CLIK), LED products Manufacturers Association, India (LEDMA), India Electronics and Semiconductor Association (IESA), Manufacturers Association for Information Technology (MAIT), Communication Multimedia and Infrastructure, Association of India (CMAI) and IPC. The next edition of electronica India and productronica India will take place from September 23-25, 2014 at BIEC, Bengaluru. u

ASIA MANUFACTURING NEWS • OCTOBER 2013

events

21st Indonesia Motor Show presents challenges JAKARTA, INDONESIA:

ach year, the Indonesia International Motor Show (IIMS) continues to establish itself at an international level. This year, occupying an exhibition area of 75,000 square meters, IIMS takes its place as the biggest exhibition not only in Indonesia but in South East Asia.

“Major players in the automotive industry are taking IIMS into account as can be seen from the growing number of participants each year, which in turn makes IIMS bigger and better,” said Johnny Darmawan, Chairman of IIMS 2013 Committee. He also added that visitor enthusiasm towards the auto show, with the latest technology of the country’s automotive industry, increases each year. Last year’s IIMS drew more than 368 thousand visitors, while this year the committee is targeting 380 thousand visitors to attend the 11day exhibition. IIMS is the place where fourwheel aficionados can meet and mix. IIMS also presents a variety of top-quality programs that engage visitors and pump their adrenaline. It is not surprising that some of IIMS flagship programs are regular features of the show, and have become major attractions for visitors. “We always try to present programs that involve the public in order to reward their loyalty and sense of belonging towards IIMS. IIMS not only belongs to the country’s automotive players, we want it to become a proud symbol of the Indonesian public as well,” said Johnny.

Building Commitment Each Year Behind the innovation presented at IIMS each year, one thing remains the same, its consistency to be the vanguard support of green policy. This year is no exception. Carrying the theme “Smart Vehicle Mobility”, IIMS

is consistently disseminating the importance of fuel efficiency by introducing transportation systems with efficiency standards that reduce fuel consumption and emissions. Besides introducing fuel-efficient and clean technologies through various automotive products displayed by participants of IIMS 2013, the auto show also applies the same green spirit in its supporting activities. This year’s annual Indonesia International Automotive Conference (IIAC) is an example of Gaikindo (the Association of Indonesian Automotive Industries), as organizer of the IIMS, contributing to the development of the national automotive industry. Entering its 8th year, the conference will have a session of “APEC-AD Workshop”, which is on the agenda of “The 19th APEC-Automotive Dialogue”, in discussing the development of the green car industry in the Asia Pacific region. Carrying the theme “Green Car Development Facilitation”, which mirrors the concerns of all stakeholders and automotive players in Asia Pacific, the conference will garner the attention of national automotive players as well as Asia Pacific players.

Adrenaline Rush On Gymkhana Track IIMS 2013 outdoor programs will definitely draw the attention of IIMS visitors, both regular visitors and auto-mania, as it will present programs with various levels of challenge throughout the 11-day exhibition. The Test Drive program, which

often becomes the prime target for visitors who want to test their dream cars before taking the final decision to purchase, will have new challenging tracks to test the car’s agility, handling, performance, and other abilities. One of the new challenges will be a zigzag course to enable potential buyers to feel the stability and roll of the vehicle. To further evaluate performance, test drives will be conducted in two areas, hurdles area and public streets that stretch for around 2 kilometres. In addition, the committee has prepared other exciting programs such as the Stunt Show, a high skill driving spectacular that always attract visitors’ attention and is scheduled for 3 shows per day in the first weekend of IIMS 2013. There is also the Russ Swift program, where stunt masters will demonstrate their daring ability to entertain visitors. The most challenging program of this year’s IIMS and also the first automotive competition of its kind to be held in IIMS is the “Gymkhana Race War”. It is a type of motorsport that combines speed and accuracy on the track. Unlike any other motorsport, Gymkhana blends drifting and slalom techniques on Gymkhana tracks in a form of 180 degree spins, 360 degree spins, figure 8s, and other advanced skill challenges. It will present 4 classes of competition determined by machine capacity and wheel-movement system. The “Gymkhana Race War” will surely captivate visitors witnessing the amazing skills of professional drivers. “Visitors and motorsport aficionados will enjoy live performances of skill, speed, expertise and accuracy of more than 60 racers during the event which will be held on 2728 September,” said Abiyoso Wietono, Manager of Automotive Division, Dyandra Promosindo.u www.asiamanufacturingnewstoday.com

ASIA MANUFACTURING NEWS • OCTOBER 2013

developments

FARO Edge ScanArm ES with enhanced technology

he new FARO Edge Laser Line Probe ES. Has the power of the new Laser Line Probe combined with the flexibility of the FaroArm to create the world’s smallest, lightest, and most affordable contact/non-contact portable measurement system, the FARO Edge ScanArm ES.

The ScanArm ES is the latest advancement in FARO’s Laser Line scanning sensors, featuring Enhanced Scanning Technology (EST). EST is the combination of multiple hardware and software improvements designed to boost performance by improving the ability to scan challenging surfaces. Materials with dark or reflective optical qualities can now be scanned with less effort and without the need for sprays or surface coatings. “Scanning is becoming a big part of the metrology world and the improved performance of the ScanArm ES minimizes the challenges of capturing data on surfaces with less than ideal optical qualities,” said Orlando Perez, FARO’s Director of Product

Management – FaroArm/ScanArm. New and improved filtering algorithms automatically adjust and optimize the scanning parameters for plastic, metal, or a variety of surface finishes and colors. The new HDR (High Dynamic Range) Mode of the ScanArm ES lets users scan materials with contrasting colors (i.e. black and white) simultaneously. “Our customers expect quality and innovation from our products and the new ScanArm ES delivers,” said Jay Freeland, President and CEO. The ScanArm ES is the ideal tool for product development, inspection, and quality control and offers capabilities such as

point cloud comparison with CAD, rapid prototyping, reverse engineering, and 3D modeling. Mr. Perez concluded, “The ScanArm ES packs a big punch with the smallest form factor on portable arms in the industry and at an excellent price u to performance value.”

Research network to enhance macroeconomic stability

he Southeast Asian Macroeconomic Network, which is expected to formally launch in 2014, is the first of its kind in the region. It will include participants from Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, and possibly Laos, Indonesia, Mongolia, and China’s Hunan Province. Canada’s North-South Institute is incubating a network of research organisations in southeast Asia to help improve their capacity to provide relevant macroeconomic policy advice. Many southeast Asian countries want to put in place new macroeconomic institutions www.asiamanufacturingnewstoday.com

to help make their economies more resilient to shocks and thus better able to sustain growth over the medium and long term. In addition, “Vietnam and Cambodia are moving into middle income status, so it’s becoming more challenging to maintain high growth rates,” says Dr. Rodney Schmidt, Vice President and Director of Research at the NorthSouth Institute. “It’s relatively easy to initiate a growth spurt when you start from a fairly low base. But when you get close to middle income status and have taken advantage of all the easy policy fixes, you start having more sectors and more actors, so economic growth can get stalled,” he explains.

Under this initiative, “we want to foster a dynamic research community in each country, which would include research think tanks, universities and recognised domestic experts. We would then bring in the stakeholders – policy makers associated with national assemblies or macroeconomic institutions like central banks, ministries of finance, and regulatory agencies,” says Dr. Schmidt. “Our goal is to encourage peer-reviewed and practical macroeconomic research, and then enable productive dialogues between those who are doing the research anduthose who are using it,” he adds.

ASIA MANUFACTURING NEWS • OCTOBER 2013

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ASIA MANUFACTURING NEWS • OCTOBER 2013

business news

China HSBC PMI falls to 11-month low

BEIJING:

ctivity in China’s vast manufacturing sector slowed to an 11-month low in July as new orders faltered and the job market darkened, a preliminary survey showed, suggesting the world’s second-largest economy is still losing momentum. The flash HSBC/Markit Purchasing Managers’ Index fell to 47.7 this month from June’s final reading of 48.2, marking a third straight month below the watershed 50 line which demarcates expansion of activities from contraction. It was the weakest level since August 2012. “The lower reading of the July HSBC Flash China Manufacturing PMI suggests a continuous slowdown in manufacturing sectors thanks to weaker new orders and faster destocking,” said Hongbin Qu, chief China economist of HSBC. “This adds more pressure on the labour market,” he said. A sub-index measuring employment slid to 47.3 in July, the weakest since March 2009. It stood at 47.6 in June and has been below 50 for four months in a row.

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The new orders sub-index fell to its lowest level in 11 months, and stayed below 50 for a third straight month. Output declined to 10-month low and remained in contraction for a second month. The HSBC/Markit Flash PMI is published about a week before the final reading, and is based on approximately 85-90 percent of total PMI survey responses each month. It is the earliest available indicator of monthly activity in the Chinese economy. “As Beijing has recently stressed securing the minimum level of growth required to ensure stable employment, the flash PMI reinforces the need to introduce additional fine-tuning measures to stabilise growth,” Qu said. Economists say the new government believes an annual growth rate of 7 percent is needed to create enough jobs to maintain

social stability, although the top leaders have never specified a figure. China’s economy grew 7.5 percent in the April-June period from a year earlier, the ninth quarter of slowdown in the past 10 quarters. China’s new leadership has said that it is prepared to tolerate lower growth and eschew stimulus in order to push a restructuring of the economy to wean it off a dependence on exports for growth and towards consumption. It is fine-tuning policy, however, in response to the growth slowdown, and last week scrapped the floor on bank lending rates to help lower financial costs for companies. President Xi Jinping said that the key to dealing with various challenges confronting the economy was to deepen reforms in all aspects. With no big stimulus measures in sight, economists in the latest Reuters poll predicted China’s economy would grow 7.5 percent in 2013, u hitting the government’s target.

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ASIA MANUFACTURING NEWS • OCTOBER 2013

DHL observes changes in Africa’s technology market

This is according to Charles Brewer, Managing Director for DHL Express Sub-Saharan Africa who says that a recent DHL global technology conference revealed these trends around the changing dynamics of the technology market. He says that due to the increased competition within the sector, suppliers need to adapt and improve products and services in order to retain and grow market share. “This presents an opportunity for suppliers to be innovative and provide consumers with the best possible products, services and prices. “Both of these trends also promise to amplify the role of logistics as a competitive differentiator in the technology industry, notably as global companies are looking for strong and established partners to support and simplify access to the African market.” Brewer says that within Africa, although there has been a significant rise in demand for electronic consumer products, the continent is still in need of increased investment from international technology companies, in order to become more than just an end-user for technology products. He says that more than any other industry, the technology sector is driven by constant innovation, short product cycles and new sales channels. “From a

logistics perspective this is a great challenge, but it also provides forward-thinking brands with an opportunity.” Brewer says that by setting up shop in Africa, these brands are able to service this growing market and spend significantly less on logistics costs as they are based in much closer proximity to their customers. According to a recent report by Deloitte entitled The Rise and Rise of the African Middle Class, the continent has a disproportionately young population with 62% of the population in Africa under 25 years. “This is positive from an outside investment perspective, as it effectively means that there is a guaranteed customer base for years to come when compared to a territory such as Europe, which has a shrinking population.” The Deloitte report also forecasts that if the African middle class continues on its current growth trajectory Africa’s middle class will grow to 1.1 billion (42% of the continent’s population) by 2060. The trend of mobile devices preferred over PCs as the access tool for the internet was also highlighted at the conference. Florence Noblot, DHL’s Technology Sector Head for Europe, Middle East and Africa, estimates that 60% of all IT hardware growth will come from tablets and smartphones this year. “Both devices also elevate a trend

Charles Brewer

towards high innovation cycles, which demands logistics providers to improve time to market while supporting competitive price positioning. “This trend is also clear in Africa, and according to the GSMA, Africa is now the world’s second largest mobile market by connections after Asia and the fastest growing mobile market in the world.” He says that an overall trend towards simplified and lighter products, combined with price pressure, is challenging manufacturers, their suppliers, and sometimes even their competitors to develop collaborative solutions that improve the cost efficiency of the technology supply chain. “Due to the expected economic growth, technology suppliers have the ideal opportunity to penetrate the African market, but should have experienced partners who are able to provide insight and have experience operating on u the continent,” concludes Noblot. www.asiamanufacturingnewstoday.com

ASIA MANUFACTURING NEWS • OCTOBER 2013

business news

NUM expands Asian presence

UM has opened a subsidiary for applications support, sales and after-sales service in Seoul, South Korea, to serve the country’s growing market for CNC machine tools.

This is the fourth Asian office for the CNC vendor, and results directly from the company’s core business strategy of placing skilled applications engineering resources at the disposal of customers to help them develop marketwinning machine solutions. South Korea is the third largest economy in Asia, and is highly export-driven. The country has a diverse manufacturing base of indigenous, local and international companies, with a particularly strong presence in the electronics, semiconductor, automotive, shipbuilding, machine tools and luxury products markets, as well as a flourishing financial services sector. The high number of machine builders and machine tool OEMs in South Korea – the country is close to becoming the fourth largest producer, and user, of machine tools in the world – demonstrates the long term stability and sustainability of the CNC market in this part of Asia. Until now, NUM has supported its customers in the region from its facilities in Switzerland and Taiwan. With its growing number of Korean customers, NUM decided to invest directly in the local infrastructure to ensure that it continues to provide professional and responsive services. As Robert von Arx, NUM’s Director of Business Development, explains, “South Korea’s amazing manufacturing success is continually creating opportunities for its machine www.asiamanufacturingnewstoday.com

builders, many of which are small to medium size companies with limited engineering resources. However, bigger sized enterprises often face similar issues. Our new subsidiary can support such companies, enabling them to seize their chances. We will help them to tailor CNC systems to suit their particular applications, to create unique machinery solutions, and get to market more rapidly.” Machine tools currently manufactured in South Korea cover a wide range of applications, including laser cutting, drilling, grinding, gear hobbing, etc., which are all areas where NUM has expert knowledge. Many of these machine tools are designed for highly specialised purposes, and are characterised by their need for complex and extensively customised control systems – making CNC the obvious firstchoice for designers. However, due to limited development time, it is often only with the

experienced help of companies such as NUM that they can progress a design from concept through to production. NUM’s new South Korean applications support, sales and after-sales service facility is a 100 percent NUM owned subsidiary. This has significant advantages for customers, as Robert von Arx points out, “As well as having representatives throughout the Asia-Pacific region, NUM also operates four wholly-owned subsidiaries – two in mainland China, one in Taiwan and now one in South Korea. Each of these subsidiaries can provide dedicated applications engineering support and is capable of developing customised software and hardware. As a result, we expect our South Korean customers to benefit considerably. We plan to highlight some of these advantages on our booth at next year’s SIMTOS exhibition in Seoul – one of the world’s leading u manufacturing technology shows.”

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ASIA MANUFACTURING NEWS • OCTOBER 2013

Janrain opens new Asia Pacific office

PORTLAND, OREGON:

anrain, a leading provider of user management solutions to help improve customer acquisition and intelligence, is opening their first Asia Pacific office located in Singapore. The new office is Janrain’s third international expansion in the past year, following the opening of a new datacenter in Australia and office in the U.K.

Karn Kongsawat has been appointed Janrain’s Asia Pacific regional director. Kongsawat has spent the last 15 years helping to build start-up technology companies in the U.S. and across Asia with companies such as Software.com (now Openwave) and Sendmail, Inc. Most recently, he managed channel sales and product and business development for TrustSphere, a Singapore-based email technology company. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in electrical engineering from the University of California at Santa Barbara. “Karn’s professional background and personal fascination with social media empowers him to help companies to better understand and engage in meaningful 1:1 interaction with online consumers,” said Larry Drebes, CEO of Janrain. “I’m excited to offer customers in the Asia Pacific market greater access to our proven solutions to transform interactions with their online consumers.” Janrain’s User Management Platform (JUMP) provides solutions to leading brands including News International, Samsung, and Dr. Pepper Snapple Group that enable them to create personalized campaigns and engaging experiences for their users on the social web. By extending its global presence to better serve the Asia Pacific market, Janrain will be able to better deliver industryleading enterprise scalability and performance to companies in the region for their user management solutions.

The Janrain User Management Platform (JUMP) helps organisations succeed on the social web with leading technology that leverages the popularity of social networks and

identities for new user acquisition, engagement, and enhanced customer intelligence. Our solutions, including social login, social sharing, social profile data collection and storage, access to the social graph, and digital strategy services, improve the effectiveness of online marketing initiatives for leading brands like Fox, Universal Music Group, Whole Foods, Mattel, Purina, u Samsung, Macy’s and Dr Pepper.

Janrain CEO Larry Drebes (left) talks with software engineer Andre Pinter at the Portland company’s downtown offices. Janrain, which facilitates social networking logins across websites, has landed $15.5 million in venture backing. It’s among the biggest round in years for an Oregon software company.

Asia Manufacturing News Keeping Asia and the World in touch with the Latest Technology and Manufacturing Developments

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ASIA MANUFACTURING NEWS • OCTOBER 2013

business news

Transmission developer

ew Zealand transmission developer Gyro Technologies Ltd. has received proposals from centres of excellence in the USA and the UK to develop its unique wind power transmission system. Gyroscopic Variable Transmission (GVT), the brainchild of New Zealander Mr Jega Jegatheeson is designed to make wind and wave power more efficient and cost effective. GVT recently featured in a new book, “Innovation in Wind Turbine Design”, by Glasgowbased wind expert Peter Jamieson who described it as “being on the leading edge of wind power technology”. Agreements have been signed with Narec Capital in the UK and a US consortium of Texas Tech University Department of Mechanical Engineering and renewable energy development company Group NIRE. GTL has issued new shares to raise $500k for local development work, support for the US and UK initiatives and to maintain their patents. “We are delighted to announce our joint venture with Gyro Technologies Ltd on the commercialisation of their gyroscopic variable transmission (GVT) concept.” said Jerry Biggs, CEO of Narec Capital. “As we move further towards a low carbon economy, the requirement for improvements in the reliability and efficiency of wind turbines is paramount in order that generating costs can become comparable to that of fossil fuels”. ”Narec Capital considers many technologies that may help to improve the efficiency of wind turbines but GVT stood out as a potentially ground breaking

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Tong Herewini Managing Director of TP Engineering with the Gyro version of GVT. T P Engineering have helped with some of the engineering design work and would have been contenders to continue development of the technology here in New Zealand if the company had en able to get the support here.

concept. Replacing the gearbox of conventional wind turbine systems with GVT should help us to achieve better reliability, flexibility in operating terrain and improvements in overall turbine efficiency. Our goal is now to take this from conceptual design to proof of concept, utilising our in house engineering expertise and commercial incubation process”. Professor Siva Parameswaran of Texas University adds, “It is becoming evident that the gear system in a wind turbine fails within 10 years (instead of the ideal 20 year life of the turbine) and replacement and associated downtime is very costly. Initial studies performed at the CFD laboratory at Texas Tech University confirm that GVT is a promising technology to keep the Wind Turbine transmission system running for 20 years. Designing a GVT system for a 660 kW Wind turbine is underway at

the Department of Mechanical Engineering. Group NIRE and CFD Laboratory are actively involved in seeking funding from potential investors. In addition to Group NIRE, the CEO of NextraTEC, Dr. Carsten Westergaard (Former Director of Global Technology at Vestas) is interested in applying for Phase I of Small business Technology Transfer (STRR) funding with Computational Fluid Dynamis (CFD) Laboratory to study the market potential of GVT technology. “We are very positive about our link with Gyro Technologies as we think GVT could be the ideal way to transmit power from a wind turbine to the generator”, said Professor Parameswaran Mr Jegatheeson, previously an engineer with the former Electricity Corporation of New Zealand, has worked for over 15

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ASIA MANUFACTURING NEWS • OCTOBER 2013

attracts overseas interest years to solve the problems faced by the wind power industry of gearboxes breaking as a result of the massive wind gust forces they are subjected to. “It’s widely recognised in the industry that the wind turbine gearboxes cannot stand up to the incessant forces over time and many fail within as little as five to seven years. The costs of repairs and also downtime are very significant and alternatives such as direct drive create other expensive problems,” says Mr Jegatheeson. “Unlike traditional wind turbine gearboxes around the world, GVT technology doesn’t rely on gears and expensive electronics. It instead uses gyroscopic reaction forces to transfer the power from the blades to the generator at variable speed ratio with less stress on the turbine.

This will significantly reduce costs – possibly as much as 50% compared to existing systems.” “Wind power is growing at a phenomenal rate worldwide and it would be nice if a New Zealand invention could be powering wind turbines of the future.”

of developing such challenging technologies in a small u country,” says Mr Jegatheeson.

“We are currently raising funds to support the development of GVT at National Energy Centre in U.K. and Texas University in U.S. New shares have been issued towards this end. In the past we were looking to build a large GVT transmission and test it in a full size working wind turbine.” “A major New Zealand power company offered us a turbine for the trial, but the problem, as always, was funding. Unable to find a suitable partner and support in New Zealand we have had to look overseas. That’s the reality

The new book “Innovation in Wind Turbine Design” by renowned wind power consultant Peter Jamieson of Garrad has a whole chapter devoted to GVT.

Gyro Technologies Technical Director M. Jegatheeson and advisor Warren Snow with a desk top model of the GVT system. www.asiamanufacturingnewstoday.com

ASIA MANUFACTURING NEWS • OCTOBER 2013

analysis

Manufacturing moving

umans are terrible at gauging speed. Jets never seem to be going 550 mph in the sky and 20 miles per hour in a school zone. Sometimes this seems slower than walking. But, the speed of business in definitely accelerating and the implication of this on manufacturers is telling. Several manufacturer profiles have emerged in recent years. Some still yearn to run their firms in nostalgic, time-tested ways. Some have never snapped back from the 2008 recession and restricted credit days. Some, though, are possessing new forward looking views, processes and technologies that will enable them to match the speed of change in business and eclipse competitors. Look how quickly certain products have been embraced in the consumer world. The Apple iPod went from a simple product announcement to a runaway success in a matter of months. And, just as quickly, some products, like the Sony Walkman, can disappear almost overnight. Change, therefore is not linear and we do our businesses and employers no favours by pretending that it is. For many manufacturers, especially long-lived manufacturers, change has been something to assimilate on their own schedule for decades. If typical, your company possessed a straight line ability to change and adapt that was far in excess of the changes occurring within your business and competitive environment. You probably maintained this ability for decades and it represented a great opportunity for your company. Recently, you may have begun to notice that the industry, your competitors, customers and or suppliers are changing and demanding changes that are faster than your firm has an ability to manage. www.asiamanufacturingnewstoday.com

This is becoming a growing problem and it won’t get any easier. For example, look at the growth in patent issuances over the last few decades. Patent grants act as a good proxy for understanding the overall growth and innovation within an economy. What’s even more important is to understand what is facilitating the growth in patents and innovation. It is precisely the same kinds of new tools and capabilities found in more modern manufacturers and suppliers. Your firm and its peers can now take advantage of low-cost CAD/CAM, 3-D printing and other technologies which dramatically reduce time to design and time-to-market. Something has changed in the past few years. Technology has made collaboration, telecommunications, shipping and other things faster, more efficient and more cost-effective. The barriers to competition have fallen and competition has grown keener. Some manufacturers may lack of awareness of the changes going on in the environment or lack the ability to make the requisite changes in speed and flexibility within their companies to remain relevant. The best manufacturers today are finding ways to change at the speed of business. But what are those requirements? The Nostalgic manufacturer is dated. The plant, equipment, IT, business practices and possibly

their management are stuck in some sort of time warp. The Functional manufacturer has made some adaptations over time. Rarely is this company the first to adopt a new technique, tooling or technology. Rather, this company possesses many of the very same commodity capabilities of its competitors. Its survival is often due to good luck and a handful of just-in-time life-saving changes. The manufacturer of the Last Decade was materially relevant a few years ago. Their technology, manufacturing practices, etc. served them well for several years but they have fallen behind their peers in adapting to change. The Hunker Down manufacturer has been beaten down by the economic recession that began in 2008. Their credit lines have been constrained and their investments have been almost nonexistent. Cost-cutting has driven every decision within the company. Tensions between owners, management and workers are strained. Going forward doesn’t happen in this company as the hunker down mentality has created a no growth culture of stifling dimensions. The Forward Focused manufacturer does not live exclusively in the here and now. They are focusing their plans, market strategies and more on events they believe will transpire within the next one to five years. They are big consumers of information and use it in ways competitors have yet to understand. These are cosmopolitan firms that are very aware of macro economic, political, commodity, consumer, and other factors that will influence markets and drive growth for their firm.

ASIA MANUFACTURING NEWS â&#x20AC;˘ OCTOBER 2013

analysis

at the speed of business The World of Manufacturing is Evolving at an Accelerating Rate Fifteen to twenty years ago, most manufacturers had disparate, often divisional business systems. Multiple MRP software packages were connected to different accounting solutions while significant amounts of work were performed on PCs or paper-based systems. The most sophisticated businessto-business systems involved EDI (electronic data interchange). Collaboration from a businessto- business perspective was expensive and slow given the state of the telecommunications industry at that time. Simply put, operations had to be efficient and effective at the local level and anything beyond that was often cost prohibitive to coordinate. Improvements in logistics, cargo container technology, lower-cost telecommunications and more ubiquitous communications globally started to lay the groundwork for a more interconnected business world. Simultaneous with these changes, the economies of the BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India and China) nations began to soar as did the economies in many Eastern European, African and other nations. This combination of factors created both more markets for manufactured goods, but also made numerous new suppliers available to serve a greater global customer base. This new generation of manufacturing was further fuelled by more open trade agreements (e.g., NAFTA), cross-border manufacturing opportunities and other opportunities frequently begun as a result of one simple question: Whatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s your China price?

Another round of changes is beginning to impact the manufacturing world. Technologies such as CAD/ CAM are now cost-effective for even the smallest companies. Three-dimensional printers and prototyping devices continue to increase in availability and decrease in cost. Manufacturers are learning to deal with new kinds of problems related to the ownership and/or theft of intellectual property. New kinds of super tier suppliers are emerging that provide incredible global supply chain and manufacturing capabilities. Even basic ERP software has begun to change and can now be found in a variety of different on premise and cloud options. Compliance costs continue to add costs and affect competitiveness. And, supply chain uncertainties driven by natural disasters (e.g., volcanoes, earthquakes, pandemics and fires), rail and ship delays, etc. are pointing out painfully weak areas in too many companies and their overextended supply chains.

Guidance The typical manufacturing plant can be depreciated over 25-30 years. Accounting rules that were

devised many, many decades ago during the Industrial Age assumed that a large physical asset like a manufacturing plant would operate continuously for that time. Nowadays, it is hard to imagine any product or product line lasting even a fraction of this time. In essence, the speed with which manufacturing companies must launch, make products, and retool themselves once again has shrunken dramatically. The processes, strategies, technologies and more that manufacturers use to run their businesses must also change at this newer, more dynamic speed of business. Continuous change and adaptation must become a core business capability for any manufacturer to survive. The gap between successful and unsuccessful manufacturers will only continue to widen. Businesses that have prided themselves in maintaining constant from decade to decade will come to realise that this previous strength is becoming a critical weakness of the organization. The best manufacturers will possess exceptional competencies in reinvention, retraining, global awareness market savvyuand information expansion. www.asiamanufacturingnewstoday.com

ASIA MANUFACTURING NEWS â&#x20AC;˘ OCTOBER 2013

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