Developments

There are regular reports of incidents where vehicles have crashed into construction zones, bus stops, pavement cafes and retail shop windows. Protecting lives from potential injury or death is paramount for all authorities so after each of these incidents, there is an investigation to assess whether or not it could have been prevented.  One way to prevent out of control vehicles crashing into work zones or pedestrian areas is to erect a barrier which affords protection but does not restrict everyday activities on, or adjacent to, a road. Some common types of barrier, such as precast concrete sections or water-filled plastic units, provide inadequate protection and in some cases increase damage and injury to drivers and pedestrians.  The Omni Stop Bollard is an energy absorbing bollard that is the only one of its type in Australia. It has been extensively crash-tested with impacts up to 60 kilometres per hour and complies with the requirements of AS/NZS3845:1999 Table 5.3.3(3). The Omni Stop Bollard permits access for workers to a construction zone or pedestrians to a shopping precinct while at the same time preventing vehicle penetration. Designed, assembled and tested in Australia, the Omni Stop Bollard is available from Saferoads. Based in West Gippsland, Victoria, Saferoads has been servicing State government departments, local councils and road construction companies with a broad range of products designed to direct, protect, inform and illuminate all road users since 1992. PICTURE: Vehicle travelling at 60 Km per hour safely stopped with minimal deflection of the Omni Stop Bollard.  The carbon steel bollard of the Omni Stop is supported by a unique energy absorbing cartridge that is encased in a concrete footing. When the bollard is impacted, the cartridge deforms and absorbs the kinetic energy of the vehicle. When a 1600 kilogram car at 60 kilometres per hour […]

The third industrial revolution may soon be upon us. Project Ara has received a ton of media attention over the last several months, as Google sets out to change the way smart phones are made and sold. The bigger story within the story is the fact that 3D Systems will be using an entirely new mass manufacturing system, which will rely almost solely on 3D printing. 3D Systems may be about to single-handedly revolutionise the manufacturing industry, by integrating a new system, capable of mass production, via additive manufacturing. We all know that traditional 3D printers, even the large scale quarter million dollar machines, are painstakingly slow. Up until now, unless you are mass producing only a few hundred small products, 3D printers are better left for rapid prototyping. There are tremendous benefits to 3D printing, mainly the fact that each print a machine makes can be totally different than its last. All the while, there is no need to change out equipment, teach production line employees new techniques, or reprogram the movements of robotic arms. If manufacturers could just overcome the problem of speed, the entire industry would be turned upside down. This is where 3D Systems is about to step up to the plate. They are working on a highly sophisticated, mass manufacturing system, which relies on high speed 3D printers. Such a system is so productive that it will be used in the manufacturing of millions or even billions of Google Project Ara smartphone modules. So how has 3D systems been able to overcome the downfalls of additive manufacturing? According to the company, their latest technique removes the “reciprocating platform,” used by most 3D printers today. Current 3D printers work in a way which allows the build platform and print head to move in tandem.  Because of […]

PICTURE: Vehicle travelling at 60 Km per hour safely stopped with minimal deflection of the Omni Stop Bollard. There are regular reports across Australia of incidents where vehicles have crashed into construction zones, bus stops, pavement cafes and retail shop windows. Protecting lives from potential injury or death is paramount for all authorities so after each of these incidents, there is an investigation to assess whether or not it could have been prevented. One way to prevent out of control vehicles crashing into work zones or pedestrian areas is to erect a barrier which affords protection but does not restrict everyday activities on, or adjacent to, a road. Some common types of barrier, such as precast concrete sections or water-filled plastic units, provide inadequate protection and in some cases increase damage and injury to drivers and pedestrians. The Omni Stop Bollard is an energy absorbing bollard that is the only one of its type in Australia. It has been extensively crash-tested with impacts up to 60 kilometres per hour and complies with the requirements of AS/NZS3845:1999 Table 5.3.3(3). The Omni Stop Bollard permits access for workers to a construction zone or pedestrians to a shopping precinct while at the same time preventing vehicle penetration.  Designed, assembled and tested in Australia, the Omni Stop Bollard is available from Saferoads. Based in West Gippsland, Victoria, Saferoads has been servicing State government departments, local councils and road construction companies with a broad range of products designed to direct, protect, inform and illuminate all road users since 1992. The carbon steel bollard of the Omni Stop is supported by a unique energy absorbing cartridge that is encased in a concrete footing. When the bollard is impacted, the cartridge deforms and absorbs the kinetic energy of the vehicle. When a 1600 kilogram car at 60 […]

In the picture: The production team and the machine platen. Krauss Maffei of Munich Germany have supplied BMW’s production plant at Leipzig, Germany with two double swivel plate Injection Moulding machines, complete with industrial robots that produce multi material plastics components for the New BMW i3 which went into production in September 2013. The MX 4000-17200/12000/750WL machines are impressive with dimensions of 24m Long x 9M wide x 7m High. They have a clamping force of 4000 tonnes and are producing the thermoplastic outer shell and combined substructure of the BMW i3. The BMW i3 is a five door urban electric car and is BMW’s first zero emissions mass produced vehicle that features carbon-fibre reinforced plastic that improves the vehicles energy consumption. Using the ‘joining in injection moulding’ process, the outer door shell and its substructure are injected in a single pass and are then joined when the two swivel plates turn and are bonded with a third plastic component. The combined work processes are said to ensure very high dimensional accuracy of the parts. The Injection Moulders were specifically developed for the project and produce the sidewall panels, rear bumper and hoods for the new generation BMW i3’s.

IC3D, a leading provider of hardware and software solutions for the Manufacturing, Architectural and Engineering industries, has launched IC3D Steel – the first SolidWorks-based application designed for modelling and detailing steel constructions. Distributed nationally in Australia and New Zealand by Intercad – the largest SolidWorks distributor in the region Ð IC3D Steel builds on a longstanding and collaborative partnership with Intercad to find a dedicated SolidWorks solution that saves time and cost in the design, development and manufacture of steel fabrications. IC3D Steel manages the key phases of the steel construction process, from the creation of three-dimensional models to the compilation of the Bill of Materials and drawings of the steel constructions. The application integrates seamlessly with SolidWorks and includes an SQL database that permits advanced and coherent project management in the SolidWorks environment. Mike Gilliland, IC3D Software and Consulting Services Manager, says existing steel construction design solutions often compromise the industry-standard SolidWorks approach. “Other modelling applications enforce a rigid workflow on the steel fabrication designer, requiring participants to install identical packages to allow teams to collaborate effectively,” says Gilliland. “IC3D Steel eliminates these restrictions. Users can create and manage information relating to the key phases of the steel construction process, from modelling to design and assembly. “Because of its native integration with the 3D SolidWorks environment and SolidWorks file format, IC3D Steel also ensures interoperability between all SolidWorks users involved in the construction process, regardless of whether or not they all have IC3D Steel installed. We have been careful to develop IC3D Steel in collaboration with a representative group of 20 SolidWorks users, which is how we can be so confident that it will meet the needs of the ANZ market.” Other benefits include support for all common ANZ profiles and standard joints, saving hours of design time for […]

 Malaysia’s geothermal energy industry in Tawau is to be developed in a partnership with the University of Auckland’s world renowned Institute for Earth Sciences and Engineering. Dr Andy Shenk, chief executive of Auckland UniServices, inked a memorandum of understanding with Tawau Green Energy (TGE) in Auckland early this month. It covers the establishment and support for a Geothermal Resource Centre (GRC) being set up by TGE in Tawau and supported by Malaysia’s Federal Government and the Sabah State Government. Dr Shenk says Tawau is an area that will benefit from a sustainable power source. The university’s Institute was approached by TGE on the back of its work not only in neighbouring Indonesia, but also many places around the ‘Ring of Fire’ in the Pacific. Staff from the University of Auckland will assist the Geothermal Resource Centre to provide specialist training in all aspects of geothermal energy including applied geosciences, steamfield design, power plant technology, power plant engineering and design, operations and maintenance, environmental compliance. TGE’s managing director Ramzi Raad says the centre will also run seminars, short courses and other training programmes for Malaysian engineers and scientists keen to involve themselves in this new field of renewable energy. It will also encourage local and foreign universities to collaborate on joint-research activities on Malaysia’s Apas Kiri geothermal field. TGE is developing Malaysia’s first geothermal power plant at Apas Kiri, Tawau, which will deliver 30MW of electricity to the Sabah State Grid in May 2016. Drilling operations are expected to commence at the end of April 2014. Malaysia’s Minister of Energy, Green Technology and Water Dr Maximus Ongkili, who led the delegation to New Zealand, says Malaysia wants to promote use of renewable energy and reduce its dependency on fossil fuel. Currently renewable energy accounts for 0.85% of the country’s energy mix, […]

Rising energy costs sit low on the radar of New Zealand businesses, according to the latest Grant Thornton International Business Report survey of 3500 business leaders.  The survey showed that only 10% of New Zealand businesses expect rising energy costs to constrain business growth in 2014 compared with 35% of businesses globally. Only Norway (4%) and Finland (8%) were less concerned than New Zealand out of the 45 countries surveyed.  Alastair Boult, National Director, Government Advisory at Grant Thornton New Zealand Limited, said that while rising energy costs was the second largest concern for international companies, behind economic uncertainty, many New Zealand businesses do not seem to share the same concern towards energy savings. “This is important in light of the recent media attention on cheap loans for domestic solar initiatives. New Zealand’s size, lack of scale and large number of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) mean that our businesses are not as green in their actions compared with other countries, even though we may think we are,” said Boult. “This complacency is a concern. Electricity demand at the moment may be flat, but the ever-strengthening economy will put pressure on this sector. Energy saving is all about protecting and enhancing the bottom line and any education or advice on ways that businesses can save money will be a boost to the economy as a whole.” On a macro scale New Zealand spends about $18 billion per year on energy and 20% of that is wasted, according to estimates from the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority (EECA). “This highlights the fact that New Zealand is nowhere near as energy efficient as it should be,” he said. “However, we are already very strong on the renewable energy front. In 2012, renewable energy made up 37% of New Zealand’s Total Primary Energy […]

Microfactory combines additive and subtractive manufacturing, integrating machining and 3D printing into a safe, self-cleaning, networkable unit. The Microfactory 3D printer contains four printing heads on two separate heaters, plus a milling head. This allows it to print in four colors of the same material, or two colors of two different materials, on the same part. The milling component is capable of cutting and etching wood, plastic and some metals (with optional upgrade). Its user-friendly features are designed to bring more industrial capability to smaller workshops. They include a vacuum port to remove all the debris created by cutting, an air filter, prominent emergency-stop button, covered belts and motors (to keep clothing from getting caught by moving parts) and a noise-reducing housing. The Microfactory 3D printer contains a full on-board computer, which gives it many unique capabilities. With its Internet connectivity, the Microfactory will allow users to watch the progress of jobs in real-time from a phone or tablet, start and stop jobs remotely, or network machines together for more efficient production. All of the software components of the Microfactory are open-source, and the hardware is designed to be upgraded and modified by more intrepid users: The gantry is intended to support the attachment of different heads, and the entire left wall of the machine is removable to support alternate modules.