http://uebcompany123.spoonylife.com SpoonyLife fr-FR http://uebcompany123.spoonylife.com/never-too-old-to-learn-to-swim-837.html Tag: washer motor 100 Years After Its Birth on the Great Lakes, Ellis Adds Automation Ellis Drier was founded 110 years ago by Wynn Edward Ellis, who had developed a solution for drying grain salvaged from shipwrecks on the Great Lakes. "My great-great grandfather, I'm now the fifth generation, made all sorts of implements to dry grain," says Bob Fesmire, Jr., vice president and COO of Ellis in Itasca, Ill. Ellis, which began manufacturing wooden washing cylinders in the 1910s, has grown into an OEM now serving the laundry and wastewater industries with hydraulic washer extractors, tunnel washing systems and wastewater treatment systems. Big controls for a big machine Ellis' largest custom washer extractor can hold nine 200-lb loads. Each module is driven by a 5-hp electrical motor, and both sides of the cabinet are used. After a flurry of mergers and acquisitions had formed General Laundry Machinery, Ellis was the only company in the conglomerate to survive the Great Depression and moved to the Chicago area. "My great grandfather was an engineer, and he developed the first unloading washing machine and patented it in the 1940s," explains Fesmire. Ellis moved into wastewater treatment in the 1970s and washer extractors in the late '80s. "When we got in the wastewater treatment industry, it was kind of an unknown thing," says Fesmire. "We serviced industries that need a lot of wastewater equipment. Our primary customers are uniform rental and linen suppliers, as well as hospitality and hospital, and they all deal with lots of process water, so there was a natural synergy." Ellis eventually made the move to developing its own controls and automation. "Our customers have been driving it, and we've been driving it as well," explains Fesmire. "We serve the uniform, hospitality and hospital industries. What's driving them most right now is energy savings, which means a need for energy conserving equipment and energy monitoring." Ellis' machine controls typically are PLC-based. "But we'll sometimes have a PC-based aspect," says Fesmire. "We use remote interfaces and safety interlocks, light beams and photo sensors. Some of the environments where our machines are used contain volatile organic compounds, so we make specialty air-purged, explosion-proof equipment." With its customer base solidly in North America, Ellis employs a variety of electrical and mechanical personnel, as well as programmers. "Some of our equipment rotates up to 350 G. We're using a lot of proprietary hydraulic designs," says Fesmire. Automation has had a great impact on Ellis' after-sales support. "This aspect has brought us into diagnostics so we can dial into a customer's plant and see what the machine is doing," explains Fesmire. "We're trying to help them manage their systems. We've had to educate our customers. Automation is a wonderful thing, but the human aspect is where everyone needs an education." Thu, 08 May 2008 12:26:00 GMT http://uebcompany123.spoonylife.com/brandix-leading-the-way-for-an-eco-conversion-836.html Tag: Fabric Material Brandix, the largest apparel exporter in Sri Lanka in 2007, with a turnover of US$320 million has converted a 30 year old factory to a modernized hi-tech eco-friendly plant. The Brandix Casualwear plant in Seeduwa is the country's first converted Green Factory. Having already invested US$2.5 million for the conversion in collaboration with Marks et Spencer (MetS) UK the company intends to allocate a further US$25 million (Rs.2.7 billion) on environmental initiatives. Sources revealed that Brandix is planning to convert their Casualwear factory in Ja-ela into a Green Plant as well. Carbon Footprint Reduced by 77 %One of the main policies of Brandix is to decrease the carbon footprint released by apparel manufacturers into the atmosphere. With the conversion, the Green Plant has been able to reduce the carbon footprint by 77% from 2076 metric tons to 484 metric tons. At the opening of the plant Brandix CEO Ashroff Omar stated that the past 9 years have been among the warmest years on record and scientists have recognized that one of the primary causes for this is the increased emissions of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, which increases the earth's surface temperature. "It is now predicted that by the year 2050 up to 37% of the plant and animal species on the planet could be wiped out," he said. He revealed that the Group is committed to a five year eco plan to bring down the carbon footprint by 35% by the year 2012. This is in accordance with the MetS Plan ‘A' launched in 2007 which is to focus on neutralizing the carbon emissions.48 % of Energy Saved According to Brandix Industrial Engineering Senior Manager Chaminda Mirando in order to save the fuel wasted when travelling from one plant to another electric vehicles are used which he revealed are no more costly than a fuel vehicle. Furthermore he showed that 4.8km of fluorescent bulbs have been saved due to the use of natural lights through sky lights and large windows which were normally covered with thick curtains. "The electricity bill used to be Rs.2.2 million per month for this factory before the conversion, but now it is down by 48%," Mirando said. During gloomy and rainy days the plants are using 3 watt lamps which are sufficient for the employees. Company officials divulged that an Air Handling Unit approximately worth Rs.90 million has been set up so as to circulate fresh air properly to each plant. Even the bio-gas generated from the factory will be used to lighten the burners in the canteen for cooling.58 % Decrease in Water ConsumptionMirando stated that preserving water is a major initiative of Brandix and that the company has therefore built a rainwater harvesting tank with a capacity of 100,000 litres. Drawing attention to Sri Lankan history, Omar revealed that the island has been environmentally responsible for more than 2500 years. He noted that the ancient kings had built thousands of reservoirs for rainwater harvesting, flood protection and irrigation. This is a tradition that the islanders should be proud of. "Our workers come from a culture whose existence has historically been closely linked to the land and man-made water resources. We have found this ethos to be both inspiring and socially and economically sensible," he declared. Mass Scale Recycling75% of the stationery used in the factory contains recycled material. In each plant there are recycle bins with different compartments for polythene, fabric and papers. These are collected and then stored in separate storehouses as no waste is now being sent for land filling. "We get the papers recycled for the use of Brandix but the used polythene is sent to a recycling plant and the discarded fabric to manufacturers of soft toys and mattresses," Mirando said. Employee Friendly-Eco Friendly Environment1,600 employees are working in the newly converted Green Plant. The glass used for sky lights has been manufactured to prevent the harmful UV rays from penetrating the plant and the roof of the factory has been painted white so as to reflect most of the rays as well. Domestic trees have been planted inside the factory and ducks can be found in an area where there is a pond. An Integrated Pest Management system is in place to reduce the use of chemicals. Zero Loss of Production during ConversionMirando claimed that during the 7 month conversion of the factory to a Green Plant, Brandix suffered no loss of production. "Even while construction was going on garments were being manufactured in other parts of the factory," he said. Other company officials stated that Brandix intends to break even with the investment in another 5 years.International and National Recognition for BrandixMetS CEO Sir Stuart Rose recognized Brandix as a very important and valuable part of their production and that they will support this eco factory. The Green Plant in Seeduwa surpasses all standards stipulated by the ‘Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED)' of the Green Building Rating System of the United States Green Building Council (USGBC). The Group is also the recipient of the prestigious international Green Apple award for the best environmental practice. Export Development Minister Professor G.L. Peiris and Enterprise Development and Investment Promotion Minister Dr. Sarath Amunugama who were present at the opening, recognized and appreciated the achievements of Brandix as a product of Sri Lanka. Thu, 08 May 2008 12:25:00 GMT http://uebcompany123.spoonylife.com/evotec-completes-acquisition-of-renovis-835.html Evotec AG (Frankfurt Stock Exchange: EVT) today announced that the merger has been successfully completed and that Renovis, Inc. AV RF Modulator is a wholly owned subsidiary of Evotec as of May 5, 2008. In exchange for each outstanding share of Renovis common stock, Renovis stockholders receive 0.5271 American Depositary Shares, or ADSs, of Evotec, which have been approved for listing on the NASDAQ Global Market under the trading symbol "EVTC". The trading will be initiated today and the ADSs will trade on a "when issued" basis under the symbol "EVTCV" until they are eligible for normal trade settlement, currently anticipated to be within two weeks of the acquisition. Each Evotec ADS represents two ordinary shares of Evotec. As a result, Evotec is issuing an aggregate of 34,970,268 new ordinary shares, which underly the ADSs issued to Renovis stockholders. Current Evotec stockholders now own approximately 68.8% of the combined company and Renovis stockholders own up to 31.2%. To ensure that new Evotec shareholders will be able to participate in this year's Annual General Meeting, Evotec has scheduled the meeting to be held on August 28, 2008. The Executive Management Team of Evotec is the Executive Management Team of the combined company with Jorn Aldag serving as President et Chief Executive Officer. Dr Michael Kelly, currently Senior Vice President, Research et Development of Renovis, will join Evotec's Executive Management Team and will be President of Evotec's site in California. The combined company's Supervisory Board will consist of six directors. At Evotec's upcoming Annual General Meeting, Dr Corey Goodman, former Chief Executive Officer et President of Renovis, and John Walker, Executive Chairman and Principal Executive Officer of Renovis are expected to be elected as new members of Evotec's Supervisory Board. "The acquisition enhances Evotec's emerging clinical story. Our three clinical candidates are now backed by a strong late stage preclinical pipeline focusing on areas of neurological and inflammatory diseases, and we have pro-forma cash and investments of approximately US$ 188 million (as of March 31, 2008). By combining Evotec's drug discovery and development know-how with Renovis' medicinal chemistry and target validation expertise, we now have world class discovery capabilities, a strong pipeline in CNS disorders and several significant research partnerships with leading pharmaceutical companies such as Boehringer Ingelheim, Pfizer and Roche. By the end of 2009, we expect to have at least 6 compounds in clinical development, 3 of which should have proof-of-concept data to attract partners, and our cash is expected to last through 2010," said Jorn Aldag, President et Chief Executive Officer of Evotec. Key highlights of Evotec now include: Three clinical programs, three advanced preclinical programs, and partnerships *EVT 201: a partial positive allosteric modulator (pPAM) of GABAA receptors for the treatment of insomnia. In 2007, the compound has shown robust effects on sleep onset and sleep maintenance in two Phase II proof-of-concept studies in adult primary insomnia patients and elderly primary insomniacs. The data provided encouraging evidence of the drug's potential to address many of the shortcomings of commercially available prescription sleep aids. Evotec intends to partner EVT 201 in 2008. *EVT 101: one of the few orally active and selective antagonists of the NR2B subunit-containing NMDA receptors in clinical development. Its selectivity may offer clinical advantages over current Alzheimer therapies and the Company believes that there is significant potential in a number of pain indications. EVT 101 was well tolerated in Phase I studies and recently released initial data from Phase Ib studies has confirmed our enthusiasm for the drug candidate's potential to enter the brain and affect those regions of the brain that relate to the performance of cognitive tasks and to pain. Additional data from these studies is expected this quarter. *EVT 302: an orally active, highly selective and reversible inhibitor of MAO-B in development for smoking cessation with a potential additive effect to nicotine-based therapies, and with the potential for once per week dosing and for a superior safety profile. Results from Phase I PET and safety and tolerability studies were reported since the announcement of the transaction, which laid a foundation for moving forward to Phase II proof-of-concept trials. A Phase II craving study started in February 2008 and a Phase II quit rate study is expected to start in the middle of the year. The studies will read out in the third quarter 2008 and the first half of 2009, respectively. .Innovative preclinical pipeline The combined company's preclinical pipeline complements Evotec's clinical portfolio, and includes candidates expected to enter Phase I clinical trials in 2008: *VR1 antagonists: The lead preclinical program is a collaboration with Pfizer Inc. in which Evotec will be eligible to receive milestone payments of more than US$ 170 million and double-digit royalties on worldwide net sales of products successfully developed and commercialized. Potential products include broadly applicable analgesics with a potentially differentiated profile for a variety of chronic or acute pain indications as well as urinary incontinence and asthma. Entry into human clinical trials is expected for the first half of 2008. *P2X7 antagonists: Products include potential novel treatments for rheumatoid arthritis, irritable bowel syndrome, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Human clinical trials are expected to begin in 2008. The program is unpartnered, and as such Evotec has worldwide rights for its development. *P2X3 antagonists: Products include potential first-in-class treatments for inflammatory/neuropathic pain and urinary disorders. Human clinical trials are expected to begin in the first half of 2009.The program is unpartnered, and as such Evotec has worldwide rights for its development. Thu, 08 May 2008 12:23:00 GMT http://uebcompany123.spoonylife.com/conveyor-innovation-speeds-concrete-placement-834.html Tag: water mixer Getting concrete from the mixer to the forms in the quickest manner possible is always a primary concern for those in the concrete construction business. When placement sizes vary from 300 cubic yards to 800 cubic yards at a time, the logistics of this material-handling dilemma are magnified even more. Special concretes used for underwater tremie placements include many chemical admixtures to delay setting of the concrete and to provide maximum flowability. In addition, when concrete placements are as massive as stated above, concrete temperatures become a factor that must be dealt with. Both situations demand that the concrete be in its final place of disposition as quickly as possible. To properly address this situation in the construction of the new River Wall at Charleroi Locks and Dam on the Monongahela River in Southwestern Pennsylvania, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Pittsburgh District's contractor, Trumbull Corporation and Brayman Construction Corp., a joint venture, developed a concrete delivery system that employs high-speed conveyor belts from the mixer drum to the point of placement. A 12-cubic-yard batch of concrete takes approximately four minutes to travel the nearly 2,100-linear-foot distance, at a speed of 750 feet per minute. This rate of placement, coupled with a state-of-the-art concrete batch plant designed to produce 150 cubic yards per hour, assures that tremie and mass concrete is delivered as quickly and efficiently as possible. The conveyor system is manufactured by Rotec Industries, Elmhurst, Ill., and employs up to 8-inch- to 24-inch-wide main feed belts, seven transfer points and a post-mounted swinger. The post-mounted swinger is a rotating, telescoping conveyor boom that is operated remotely by an operator, giving the operator the ability to discharge concrete at any location within the placement. Although using conveyor belts to move concrete is nothing new, using them in this capacity is a first for the Pittsburgh District Corps of Engineers. Typically, concrete is transported by a combination of conveyor, mixer truck, concrete bucket, or pump involving a substantial supporting labor crew. These delivery systems require a longer period of time to get the concrete to its final destination and involve the transfer of concrete from one system to the next. As a result, the concrete must be batched with higher slump and air content values to account for a decrease in these properties caused by the physical handling of the concrete along the way. Also, the longer the concrete sits in the transport device on warm days, the more likely it will begin to tighten up and increase in temperature, contributing to concrete not meeting specifications at the point of placement. The high-speed conveyor system at Charleroi Locks and Dam has alleviated all of these concerns. Test results have proven that concrete slump and slump flow are virtually the same when measured at the point of placement as compared to the batch plant, due to very little disturbance to the concrete during its delivery. Air content is also being preserved with little or no change. This allows for concrete meeting specifications to be produced at the batch plant, and provides for a much more consistent history of compressive strength results when compared to more traditional methods of concrete delivery. Concrete temperature gain while on the belt is also a common concern. This has been addressed by installing metal covers over the belt line, and painting the topside white to further reduce heat gain from the direct rays of the sun. Temperature differentials between the point of placement and the batch plant only vary by approximately 4 degrees Fahrenheit on 85-degree days. A rapid delivery of concrete provides a continuous and uninterrupted flow to the forms that maximizes the time in which the tremie concrete remains flowable. This helps to guarantee that the tremie concrete will flow around and through the reinforcing steel and other embedded items in a homogeneous mass without creating voids. Conveyor belt operations also reduce the size of the supporting labor crew required to transport concrete to the point of placement when compared to more traditional methods. To address environmental issues, the conveyors are equipped with catch trays that contain any concrete or cement paste that might otherwise fall into the river, assuring that environmental concerns associated with using conveyor belts over water are mitigated. Each catch tray drains back to a transfer point, where collection boxes capture all wash water. Submersible pumps move this water back to the batch plant's sedimentation basins for proper treatment, leaving the solids behind for proper disposal as well. The concrete delivery system employed at Charleroi Locks and Dam has proven that innovation is still possible in heavy construction, and that concrete delivery can be designed to meet the demanding requirements imposed by new in-the-wet construction techniques. Thu, 08 May 2008 12:21:00 GMT