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Johnson Matthey technology chosen for largest single train methanol plant in the world

Johnson Matthey (JM), global leader in sustainable technologies with expertise in design and licensing of large-scale methanol plants, is pleased to announce another successful license award. JM has been selected by China’s Ningxia Baofeng Energy Group as licensor for the third methanol synthesis plant at their coal to olefins complex near Yinchuan in Ningxia Province PRC. With a planned capacity of 7200 mtpd, the methanol plant will be the largest single train methanol plant in the world once completed. Under the agreement Johnson Matthey will be the licensor and supplier of associated engineering, technical review, commissioning assistance, catalyst and equipment supply. The JM methanol plant will take synthesis gas as a feed and utilise JM radial steam raising converters in a patented Series Loop. Together with JM catalysts, to produce stabilised methanol as a product that is used to produce olefins downstream, the plant will provide enhanced energy efficiency along with low OPEX, CAPEX and emissions. Upon startup, this will represent JM’s 8th operating license in China with a plant capacity greater than 5500 mtpd. It is the third JM methanol design licensed by Ningxia Baofeng Energy. This award follows the recent successful commissioning of the 6600 mtpd Baofeng methanol synthesis unit in May 2020 and the original 4450 mtpd methanol synthesis unit, which was commissioned in 2014. It demonstrates Baofeng’s recognition of JM’s technical leadership in this key growth market and is a testament to Johnson Matthey’s commitment and dedication to the delivery of large-scale methanol production. “We are very proud of our ongoing collaboration with Ningxia Baofeng Energy. It is testament to their confidence in JM’s engineering expertise and ability to successfully design and help deliver their large-scale methanol plants”, said John Gordon, Managing Director for Johnson Matthey. “In just over six years it has been exciting to […]

Amlan International names Dr. Kreangkrai Sangthongdang head of Thailand

Amlan International has named Dr. Kreangkrai “Pong” Sangthongdang as Thailand Country Manager, leading local business development efforts. Amlan International is a subsidiary of Oil-Dri Corporation of America (NYSE: ODC), a leading manufacturer of sorbent minerals. Sangthongdang brings more than 22 years of experience in the feed industry, focused on animal health medicine and feed additives for poultry and swine. Previously, Dr. Pong held leadership roles in marketing and business development at Intervet (MSD) and Ceva Animal Health. Most recently, he was Business Development Director at Diamond V where he successfully positioned their gut health products with key customer accounts. Sangthongdang earned his Doctor of Veterinary Medicine from Chulalongkorn University and has a Master in Business Administration from Kasetsart University, with a major in Marketing. Dr. Pong will further strengthen Amlan’s position in a market that is leading in livestock production technology and value exports among its neighboring countries in Asia. Sangthongdang will lead Amlan’s strategic efforts from Bangkok. “We are excited to grow our team in Thailand and welcome Dr. Pong’s leadership and experience to Amlan International,” says Flemming L. Mahs, President of Amlan International. “Amlan has made a significant investment to grow this important market. This momentum will spark new, innovative solutions for animal protein producers worldwide.”

SESTO Magnus autonomous mobile robot for materials handling

SESTO Robotics has launched SESTO Magnus – a bi-directional, compact autonomous mobile robot able to carry loads up to 300kg. Having the highest payload rating in the compact class, SESTO Magnus is designed to automate material handling processes in manufacturing, commercial and healthcare industries. Specially built for tight navigation in space-scarce facilities, SESTO Magnus is able to autonomously travel through spaces as narrow as 0.9 metres wide while avoiding obstacles in its path. Its bi-directional same-speed capability means the autonomous mobile robot can reverse out of dead ends without doing a spot turn. With the world easing into the Covid-19 new normal, there is an accelerated urgency for manufacturers and non-manufacturing industries to quickly automate their processes while ensuring safe management measures such as staggered workforce or spilt team arrangements. SESTO Magnus’ small and low profile is designed with manufacturing, healthcare and commercial facilities in mind. Its intelligent software controls enable it to operate safely in narrow passageways and amongst people. Using a single mobile platform, SESTO Magnus is highly versatile and can be configured with limitless applications of autonomous material transportation. From components and parts in manufacturing, to laundry and meal services in hospitality and care facilities, to central sterile services and dispensaries in hospitals, the autonomous mobile robot can be fitted with various top module configurations, customisable to requirements. Current manual handling and transportation processes are often time-consuming and error-prone. In addition, repeated manual handling of heavy loads may lead to labour injuries and accidents. With SESTO Magnus, it reduces the dependency on manual labour which has become a priority for many companies in recent months, as COVID-19 caused major disruptions to the availability of on-premise employees. Powered by SESTO’s proprietary user-friendly interface, operators can easily deploy the robot for material transportation using a tablet or laptop. The […]

Exiting China not easy for Japanese companies

In the wake of the supply chain disruptions due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, Japan has earmarked over US$2bn to encourage its companies under FY2020 Primary Supplementary Budget to move operations out of China and relocate production bases across a number of countries, including those of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). However, completely decoupling from China is not going to be easy for Japanese companies, says GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company. The Covid-19 pandemic has resulted in severe supply chain disruptions in early 2020 for Japanese companies. For instance, Nissan had to temporarily stop production at one of its domestic plants because of the delay in parts supply from China. The new national security law of Hong Kong passed by China in June 2020 coupled with recent territorial disputes in the South China Sea has reignited the demand in Japan for the country’s companies to lower dependency in China. As a result, Japan is concerned as more than 1,400 Japanese companies operate out of Hong Kong. The city accounts for about 2.5% of Japan’s total trade in 2019, making it one of top 10 trading partners. Japan is also closely monitoring the China-United States trade war, as possible higher import tariffs from their Chinese production units into US could also exert pressure on Japanese companies to shift production base. Gracio Benher, Practice Head at GlobalData, comments: “Even before the current geopolitical stand-off between China and Japan, some Japanese companies in China have been mulling about cutting down their Chinese presence, following the increased labor costs and unfavorable exchange rate between Japanese Yen and Chinese Yuan.” For Japanese companies, a total pullout from China has its own set of challenges. Japanese companies have over US$100bn investments in China, and one of the prerequisites to gain access to […]

Hypertherm named Business of the Decade in manufacturing and technology category

Hypertherm, a U.S. based manufacturer of industrial cutting systemsand software, today announced its selection as a Business of the Decade winner by Business New Hampshire Magazine and the New Hampshire Association of Chamber of Commerce Executives. Hypertherm earned the top spot for the Manufacturing and Technology category joining organisations in eight other categories including Health Care, Financial Services and Insurance, Retail and Wholesale, and Tourism and Hospitality. Hypertherm was invited to apply by virtue of its selection as a Business of the Year during the preceding decade. Nearly 50 judges participated in scoring applications through two rounds of competition to determine the winners. Judges first narrowed the field to three companies in each category weighing each company’s business success, contributions to the community, and industry leadership. A panel comprised of executives from the 2010 Business of the Decade winning companies then undertook the difficult task of selecting one winner in each category. In considering Hypertherm, judges were impressed by the respect Hypertherm has within the fabrication industry and its reputation for technological and manufacturing excellence. In addition, judges cited the breadth and depth of Hypertherm’s work in the community. From its Community Service Time program, charitable giving through the HOPE Foundation, and its Substance Use Disorder and Recovery Friendly Workplace programs to its workforce training and STEM program designed to create interest among school aged children in technology and engineering jobs in the Granite State. “It is almost cliché how much I look to Hypertherm to share their practices around any number of topics. In recent years, they have presented their own work involving substance use disorder, workforce development practices, commuting policies and environmental stewardship,” wrote Clay Adams, president and CEO of Mascoma Bank in his letter of recommendation for Hypertherm. “At times it seems they are playing chess while […]

NEC and Realeyes announce strategic alliance in Emotion Analysis Solutions

NEC Corporation, a leader in biometric authentication and video analytics technologies, and Realeyes, a leader in computer vision and emotion Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for a strategic partnership to jointly develop and distribute emotion analysis solutions globally. Wireless 5G technologies and the COVID-19 pandemic have created a new way of life, where virtual meeting experiences are necessary and have become the default method for communication, collaboration, entertainment and learning. Technologies that can help companies to safely and effectively understand how users are interacting with such services, and to respond to their needs, are now essential. Realeyes, with its best-in-class emotion detection and analysis capabilities, is continuously expanding its products and services for measuring emotion and attention for global brands. Its innovations include predictive analytics and live measurement of attention and emotion response within streaming and mobile applications. NEC, with a wide range of solutions that combine proprietary and sophisticated biometric authentication and video analytics technologies, is now accelerating its businesses in the hospitality and marketing fields. This alliance’s combination of NEC’s biometric and video analytics technologies with Realeyes’ emotion analysis technology will enable digital transformation to enhance safe and robust user experiences across media, entertainment, education, healthcare, and communication verticals throughout the world. “NEC has cultivated biometric authentication and video analytics technologies over many years, and we are excited to now be working in collaboration with Realeyes and their pioneering role in the new field of emotion AI,” said Toshifumi Yoshizaki, Senior Vice President, NEC. “These developments help to realize both companies’ objective of enriching people’s lives and contributing to the realization of a safe, secure, fair and efficient society.” “This partnership with NEC advances our mission to bring a trillion more smiles to our planet,” said Mihkel Jäätma, CEO of Realeyes. “Our […]

ASM production of titanium metal alloy in South Korea

Australian Strategic Materials’ (ASM) partner, ZironTech has successfully produced another run of titanium metal alloy at the joint venture (JV) commercial pilot plant in South Korea. This subsequent run produced approximately 22 kilograms and confirmed energy savings of up to 50 per cent compared to current commercial production methods. ASM is successfully progressing the pilot plant testwork on low emission, high purity metal technology to produce zirconium, titanium and rare earths for permanent magnet metals. The production of metals indicates significant cost benefits to ASM’s integrated business strategy and is key in the development of the Dubbo Project to supply critical materials. The commissioning of the electrorefining section of the pilot plant is proceeding, which will produce ultra-high purity metal, including neodymium, praseodymium, other rare earth metals, zirconium and hafnium metal. Australian Strategic Materials Managing Director, David Woodall said: “Our progress towards an independent fully integrated ’mine to metal‘ business of critical materials is continuing very well. ASM’s focus is to be a stable, secure and alternate supplier of clean metals for the domestic and global markets with the production of these metals coming from our Dubbo Project in Central West NSW. The clean metal technology can be applied to all the products from the Dubbo Project with our focus on the key critical materials of neodymium, dysprosium, zirconium, hafnium and praseodymium.” “ASM management is currently in Korea to progress discussions on the commencement of a definitive feasibility of a clean metals plant and the progress of a joint Australian / Korean strategy that could ensure supply security and stability of these critical materials to the Australian and Korean manufacturing sectors.”. ASM continues with the optimisation of the Dubbo Project through the integration of flotation into the proven flowsheet seeking improved project capital and operating costs. ASM’s JV partner continues […]

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EU Automation launches resource centre for manufacturing professionals

In response to the industry’s hunger for information on technology that can pull them out of the post-pandemic productivity lull, automation equipment supplier EU Automation, has pooled all its resources into a new, free, online Knowledge Hub. At the click of a button, visitors can download a wealth of resources on additive manufacturing (AM), artificial intelligence (AI), Industry 4.0, cyber security, obsolescence, sustainability and the circular economy. The company has also made its two chart-topping books available to download free of charge. EU Automation has been publishing its industry magazine, AUTOMATED, since 2016. In the last four years, it has gathered insight from trade bodies, innovative start ups and created a content bank. The Knowledge Hub takes this several steps further, by providing industry an easy way to download a range of resources on an industry trend of their choice. The company has also made its two manufacturing chart-topping books available for free download. The books were previously available on Amazon for a small cost, but the authors felt that enabling free download would best aid manufacturing professionals in their online learning. The first book, The Book of Obsolescence Management (BoOM) explains how manufacturers can use obsolescence to their advantage, giving practical advice from industry experts at COPA-DATA, Renishaw, the International Institute of Obsolescence Management and more. The book has been downloaded more than 17,000 times and sat at the top of the Amazon manufacturing chart for several weeks. The second book, 4.0 Sight, is a global look at the fourth industrial revolution, covering initiatives like Japan’s Society 5.0 and Made in China 2025. Similar to BoOM, it is packed with insight from big industry players, including ABB, GE and Toshiba Machine. “Google Trends data suggests that the search term “free online learning” increased dramatically during the Covid-19 outbreak,” explained […]

APAC construction market to hit $14 trillion by 2021 predicts Frost & Sullivan

Frost & Sullivan’s recent analysis, Business Model Innovations in the Building Construction Industry, 2020, finds that the building construction value chain will shift from sequential (conventional value chain) to innovative business models with increased penetration of building construction technology. With rapid urbanisation and suburban development in Asia-Pacific (APAC), the construction market in the region is expected to reach $14 trillion by 2021 from $10 trillion in 2017. However, the market will be impacted by Covid-19. In a conservative scenario, there will be a long delay in the completion of projects in the commercial segment; in an aspirational scenario, there would be a short delay in the completion of ongoing projects until the Covid-19 pandemic subsides. “APAC is expected to witness an infrastructure and construction boom in the next five years with a healthy distribution of projects shared between the residential, industrial, and infrastructural segments,” said Wen Hui Liu, Energy & Environment Research Analyst at Frost & Sullivan. “Additionally, in this period, innovative business models such as vertical integration, anything-as-a-service (XaaS), and off-site construction will be impacting traditional building construction business in the region.” Advanced technologies such as AR/VR, 3D printing, automation and robotics are expected play a major role in combatting industry challenges such as declined productivity, workforce scarcity and site safety issues. The move to a more modern and digital environment will also play a positive role in addressing the gap of skilled workers. Liu added: “Besides advancement in technology, sustainability trends such as prefabrication construction, sustainable construction, and green building technology are likely to revolutionize the conventional way business is done in the building construction sector. Further, this trend will reduce carbon emission and gain new revenue streams from the conventional value chain.” To tap into the growth opportunities exposed by the innovative building construction industry, market […]

Mitsubishi Corporation: Initiation of “Technology Development for Para-xylene Production from CO2”

We, University of Toyama, Chiyoda Corporation, Nippon Steel Engineering Co., Ltd., Nippon Steel Corporation, HighChem Company Limited, and Mitsubishi Corporation (hereinafter collectively referred to as the “Group”) are pleased to announce that the Group has jointly applied for and been selected by NEDO(1) for “Development of Technologies for Carbon Recycling and Next-Generation Thermal Power Generation / Development of Technologies for CO2 Reduction and Utilization / Development of Technologies for CO2 Utilisation for Chemicals.” Summary:In order to cope with global climate change, it is necessary to address the issue of CO2 emissions from factories, power plants, and various emission sources while pursuing all possible technological options including carbon recycling technologies. “Roadmap for Carbon Recycling Technologies” formulated by METI(2) in June 2019 sets forth guidelines for utilisation of carbon recycling technologies for separating and collecting CO2 as resources and reusing it in the form of diverse carbon compounds for chemical materials or fuels. Against this backdrop, NEDO has launched a development project for the world’s most advanced technology for industrial para-xylene(3) production from CO2 to substitute existing fossil fuel-derived chemicals, and the Group has been selected as contractors for this commissioned project. Para-xylene is a particularly important basic compound in the production of PTA(4) which is a feedstock material for polyesters such as polyester fibers and plastic bottles. Due to its composition, it can be produced with a relatively small amount of hydrogen while fixing a large amount of CO2, compared to other compounds from carbon recycling. This is a theme with great potential from both economic and environmental perspectives. The global demand for para-xylene is approximately 49 million tons per year. Assuming that the feedstock for para-xylene of the current demand level is entirely converted from fossil fuels to CO2, theoretically 160 million tons of CO2 could be fixed in the […]

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