Panasonic and SANYO Electric have agreed to start discussions for a capital and business alliance that would see Sanyo becoming a subsidiary of Panasonic. The companies hope to maximize both companies' corporate values by pursuing synergies and further strengthening initiatives to achieve potential revenue and profit growth through this alliance.
Thomson has decided to exit its retail telephony activities in North America. Thomson supplies GE-branded phones in the U.S. The plan calls for the elimination of its telephone-related division at its Carmel, Ind., facility and laying off of more than 70 employees by summer of 2009 and another 70 workers worldwide. Thomson will still have 450 employees based in Carmel after the layoffs, primarily in the set-top box business.
Thermal Engineering Report: Dissipating Heat in Electronics
Based on hundreds of on-site visits and interviews, this report delves into the common mistakes companies designing consumer and commercial electronics have made and offers recommendations to help your company unlock the power CAE.
GE has submitted information to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in connection with its request for approval to use isobutane as a refrigerant in household refrigerators. The petition was filed under the Significant New Alternatives Policy (SNAP)(a) program which evaluates alternatives to substances being phased out under the Clean Air Act for protection of the stratospheric ozone layer.
Carrier Earns Award for CO2 Refrigeration Systems
Carrier Corp., a unit of United Technologies Corp. based in Farmington, Conn., won the Environmental Pioneer award in the Refrigeration category at the 2008 Cooling Industry Awards.
Among its claims to pioneering this technology is Carrier Commercial Refrigeration's installation of the largest transcritical CO2 refrigeration system in the world. Carrier equipment cools food in a hypermarket in Northern Germany, where three high temperature (HT) packs with total capacity of 670 kW and two low temperature (LT) packs with capacity of 130 kW were installed.
LG Electronics decided at its board of directors meeting held on October 20 to convert its A1 plasma panel-manufacturing line in Gumi, Korea, into solar cell production lines.
LG plans to invest KRW 220 billion by 2010 to establish two production lines. The company expects that the first line will be able to begin mass production from the first quarter of 2010, with the second line beginning full operations in the first quarter of 2011. Both lines will manufacture crystalline silicon solar cells and modules with a capacity of 120MW each.
Circuit City Stores has filed a voluntary petition for reorganization relief under Chapter 11. The announcement comes after last week's announcement that it planned to close 155 stories nationwide.
Operating under the protection of Chapter 11 will provide the company's vendors with assurances that they will be paid for merchandise the company receives post-filing so the company can be sufficiently stocked for the holiday selling season. Further, the company intends to create a restructuring plan that should allow Circuit City to emerge as a stronger business with an improved national distribution channel for its vendors and a more compelling offering for its customers.
Whirlpool of Benton Harbor, Mich., announced layoffs and additional facility closures in anticipation of continuing worldwide economic difficulties. In anticipation of this environment, the company plans to reduce its global workforce by approximately 5,000 positions by the end of 2009. In addition to the four facility closures the company announced earlier this year, the company's Jackson, Tenn., facility is scheduled to close and production is to be transferred to Whirlpool's Findlay, Ohio, location."
Protomold's Design Tips monthly email newsletter has been a popular and useful resource for our customers. Now available in four handy, downloadable volumes. Each compilation features useful tips, advice, and guidelines on everything from selecting materials to designing parts efficiently and cost-effectively. Download these complimentary volumes today.
NOVEMBER 2008 ISSUE HIGHLIGHTS
For a comprehensive look at the Novemberissue, click.
Burners on gas cooktops and rangetops have come a long way over the years. They can simmer so low as to melt chocolate and hold it in that melted state for hours. Yet that same burner can boil up to 4 quarts of water in a little more than 10 minutes.
The cooktops available today can come in a variety of sizes and styles, differing from manufacturer to manufacturer. While different in many ways, at their core, gas burners found on cooktops and rangetops are very similar. Gas flows from a main gas valve to the burner through a venturi tube, which allows the gas to properly mix with air for clean combustion. The mixture flows into the burner where it is lit by an igniter. From this stepping off point, however, technology begins to vary.
Just as the manufacturers of the world thought they were getting a stranglehold on the compliance requirements in the European Union (EU), the EU throws in another regulation to comply with. On June 1, 2007, the Registration, Evaluation and Authorization of Chemicals Regulation (EC 1907/2006), more commonly known as REACH, came into force. The REACH Regulation was created with the intention to protect human health, as well as the environment, by reducing the risk of harmful chemical exposure. For further information...
In a mature consumer electronics market, good engineering alone won't guarantee a product's success. To rise above the crowd and win over consumers, a product needs to offer something more: an engaging and appealing user interface. One can appreciate the power of advanced user-interface design by looking at Apple's iPhone. The iPhone was not the first touch-screen smart phone, but it was the first to add the "wow" factor. The iPhone's graphically rich, seductive, and simple user interface makes complex technology accessible to a younger, trend-seeking audience, not just the tech-savvy business professionals traditionally targeted by the segment.
Injection molding metal is not the most common way to produce a three-dimensional metal part. The traditional methods - machining, forging, and, the most popular, casting - still hold sway most of the time.
But, molding metal is a sometimes-overlooked concept that can be a viable option for designers looking for ways to make a component that combines the benefits of metal's mechanical properties with the design flexibility of an injection molding operation. This is especially true for high volume, complex parts that maybe too small or too difficult to do easily with the more conventional method.
Want to learn more?
Tyco Electronics
The PolySwitch circuit protection devices are functionally equivalent to the company's existing RXEF overcurrent protection devices, but are available in a form factor that is 30 percent smaller. Read more.
Rosenberg
The backward curved centrifugal fans are available with or without housing in five sizes, from 16 in. to 25 in. The fans deliver up to six inches of static pressure and have a maximum capacity of 16,450 cfm. Find out more.
Emerson Climate TechnologiesThe C-Series Thermal Expansion Valve (TXV) has been designed and optimized for use in R-410A systems. The C-Series TXV provides precise superheat control for enhanced compressor protection. Want to learn more?
DYMAXThe EV Series of thyristors feature a minimum rated blocking voltage of up to 800 V, a maximum turn-on time as low as 25 µs, and a minimum rated static dv/dt of up to 75 V/µs. The series includes four families. Read more.
LittelfuseThe EV Series of thyristors feature a minimum rated blocking voltage of up to 800 V, a maximum turn-on time as low as 25 µs, and a minimum rated static dv/dt of up to 75 V/µs. The series includes four families. Learn more.
Plastic eye bolts have been designed for light duty use. They are injection molded in Nylon 6/6 and are resistant to aromatic, chlorinated, and ketone solvents, as well as gasoline, oils, greases, and animal and vegetable oils.
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