Materials Handling


and air filtration solutions for process industries, has won four contracts in recent months. The first, worth £1.7 million, is with a leading global supplier of cereals, snacks and processed foods.


CPS will supply this customer with an ingredient handling


system at one of its largest production facilities located in the north central region of the US. CPS will utilise its pneumatic conveying technology to handle all the ingredients used in the manufacture of their new cereal product (Fig. 1). This new deal strengthens CPS’s position in the food


industry, particularly the US market, and follows on from two earlier contracts won from Asian steel producers. Worth £900 000, the first contract involves supplying one steel producer based in China with a pneumatic conveying system that will transport quicklime within its production facility. Quicklime, more commonly known as lime, is used by the steel industry as a raw material to purify steel. The CPS pneumatic conveying system will transport quicklime over a distance of one mile, which the company directors believe is a world leading distance for this raw material using pneumatic conveying technology. The order value of this contract is £0.9 million. The second part of this order, worth £1m, will see the


company supply a steel producer based in Taiwan with a pneumatic injection system that will inject pulverised coal into


its blast furnace. Coal is used as the prime fuel within a blast furnace that reacts with predominately hot air and iron ore to produce iron, which is then refined to create steel. Commenting on the orders, CPS chief executive Alex


Stewart said: “We are pleased to maintain the sales conversion momentum we have built in recent weeks. Both contracts have been secured from existing customers, which is testament to the strong performance of our technologies once deployed within our customers’ production processes. Furthermore, our pedigree in providing pioneering solutions is enhanced through the contract secured in transporting quicklime over one mile, which represents an industry first.” CPS’s fourth contract is with one of Eastern Europe’s


leading cement producers and is worth £1.1m. CPS will supply this plant with a pneumatic conveying system that will be utilised to transport fly ash within its cement producing facility. Fly ash is a waste material produced predominately from the power generation industry when burning coal. Fly ash is commonly used as an alternative material and fuel across a wide range of process industries. The cement industry utilises fly ash as an alternative material to mineral in the production of finished cement. As such, says the company, the cement industry represents a significant opportunity for the group with this order providing a basis for future growth. n


Heport identifies market potential for automation in food industry


A


utomation expenditure in the food and beverage industry is expected to reach $6billion by 2013,


according to a new study from ARC. John Blanchard, principal analyst for the CPG (consumer packaged goods) industries and the principal author of ARC’s Automation Expenditures for Food and Beverage Industry Worldwide Outlook, comments: “The information architecture is extending its reach all the way to the consumer by way of social networks and a new generation of truly virtual on-line shopping and on-line product customisation tools. It is becoming an important solution in the drive toward mass-customisation and has begun to change the way consumer-facing business is conducted.”


The three major areas of focus in food and beverage manufacturing are cost management and margin protection, more sustainable manufacturing focused on energy usage and waste reduction, and better ensuring food safety. Survival is also dependent upon product, packaging, and manufacturing innovation. Since most CPG companies have similar business strategies, flawless and timely execution differentiates leading companies from their competitors.


This study will help users learn what others in the industry are doing and the capabilities of each supplier. It discusses strategies and tactics for suppliers and user manufacturers to be successful in the rapidly changing environment of the worldwide food and beverage industry. ARC suggests that some of the key questions that food and beverage manufacturers are trying to answer are:


n How do I address the fluctuating price and availability of commodities?


n How do I reduce my energy and other utilities costs and ensure the long-term availability of these resources?


n How do I find and evaluate new technology that will support innovation and speed time- to-market?


n How do I reduce my manufacturing cycle time?


n How do I come up with new ideas or equipment that allow multi-tasking and that can reduce changeover time?


n What are the best metrics to support future manufacturing requirements?


n What are the leading best practices in the industry?


n What is my competition doing?


n How do I support my ever expanding manufacturing and business automation systems and networks?


n What are other companies doing to improve the skill sets of their operators and staffs?


Meanwhile, automation supplier revenues continued to fall throughout 2009 as compared with 2008. ARC expects that year-on-year comparisons between 2008 and 2009 will experience a decline, with modest growth in 2010. ARC sees signs that the manufacturing recovery has begun but its continued success depends on the ability of the financial markets to return to normal functioning. Small, medium, and large businesses have all been strained by the inability to access short-term capital. Moreover, many businesses have simply delayed capital equipment expansions, particularly if they manufactured components in the automotive supply chain.


Although the short-term forecast for the global automation expenditures for the process industries looks bleak, ARC expects moderate market growth to resume during the latter part of the five-year forecast period. n


For more information, visit www.arcweb.com www.engineerlive.com 25


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