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Celebrating 50 years of Swiss engineering in Manchester
Infratec host topping-out ceremony for new building complex shell for future cleanroom and offi ce areas
On its way to higher production capacities, an optimised manufacturing structure and more attractive working conditions, InfraTec GmbH Infrarotsensorik und Messtechnik has achieved an important milestone. In the course of a traditional topping-out ceremony, InfraTec staff and management celebrated the completion of the shell of the expansion complex at the company’s headquarters on Gostritzer Strasse, in Dresden, together with the planners and building constructors on site.
The new complex unites two areas. The core of the fi rst area is the 400 m² cleanroom for the production of opto-electronic components. “With the completion of the cleanroom building and the purchase of additional machinery and equipment, our production capacity will increase by one third,” says Dr. Matthias Heinze, Managing Director and responsible for the infrared sensor division, looking ahead. “Energy-effi cient air conditioning technology and modern production control will provide the perfect framework.”
Measurement and automation specialist Endress+Hauser Ltd is in great shape as it prepares to celebrate its 50th anniversary on 11 November 2018. Now employing over 200 people, and with an estimated turnover of £46 million in 2018, the measurement and automation engineering specialist continues to break new sales records.
Part of the Switzerland-headquartered Endress+Hauser group, the UK sales and production centre was founded in 1968 by Dr Georg H Endress, the grandfather of the current managing director. Originally situated on Southmoor Road in Manchester, the company moved to its current site on Floats Road in 1996. In 2008 the company opened a new £8 million state-of-the-art offi ce and engineering facility to support its growth, followed in 2013 by a £1 million training centre incorporating the latest digital technology.
Over the last 50 years Endress+Hauser has developed from a vendor of devices and instruments to a full-range services provider working with customers in process industries such as food and beverage, water and wastewater and oil and gas. Products for measuring temperature and fl ow are also designed and manufactured at the Manchester site.
Steven Endress took the reins as managing director in 2016, the fi rst third-generation member of the Endress family to take an operational role in the family business. Refl ecting on the 50-year anniversary, he said, ‘Over the years our buildings and the scope of our offer have changed as we seek to align with our customers’ needs. But, without doubt, our most important asset is our people. It is the drive, ambition and attitude of my colleagues that makes the difference.’
As well as investing in the business, the company has a long history of investing in the local community. The founder of Endress+Hauser invested four per cent of his company in the creation of the charitable Georg H Endress Foundation, which promotes training and education, as well as supporting academic research. Today, Endress+Hauser Ltd continues this legacy by forging links with local schools, colleges and universities. Earlier this year, the sales centre donated nearly 50 computers to one local school, Harrop Fold, which allowed them to kit out their ICT room.
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The second area of the new complex is located on the upper fl oor directly above the cleanroom. On a usable area of more than 500 m², various offi ce work areas for individual and group work as well as lounge corners for spontaneous work meetings are being created. “Our goal is also to noticeably improve the working conditions for our employees in the cleanroom and offi ce area with this extension. They should fi nd fi rst-class working conditions, enjoy coming to work and feel comfortable”, says Dr. Matthias Krauß, Managing Director and responsible for the infrared measurement technology division.
InfraTec is making by far the largest investment within the twenty-seven years of the company’s history in order to create such conditions. A total of ten million euros will be invested in the expansion of the business premises. The investment project, which is also InfraTec’s commitment to the TechnologieZentrumDresden (South) site, will be supported by the Sächsische Aufbaubank with funds from the “Improvement of the Regional Economic Structure” (GRW) funding programme.
Construction began in January of this year. The construction work is right on schedule and in the agreed budget and the construction progress is currently even ahead of schedule. “Being able to celebrate together here today is largely based on your skills and diligence,” Dr. Heinze thanked the construction companies, “and we can look forward to completion on schedule in August 2019.” Start of production in the new cleanroom as well as the move into the offi ce fl oor is planned for September 2019.
Taking a closer look at algal blooms
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Scientists at the John Innes Centre, based in Norwich, in the East Anglia region of the UK, are relying on automatic photobioreactors from algal specialists Algenuity to look more closely at algal blooms – a phenomenon that is increasingly becoming an issue and has been linked to extreme weather patterns. Professor Rob Field, a Project Leader at the centre, explained: “Our work so far has centred on the Prymnesium golden algae. These produce a toxin lethal to gill-breathing organisms which has major implications in fi sh farming worldwide, much as blue-green algae produce substances that are toxic to mammals. They also cause major issues in our local
waterways, the Norfolk Broads. Our aim is to understand harmful algal blooms and establish early detection mechanisms so that they can be prevented or dealt with. It is likely that a bloom is caused by a combination of events – including sunlight, phosphate and nitrate levels – which lead to an increase in pH, a decrease in oxygen partial pressure and the release of toxins.”
Rob continued: “We’ve used the Algem® photobioreactors for basic cell culture for a few years now, to vary the growth conditions and amount of light that we provide for the algae. The system acts as a chemostat to regulate and monitor the algae, which saves us a great deal of time, and means we don’t have to keep sampling to count algal cells; we can allow the computer to take control, and can dive in at any point to look at the metabolites produced. We can also stack multiple systems together if we need to scale up, which is a real advantage because the demand for algal biochemistry can dramatically change from a fl ask to a larger vessel.”
“The Algem is very easy to use and has allowed us to complete our control experiments for collaborators such as the Environment Agency, the Broads Authority and Natural England. Without it, our work would be a lot more cumbersome because we can put it on in the background and just let it run; it’s a very practical piece of kit,” Rob concluded.
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