News RotRonic suppoRts global petition


A global petition is asking the World Health Organisation (WHO) to prescribe a humidity level of 40-60 %RH to reduce respiratory infections. Rotronic has declared its support for this petition as persuasive scientific findings show that a medium air humidity benefits human health considerably. In light of the COVID-19 crisis, Dr. Stephanie


Taylor, one of the initiators of the petition and advisor on infection control at Harvard Medical School, believes it is more important than ever to listen to the latest evidence and to establish global guidelines for indoor air quality quickly and decisively with a clear recommendation on the upper and lower limits of humidity in public buildings. The measure would reduce the spread of bacteria and viruses in the air inside buildings and protect public health. This conviction is shared not only by Rotronic’s


coMMent


Welcome to the August issue of Instrumentation Monthly. While lockdown restrictions in


the UK continue to be relaxed, the initial measures have caused damage to many different industries. The events sector has been particularly hard hit, with many exhibitions cancelled. Earlier this year, the difficult decision was made to postpone Sensors & Instrumentation Live. However, now that we begin to move out of lockdown, I am delighted to announce that the exhibition is back with new dates set for next year. On the 29 and 30 June 2021, the UK’s only dedicated exhibition for the test, measurement and control markets will return to the NEC, Birmingham. What’s more, Electronics Industry Live and Future Robotics Live will be joining the exhibition, making Hall 8 of the NEC, Birmingham the place to be come June. The exciting partnership will also offer a one ticket policy


with co-located events Interplas, Med-Tech Innovation Expo and TCT 3Sixty. Find out more about Sensors & Instrumentation Live and the collaboration on page 50.


Victoria White, Editor


specialists but also by leading members of the global scientific community. The petition aims to raise global awareness of the crucial role of indoor climate quality for physical health and to demand that the WHO pushes for significant political changes. Rotronic, a market leader in the monitoring


of relative humidity (RH), supports this initiative for a humidity level of 40-60 %RH, especially in healthcare facilities. According to scientific evidence, this is considered the optimal level for the respiratory immune system and reduces the spread of seasonal respiratory diseases and their burden on society, especially in view of the current coronavirus pandemic. With the reliable continuous Rotronic


Monitoring System (RMS), the company provides the healthcare sector with all the necessary data for monitoring and maintaining


the required humidity level. In addition the company offers handhelds, data loggers and analogue and digital transmitters to measure relative humidity and all other humidity parameters. These humidity measuring instruments measure both humidity and temperature, which is crucial for the correct measurement and interpretation of humidity. Because a fluctuation of 1°C can already influence the humidity measurement by up to 6 %RH. Rotronic also offers solutions for


monitoring the CO2 value, another important parameter for assessing indoor air quality. You can find details on the petition at the


website www.40to60rh.com. www.rotronic.com/rms


appRentice applications hit RecoRd high


MTC Apprenticeships has seen a surge in applications


from prospective apprentices, with more than 700 young people looking to join the award-winning programme. Now 135 successful candidates are in a talent pool ready to be snapped up by employers who can now take advantage of the recently-announced Government scheme to pay an additional, temporary, six-month bonus of up to £2,000 per learner for employers taking on new apprentices. David Hughes MBE, managing director of the MTC’s Advanced Manufacturing


Training Centre said that incorporating apprenticeships into a training and recruitment strategy offers great benefits to any business, with apprenticeships providing a cost effective way to attract enthusiastic, motivated, young talent, while helped by temporary Government funding. Recent figures from the National Apprenticeship Service show that 75 per cent


of employers believe that taking on apprentices has lowered their recruitment costs. Firms stand to benefit from increased employee retention and loyalty, as well as higher levels of staff performance, with 92 per cent of businesses who employ apprentices saying that apprenticeships lead to a more motivated and satisfied workforce. Apprenticeships also help address the engineering skills shortage by providing learners with the skills and experience to help them add value to their organisation from the start of their careers.


www.the-mtc.org analog devices announces MaxiM integRated acquisition


Analog Devices (ADI) and Maxim Integrated Products have entered into a definitive agreement under which ADI will acquire Maxim in an all stock transaction that values the combined enterprise at over $68 billion. The transaction, which was unanimously approved by the Boards of Directors of both companies, will strengthen ADI as an analogue semiconductor leader with increased breadth and scale across multiple attractive end markets. “ADI and Maxim share a passion for solving our


customers’ most complex problems, and with the increased breadth and depth of our combined technology and talent, we will be able to develop more complete, cutting-edge solutions,” said Vincent Roche, president and


Instrumentation Monthly August 2020


CEO of ADI. “Maxim is a respected signal processing and power management franchise with a proven technology portfolio and impressive history of empowering design innovation. Together, we are well-positioned to deliver the next wave of semiconductor growth, while engineering a healthier, safer and more sustainable future for all.” In further expansion news, ADI also recently


announced its acquisition of the High Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI) business of INVECAS, a Santa Clara based company specialising in embedded software and system level solutions.


www.analog.com 5


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