By Dennis Gündel, global product manager zinc flake coatings, Atotech Deutschland GmbH Successful automotive pioneer Henry Ford knew one thing for sure: “If you always do what you’ve always done, you’ll always get what you’ve always got.” Today, thanks to many innovations and changes, this motto is still key in the automotive industry. Besides looking to the future and setting major trends, suc...

Five months on from the major fire in the Notre-Dame de Paris cathedral, the full extent of the damage is still uncertain. What is certain is that the restoration of the world famous Gothic landmark is pushing forward. Live images on television and the internet showed the collapse of the spire and the nave’s rib vaults. Large parts of the centuries old roof framework burnt down. The Notre-Dame...

Growermetal’s R&D department has developed the Grower Tenkeep® safety washer family. Launched at this year’s Fastener Fair Stuttgart, the washers have two surfaces with knurls of different geometry, specifically designed in order to ensure maximum performance against loosening of the bolted joints – even in the presence of extreme vibrations and dynamic loads. The Grower Tenkeep® family of...

High cycle fatigue testing allows improvements in the design and durability of fastener products designed to meet tough aerospace requirements. Aerospace fasteners – bolts, studs, screws and rivets – are among the most critical components used in aircraft manufacturing. Large aircraft can use up to 3 million fasteners in their assembly, with structural bolts comprising about 25% of the total an...

Bossong SpA has announced that its BCR V-PLUS chemical anchor has been upgraded in accordance with the new EOTA guidelines and has obtained important new qualifications. Thanks to the new qualifications and based on the EC/ETA load data, Bossong states that customers now have access to one of the best products on the European market with dual certification – ETA Option 7 for non-cracked concret...

Can-Eng Furnaces International Limited was recently awarded a contract from a research organisation for the supply of a rapid heating furnace to be used for lightweight hot stamping and formed aluminium automotive component product development. This organisation will integrate the aluminium sheet heating furnace with existing equipment to support both automotive manufacturers and tier 1 supplie...

German discount supermarket chain, Lidl, recently built a brand new headquarters in Heilbronn, Germany, which involved the construction of an office building, meeting rooms, a reception facility, cafeteria, underground parking facilities, fitness centre, logistics facilities and outdoor parking facilities. Part of the development included a requirement for a façade sun protection cladding syste...

Dymax has announced its BlueWave® AX-550 LED flood curing system, a high-intensity unit used for curing light curable materials to increase productivity and efficiency. Designed to be integrated into a larger system, such as an automated manufacturing system, or as a stand-alone bench-top curing station, the BlueWave AX-550 combines controller, emitter, and power supply into a compact, all-in-o...

Fasteners are a key but often overlooked aspect of racking system installation and maintenance. NEXTracker, one of STANLEY® Engineered Fastening’s premier customers, designs, manufactures, builds, and services the world’s most advanced single-axis solar tracker systems for small to utility-scale power plants around the world. As the cost of panels drop, improving fastener efficiencies have prov...

PennEngineering, a global leader in the fastening industry, has been awarded ISO 14001:2015 (Environmental Management System) certification for its global headquarters in Danboro, Pennsylvania, USA. This is the fifth PennEngineering facility to achieve this accreditation, which reflects the company’s ongoing commitment to environmental responsibility and the advancement of sustainability practi...