The Engineer
January 2012 Online
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Report says that underground cables are still expensive
31 Jan 2012
Underground power cables are still at least five times more expensive than overhead lines, new research says — despite advances in technology.
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January's top 10 engineering business stories
31 Jan 2012
Each month, The Engineer picks 10 of the most notable news stories from our Business Briefs archive.
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Statoil signs IRM contracts for DeepOcean vessels
31 Jan 2012
DeepOcean, a provider of subsea engineering and trenching services, today announced that oil and gas company Statoil has awarded additional inspection, repair and maintenance (IRM) contracts to two DeepOcean vessels.
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Foster Wheeler set to lead Don Valley CCS project in Yorkshire
31 Jan 2012
2Co Power has appointed Foster Wheeler to lead a carbon-capture and storage (CCS) project in Yorkshire.
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Superhydrophobic materials enable controlled drug release
31 Jan 2012
A new mechanism of drug release using 3D superhydrophobic materials has been developed in the US.
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Berkeley First builds 'green' student housing in London
30 Jan 2012
Developer Berkeley First and student accommodation provider Student Castle have exchanged contracts for the turnkey sale of a 617-bedroom student accommodation development in Central London.
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MBDA awards Thales UK laser proximity fuse contract
30 Jan 2012
Defence company Thales UK has been awarded an £11m contract by missile developer MBDA to provide the laser proximity fuse for Sea Ceptor’s common anti-air modular missile (CAMM).
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TowerBrook Capital Partners acquires Volution from AAC
30 Jan 2012
Investment management company TowerBrook Capital Partners has agreed to acquire Volution, a UK manufacturer and distributor of ventilation products based in Crawley, from AAC Capital UK.Volution’s product range includes residential, commercial and industrial electrical fans and systems and otherventilation related products.
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Perkins awards Newburgh Engineering supplier contract
30 Jan 2012
Rotherham-based rail-industry supplier Newburgh Engineering has secured a contract with engine manufacturer Perkins after successfully completing its stringent supplier tendering process. Newburgh’s founding site, based in Bradwell, Derbyshire, has previously worked on smaller contracts for Perkins, but this contract win is a considerable boost for the Rotherham site’s dedicated team.
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Centrica buys ConocoPhilips' interests in Statfjord oil field
30 Jan 2012
Utility company Centrica has reached an agreement with ConocoPhillips to acquire its non-operated interests in the gas and oil producing Statfjord field and associated satellites for a total cash consideration of $223m (£142m), including $103m attributable to historic tax allowances.
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MoD awards Lockheed Martin geospatial intelligence contract
30 Jan 2012
The Ministry of Defence (MoD) has awarded Lockheed Martin UK Information Systems and Global Solutions (IS&GS) and its industry team, Team SOCRATES, a contract to deliver the Future Deployable Geospatial Intelligence (FDG) Project — part of the overall PICASSO programme.
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MoD selects UK firms to create missile system for Royal Navy
30 Jan 2012
UK-based firms are to develop a new missile defence system for the Royal Navy, the Ministry of Defence has announced.
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Scientists demonstrate silicone rubber has self-healing ability
30 Jan 2012
Scientists have demonstrated that silicone rubber can repair itself through heat-activated reversible bonding.
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Scotland's renewables ambition
30 Jan 2012
Aiming to be 100 per cent renewable powered by 2020, Scotland hosts a major offshore wind conference and exhibition this week
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MOF materials could make hydrogen fuel more practical
30 Jan 2012
US researchers believe they can make hydrogen a more practical fuel for vehicles by synthesising novel materials with high hydrogen-adsorption capacities.
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ITF announces oil and gas industry priorities for 2012
27 Jan 2012
Oil and gas technology organisation ITF has announced the challenges that its membership of operator and service companies want to see tackled as priorities in 2012.
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LEDs and radio waves could help locate items in shops
27 Jan 2012
A hybrid location identification system that uses radio-frequency transmitters and overhead LED lights could help shoppers locate items in a shop.
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Backup plan
27 Jan 2012
A number of promising announcements this week suggest that grid technologies might finally be able to keep pace with the drive for renewable energy.
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Exports Action Plan could help food and drink industry grow
27 Jan 2012
Food and farming minister Jim Paice has today launched a plan that it is claimed could help hundreds of companies secure sales in lucrative emerging markets.
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Weir acquires upstream oil and gas valve provider Novatech
27 Jan 2012
Engineering company Weir has agreed to acquire Novatech, a US manufacturer of well service pump valves and valve seats for upstream oil and gas applications, for $176m (£113m) in cash.
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Bugatti awards Ricardo further contract for Veyron's DCT
27 Jan 2012
French car manufacturer Bugatti has placed a further contact with Ricardo for the production of the Dual Clutch Transmission (DCT) system of its Veyron supercar.
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NEDO selects Mitsubishi and Hitachi for Spanish project
27 Jan 2012
Automotive manufacturers Hitachi and Mitsubishi have been jointly selected as contractors for the Smart Community System Demonstration Project in Spain, by the New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organisation (NEDO).
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Pepric concludes €1.4m round for production of first product
27 Jan 2012
Scanning system producer Pepric, a spin-off of imec, has successfully concluded a €1.4m (£1.2m) capital round.
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Catalytic process could make useful byproducts from diesel
27 Jan 2012
A new catalytic process could convert byproducts of diesel production into useful chemicals for industry.
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Material removes radioactive gas from spent nuclear fuel
27 Jan 2012
Scientists in the US believe they have found a material to remove radioactive gas from spent nuclear fuel.
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AviancaTaca purchases 33 A320neo and 18 A320 aircraft
26 Jan 2012
Airline holding company AviancaTaca, which includes subsidiary AeroGal of Ecuador, has signed a purchase agreement for 33 eco-efficient A320neo and 18 A320 aircraft from Airbus.The order, which is the largest from a single airline in the region in terms of number of aircraft, follows a Memorandum of Understanding signed during the Le Bourget Air Show in Paris in June 2011.
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Norwegian confirms order for 100 Boeing 737 MAX aircraft
26 Jan 2012
US aerospace and defence company Boeing and Oslo-based low-cost airline Norwegian have announced a firm order for 100 fuel-efficient 737 MAX aircraft and 22 Next-Generation 737-800s.
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United Technologies reports fourth quarter 2011 results
26 Jan 2012
Connecticut-based company United Technologies has reported fourth-quarter 2011 earnings per share of $1.47 (£0.94) and net income attributable to common shareowners of $1.3bn, up 12 per cent and 11 per cent, respectively, from the previous year.
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Researchers analyse piano playing using motion capture
26 Jan 2012
Southampton University researchers are pioneering a new way to use motion-capture technology in order to analyse the way the piano is played.
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Powerwalls: engineering in virtual reality
26 Jan 2012
The Engineer paid a visit to Warwick University and Jaguar Land Rover to find out how virtual reality is changing the automotive design process.
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SNC-Lavalin Nuclear awards Areva nuclear FCVS contract
26 Jan 2012
French energy company Areva has been awarded a contract by the Canadian group SNC-Lavalin Nuclear to provide filtered containment venting systems (FCVS) for Units 1 and 2 at the CNE Cernavoda nuclear power plant in Romania.Planned for completion over the next 27 months, the contract is part of a global co-operation agreement between Areva and SNC-Lavalin for CANDU-specific reactor designs.
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Engineers install longest urban superconductor cable in history
26 Jan 2012
German engineers have achieved the longest urban superconductor cable installation in the world.
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Scientists hide 3D object using plasmonic 'invisibility cloak'
26 Jan 2012
Scientists claim to have cloaked a three-dimensional object standing in free space, making it invisible from all angles.
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Oil fears should spur low-carbon innovation
25 Jan 2012
As the UK’s Coryton oil refinery goes into administration, and uncertainty over key oil producing regions grows, the case for an electric vehicle industry is growing stronger by the week.
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Waste light captured from a mobile could charge its battery
25 Jan 2012
Researchers are aiming to extend mobile phone battery life by capturing waste light from the screen and converting it into electricity.
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Mass spectrometry technique could speed up UTI treatment
25 Jan 2012
Researchers using a new method for identifying bacteria claim it will lead to faster, cheaper and more effective urinary tract infection (UTI) treatment.
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Harvesting technique could make algae a viable biofuel
25 Jan 2012
Algae may become an economically viable biofuel thanks to the development of a harvesting technique from Sheffield University.
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Companies prepare to develop oxy-fired CCS project at Drax
25 Jan 2012
BOC is to join Alstom and Drax Power in the development of a carbon-capture and storage project in Yorkshire.
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Extreme thinness of graphene makes it 'invisible' to water
24 Jan 2012
A new study shows how the extreme thinness of graphene makes it ‘invisible’ to water — a development that could benefit future electronic devices.
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Magnetic soap could be used to help clean up oil spills
24 Jan 2012
UK scientists claim to have developed the world’s first magnetic soap as a way of helping clean up oil spills.
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Nano-biosensor can detect molecules at femtomolar levels
24 Jan 2012
A detector that is sensitive to just a few molecules of interest in a glass of water could find a use in diagnostics and forensics.
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Majorsell opens new West Bromwich facility to delegates
24 Jan 2012
Airbrake supplier Majorsell celebrated its West Midlands expansion with an open day.
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DPE designs insulation box for Jodrell Bank's SKA telescope
24 Jan 2012
Durham Precision Engineering (DPE) has been working with engineers and scientists from the Jodrell Bank Centre for Astrophysics at Manchester University on designs for an insulation box to contain some of the noise created by the equipment within the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) telescope.
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Siemens announces financial results for first quarter of 2012
24 Jan 2012
In the first quarter of its new fiscal year 2012, ending 31 December 2011, electronics company Siemens achieved increased revenue and claimed it laid the cornerstone for future growth, despite the difficult economic environment.
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Researchers create clear film from birch fibril pulp
24 Jan 2012
A method for making transparent plastic-like packaging material from birch fibril pulp has been developed in Finland.
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Sensor checks blood sugar levels by measuring saliva
23 Jan 2012
A sensor that can check blood sugar levels by measuring glucose concentrations in saliva has been developed in the US.
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Office Canopy Group acquires Kudos Business Technologies
23 Jan 2012
UK LED supplier Kudos Business Technologies has been acquired by Office Canopy Group (OCG), a UK provider of business commodity items.
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Exports drive record turnover increase for ANH Refractories
23 Jan 2012
North West manufacturer ANH Refractories Europe is reporting a record increase in turnover from £4m to around £7m in 2011, driven by strong export sales.
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Proserv announces 130 new jobs and increase in turnover
23 Jan 2012
Proserv, a provider of energy production technology services, today announced that it is creating more than 130 new employment opportunities, after reporting a 17 per cent increase in turnover.
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Electrical contractor PD Welch announces increase in turnover
23 Jan 2012
PD Welch Electrical Contractors, part of the Seaking Electrical group, has announced an increase in turnover that brought its total from £900,000 to £1.3m in the last 12 months of 2011.
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SMMT figures reveal increase in UK car manufacturing
23 Jan 2012
Figures released from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders show that UK car manufacturing rose 5.8 per cent to 1.3 million in 2011 and ended the year with a 1.6 per cent rise in December.
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DECC reveals plans for marine energy park in the south west
23 Jan 2012
The UK’s first marine energy park will be established in south-west England in a bid to speed up the progress of marine power development.
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Kodak files voluntary petitions for business reorganisation
23 Jan 2012
Eastman Kodak Company and its US subsidiaries have filed voluntary petitions for chapter 11 business reorganisation in the US Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York.The business reorganisation is intended to bolster liquidity in the US and abroad; monetise non-strategic intellectual property; fairly resolve legacy liabilities; and enable the company to focus on its most valuable businesslines.
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Self-healing concrete could be formed using bacteria spores
23 Jan 2012
Materials scientists are experimenting with the possibility of creating self-healing concrete using biomineralisation.
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How to engineer a business, and space for vision
23 Jan 2012
Advice for engineers on how to become entrepreneurs and an in-depth look at how space science is contributing to medical imaging head the list of this week’s events.
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Scanner approval may lift ban on taking liquids onto aircraft
23 Jan 2012
Airports could allow passengers to take liquids over 100ml in volume as hand baggage from 2013 after approval of a new scanner.
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Atkins joins scheme for non-discriminatory recruitment
20 Jan 2012
Engineering and design consultancy Atkins is supporting a new flagship scheme, lead by deputy prime minister Nick Clegg, which is aimed at encouraging companies to open their doors to young people from all walks of life.Atkins joins more than 100 of the UK’s most prominent companies and institutions that have signed up to the Business Compact, committing them to recruitment policies that encourage applications from all sectors of society.
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Programme seeks to prepare UK for hydrogen vehicles
20 Jan 2012
Companies developing hydrogen vehicles and infrastructure are to collaborate with government and establish a UK roadmap for deploying the technology.
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BASF sells 50 per cent share in PEC-Rhin to GPN
20 Jan 2012
Chemical company BASF has signed a contract to sell its 50 per cent share in PEC-Rhin in Ottmarsheim, France, to its joint venture partner GPN, a member of the French Total Group.
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Schlumberger reports full-year financial results for 2011
20 Jan 2012
Oilfield services company Schlumberger today reported full-year 2011 revenue of $39.54bn (£25.6bn), up from $27.45bn in 2010.
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Organic LED technology makes car roofs transparent
20 Jan 2012
BASF and Philips have integrated their latest organic LED technology into car roofs to make them transparent.
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Commercial adoption of gold nanoparticles may be closer
20 Jan 2012
A method for manufacturing gold nanoparticles could hasten their commercial adoption in the medical and electronics industries.
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Leading the charge
20 Jan 2012
Hopes are on the private sector to fund the roll-out of electric vehicle charging infrastructure in the UK. But it may take more than commercial opportunities to be successful.
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Hollow cylindrical design could improve solar cells' efficiency
20 Jan 2012
Researchers have tested a novel design of luminescent solar concentrators that could improve the efficiency of photovoltaics.
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Green Biologics announces merger with butylfuel
20 Jan 2012
UK industrial biotechnology company Green Biologics has announced a merger with butylfuel, a US renewable chemicals and biofuels company.The company will operate under the Green Biologics name and continue to be head-quartered in Abingdon, UK, with an operational presence and commercial focus in the US contributed by butylfuel, which will become Green Biologics.The effective date for the all-equity merger is 1 January 2012.
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Oxford Innovation to deliver life sciences firms programme
20 Jan 2012
Oxford Innovation has been appointed by the Welsh government to deliver a programme that will assist start-up and early-stage life sciences companies with high growth potential to grow more rapidly over the next three years.
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Mabey Bridge wins contract for wind turbine towers in Wales
20 Jan 2012
UK wind-turbine tower manufacturer Mabey Bridge has secured a multi-million-pound order with Nordex to manufacture and supply 35 towers, between 65 and 70m in length.
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Radiation method could lead to Star Trek-style 'tricorders'
20 Jan 2012
Handheld medical scanners reminiscent of Star Trek ’tricorders’ could be a step closer thanks to a new way of producing terahertz radiation.
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Search-and-rescue robot mimics movement of snakes
20 Jan 2012
Georgia Tech researchers have observed the locomotion of snakes in order to develop an all-terrain robot for search-and-rescue missions.
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Technology from i20 Water helps Veolia improve its service
19 Jan 2012
Water distribution technology company i2O Water has helped Veolia Water realise savings in excess of 1.5 million litres of water a day, equivalent to nearly £100,000 a year, following a successful roll out of its integrated network monitoring system across 31 Veolia Water sites in the UK.
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CHEC awards Tyne Gangway contract for dredging vessel
19 Jan 2012
Ship access equipment manufacturer Tyne Gangway has signed a contract with contractor China Harbour Engineering Company (CHEC) after exhibiting at China’s largest maritime trade exhibition, Marintec.
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Metso supplies boiler fired by recovered fuel to CHP plant
19 Jan 2012
Process industry machinery provider Metso will supply Mälarenergi’s combined heat and power (CHP) plant in Västerås, Sweden, with the world’s largest recovered-fuel-fired boiler.
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Hydrogen cars at the Royal Society
19 Jan 2012
As the government unveil its latest project to get hydrogen cars on Britain’s roads, The Engineer discovers the technology behind these green vehicles.
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Raytheon supplies power switch for British Army SVs
19 Jan 2012
The UK division of defence contractor Raytheon has been selected by General Dynamics’ UK division to supply the chassis power-switch node for the Scout variant of the Specialist Vehicle (SV) programme demonstration phase.
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Tin dioxide offers sufficient transparency for solar cells
19 Jan 2012
By studying the limits of transparency in conducting oxides, US researchers are hoping to design more efficient solar cells.
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Rolls-Royce wins contract to supply oil spill recovery vessels
19 Jan 2012
Power systems provider Rolls-Royce has been awarded two contracts to design and equip seven vessels for Brazilian ship owner Navegação São Miguel.The contracts, for four oil spill recovery vessels and three bunker tankers, are worth £23m to Rolls-Royce.The Rolls-Royce-designed UT 535 E Oil Spill Response Vessels (OSRV) will be equipped to prevent environmental damage from oil spills and have the capacity to transfer recovered oil for proper onshore disposal.
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Saab set to support Sweden's Black Hawk helicopters
19 Jan 2012
The defence and security company Saab has signed a major support agreement with Sikorsky Aerospace Services regarding technical maintenance and support for Sweden’s Black Hawk helicopters.
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CTAL opens new composite aero-engine parts facility
19 Jan 2012
Mark Prisk MP, business and enterprise minister, has opened a facility that will develop new composite aero-engine components.The facility has been developed by CTAL, a joint venture between Rolls-Royce and GKN Aerospace, to pilot pioneering manufacturing processes for aero-engine fan blades and fan-cases made of composite materials.CTAL’s £14.8m facility will employ 70 engineers on the Isle of Wight and has been supported with £7.4m in funding from the UK government.
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Smart pill containing microchip tracks adherence to medication
19 Jan 2012
US technology firm Proteus Biomedical has launched a smart pill with an integrated microchip that tracks patients’ adherence to their medication.
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Current limiter could keep grids in step with renewables
18 Jan 2012
A new superconducting current limiter could allow the design of efficient grid systems that are more compatible with renewable-energy projects.
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Will infrastructure investment really rebalance the UK economy?
18 Jan 2012
Rarely a day goes by without a member of the government hailing the “economy-rebalancing” properties of some project or other. But while it’s tempting to be cynical in the face of a refrain that’s becoming a little tired, we decided to subject it a little more rigorous scrutiny.
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BMW recalls MINI models owing to water-pump fault
18 Jan 2012
Around 29,868 MINI Cooper S and MINI John Cooper Works cars are being recalled in Britain following the detection of a potential fault in an engine water pump.
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BMT Asia Pacific set to deliver technical review of Banten Port
18 Jan 2012
BMT Asia Pacific Indonesia, a subsidiary of engineering consultancy BMT, has announced its latest project with state-owned port operator, Pelindo II.
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US Army awards BAE Systems IDIQ order for HMDs
18 Jan 2012
Defence, security and aerospace company BAE Systems has received a $21.7m (£14.3m) indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity (IDIQ) order for Head Mounted Displays (HMDs) from the US Army Program Executive Office Soldier.
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UK manufacturers target emerging markets
18 Jan 2012
Britain’s manufacturers are looking past economic gloom and focusing on generating continued growth in their own business through 2012, according to a major survey of senior manufacturing executives published today by EEF, the manufacturers’ organisation.
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US Army awards Raytheon translation system contract
18 Jan 2012
The US Army has awarded Raytheon BBN Technologies a $5.5m (£3.6m) contract to develop a two-way communication and translation system that can be used on a variety of operating systems and platforms, including portable, mobile and net-enabled devices.
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Alstom and SEE set to develop wave-energy site off Orkney
18 Jan 2012
Wave-energy converters are to be used by Alstom and SSE Renewables in the development of the Costa Head Wave Project off mainland Orkney.
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Electric seat-less unicycle takes the floor at show
17 Jan 2012
Personal mobility took another twist at last week’s International Consumer Electronics Show with a demonstration of an electric, seat-less, unicycle dubbed Solowheel.
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Space technology may be used to reduce congestion on roads
17 Jan 2012
A £2.4m project to use space technologies to ease road congestion will launch tomorrow at the National Space Centre in Leicester.
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Airbus names 2011 its most successful year yet
17 Jan 2012
Aircraft manufacturer Airbus delivered 534 commercial aircraft to 88 customers (10 new) and booked 1,419 net orders in 2011, making it the most successful year in the company’s history and the 10th in a row with a production increase.
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WFEL constructs large facility to support its services division
17 Jan 2012
Stockport-based defence engineering business WFEL has constructed a 14,000ft2 manufacturing facility to support its growing support services division.
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EDF withdraws opposition to Exelon and CENG merger
17 Jan 2012
French utility company EDF has reached an agreement with Chicago-based electricity firm Exelon to protect the operational autonomy of Constellation Energy Nuclear Group (CENG).
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Government invests £6m in aerospace innovation projects
17 Jan 2012
The UK’s aerospace sector is set to benefit from £6m of government investment in collaborative research and development projects that encourage the creation of innovative solutions to some of the higher-risk challenges facing the industry.
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Ink enables electronics to be printed on flexible substrates
17 Jan 2012
Materials scientists have developed a reactive silver ink for printing high-performance electronics on flexible plastic, paper or fabric substrates.
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Tracking tool could prevent the spread of disease at Olympics
16 Jan 2012
Technology tracking global population movements and infectious disease outbreaks using the internet could help officials planning the London 2012 Olympic Games.
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Camco sells UK advisory business to Baxi Partnership
16 Jan 2012
Clean energy developer Camco has sold its UK advisory business, Camco Advisory Services, to Baxi Partnership.
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Automated CT scans could speed up 3D brain imaging
16 Jan 2012
A new way of automating multiple computed tomography scans could make whole-brain 3D mapping a routine task.
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A week of transport icons
16 Jan 2012
Transport dominates this week’s Briefing, with a lecture on the return of a London icon and a conference addressing barriers that stand in the way of electric vehicles.
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Sensor allows plant hormone to be seen in plant tissues
16 Jan 2012
Researchers have developed a sensor that allows the plant hormone, auxin, to be visualised in plant tissues.
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Mexican carrier Volaris orders 44 Airbus A320 aircraft
13 Jan 2012
Mexican low-cost carrier Volaris has signed a purchase agreement for 44 eco-efficient Airbus A320 aircraft, comprised of 30 A320neo and 14 A320 aircraft — making it the largest single aircraft order ever by an airline in Mexico.Volaris, also the first airline in Mexico to order the A320neo, will announce its engine selections for the aircraft at a later date.
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Network Rail selects Atkins for signalling renewal contract
13 Jan 2012
Engineering and design consultancy Atkins has been announced as the preferred supplier for two of Network Rail’s signalling renewal framework contracts.
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BASF invests in equity partnership with Sion Power
13 Jan 2012
Chemical company BASF has invested $50m (£32.6m) to acquire an equity ownership position in privately held Sion Power, a developer of lithium-sulphur (Li-S) batteries based in Tucson, Arizona.
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Doris Engineering awards Jee subsea and riser contract
13 Jan 2012
Paris-based Doris Engineering has awarded subsea engineering company Jee a contract for specialist subsea and riser engineering on a deepwater project offshore Angola.
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Chevron reports fall in earnings in fourth quarter of 2011
13 Jan 2012
Energy company Chevron has reported in its interim update that earnings for the fourth quarter of 2011 are expected to be significantly below third-quarter 2011 results.
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IBM creates 'world's smallest' magnetic computer memory bit
13 Jan 2012
IBM claims to have created the world’s smallest magnetic computer memory bit using only 12 atoms.
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Rolls-Royce wins contract for world's first LNG-powered tugs
13 Jan 2012
Rolls-Royce has signed a contract to deliver engines and propulsion systems for the world’s first Liquid Natural Gas (LNG) powered tugs.
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Is shale gas all it's 'fracked' up to be?
13 Jan 2012
Cuadrilla is looking to the home counties for shale gas reserves fit for ‘fracking’. But is this energy resource all it’s ‘fracked’ up to be?
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Flow model predicts behaviour of shale gas reservoirs
13 Jan 2012
A flow model that predicts the behaviour of shale gas reservoirs has been developed by researchers at Oklahoma University.
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Anadarko awards Aker steel tube umbilicals contract
13 Jan 2012
Aker Solutions has been awarded a contract of undisclosed value for eight steel tube umbilicals by Anadarko Petroleum for the Lucius field located in the Gulf of Mexico.
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Bloodhound needs components from UK manufacturers
13 Jan 2012
UK motorsport engineering companies are being invited take part in the Bloodhound land-speed record project following the launch of design and manufacture work packages.
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Babcock wins contract for BBC radio and television services
12 Jan 2012
Babcock has won a contract to continue providing services relating to the transmission and distribution of radio and television for the BBC World Service.
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Zooming in on the London Centre for Nanotechnology
12 Jan 2012
The Engineer paid a visit to the London Centre for Nanotechnology to uncover how tiny structures are making a big difference across a range of disciplines.
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Lola-Drayson electric racing car unveiled
12 Jan 2012
A new electric race car prototype has been officially revealed by Lola Group and Drayson Racing Technologies.
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Flight deck
12 Jan 2012
Aircraft Carrier Alliance guest blogger David Downs visits the UK home of the F35 project at Samlesbury, where the carriers’ main weapon is taking shape
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UK government set to invest in tidal-energy demonstration
12 Jan 2012
More than £10m is to be invested by the UK government into research and development that will demonstrate wave and tidal-energy generation at scale.
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Competition encourages young women to become engineers
12 Jan 2012
Lola has launched a national competition aimed at encouraging young women to pursue further education and careers in science, design and engineering.
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Evance Wind Turbines sees sales double in 2011
11 Jan 2012
Evance Wind Turbines, a Leicestershire-based manufacturer of small wind turbines, has seen sales grow by more than 200 per cent over the last 12 months and enters 2012 with a strong forward order book for its R9000 small wind turbine.
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Mindspeed Technologies acquires SoC supplier Picochip
11 Jan 2012
Mindspeed Technologies, a supplier of semiconductor products for network infrastructure applications, has signed an agreement to acquire UK-based Picochip, a supplier of integrated system-on-chip (SoC) products for small-cell base stations, for approximately $51.8m (£33.5m) with a potential earnout payment of up to $25m, payable in the first calendar quarter of 2013.
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Brazilian Navy orders three Ocean Patrol Vessels from BAE
11 Jan 2012
The Brazilian Navy has signed a contract worth £133m with BAE Systems for the supply of three Ocean Patrol Vessels and ancillary support services.
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Biodiesel production method could reduce fuel's drawbacks
11 Jan 2012
A new method of producing biodiesel from microalgae aims to overcome some of the previous drawbacks of the fuel.
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UK renewable energy company secures €6m (£5m) investment
11 Jan 2012
Biomass Engineering, a manufacturer of renewable energy biomass plants, has secured a €6m (£5m) growth equity investment from a US-based investor.
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Repair-and-go method 'can extend the life of any device'
11 Jan 2012
Researchers are developing a ‘repair-and-go’ method for small surface cracks on any digital device.
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Catapult leads £1.2m funding round into dissolving-film firm
11 Jan 2012
Catapult has led a £1.2m investment round into BioFilm Holdings, a developer and manufacturer of thin dissolving film-based products.
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Saab subsidiary Combitech acquires Sörman Intressenter
11 Jan 2012
Technical consultancy Combitech, an independent subsidiary of defence and security company Saab, has signed an agreement to acquire Sörman Intressenter, parent company of Sörman Information — a consulting firm that provides services and solutions within qualified technical information management.
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Austal wins contract to build wind farm support vessel
11 Jan 2012
Australian shipbuilding company Austal has confirmed a contract for a fourth wind-farm support vessel for Holyhead-based Turbine Transfers.
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Railroaded
11 Jan 2012
The most important people for the HS2 project are the engineers who will have to plan, specify and build it. Despite the long association of engineers with railways, it’s worrying that few have raised their voices about this project
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Capsule manoeuvres through the body and takes pictures
11 Jan 2012
A controllable endoscopic capsule designed to manoeuvre through the human body and take photographs has been tested by researchers in Massachusetts.
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Hypersonic tests aim at space
11 Jan 2012
German engineers have recently completed shock tunnel testing of a novel SCRamjet engine which might someday allow better access to space.
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Air France-KLM finalises order for 25 Boeing Dreamliners
10 Jan 2012
US aerospace and defence company Boeing and Air France-KLM have finalised an order for 25 Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners, with options.The order was signed in late December 2011 and recorded on Boeing’s Orders and Deliveries website, attributed to an unidentified customer.The Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner is a slightly larger version of the 787-8 and will carry 250–290 passengers on routes of 14,800 to 15,750km.
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Keeping costs in mind for new nuclear
10 Jan 2012
EdF chairman Vincent de Rivas says that the project to build a new reactor at Hinckley Point underlines his company’s determination to keep the project within budget and to invest in training
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UK government gives HS2 rail network the go-ahead
10 Jan 2012
The UK government has given HS2 the go-ahead after concluding it can deliver a sufficient rate of financial return and mitigate impacts on local communities and the environment.
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Metso wins supply contract for containerboard production line
10 Jan 2012
Engineering and technology company Metso has received an automation order for Stora Enso Narew’s containerboard production line at Ostroleka in Poland.
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Metallic conductance is seen in ferroelectric nanodomains
10 Jan 2012
The first observation of metallic conductance in ferroelectric nanodomains has been made by researchers at Oak Ridge National Laboratory in the US.
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Raytheon wins two Evolved Seasparrow Missile contracts
10 Jan 2012
US defence contractor Raytheon has been awarded two contracts totalling $212.8m (£137.9m) for the production of the Evolved Seasparrow Missile, with an option for $33m in additional work.
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Australian Army orders Faun Trackway UAV landing mats
10 Jan 2012
Faun Trackway, the defence division of Faun-Zoeller based in Llangefni, Anglesey, has secured an £800,000 order from the Australian armed forces.
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Businessman acquires Arnlea Systems from First Tech
10 Jan 2012
Inverurie-based asset management efficiency company Arnlea Systems has been acquired by Aberdeen businessman Mark Cavanagh from First Tech, for an undisclosed amount.
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Amadeus sells Xelerated stake to Marvell Technology
10 Jan 2012
Amadeus Capital Partners has sold its stake in Xelerated, a technology company focused on network processing and programmable Ethernet switching products based in Stockholm, Sweden, and Santa Clara, California, to Marvell Technology, a producer of integrated silicon products.Financial details were not disclosed but the sale represents Amadeus’s second profitable semiconductor exit in the past 12 months, following the $367m (£237.8m) sale of Icera to Nvidia in May 2011.
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Atkins wins Qatar transport infrastructure contract
10 Jan 2012
Engineering design consultancy Atkins has been awarded a three-year contract, worth in excess of £70m, by the Qatar Ministry of Municipality and Urban Planning, to support delivery of its multi-billion-dollar transport and infrastructure programmes.
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Inexpensive sensor can warn of lithium-ion battery failure
10 Jan 2012
Scientists have developed an inexpensive sensor that can warn of failure in lithium-ion batteries.
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Sense-and-avoid systems set to aid UAVs in commercial use
10 Jan 2012
A project team from Queensland University of Technology is to develop sense-and-avoid systems for unmanned aerial vehicles.
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Engineers produce lens that overcomes diffraction limits
10 Jan 2012
US engineers have succeeded in creating a near-perfect ‘superlens’ that uses the principles of metamaterials to overcome conventional diffraction limits.
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Chemical energy development could lead to 'insect cyborgs'
10 Jan 2012
Scientists in Ohio believe that chemicals contained within insects can be converted to electricity, a development that could lead to so-called ’insect cyborgs’.
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Raytheon wins contract to develop Stunner interceptor
9 Jan 2012
Defence contractor Raytheon has received a $30.2m (£19.6m) contract from Rafael Advanced Defense Systems for continued development of the Stunner interceptor.
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ABB set to create electric vehicle charging network
9 Jan 2012
ABB has won a tender offer to build a network of 200 electric vehicle (EV) fast-charging stations throughout Estonia.
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Unilever Ventures sells stake in Rahu Catalytics to OM Group
9 Jan 2012
Unilever Ventures has agreed to sell its stake in Rahu Catalytics to OM Group.
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Firm highlights risk that UK defence IP may go abroad
9 Jan 2012
Cubewano today warned the government that the UK Ministry of Defence must purchase more from SMEs, or risk intellectual property developed in the UK being sold to foreign-owned defence conglomerates in order to secure a route to market.
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Oxford Catalysts receives FT order from energy company
9 Jan 2012
Oxford Catalysts has received an order for its Fischer-Tropsch (FT) product from a diversified energy company, following successful conclusion of negotiations announced on 15 December.
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SSE completes Environmental Energies Fund deal with SEP
9 Jan 2012
Energy company SSE, through its wholly owned SSE Ventures business, has completed a deal with Scottish Equity Partners (SEP) that involves SEP’s Environmental Energies Fund (EEF) acquiring a portfolio of cleantech investments owned by SSE Ventures.
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Marathon Oil Norge awards Aker contract for Bøyla project
9 Jan 2012
Norwegian oil services company Aker Solutions has signed a contract with Marathon Oil Norge to supply a subsea production system for the operator’s Bøyla project on the Norwegian continental shelf.
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Klinger doubles the size of its distribution centres
9 Jan 2012
Industrial gaskets manufacturer Klinger is planning further expansion in 2012 to serve its customer base in the offshore oil and gas industry.The company is to invest £1m across its Aberdeen and Runcorn distribution centres, to double the size of both centres and add emergency manufactring facilities for both metal and soft gaskets.
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General Dynamics wins Trident II contract from US Navy
9 Jan 2012
The US Navy has awarded General Dynamics Advanced Information Systems a $95.9m (£62.2m) contract for production and deployed-systems support of US and UK Trident II submarine strategic weapons systems, including the SSBN fire-control system, the SSGN attack weapon-control system, the US SSBN-replacement and the UK SSBN-successor common missile compartment.The contract has a maximum value of $225m if all options are exercised.
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Talking transport
9 Jan 2012
With a decision due on a new high speed rail link, and a host of motor shows opening their doors, Transport is top of this week’s agenda
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Advisory service available to all manufacturing businesses
9 Jan 2012
A national programme to help small and medium manufacturing businesses to grow has officially launched.
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Balloon-borne telescope will shed new light on black holes
9 Jan 2012
A balloon-born telescope will shed new light on black holes by looking at the polarisation of X-rays from outside the solar system.
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Lockheed Martin wins THAAD weapon system contract
9 Jan 2012
US aerospace and defence company Lockheed Martin received a contract totalling $1.96bn (£1.27bn) to produce the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) Weapon System for the Missile Defense Agency and the United Arab Emirates.
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Report calls for reform of UK's waste-management strategy
9 Jan 2012
British manufacturers are urging the government to improve the UK’s waste-management strategy to combat the growing threat of a materials shortage.
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Method could lead to cheap 3D cameras for mobile phones
9 Jan 2012
A new laser-scanning method could lead to 3D cameras that are small and cheap enough to be fitted into mobile phones.
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Electric vehicles: a numbers game
6 Jan 2012
The take-up of electric vehicles is slower than anticipated. Guest blogger Peter Young takes a look at why this might be.
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TSB sets up innovation hub for satellite products and services
6 Jan 2012
The aerospace industry has welcomed a centre that will help UK businesses develop satellite technologies.
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Speak and spell with phonetic voice recognition
6 Jan 2012
UK firm Novauris is aiming to take on the market leading computer voice recognition system with a different take on the problem
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Technology takes to the farm
6 Jan 2012
A futuristic farming project in Japan could set out the model for transforming the countryside to meet our growing needs.
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Photoacoustic device could give early warning of skin cancer
6 Jan 2012
A photoacoustic device is being developed to to detect melanoma cells before tumours have had chance to form.
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Bacteria-powered robots could explore other planets in future
6 Jan 2012
The US Navy is investigating the idea of small robots powered by bacteria that could one day explore other planets.
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Radar could detect objects that have fallen on railway tracks
6 Jan 2012
Radar devices could soon be fitted in railway stations to prevent accidents by detecting luggage or people that fall onto the tracks.
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Scientists unveil device to reduce livestock emissions
5 Jan 2012
US researchers claim they can make animal farms more environmentally friendly with a device that cuts energy usage and reduces ammonia emissions.
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Implantable prosthetic could help prevent epileptic seizures
5 Jan 2012
A system that could electronically detect and prevent epileptic seizures is under development at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).
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Bioengineers create living neon sign composed of bacteria
5 Jan 2012
Bioengineers in the US have created a living neon sign composed of millions of fluorescent bacterial cells — that could lead to organic germ detectors.
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Handheld device could enable quick detection of haematomas
5 Jan 2012
A new handheld device could enable the quick detection of haematomas in patients with traumatic brain injuries.
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Ford uses online software tool to simulate visual impairments
5 Jan 2012
Ford is hoping to make it easier for people with poor eyesight to drive by using a visual impairment simulator to redesign its instruments.
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Highly porous substance has potential for storing energy
5 Jan 2012
Materials scientists claim to have developed one of the most porous substances recorded to date.
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Could you be the secret engineer?
4 Jan 2012
We’re looking for a mystery blogger to write a monthly column for The Engineer magazine. Could it be you?
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Willetts urges companies to fund postgraduate institutes
4 Jan 2012
Companies keen to recruit more British graduates were called on today to help create science and technology postgraduate universities.
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'Jumping' water droplets could lead to better solar panels
4 Jan 2012
US engineers are hoping to improve heat-conducting electrical components using self-propelled water droplets — which could lead to more efficient solar panels.
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UCLA and KIER create network platform for the smart grid
4 Jan 2012
Korean and US researchers are collaborating on smart grid solutions that use wireless sensing and control systems.
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Plan means police may use 3D laser scanning at crash sites
4 Jan 2012
Plans to roll out 3D laser scanning technology on England’s motorways could shorten road closures due to crashes, according to the government.
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Race for the prize
4 Jan 2012
China’s announcement of plans for a moon mission aren’t likely to trigger a new Space Race; exploration these days is more a matter of collaboration than nationalism
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Fraunhofer researchers create faster optoelectronic sensor
4 Jan 2012
Researchers in Germany have developed a way around the limits of current low-cost optical sensors for very sensitive applications.
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US researchers create low-cost solar paint using quantum dots
4 Jan 2012
US researchers have created an inexpensive solar paint that uses semiconducting nanoparticles to produce energy.
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Graphene electronic mixer runs at microwave frequencies
3 Jan 2012
Swedish researchers have created a novel graphene electronic mixer that can operate at microwave frequencies.
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Office LED system simulates clouds passing overhead
3 Jan 2012
Office employees could soon be working under open skies thanks to a ceiling lighting system that imitates clouds passing overhead.
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Bacteria sensors could halve the cost of desalinated water
3 Jan 2012
The cost of desalinated water could be cut by almost half using new wireless bacteria sensors, according to the technology’s creators.
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UK manufacturing sector 'shows signs of stabilisation'
3 Jan 2012
The UK manufacturing sector showed signs of stabilisation at the end of 2011, according to survey data from Markit and the Charted Institute of Purchasing and Supply (CIPS).
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Researchers create method of cleaning toxins from oil sands
3 Jan 2012
Canadian researchers have developed a method of cleaning toxins from oil sands.
