Month: December 2018

The first Westpac Small Business Report found that a majority of manufacturing SME owners are concerned that they won’t be able to relax and wind down (77%), that they will miss out on sleep (74%), and that they will miss out on spending time with their family and friends (79%) during the Christmas period. The report also showed that, with 60% of manufacturing SMEs expecting to receive late payments during Christmas, cashflow is a clear concern. Produced in collaboration with in collaboration with Deloitte Access Economics, the report showed that the pressures on SME owners were particularly acute in the manufacturing sector. Across all industries, 58% of SNE owners expected to miss out on sleep due to work demands during the Christmas period, 63% won’t have a chance to relax and wind down, and 58% will miss out on time with family and friends. Overall, four in ten business owners will receive payments from debtors later over the Christmas period, and will spend eight hours per week, on average,…

A ground-up redesign has seen one of the world’s most recognisable portable measuring arms modernised to meet the needs of today’s metrology users, with a key focus on improved usability and versatility without compromising on speed and accuracy. A standout feature of the new Absolute Arm is its modular wrist design. This allows both the RS5 Laser Scanner and the pistol grip to be completely removed, facilitating easy probing in tight spaces. When reattached for laser scanning applications, a variety of grip sizes are available to ensure a perfect fit for every user. The new wrist also now features a display screen that allows for measurement result oversight, profile switching and calibration right at the point of measurement, reducing time spent switching attention between the arm and its control computer. “Over the last eight years we’ve received a lot of positive and constructive customer feedback, and hopefully people will see how this has informed our design,” says Anthony Vianna, Product Manager for the Absolute Arm range. “Many customers told us they needed…

From its beginnings 30 years ago as a relatively small family company based in Booleroo Centre, South Australia, Kelly Engineering has grown into a global concern. The agricultural equipment it produces – chiefly tillage systems for soil preparation and weed control, designed to be towed behind tractors – is now manufactured in Australia, Germany and the US. Roger Dunlop, Engineering Manager at Kelly Engineering, estimates that today some 50% to 60% of the company’s customer base is in the US and Canada. The remainder is spread across Australia, Europe and emerging markets such as Southern Africa. Central Innovation has been assisting Kelly Engineering with its design process solutions for the past seven years, and the relationship has been a fruitful one. The latest step of this ongoing journey is the company’s implementation of Central Innovation’s DataSuite data transformation solution, which facilitates the seamless transfer of data across multiple platforms by providing a common language between…

A common issue in fasteners is that nuts and bolts can loosen over time, due to exposure to vibration, shock and changes in temperature ¬– and the electronics industry is no exception. It is important that mechanical components that hold together critical parts do not fail as the consequences can lead to system malfunction and safety issues. Any environment that places a fastener under intense strain, changes in temperature or vibration will benefit from an adhesive threadlocking solution. The adhesive works by completely filling the gaps between mating threads, this then locks and seal the threaded assemblies and dramatically increases its reliability. Plastic nuts and bolts are commonly used in a variety of applications in the electronics industry. Plastics are light weighted and have insulating properties so do not conduct electricity. These features can be extremely beneficial in design and assembly. However, it can be tricky finding the right adhesive threadlocking solution that will work with plastic-to-plastics…

This is the lowest result since October 2017 but still extends the index's period of uninterrupted growth to 26 months – the longest run of recovery or expansion since 2005 (readings above 50 indicate expansion in activity, with the distance from 50 indicating the strength of the increase). Five of the seven activity indexes expanded in November, while employment was broadly stable (down 3.2 points to 49.4). The new orders index fell into contraction (down 10.1 points to 48.7) for the first time since September 2016, suggesting tougher conditions may be ahead for manufacturers in some sectors. “The recovery in the Australian manufacturing sector slowed in November, with the Australian PMI falling to its lowest level in a little over a year,” said Ai Group Chief Executive Innes Willox. “Despite this slowing, manufacturing extended its run of uninterrupted growth to 26 months. Food & beverages manufacturers reported higher production in the lead up to Christmas and respondents in other sectors reported high levels of activity related to infrastructure and…