July-August 2021

RENOVOTEC, a fast growing UK rugged hardware, software and services provider for supply chain companies is to drive Whitworths’ planned warehouse modernisation with new voice picking and wireless networking technology it was announced recently. The agreed project ROI is less than one year for the new systems and infrastructure investment, led by a 35% increase in voice- driven picking productivity. Whitworths is a UK sector leader in dried fruits, nuts and seeds with its factories, warehousing and head office located on a single 22-acre site. “The company is transforming its operations for 21st century warehousing and smart manufacturing” says Whitworths supply chain director Claire Aldred. Whitworths’ new voice-driven picking environment will replace its paper-based predecessor, giving the company the speed and flexibility it needs to respond to changes in consumer buying habits and retail needs. w | www.renovotec.com To expand its line of filler metals for chrome- molybdenum weldments in the refinery, petrochemical, power generation and pressure vessel applications, ESAB has announced it has introduced its new series of B3 SC electrodes and fluxes for SMAW, GTAW and SAW for 2.25% Cr 1% Mo alloyed steels, SA-387 Grade 22, A335 Grade P22 and similar materials. The company says the new B3 SC filler metals feature modernised formulations designed for applications that require high toughness also in the post-weld heat treated as well as after step cooling treatment. The weld metal is also designed for increased rupture resistance at high service temperatures. Filler metal chemistry is carefully controlled so that weldments have a maximum X-bar (Bruscato Factor) of 10, resulting from a very low level of impurity elements to reduce susceptibility to temper embrittlement. w | esab.com At CHEMUK 2021, stand E31 (15-16 September 2021, NEC), HRS HEAT EXCHANGERS will showcase its range of products for recovery from exhaust gases in the chemical industry. HRS has supplied a K Series large gas heat exchanger for a Belgian chemical plant to cool the exhaust gases leaving a catalytic reactor (which can reach temperatures of up to 500 deg. C) and use the recovered heat to pre-heat the cold gases entering the reactor. For gas applications, small pressure drops are often required, so large tube bundles are needed. This particular unit contained2,900 separate tubes–providing a total tube length of 21 km. Other design features include expansion bellows to absorb thermal dilations and stresses, and reinforced impingement rods at the shell inlet. w | www.hrs-heatexchangers.com VEOLIA WATER TECHNOLOGIES UK (VWT UK) has announced it has launched TERION, a new demineralised water solution ideally suited to the demands of power generation and industrial process water applications. The company says the plug and play, single skid system combines high-quality Reverse Osmosis (RO) and Continuous Electrodeionisation (CEDI) technologies to deliver a cost-effective, reliable and easy to manage purified water solution. VWT UK says the TERION has been designed to meet the challenges and requirements of the modern power industry such as ensuring the productivity, reliability and longevity of assets as well as minimising operational and capital expenditure and with the combination of RO and CEDI processes, TERION removes over 99.9% of dissolved inorganics and over 99% of large dissolved organics. w | www.veoliawatertechnologies.co.uk . Water solution for the power industry Over the years, THORITE says it has completed numerous specialist projects for universities throughout the UK, with the latest being an installation of a series of compressor systems and Nitrogen generators for brand new laboratories at The University of Liverpool. The University of Liverpool is leading pioneering research into coronaviruses and antimicrobial resistance to antibiotics from their new Centre of Excellence for Infectious Diseases and Research building which they moved into in July 2020. Thorite had already completed similar installations at The University of Liverpool and had worked closely with HPC, Parker, and University project managers. However, the Centre of Excellence was a major expansion to current facilities, and the new development required multiple nitrogen outlets for the research laboratories which are used in liquid chromatography, mass spectrometry and a range of analytical instruments. t | 0800 092 1273 e | capital@thorite.co.uk w | www.thorite.co.uk Nitrogen system installations Wireless networking technology Expanded line of filler metals Palletising is a simple, repetitive task that can lend itself perfectly to robotic automation and RARUK AUTOMATION says its new kit makes the transition both simple and quick. The company says its new Robotiq Palletising Kit provides the means to install, set-up and configure the solution to boost production efficiency, with hardware and software supplied ready-connected for a plug and play solution. Designed for use with RARUK Automation’s Universal Robots, it provides manufacturers – irrespective of their size - with all the elements necessary to easily upgrade from manual to fully automated handling and the flexibility to re-programme the solution should the need arise. The solution has a small footprint eliminating the need to re- organise the floor layout around a central robot and is capable of palletising up to 13 x 8kg boxes per minute. t | 01462 670044 e | automation@raruk.com w | www.rarukautomation.com / www.rarukautomation.com/collaborative-robots/palletising-solution/ 20 | Plant & Works Engineering www.pwemag.co.uk July/August 2021 Process, Controls & Plant Automated palletising solution Large-scale gas heat recovery