In a factory in Charlotte, North Carolina, CHIRON America Inc. assembles turnkey solutions based on standard machines supplied by their German parent company in Tuttlingen. These solutions are customised to meet the specific needs of their customers. Once again, MAPAL was selected as partner and tool supplier for a CHIRON machine used in truck parts production.

With a recent listing in The Sunday Times’ Best Places to Work 2025, the agency has appointed senior account executive Laura Brown and account executive Lucia Scarano to bolster its international and creative capabilities. Before joining Stone Junction, Brown was head of editorial at personal finance website Save the Student, initially joining as a junior content editor before working her way up through more senior roles. Brown has developed an impressive portfolio in editorial strategy and digital communications. A former winner of the Clothes Show’s Young Journalist of the Year award, Brown has experience leading high-profile national campaigns, including survey-based projects that gained national press coverage and were presented at an All-Party Parliamentary University Group meeting. Joining from Italy, Lucia Scarano adds further strength to the agency’s international team. A corporate communication graduate from Università IULM in Milan, she brings practical experience in marketing and fluency in multiple languages. Her interest in science and technology communication supports Stone Junction’s work with clients across technical industries. Scarano’s fluency in Italian will support clients targeting the region, including Sandvik Coromant and WEG, while enabling participation in key industry events such as SPS Italia 2026. With locations in the UK, Germany and Romania, and ten languages spoken in-house, Stone Junction’s expansion reflects its focus on global communication and cross-border storytelling. The agency has won 53 industry awards and continues to support technical innovators with strategic, multilingual campaigns. To keep up to date with the latest theory and practice in technical PR, subscribe to Stone Junction’s podcast, The Junction Box, on Apple Music, Spotify or wherever you prefer to get your podcasts today.

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) today confirmed that UK inflation rose to 3.8% in July 2025, up from 3.6% in June – the highest rate since January 2024. The increase was driven mainly by air fares and motor fuels, while housing and household services, including owner-occupiers’ housing costs made a downward contribution. Global energy markets remain volatile, with commodity price rises feeding through into fuel and electricity bills. Government policy changes such as increases to wages and national insurance also mean service industries, including hospitality and transport, are passing higher costs on to consumers. The Bank of England has already warned that inflation could peak at 4% this autumn, making another round of higher energy bills increasingly likely. Unlike households, UK businesses are not protected by an Ofgem price cap, meaning they are far more exposed to changes in the wholesale market. Rising inflation and energy price uncertainty translate quickly into higher operating costs, with SMEs facing sustained pressure on electricity rates and energy intensive industries paying some of the highest prices in Europe. This remains a key concern for high energy users and the manufacturing and engineering sectors in particular, where energy costs represent a significant share of overall expenditure. With inflation remaining above target and energy markets highly sensitive to global events, businesses and households are increasingly looking for ways to take control of their energy use. For many, this means exploring renewable energy solutions such as solar PV and battery storage, which not only reduce exposure to volatile market prices but also deliver long-term cost savings and carbon reductions. Read more: https://solarsense-uk.com/news/uk-inflation-rises-in-july-2025-and-what-it-means-for-your-energy-bills/

CPD Accredited programme designed specifically for revenue leaders, VPs, sales directors, account managers, and business development executives working in industrial, engineering, and technical sales. Taking place on 12 November 2025 at the National Motorcycle Museum in Birmingham, this inaugural summit has already secured strong backing from major industry bodies including MTA, Automate UK, GTMA, and MAKE UK. This unique event directly addresses the distinct challenges facing manufacturing revenue leaders & sales professionals. It brings together top industry experts to share cutting-edge insights on market trends, digital transformation, and proven revenue growth strategies tailored specifically for complex manufacturing sales environments. “We’re delighted to launch the UK’s first and only event of this type,” says Steve Lindsey, Event Director. “The overwhelming support we’ve received from MTA, Automate UK, GTMA, and MAKE UK demonstrates just how much the industry needs this focused approach to revenue growth in manufacturing and technical sales. This summit will be a game-changer for those driving revenue in the sector.” The summit features an impressive line-up of keynote speakers including Aaron Phipps MBE, the gold medal-winning Paralympic champion who scaled Kilimanjaro on his hands and knees, delivering his inspirational talk “The Path to Gold.” Simon Hazeldine shares “3 Keys to Unlock Your Key Accounts & Win More Business.” Participants can explore targeted topics such as AI for revenue generation, complex bid and proposal management, technical account management, and digital transformation strategies specifically designed for manufacturing environments.

UKAS ISO17025 ACCREDITED FOR CALIBRATION We are the only independent supplier offering UKAS accredited electronic torque tool calibration. This means we can calibrate your entire fleet of tools, regardless of the brand. Our expert team project manage your take the hassle out of your calibration schedules with proactive scheduling, asset tracking and record management.

Last year, Ultima Forma and Polar Technology announced the launch of the LEEF (Leading Edge Electro Forms) project*, collaborating to improve the ability of a composite structure to withstand erosion, impact and corrosion in extreme operating conditions. Ultima Forma have developed the protection layer through a process of electro-forming, which involves electric currents depositing a thin layer of metal onto a substrate. Polar Technology are experts in design and manufacture of critical composite products and are working closely on the best method to integrate this electroform into the structure. All aspects of the process can be carefully controlled, with the thickness and dimensions being tailored depending on the application. The ambitions behind the project are to develop a UK-based manufacture and distribution network for leading edge protection solutions including the manufacture of the composite structure itself which will ultimately shorten and simplify the supply chain process. A number of milestones have been hit since the project launched, including the Nickel-Cobalt LEEF layers maintaining exceptional hardness when tested up to 900°C and beyond 1000+ hours of ASTM B117 salt spray testing, delivering unparalleled performance for high-temperature platforms and mission-critical components. All three cases are based on geometries provided by leading OEM customers in the aerospace and defence industries, which illustrates the planned routes to market. From the smallest ISR drone to the largest tactical transport, LEEFs deliver lightweight, high-durability protection against rain, ice, sand and bird strikes. Steve Newbury, CEO at Ultima Forma said “The LEEF project has already produced and tested parts to prove out the potential in this flexible barrier technology. Bringing together lightweight composites with thin tailor-made electroformed protection delivers a unique sovereign capability for the UK’s aerospace and defence sectors”.

THE PRINCIPLES FOR AUTOMATED DEPOWDERING: Automated depowdering is a relatively new discipline in additive manufacturing. Since Solukon was founded and the world’s first depowdering system, the SFM-AT800-S, was launched in 2015, a number of successful principles have become established on the market. The most important of these include: 1. Depowdering must take place in a protected atmosphere Health risks from fine dust and the danger of explosions are effectively controlled only when using a sealed process chamber. For reactive materials, the process chamber is inerted with a protective gas. 2. Depowdering must be reproducible This means achieving consistent cleaning results for identical components (i.e., repeatability). What may sound obvious or like a no-brainer is actually a standard that can only truly be maintained with automated powder removal using Solukon. 3. The best cleaning result is achieved through the combination of rotation and vibration excitation (Endless) rotation around two axes and targeted vibration excitation make the adhering powder flow within internal channels. The excitation intensity of vibration can be adjusted in Solukon’s powder removal systems. However, how the pneumatically generated vibrations actually act on the part is highly individual and depends on the geometry of the component. What matters is the result: the powder behaves like a liquid and flows out of internal channels. Powder clumps are broken up by a high-frequency knocker, which can also be activated when needed. Until recently, the combination of pneumatic vibrations and a knocker to stimulate vibration would have been on this list of basic principles for depowdering. This is because pneumatic vibration units are reliable, cost-effective and highly efficient. However, they consume a lot of compressed air and are difficult to control, which can lead to problems with sensitive parts, due to exceeding the resonance frequency could damage sensitive structures.

With significantly high energy costs and the need to reduce their carbon emissions, Uni Mill approached Solarsense to design a solar PV system for their factory roof in Swindon. The 237kWp solar PV system is estimated to payback installation costs within 3 years and generate a net profit of more than £2.4million over the next 25 years. “Like many organisations, we have become increasingly aware of our carbon footprint and are focused on the ways we can improve our environmental sustainability. As a manufacturer, one of the key areas identified was the high levels of electricity required to power our machinery, therefore we decided to install a large-scale solar panel system capable of providing enough renewable energy to help significantly reduce our imported energy. Working with Solarsense, we were able to analyse their projected data for our site and perform a cost-benefit analysis, which determined a 237kWp system would provide the optimum solution”. Craig Jones, Ancillary Manager – Uni Mill Engineering

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fWQa4pmEUSI

The Universal Automation Manifesto outlines Schneider Electric’s vision for a new era of industrial automation—one that breaks free from proprietary, hardware-bound systems and embraces a shared-source, software-defined approach. By decoupling software from hardware and adopting the IEC 61499 standard, universal automation enables true portability, interoperability, and plug-and-produce capabilities across vendors and platforms. This open, collaborative model empowers industry stakeholders to innovate faster, reduce engineering complexity, and unlock the full potential of Industry 4.0.

As a Corrosion Engineer myself, we are like investigators piecing together a puzzle. In this blog, I will delve into how corrosion affects manufacturing, break down its financial implications, explore the transformative tools we use to prevent trouble, and provide a global perspective from our viewpoint.

For decades, we have been at the forefront of revolutionising the landscape of workplace safety, particularly in the realm of combustible dust management. Our dedication to providing cutting-edge dust extraction technologies has solidified our position as a trusted leader in workplace safety and clean air technologies in various industries. The integration of our technology in warehouses has seen increased awareness of the dangers of combustible dust and the enhanced safety coverage that our products bring to a workplace. Organisations have not just recognised but relied on our unwavering commitment to workplace safety to ensure safer operations and increased operational capacity for their businesses. The choice of our clients to continue to utilise our technologies and superior dust extraction solutions showcases our proven reliability and effectiveness. This has solidified our relationships with our clients and shows a continued trust in our commitment to protecting people, planet and production from harmful effects of industrial processes. Visit the website to read the rest of the article.

Research Reveals Cutting Mat Boards Provide Unexpected Safety Boost Recent research conducted on the efficacy of Rhino cutting boards has unveiled a significant increase in reported safety, particularly for users of hand-held cutting knives. The study, which delved into the user experiences of recent buyers of Rhino cutting mats – semi-flexible boards with self-healing properties – discovered that greater safety was one of the key standout benefits cited among respondents.

CAS assembly tooling and services approached us looking for a cutting mat solution for one of their British luxury car manufacturers. They were having a refit of their processing facilities which required new workstations and replacement cutting mats. They were looking to source and supply superior-grade mats and we initiated the conversations by sending samples for them to test both with their tools and materials.

Leybold UK, who are based in Chessington, UK, have made the final shortlist for Employer of the Year Award 2021 of the Composites UK Trade Association. The annual award celebrates the achievements of the UK composites industry, in categories covering company efforts and successes on an individual level. With the Employer of the Year Award, the industry association honours companies that invest specifically in their employees through training programmes and appraisal systems. Ian Dorman, General Manager, said “It’s a privilege to be shortlisted for this award, which recognises the investment we have made in developing our employees and future talent.” "The nomination alone recognises the beginning of our journey in becoming a great place to work," says Sarah Cogswell, HR Manager. “We promote a culture of lifelong learning, continuous feedback and self-development to enable people’s potential. All employees have a ‘mission’ (which includes performance and development goals) and take part in our Performance Enablement cycle.” The winner will be announced at the Awards Dinner on 3rd November 2021, taking place at the National Motorcycle Museum. The event coincides with the Advanced Engineering Show at the neighbouring Birmingham NEC, where customers can meet with the Leybold team on booth K50. Leybold design and manufacture vacuum pumps, components and systems which create the necessary production conditions for the industrial manufacturing of semiconductors, data carriers, displays, coated architectural glass and solar cells. Vacuum systems are used across a vast range of processes in the refinement of steel and the production and packaging of food. Vacuum is also indispensable for the operation of mass spectrometers and electron microscopes, as well as in almost all areas of modern research and development.