News » UK News Family-owned French distributor Sonepar buys Routeco
Sonepar, a global distributor of electrical products with operations in 41 countries and turnover of more than €16bn, is buying the UK automation distributor, Routeco. The family-owned French business says that acquisition is part of its efforts to strengthen its position in the “immense” industrial automation market, and to expand into new countries. Details of the transaction have not been released.
Remote handling centre opens for business
A new UK centre of excellence set up to conduct r&d into remote-handling applications and to offer access to equipment and expertise, has won its first contract. The Race (remote applications in challenging environments) centre is being created at the Culham Science Centre in Oxfordshire by the UK Atomic Energy Authority and several partners, with £7.8m of backing from the UK Government.
Rexroth pneumatics is reborn under a new name
There is a new name in the UK pneumatics market – Aventics – selling the well-established range of products that carry the Rexroth name.
Automation contractor benefits from OEM outsourcing trend
A West Midlands control and automation contractor is reaping the benefits of a trend for OEMs to farm out non-core work out to sub-contractors. PP Electrical Systems, based in Cheslyn Hay, has won £1.5m of new work so far this year and expects to hit a turnover of £20m for 2014. To help achieve this, the company is planning to add 15 people to the nearly 200 it already employs at its 40,000ft2 (3,700m2) site.
ABB appoints Hawley to run UK motors business
ABB has appointed Dave Hawley to be manager of its motors and generators business in the UK from 1 September. He joins from Sulzer Dowding and Mills where he was general manager of the formed coil division. He has more than 15 years’ experience of the rotating equipment industry, including a period as a divisional director at Deritend.
UK manufacturers spend an average of £1m on plant
A survey of 163 UK manufacturers has revealed that at least 95% of them have invested in plant and machinery over the past two years, spending an average of £1m. And a third of them are planning to invest similar amounts over the coming two years.
Manufacturing pay rises outstrip the wider UK economy
The average pay settlement in the UK manufacturing sector during the six months to July was 2.6%, according to figures released by EEF, the manufacturers’ organisation. This contrasts with a 0.2% drop in average weekly earnings for the UK economy as a whole in the three months to June – the first fall since 2009.
Work starts on £1.5m engineering lab for Welsh drives-maker
The drives-maker Control Techniques has started work on a new £1.5m engineering laboratory at its headquarters in Newtown, Wales. The company will use the 900m2 building to develop new products and technologies.
Motovario aims to double turnover with £650,000 expansion
The Italian gearbox and motors manufacturer Motovario has invested more than £650,000 to expand its UK facilities in Droitwich, Worcestershire. The main aim of the investment – the largest in the history of the company's UK operation – is to create a centre for assembling gearboxes from component parts, thus cutting lead times.
Ritchie takes control of ABB’s automation and motion division
Neil Ritchie has been appointed head of ABB’s Discrete Automation and Motion division in the UK, following the retirement of Chris Withey. The division encompasses ABB’s motors, generators, variable-speed drives, motion control, programmable logic controllers (PLCs), solar inverters, power electronics and robotics businesses.
£1m investment will help Leeds plant to build geared motors
Siemens is investing £1m in its UK mechanical drives factory in Leeds, expanding its capabilities to assemble a new range of geared motors and to service rail components. The company says that the investment could lead to the creation of 50 new jobs.
Austrian automation manufacturer sets up shop in the UK
The Austrian automation manufacturer Sigmatek has set up a UK subsidiary to supply and support machine automation systems, mainly to the OEM sector. Russ Kemp, who has more than 25 years experience of the automation sector, has been appointed managing director of the new Sigmatek Automation UK business, located in Nottingham.
UK start-up will produce soft-starts for Hitachi
A British start-up company specialising in energy-saving technologies has signed a deal to produce a range of soft-starters for Hitachi Power Solutions in Japan. Under an initial five-year agreement, Cornwall-based Suresense Technologies will manufacture the soft-starts for Hitachi, which will market them globally under its Prohestar brand.
UK 'could become a leader' in niche robot technologies
A group of experts charged with drawing up a national strategy for robotics and autonomous systems (RAS) in the UK has produced a report arguing that, through a co-ordinated approach and targeted investment, the UK could become a global leader in this area.
UK pledges £72m to support high-value manufacturing
The UK’s Technology Strategy Board (TSB) has earmarked £72m to support initiatives in high-value manufacturing as part of its recently-published 2014-15 Delivery Plan, which aims to nurture and develop British entrepreneurial talent.
