Installations of materials are often a practically invisible part of a building. Miles of cables, piping, tubes and wires are concealed behind the ceilings, floors, walls and foundations. The facilities themselves are tucked behind voids or form unsightly blemishes on rooftops.
Performance, weight & costs of aluminum vs high strength steel in automotive
Building cars can be an expensive industry and while we know that buying a new car can be quite expensive on its own, the automaker is also responsible for a fair amount of the upfront costs as well. Whilst steel prices fluctuate, in general they go up and OEM’s continue to squeeze their supply chain.
Design & Advanced Material-Driver of Innovation
In recent years, advanced materials have emerged and significantly impacted the products around us and their design. Coming from science and technology, advanced materials can outperform traditional materials as they can be tougher, withstand higher temperatures, and be tailored into new shapes.
How Pressings are Replacing Forgings and Castings
The automotive industry is continuously changing. One of the most significant new focuses is reducing the weight of materials used in the construction of vehicles. Pressings are produced by stamping, and this method replaces some of the manufacturing methods from the past.
Biomimetics – a tool for development of new materials
Biomimetics is on everyone’s lips and it is now difficult to imagine a future where it does not play a key role in the development of our society. The development of new materials is not unconcerned with this new discipline, though we must be aware of what we can obtain (and what we cannot) from imitating nature.
Are Hybrid and Electric Vehicles the Future?
Hybrid vehicles and electric vehicles are offering a fair argument that they could be the future of travel. As well as the ability to reduce carbon emissions by running on zero emissions, imagine how convenient it would be to fill up just once a month or plug in your vehicle at night to recharge and go.
Materials and Manufacturing Education
Materials and manufacturing processes remains an essential component of industrial design education. But for many students and young designers, they are still unsure of their comfort with these complex issues and how they affect their designs.
Sandstone to Pressmark – the acquisition
After many months of arduous due diligence, the Napier team from Left Hand Press finally acquired 90% of Pressmark Pressings. This project has the codename, Sandstone. The group, which Alan Gardner has led through the acquisition, brings a wealth of experience to Pressmark. Chairman Les Wilkins will lead the team, bringing exceptional experience from the press industry, which has evolved over 40 years. In addition, Les has headed up OEM plants for Rover and BMW. In addition, he has managed significant tier 1 plants and worked as a consultant for automotive OEMs in Japan and China. When questioned about the acquisition, Les said, “Pressmark is an excellent company with many opportunities.
I am looking forward to working with the team to develop this further. We want to build on the excellent reputation of Pressmark for Quality, Cost and Delivery.”
Heading up the executive team will be Chief Executive John Nollett. He brings a wealth of knowledge from the manufacturing sector. John is directly involved in the design, manufacture and assembly for automotive OEMs. On speaking with John, he talked about the opportunity saying, “I have been fortunate enough to have spent some time with the existing team at Pressmark, learning about their capabilities. I can honestly say that the company has the fundamental structure needed to develop this business further. The team here are great! I look forward to developing strong relationships with them and our Customers and suppliers to drive this business forward.” He went on to say, “This is a great acquisition. Based in Atherstone, Warwickshire, we are ideally situated to fulfil the needs of the UK manufacturing sector. There is a great automotive and manufacturing heritage locally within the Midlands Engine. It will be fantastic to draw upon that experience as we grow our business here in the Midlands.”
Finally, Alan Gardner brings significant change management experience and financial expertise, where he worked at the partner level within KPMG. Alan has had a lot of experience working alongside manufacturing businesses. Holding the position of Finance Director, Alan spoke of the deal, saying, “Pressmark is an ideal acquisition for Left Hand Press, as it brings a variety of large bed presses with ample free capacity to grow the business, not only in the automotive sector, where it is strong but other sectors too. With our financial support, along with the experience that both John and Les bring to the team, I am excited about the future for Pressmark.”