News & events


International news digest

3rd Quarter 2009 News & events

Sun Hydraulics Corporation recently announced a US$ 0,09 per share dividend on its common stock.

In an earlier first quarter announcement Allen Carlson, Sun’s CEO and president, reported that first quarter sales had been at expected levels and that the company had been able to do a little better than anticipated on the earnings side. Cash flow remained positive, allowing Sun to continue taking actions that will improve its place in the market when demand rallies.

This spring Sun released new automated design software that has been in development for four years. The company predicts that this web-based software will stimulate increased cartridge sales around the world.

Maxon Motor Group recently reported that its 2008 financial year results were the second best-ever, with sales totalling CHF 297,5 million compared with its record-breaking CHF 303,5 million in the previous year. At 2007 exchange rates, sales would have been CHF 325 million. Despite the weaker economy in the second half of 2008, cash flow totalled CHF 33 million (40,4 in the previous year). During the 2008 year investment in R&D increased by more than 25% to some CHF 23 million, representing almost 8% of sales.

The company expects a noticeable drop in sales in the current financial year due to the economic downturn.

The Museum of Design Zurich is mounting an exhibition in its Galerie entitled 'Robots – from motion to emotion?' from 24 June to 4 October 2009. The exhibition looks at the relationship between reality and fiction today and is also concerned with the emotional effect of robots. Around 200 exhibits are on show, ranging from historical automata to robots in the household, in industry, in medicine and in the military to toy robots. There is also a side exhibition focusing on the technology of how robots work.

Siemens Energy has acquired a 60% percent majority holding in Gummersbach-based Steinmüller Engineering GmbH, Germany. Steinmüller Engineering provides engineering for both innovative combustion technologies designed to significantly reduce CO2 and NOx emissions and exhaust-gas cleaning systems for fossil-fuelled power plants. The company has a workforce of more than 60.

Together with Steinmüller, Siemens will further enhance its service business with environmental technology for combustion systems and exhaust-gas cleaning systems for power plants. This business is part of Siemens’ green portfolio, which is growing at 10% per year and is anticipated to reach EUR25 billion in 2011.

Bonfiglioli USA president and CEO, Greg Schulte, was recently named a finalist in Ernst and Young’s Entrepreneur of the Year awards for South Central Ohio and Kentucky. The Ernst and Young Entrepreneur of the Year Awards recognise business leaders who take their business to the next level and find creative ways to achieve their goals, and build and grow the company.

Schneider Electric has unveiled the prototype of a claimed world first ZigBee-compatible self-powered switch at the ZigBee European Forum in Munich, Germany, on June 29.

This wireless, battery-less switch development is in response to market expectations for a product that is: easy to install (as it is wireless), reliable (as the switch operates continuously and requires no maintenance) and green (as there are no batteries to recycle).

The switch illustrates two aspects that Schneider Electric feels are indispensable in the design of more energy efficient solutions for residential and commercial buildings: true interoperability of networked equipment and the confidence and foundation for upgradeability provided by a shared technological standard.

Danfoss Ventures and the Bitten and Mads Clausen Foundation have set up a new development company, Danfoss IXA A/S, to exploit patented technology for the measurement of gases such as CO2, ammonia and NO2, which have an impact on the environment and climate.

The Danish National Advanced Technology Foundation has funded sensor development work with almost 1,5 m euro. Ventilation company SKOV A/S from Roslev, Denmark, and the Technical University of Denmark (DTU) will be cooperating in this venture. The new sensor offers substantial energy savings (up to 20%) through improved control of ventilation, heating and cooling systems.





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