September 2021

September 2021 www.drivesncontrols.com 10 KEB Automation has appointed Mark Checkley as managing director of KEB (UK), succeeding Tom Skelton , who has retired after more than 27 years with KEB, the last 15 as MD. Checkley has spent more than 29 years in the automation industry and has been sales and market manager at KEB since 2016. He has a mandate to increase growth and to expand KEB’s sales force. He sees strong growth potential, particularly with KEB’s recent and planned products. The Manufacturing Technology Centre has appointed Mel Ewell , former chief executive of Amey, as its new chairman, succeeding Sir David Brown . Ewell has been on the MTC board as a non-executive director since October 2016. He has held senior positions at TNT International, ADI Group and SIG as well as Amey, which he joined in 2001, becoming CEO two years later. In 2016 he retired from Amey, following its sale to Ferrovial. n NEWS THE JAPANESE car-maker Nissan has tied up with researchers at a local university to develop a process for recovering rare-earth materials from electric motor magnets. They have started testing the process with the aim of making it a commercial reality by the mid-2020s. Tests have shown that the process can recover 98% of a motor’s rare-earth elements (REEs). It also halves time taken to recover the materials compared to other methods, because there is no need to demagnetise the magnets, nor to disassemble and remove them from the motor. The process is aimed, in particular, at motors used in in electric vehicles, most of which rely on powerful neodymium magnets containing scarce rare-earth metals such as neodymium and dysprosium. China dominates the supply of these materials and this has led to wide fluctuations in price and availability. The ability to recycle REEs would reduce dependence on China and on the environmentally damaging processes used to mine and refine the materials. Nissan has been working on techniques for cutting the amount of REEs used in motor magnets since 2010. For example, the latest version of its Leaf EV uses magnets with 85% less heavy REEs than the 2010 models. The company has also been recycling REEs by removing magnets from faulty motors and returning them to suppliers. But these processes involve multiple steps, including manual disassembly. Developing a simpler, more economical process is vital if recycling is to increase. Nissan has been collaborating with researchers at Waseda University since 2017, and last year they announced a pyrometallurgy process that avoids the need to disassemble motors. The five-step process includes: n adding a carburising material and pig iron to the motor, which is then heated to at least 1,400°C and begins to melt; n adding iron oxide to oxidise the REEs in the molten mixture; n using a borate-based flux to dissolve the rare-earth oxides and recover the REEs; n separating the molten mixture into two liquid layers, with a molten oxide layer (slag) containing the REEs floating to the top, and a higher density iron-carbon alloy layer sinking to the bottom; and finally n recovering the REEs from the slag. Waseda and Nissan are continuing large-scale testing of the process with the aim of developing a commercial version. Nissan will supply motors from EVs that are being recycled and will continue to develop its own recycling system. Process recovers 98% of rare-earths frommotors with no need for disassembly In the process being developed by Nissan andWaseda, complete motors are melted at extremely high temperatures PPMA Show 28–30 September, 2021 NEC, Birmingham The processing, packaging, machine vision and robotics event, organised by the Processing and PackagingMachinery Association, returns to the NEC as a three- day event withmore than 300 exhibitors, andmore than 1,500 brands, from the UK and Europe. Every aspect of the production line will be represented, from labelling, filling and packaging, to processing, robotics, automation and industrial vision systems. More than 8,000 visitors are expected. www.ppmashow.co.uk Engineering Design Show 19–20 October, 2021 Coventry Building Society Arena, Coventry Described as the UK’s only event dedicated to engineering, electronics and embedded design, the EDS will be championing the UK’s engineering heroes with a dedicated area looking at the work done on the ventilator challenge. A two-day conference will run in parallel with the show, which will have more than 200 exhibitors. www.engineeringdesignshows.co.uk Advanced Engineering 03–04 November, 2021 NEC, Birmingham The manufacturing and engineering event returns for its 12th year, offering an opportunity for the UK manufacturing supply chain to source innovation and technology across multiple sectors. More than 90% of the exhibitor space has been sold. The Enabling Innovation zone is returning, hosting ten start-ups and innovators, and showcasing their inventions and innovations. In 2019, more than 10,000 visitors attended the show. www.advancedengineeringuk.com SPS (Smart Product Solutions) 23–25 November, 2021 Nuremberg, Germany SPS returns as a hybrid event with the online“SPS on air”running in parallel with the physical show in Nuremberg, giving people around the world the opportunity to take part in the event. An on-site studio will broadcast a programme of presentations and discussion panels covering topics such as digitalisation, Industry 4.0, communications, robotics, AI, visualisation and control. https://sps.mesago.com/nuernberg/en.html Drives & Controls 2022 05 - 07 April, 2022 NEC, Birmingham, UK The Drives & Controls exhibition and co- located events return to the NEC covering areas including automation, robotics, drives, machine safety, energy efficiency and motion control. A live robotic demonstration area will reflect this dynamic sector. Running alongside the Drives exhibition will be the Air-Tech, Fluid Power & Systems, Smart Industry Expo and Plant & Asset Management exhibitions, as well as the Mach show. www.drives-expo.com