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A recent study earmarks the healthiest and unhealthiest U.S. cities Personal finance company WalletHub recently completed a study that compared more than 180 of the most populated U.S. cities across 41 key indicators of good health. Its data set ranges from the cost of a medical visit to fruit and vegetable consumption to the share of physically active adults. The 2024 list of the healthiest and unhealthiest cities in America evaluated over 180 metropolitan areas across the country based on 41 metrics across four key dimensions: Healthcare: This dimension includes premature death rates, both adult and youth health insurance coverage, and mental health. Food: It considers residents who report eating healthy, inadequate fruit and vegetable consumption, and limited access to healthy foods. Fitness: This dimension looks at the share of adults engaging in physical activity and the availability of fitness and instruction centers. Green space: It factors in parkland acres per capita, park quality, and what Wallethub labels "overall city greenness.” The data was collected from sources such as the U.S. Census Bureau, the Council for Community and Economic Research, and the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Each metric was graded on a 100-point scale, with 100 representing the best conditions for a healthy lifestyle. The cities received a weighted average across all 41 metrics, determining their overall score and ranking. Here are the top 10 healthiest cities in the United States according to WalletHub: San Francisco, CA Honolulu, HI Seattle, WA San Diego, CA Washington, D.C. Portland, OR Denver, CO Salt Lake City, UT Scottsdale, AZ Irvine, CA On the other hand, the 10 unhealthiest cities in the United States are: Brownsville, TX Gulfport, MS Laredo, TX Columbus, GA Shreveport, LA Augusta, GA Fayetteville, NC Corpus Christi, TX Detroit, MI Huntington, WV These rankings highlight the importance of factors like access to high-quality healthcare, green spaces, recreation centers, and healthy food in promoting overall well-being.

Siemens acquires industrial drive technology business Siemens AG has signed an agreement to acquire the industrial drive technology (IDT) business of ebm-papst. The business, which employs around 650 people, includes integrated mechatronic systems in the protective extra-low voltage range, as well as motion control systems. These systems are used in free-range driverless transport systems. The planned acquisition will "complement the Siemens Xcelerator portfolio and strengthen Siemens’ position as a leading solutions provider for flexible production automation," per a March 27 company press release. Cedrik Neike, member of the Managing Board of Siemens AG and CEO of Digital Industries, said: “Ebm-papst’s innovative portfolio of mechatronic drive systems and its highly qualified people are an excellent fit for Siemens. The acquisition will enable us to tap new business and customer potential in the rapidly growing market for intelligent, battery-powered drive solutions in intralogistics as well as mobile robot solutions.” IDT products are intelligent, integrated mechatronic systems, which support the automation and digitalization of production processes. This acquisition will be a strong addition to the Siemens Xcelerator portfolio. Through their use in mobile robots and driverless transport vehicles as well as in the automation of auxiliary processes, such as the retooling of modern production machines, they are an important lever for greater flexibility and productivity. For this reason, high market growth is expected in this market segment.

Texas site reportedly suffered damage to thousands of panels A March 15 hailstorm damaged thousands of solar panels at the 350-MW Fighting Jays Solar Farm in Fort Bend County, Texas, according to multiple news outlets and local video footage. Golf ball-sized hail fell in the area during the storm, and aerial footage captured from a helicopter that day offered a glimpse at the extent of the damage. Fighting Jays Solar Farm’s website says insurance policies are in place to cover catastrophic events like hail storms. The solar project, which began producing power for Texas's energy grid in 2022, generates 350 megawatts across 3,300 acres of land and is expected to power 62,000 homes.

DOE pledges a fresh $6 billion to decarbonization On paper, the U.S. government appears to be doing as much as it can to implement “cleaner” energy, coupled with an apparent desire to stimulate job growth in associated industries. On March 25, the U.S. Department of Energy announced up to $6 billion for 33 projects across more than 20 states to “decarbonize energy-intensive industries, reduce industrial greenhouse gas emissions, support good-paying union jobs, revitalize industrial communities, and strengthen the nation’s manufacturing competitiveness.” Funded by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Inflation Reduction Act, the projects are designed to “create and maintain tens of thousands of high-quality jobs and help accelerate the commercial-scale demonstration of emerging industrial decarbonization technologies crucial to meeting current climate and domestic manufacturing goals,” according to a statement from the DOE released March 25. The projects will reportedly focus on the highest emitting industries where decarbonization technologies will have the greatest impact, including aluminum and other metals, cement and concrete, chemicals and refining, iron and steel, and more. Together, the projects are expected to reduce the equivalent of more than 14 million metric tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions each year—an amount equivalent to the annual emissions of 3 million gasoline-powered cars. Many of the projects will deploy first-in-the-nation emissions-reducing technologies that have the potential for sector-wide adoption and transformation, multiplying the magnitude of the emissions cuts and supporting the future of U.S. manufacturing. The announcement is reportedly the largest investment in industrial decarbonization in American history. “Spurring on the next generation of decarbonization technologies in key industries like steel, paper, concrete, and glass will keep America the most competitive nation on Earth,” said U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm. “Thanks to [this] industrial strategy, DOE is making the largest investment in industrial decarbonization in the history of the United States. These investments will slash emissions from these difficult-to-decarbonize sectors and ensure American businesses and American workers remain at the forefront of the global economy.” This transformative federal investment will help strengthen local economies and create and maintain tens of thousands of good-paying, high-quality jobs—particularly those that support worker organizing and collective bargaining. As part of these efforts to build an equitable and inclusive clean energy future, each project is also expected to develop and ultimately implement a comprehensive Community Benefits Plan that ensures meaningful community and labor engagement. The industrial sector contributes nearly one-third of the nation’s overall greenhouse gas emissions. This transformative federal investment is matched by the selected projects to leverage more than $20 billion in total to demonstrate commercial-scale decarbonization solutions needed to move the industrial sector toward net-zero emissions. Funded projects will cut carbon emissions by an average of 77%. The industrial sector’s unique and complex decarbonization challenges require equally unique and innovative decarbonization solutions that leverage multiple pathways including energy efficiency, electrification, and alternative fuels and feedstocks such as clean hydrogen. The projects announced today are part of the Industrial Demonstrations Program, managed by DOE’s Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations (OCED), and will help strengthen America’s manufacturing and industrial competitiveness. Funding for these projects includes $489 million from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and $5.47 billion from the Inflation Reduction Act.

Global Industrial adds to its executive ranks Port Washington, New York's Global Industrial Company, a national distributor of industrial products and MRO supplies, announced that Gary S. Michel has been appointed as an independent member to the company's Board of Directors, effective February 20, 2024. Mr. Michel fills the vacancy on the Board of Directors resulting from the resignation of Thomas R. Suozzi, who resigned as a director of the company effective as of February 14, 2024 after being elected to the U.S. House of Representatives. Mr. Michel has been appointed to serve on the Board's Audit Committee and Compensation Committee. Mr. Michel previously served as president, chief executive officer and member of the board of directors of JELD-WEN Holding, Inc. from 2018 to 2022, as well as chair of its board of directors from 2021 to 2022. Mr. Michel previously worked at Honeywell International, Inc., where he served as the president and chief executive officer of the Home and Building Technologies strategic business group from 2017 to 2018. Mr. Michel began his career at Ingersoll Rand, where he spent 33 years, most recently as senior vice president and president of its residential heating, ventilation and air conditioning business and as a member of Ingersoll Rand's enterprise leadership team from 2011 to 2017. Mr. Michel holds a B.S. in mechanical engineering from Virginia Tech and an M.B.A. from the University of Phoenix. Richard Leeds, Executive Chairman of Global Industrial Company, said, "Gary is an accomplished senior executive and board member who brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise in our industry. We look forward to his contributions to Global Industrial. On behalf of the Board, I would like to thank Tom sincerely for his contributions to our company and wish him well as he returns to Congress to serve our country."

Right to Repair marches on with latest victory: Oregon March 28 may have marked a “major leap forward” in the battle for our Right to Repair in the United States, according to the Repair Association. On that date, Oregon's Governor Tina Kotek enacted the most ambitious electronics Right to Repair law to date, one that could fundamentally alter the landscape of repair rights and set a new benchmark for the nation, if such momentum continues. Oregon's Right to Repair Act “not only enshrines the right of consumers to repair their devices wherever they choose,” says TRA, but also “places a crucial check on the restrictive practice of parts pairing.” The law will cover most digital electronic equipment and is expected to take effect on January 1, 2025. Motor vehicles, medical devices, video game consoles, and farm equipment will be excluded. Violation penalties for manufacturers are expected to be $1,000 per day. Manufacturers will be required to provide access to parts, tools, documentation, and software for products made as far back as 2015, excluding smartphones, which are covered from July 1, 2021. This retrospective application is considered by some to be a pioneering move, at least for the state, ensuring that the devices Oregonians rely on daily, from laptops and smartwatches to refrigerators and smart toasters, can remain functional. This legislation covers almost everything with a chip, barring a few exemptions like medical devices and farm equipment, highlighting the sectors where the Right to Repair fight will head next. “The exclusion list not only maps out the industries with the strongest opposition but also outlines the next battlefronts for our movement,” the Repair Association stated.

Polyimide coated magnet wires and their specifics Electrical breakdown of high-temperature insulation materials can be prevented by using thermoplastic Polyimide, TPI. This polymer can be extrusion-coated as other polymers, but 'AURUM', TPI reduces electrical and magnetic losses. 'AURUM' has the highest Tg of any commercially available Thermoplastic, 245°C and its insulation performance especially at temperatures above 150°C beats any other know insulation. As the automobile sector transitions to electric vehicles, new polymers that offer higher electrical and thermal properties are used. For better system integration, weight- reduction and downsizing in higher-volt systems, for faster charging and longer charging distances, electrical breakdown must be prevented by high-temperature insulation materials. AURUM reduces electrical and magnetic losses with a high comparative tracking index (CTI) > 600 volts. Thermoplastic Polyimide (TPI) produced by Mitsui Chemicals of Japan, and sold by BEIGLO GmbH is known for excellent thermal stability, high-temperature resistance, and robust electrical insulation properties. TPI coated magnet wires are a suitable choice for high-voltage applications (800V and above). Here are some key characteristics of 'AURUM' coated magnet wires for high-voltage mobility applications: -High-Temperature Resistance: Capable of withstanding elevated temperatures in general and best-in class performance near welding-spots. -Thermal Stability: Provide thermal stability over a wide temperature range, ensuring the integrity of the insulation even well above 150°C continuously. -Electrical Insulation: Excellent electrical insulation properties to prevent electrical breakdown and ensure the safety and reliability of the system. -Flexibility: Maintain flexibility even at high temperatures, allowing for ease of winding during the manufacturing process and flexibility in the final application. -Chemical Resistance: Resistant to many chemicals, enhancing the durability of the coating in various cooling environments. -High Dielectric Strength: The high dielectric strength of 'AURUM' helps in preventing electrical arcing and breakdown. -Lightweight: 'AURUM' coated magnet wires are lightweight, because even 30% less volume insulates better than other, commonly used materials.

Registration now open for IMTS Smartforce Summit For a view of the STEM classroom of the future – and to learn about careers available today – educators, school administrators, students, and parents can visit the Smartforce Student Summit at IMTS – The International Manufacturing Technology Show, which runs Sept. 9-14 at Chicago’s McCormick Place. Registration is now open for the Smartforce Student Summit and includes access to the IMTS show floor, where more than 1,600 exhibitors will represent the breadth of manufacturing technologies. The Smartforce Student Summit exhibits emphasize interaction, heavily focus on digital manufacturing technologies, and appeal to students ages K-16. Nearly 70 exhibitors have created education-oriented booths and interactive events for students, which will be held on Level 2 of the East Building of McCormick Place. “We have always focused on the manufacturing technology classroom of the future,” says Greg Jones, director of strategic programs and partnerships, SME. “This year, we designed the experience to provide students with a sense of belonging in our industry, providing them with engaging, hands-on exhibits that will encourage them to seek an education in STEM and career pathways in our industry. “The Smartforce Student Summit will help students to understand what an education in design, mechatronics, or machining means and how it opens the door to careers as technicians, engineers, entrepreneurs, and more.” New in 2024, the Smartforce Student Summit is now co-produced by AMT – The Association For Manufacturing Technology, which owns and produces IMTS, and SME, the largest workforce development organization in the manufacturing industry. "You don’t know what you don’t know about the opportunity that a career in the manufacturing industry can present to you if you don’t experience it yourself,” says Carmen Mahon, Citywide STEM Initiatives manager for Chicago Public Schools. “The best place to do that is right here in Chicago at the Smartforce Student Summit at IMTS 2024 at McCormick Place. Having had the opportunity to tour the Student Summit in 2022, we understand how important it is for students from our community in Chicago to attend IMTS and see themselves as belonging on a career pathway in this important industry.” Approximately 12,000 students and educators from 46 states participated in the 2022 Smartforce Student Summit, and the 2018 edition saw a record attendance of nearly 24,000 visitors. Jones anticipates about 20,000 at this year’s event, drawing the most students from Illinois, Wisconsin, Indiana, Michigan, and Ohio. About 70% of the audience comes from secondary education institutions, and 30% is post-secondary. “The future of manufacturing depends on a strong workforce, and AMT and IMTS have a long history of engaging with K-12 schools, colleges, and community organizations, so we can expose students to STEM-oriented careers,” says Catherine Ross, director – community engagement, AMT. “We do a lot of work behind the scenes, such as with helping educators plan a successful visit to IMTS. For example, busing often appears as a challenge, and some public schools do not realize that they can use Perkins V funding for transportation costs associated with excursions and extended learning opportunities tied directly to career-technical education coursework, and that includes IMTS.” “The Summit is a unique opportunity for students and educators to collaborate not only with educational representatives from the manufacturing industry but also with the actual industry itself,” says Lindsay Cline, vice president, education business development, Phillips Corp., a global supplier of manufacturing technology and an exhibitor at the Summit. “It is an incredible tool for recruitment, as our students are shoulder to shoulder with industry leaders from across the United States and beyond, interacting and learning together in a collaborative environment.” Smartforce Student Summit Exhibit partners, like Phillips, participate in IMTS’ Smartforce Career Connections, a digital career fair that connects them with well-paying, open jobs with high-profile companies in the manufacturing technology, aerospace, and space exploration industries.

WEG's digital substations for energy transmission The topic of digital substations and the application of the process bus according to the IEC-61850 standard is already a reality in the National Interconnected System (SIN). WEG, as a provider of protection and control systems (SPCS), has several projects in its portfolio that already apply this type of technology. One of them is the Vilhena Substation 230/138/69/13.8kV, with the implementation stage of the bar reactors for spans HX-6RB-02 and IX-6RB-03 of 230kV – 60MVAr, the first digital substation energized and manufactured by WEG in an Energy Transmission system. The bar reactor 6RB-02 was energized, using the digital solution in the SPCS for this equipment. In other words, Intelligent Electronic Devices (IEDs - protection and control relays), Merging Units (MUs - data acquisition unit for digitizing analog signals from current transformers, potential transformers, and binary signals from equipment in the yard), and the process bus were installed, using communication protocols described in the IEC 61850 standard (Sampled Values, GOOSE, MMS) and the redundancy protocol PRP according to the IEC-62439 standard. The Merging Units were mounted on specific panels (with double walls, white paint, IP-65 protection rating, among other features) to be installed in the substation yard, providing better internal thermal control to the panel. IEDs, switches, and GNSSs were mounted on conventional protection and control panels and placed in the control room. Now, all data transfer is done through optical fiber cables, replacing command and control cables, reducing implementation and commissioning time. It is important to note that, for this type of solution, it is necessary to carry out a battery of tests to certify and ensure the correct operation of the process bus. After the factory acceptance tests (TAF), the system is fully configured and tested according to functional, logical, architectural, and network map projects, ensuring correct operation. After this stage, signal avalanche tests are carried out together with the injection of message overload and network failure simulation to assess the system's behavior, verifying the correct operation of the protections. WEG has software and hardware, some of which were developed using proprietary technology, to be used in this phase, in addition to having a network monitoring system. In this way, WEG contributes to the National Interconnected System (SIN) by providing the latest and most advanced in protection and control systems, both for transmission substations integrated into the SIN and for generation, distribution, industrial, mobile, and skid substations.

Stanford research yields spring actuator concepts Researchers at Stanford University say they have invented a way to augment electric motors to make them much more efficient at performing dynamic movements through a new type of actuator, a device that uses energy to make things move, according to a March 20 news item on the university's website. Their actuator, published March 20 in Science Robotics, uses springs and clutches to accomplish a variety of tasks with a fraction of the energy usage of a typical electric motor. “Rather than wasting lots of electricity to just sit there humming away and generating heat, our actuator uses these clutches to achieve the very high levels of efficiency that we see from electric motors in continuous processes, without giving up on controllability and other features that make electric motors attractive,” said Steve Collins, associate professor of mechanical engineering and senior author of the paper.

Wisconsin governor signs bills creating charging infrastructure Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers signed bipartisan bills Wednesday designed to jump-start creation of an electric vehicle charging network along the state’s interstate system and major highways. The new laws free up nearly $80 million in federal construction aid and make it easier for gas stations, convenience stores, and other businesses to operate electric vehicle charging stations. Businesses and environmentalists alike backed the measures, which were cheered as a way for Wisconsin to expand its electric vehicle charging network. The funding is designed to support Level 3 charging stations, which will allow for passenger electric vehicles to be recharged in less than an hour. Lower level chargers are designed to recharge a vehicle overnight or throughout the day. Federal guidance calls for stations no more than 50 miles (80 kilometers) apart. “Electric vehicle drivers in Wisconsin will soon be able to travel about 85 percent of our state highway system and never be more than 25 miles away from a charger,” Wisconsin Transportation Secretary Craig Thompson said in a statement Wednesday. Wisconsin currently has nearly 580 publicly accessible electric vehicle charging stations. The state Department of Transportation has said it expects to use the $78.7 million in federal grants to support building 65 high-speed charging stations in key corridors using the federal funding unlocked through enactment of the new laws. One bill Evers signed allows for the creation of an EV infrastructure program to help businesses construct charging stations over the next five years. The grants would cover up to 80% of costs; grant recipients would have to put up the remaining 20%.

A look at American Airlines' Tulsa maintenance facility The airline industry is under a microscope right now. Given a flurry of recent events (mostly related to manufacturer Boeing), this is especially true for the maintenance and safety aspects of flight. With thousands of parts, many moving at extremely high speeds in an extremely hot environment, modern turbofan engines are a miracle of engineering. But after thousands of arrivals, departures and flight hours, heavy maintenance is required to keep fan blades spinning and customers and team members moving safely in the air. As detailed in a March 6 news item from one of the world's largest airlines, that’s where American’s Base Maintenance facility in Tulsa, Oklahoma, comes in. Located in the geographic center of the mainland United States, American’s Tech Ops – Tulsa maintenance base has been the backbone of American’s maintenance, repair and overhaul work since 1946. It’s the world’s largest commercial aircraft maintenance base, employing nearly 5,000 team members, including more than 3,200 licensed aviation maintenance technicians and overhaul support mechanics. Each year, more than 800 of the airline’s aircraft visit the base, where the team works around the clock to maintain everything from seats to avionics and complete regularly scheduled maintenance work. Tucked away in a non-descript building in the middle of the 246-acre base is American’s engine shop, known as American Airlines Engine Repair Overhaul or AAERO. The AAERO team is the best in the business when it comes to overhauling an engine, which means taking it apart completely and rebuilding it. Engines typically require an overhaul after 20,000 flight hours or 7,000 takeoffs and landings. This year, American’s engine shop is on track to increase engine overhaul throughput by nearly 60% over last year, or 150 engines annually, outperforming industry peers by a wide margin. That means fewer aircraft out of service and an even more reliable operation. “The most important thing to me is the passenger, “said Kevin Harris, Technical Crew Chief for the CFM56 engine, which powers a majority of American’s Boeing 737 and Airbus 320 family aircraft. “Their safety is our number one goal. That engine, to me, is at the heart of keeping them safe.” The Tech Ops – Tulsa facility was recently awarded $22 million from the State of Oklahoma to make enhancements at the base. The funds are in addition to a $31.6 million engine shop capital investment and ongoing $350 million improvement project made by American. As a result of these investments and added throughput, American is in the process of adding more than 300 new jobs a Tech Ops – Tulsa.