Green is still a popular color, particularly at industry events in the Anaheim Convention Center in California Feb. 10 to 12. These events include the Pacific Design & Manufacturing Show, MD&M West, West Pack, Electronics West, Plastec Pavilion West, Automation Technology Expo, Green Manufacturing Expo, and Process Technology for Industry (Powder and bulk solids). All attendees will be admitted free to a joint conference called “Green Manufacturing: Business Strategies for Sustainability,” Feb. 10 to 11.
This conference will include discussions on how environmental consciousness makes for good business practice. Topics include defining the term “sustainability” and its important elements, how to eliminate waste, render emissions benign, and redesign commerce to be more efficient.
A panel will showcase firms practicing sustainability while boosting profitability. The conference will also provide “nutsand- bolts” recommendations on how to meet customer and regulator demands for products with smaller carbon footprints.
Other speakers will address how to work with new global environmental standards such as WEEE, RoHS, EuP, and Registration, Evaluation, and Authorization of Chemicals (Reach). Participants can also learn about renewable materials that can replace petroleum.
The Pacific Design & Manufacturing show, in particular, is touted as a major source for design, development, and manufacturing ideas and products. It will feature mechatronics, custom assembly equipment, linear actuators, elastomers, CAD/CAM/CAE software, and rapid-prototyping machines and services.
Examples of a few of the many exhibitors include:
Autodesk Inc. and its Inventor software, which supports so-called “digital prototyping” because it generates 3D models that validate the form, fit, and function of designs before they are built.
Lith-O-Roll Corp. and its standard and custom rubber, metal, and press rollers.
Pacific Wire Products Inc. and its ISO9001:2000-certified customformed and welded-wire products for the medical industry and industrial OEMs.
Siemens PLM Software which provides constraint-driven and history-free modeling. According to the developer, the software’s synchronous technology means users no longer need worry about using data from multiple CAD packages.
Smalley Steel Ring Co., which provides industrial snap, wave, retaining, and compression springs. The company will show its series of smaller, standard size Crest-to- Crest wave springs. These are said to reduce assembly size by up to 50% while maintaining the same force and deflection as regular coiled springs.
WaveZero Inc., manufacturer of low-cost, lightweight EMC/RFI shielding for medical and other electronic devices. Another arm of the parent company provides custom patterning, RFID design, prototyping, low and high-volume RFID-antenna inlays, and stock antenna inlays.
Craftech Industries Inc., maker of plastic nuts and bolts with molded-in threads. It says molded-in threads are better for clean-room applications than tapped bolts because they do not shed dust and fibers. The nuts-andbolts target applications that require lower weight than metal, low thermal conductivity, and electric, magnetic, and RFI shielding.