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Weir turns up the heat
Pump Industry Analyst
E-COMMERCE SUCCESS FOR ABS While the ABS website offers on-line shopping for smaller pumps, a recent order from Chile for ABS agitators highlights the Internet's ability to procure orders for more complex installations. Corpora Tres Montes, a nectar producer in Chile, made its first contact with ABS through the Internet, as an email inquiry to ABS Pumps International at the end of last year. Through ABS' local agent in Chile, an offer was given to the customer and the first local contact was made. The local agent also offered Corpora Tres Montes the chance to visit some agitator installations in operation in Chile. CAD drawings of the existing tanks were sent via email from the customer to ABS in Sweden. The drawings were completed by ABS showing the agitators in position and then sent back to Corpora Tres Montes. The agitators were delivered to Santiago by air in mid March and have just been installed.
W E I R TURNS UP THE HEAT Weir Group has acquired two heat treatment businesses, bringing its UK network to six. Associated Heat Treatments of Chessington, Surrey, and High Frequency Heat Treatment of northwest London will merge and form are of Weir's Darchem Engineering subsidiary. The deals form part of Weir's strategy to strengthen its engineering services activities through selective bolt-ons, growing existing operations. Weir's engineering services division has grown by 19 per cent per annum for the last four years. Associated Heat Treat-
12
May 1999
ments provides an extensive range of sub contract induction heat treatment services to engineering customers throughout southern England, and will continue to operate from its existing site as Expert Heat Treatments (Chessington). High Frequency Heat Treatment's activities will be transferred to Chessington.
CRANE WITHDRAWS F R O M RACE F O R COLTEC Crane Co says it has withdrawn its previously announced offer to acquire Coltec. Meanwhile, Crane has filed a complaint in the US District Court for the Northern District of lndiana seeking to enjoin BF Goodrich's planned acquisition of Coltec Industries inc on antitrust grounds. Crane is also seeking to consolidate its lawsuit with the pending action by Allied Signal against BF Goodrich and Coltec in the same court.
STRONG US ACTIVITY BOOSTS PUTZMEISTER German concrete pump maker Putzmeister increased 1998 group sales by 12.2 per cent, growing turnover to DM880 million. The growth comes from overseas subsidiaries with the German Putzmeister operations slightly below 1997's level at DM350 million. This increase was achieved despite depressed sales activity in the Far East and Southeast Asia, where Putzmeister has enjoyed strong performance in the past. Putzmeister America reported a highly successful year, with sales up 46 per cent to US$160 million based on modest economic growth and increased market share. PM Korea started operating in spring 1998. Almost 2000
Putzmeister concrete, industrial pumps and mortar machines have been sold in Korea over the last 20 years. This business unit is now the third leg in Putzmeister's Far East network that includes Putzmeister Japan and Putzmeister Shanghai. For 1999, Putzmeister expects a flat year with increases in Europe and the Middle East. In North America, continued good business is expected based on new products. The situation in Southeast Asia and other parts of the world will however remain difficult.
FORSHEDA TRANSFERS TECHNOLOGY Forsheda Polymer Engineering has commissioned a dedicated manufacturing cell for the production of chemicallyresistant sealing systems in Isolast T M perfluoroelatomers at its factory in Somersworth, New Hampshire. The new cell will manufacture a wide range of seal types for the chemical, pharmaceutical, semiconductor processing and oil and gas industries. The range will include O-rings, diaphragms, lip seals and gaskets, lsolast seals are already used worldwide in pumps, valves, actuators and mechanical seals and are approved to a wide range of industry standards including API 682. The Isolast name describes a range of advanced elastomeric compounds, originally developed by Forsheda's Dowry plant in Ashchurch, Gloucestershire, UK. John Langston, president of Forsheda Polymer Engineering, said Isolast was the most recent of a series of technology transfers they were undertaking between Europe and the USA. Forsheda Polymer Engineering is one of the four core businesses of TI Group.
Det Norske Veritas has awarded ISO 14001 certification to Ahlstrom Pumps' Karhula pump factory. This is the second Ahlstrom Pumps' unit to receive the certification. In June 1998, the Karhula foundry became the first foundry in Finland to be issued with ISO 14001 certification. Derlan Industries Limited has divested its Bomac Stream Feeder product line of Santa Ana, California to Quad/Tech Inc of Sussex, Wisconsin. This divestment is a further step in Derlan's programme announced in November 1998. Negotiations for further divestments are proceeding. BT Wolfensohn and BT Alex Brown continue to explore options to increase shareholder value. United Dominion Industries has completed the repurchase of one million shares under its two million share repurchase programme. Companies looking for business partners in Japan should sign up tree with the JETRO Technology TieUp Promotion Programme (TTPP). Overseas companies can register their technologies and products on JETRO's web site and retrieve information on Japanese businesses seeking foreign tie-ups. Through TTPP, companies can establish links for joint ventures, product licensing agreements, OEM production deals and joint research and development opportunities. Register on www.jetro.go.jp. The Hart-Scott-Rodino waiting period applicable to the merger of Sundstrand Corporation and United Technologies Corporation has expired (see Pump Industry Analyst, April 1999).
E-COMMERCE SUCCESS FOR ABS While the ABS website offers on-line shopping for smaller pumps, a recent order from Chile for ABS agitators highlights the Internet's ability to procure orders for more complex installations. Corpora Tres Montes, a nectar producer in Chile, made its first contact with ABS through the Internet, as an email inquiry to ABS Pumps International at the end of last year. Through ABS' local agent in Chile, an offer was given to the customer and the first local contact was made. The local agent also offered Corpora Tres Montes the chance to visit some agitator installations in operation in Chile. CAD drawings of the existing tanks were sent via email from the customer to ABS in Sweden. The drawings were completed by ABS showing the agitators in position and then sent back to Corpora Tres Montes. The agitators were delivered to Santiago by air in mid March and have just been installed.
W E I R TURNS UP THE HEAT Weir Group has acquired two heat treatment businesses, bringing its UK network to six. Associated Heat Treatments of Chessington, Surrey, and High Frequency Heat Treatment of northwest London will merge and form are of Weir's Darchem Engineering subsidiary. The deals form part of Weir's strategy to strengthen its engineering services activities through selective bolt-ons, growing existing operations. Weir's engineering services division has grown by 19 per cent per annum for the last four years. Associated Heat Treat-
12
May 1999
ments provides an extensive range of sub contract induction heat treatment services to engineering customers throughout southern England, and will continue to operate from its existing site as Expert Heat Treatments (Chessington). High Frequency Heat Treatment's activities will be transferred to Chessington.
CRANE WITHDRAWS F R O M RACE F O R COLTEC Crane Co says it has withdrawn its previously announced offer to acquire Coltec. Meanwhile, Crane has filed a complaint in the US District Court for the Northern District of lndiana seeking to enjoin BF Goodrich's planned acquisition of Coltec Industries inc on antitrust grounds. Crane is also seeking to consolidate its lawsuit with the pending action by Allied Signal against BF Goodrich and Coltec in the same court.
STRONG US ACTIVITY BOOSTS PUTZMEISTER German concrete pump maker Putzmeister increased 1998 group sales by 12.2 per cent, growing turnover to DM880 million. The growth comes from overseas subsidiaries with the German Putzmeister operations slightly below 1997's level at DM350 million. This increase was achieved despite depressed sales activity in the Far East and Southeast Asia, where Putzmeister has enjoyed strong performance in the past. Putzmeister America reported a highly successful year, with sales up 46 per cent to US$160 million based on modest economic growth and increased market share. PM Korea started operating in spring 1998. Almost 2000
Putzmeister concrete, industrial pumps and mortar machines have been sold in Korea over the last 20 years. This business unit is now the third leg in Putzmeister's Far East network that includes Putzmeister Japan and Putzmeister Shanghai. For 1999, Putzmeister expects a flat year with increases in Europe and the Middle East. In North America, continued good business is expected based on new products. The situation in Southeast Asia and other parts of the world will however remain difficult.
FORSHEDA TRANSFERS TECHNOLOGY Forsheda Polymer Engineering has commissioned a dedicated manufacturing cell for the production of chemicallyresistant sealing systems in Isolast T M perfluoroelatomers at its factory in Somersworth, New Hampshire. The new cell will manufacture a wide range of seal types for the chemical, pharmaceutical, semiconductor processing and oil and gas industries. The range will include O-rings, diaphragms, lip seals and gaskets, lsolast seals are already used worldwide in pumps, valves, actuators and mechanical seals and are approved to a wide range of industry standards including API 682. The Isolast name describes a range of advanced elastomeric compounds, originally developed by Forsheda's Dowry plant in Ashchurch, Gloucestershire, UK. John Langston, president of Forsheda Polymer Engineering, said Isolast was the most recent of a series of technology transfers they were undertaking between Europe and the USA. Forsheda Polymer Engineering is one of the four core businesses of TI Group.
Det Norske Veritas has awarded ISO 14001 certification to Ahlstrom Pumps' Karhula pump factory. This is the second Ahlstrom Pumps' unit to receive the certification. In June 1998, the Karhula foundry became the first foundry in Finland to be issued with ISO 14001 certification. Derlan Industries Limited has divested its Bomac Stream Feeder product line of Santa Ana, California to Quad/Tech Inc of Sussex, Wisconsin. This divestment is a further step in Derlan's programme announced in November 1998. Negotiations for further divestments are proceeding. BT Wolfensohn and BT Alex Brown continue to explore options to increase shareholder value. United Dominion Industries has completed the repurchase of one million shares under its two million share repurchase programme. Companies looking for business partners in Japan should sign up tree with the JETRO Technology TieUp Promotion Programme (TTPP). Overseas companies can register their technologies and products on JETRO's web site and retrieve information on Japanese businesses seeking foreign tie-ups. Through TTPP, companies can establish links for joint ventures, product licensing agreements, OEM production deals and joint research and development opportunities. Register on www.jetro.go.jp. The Hart-Scott-Rodino waiting period applicable to the merger of Sundstrand Corporation and United Technologies Corporation has expired (see Pump Industry Analyst, April 1999).