New York Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, a name occasionally bantered about as a future VP or Presidential candidate for the Democrats, has been pushing her “Made in America Manufacturing Act” piece of legislation, which would center around competitive low interest loans for manufacturers looking to expand their facilities or build new ones, with a focus on […]
Mobile Hydraulics Blog
Checking out Bosch Rexroth’s new hydraulic filter app
Just finished playing with the newest fluid power iPhone app, a nicely done program from Bosch Rexroth that allows customers to cross reference and replace their existing hydraulic filter elements with a corresponding Rexroth filter. Called Fit4Filter, the app worked flawlessly on my iPhone 4, and is also offered for Android devices. Rexroth notes that […]
Top mobile hydraulic stories of 2012
2012 saw continued improvement in mobile hydraulic systems—with a huge focus on energy efficiency. With the TIER IV final regulations coming on board in 2014, equipment manufacturers have been busy redesigning their hydraulic systems to meet the stringent new requirements—which, of course, include increased overall efficiency. Here is a rundown of some of the more […]
Ten reasons to hate metric units
Reader Jim Tahler, a Senior Engineer with Rolls-Royce Instrumentation & Controls in Chattanooga—and more importantly, a fellow Ramblin’ Wreck from Georgia Tech—was intrigued by my recent opinion piece on the Imperial vs. Metric System. He wasn’t alone, either. At last glance, there were more than 50 comments on the story, making it one of the […]
Manufacturing matters: Where will Apple land?
Watch for municipalities and states to start raising their hands in earnest to lure Apple’s actual manufacturing operations to their backyard.
Manufacturer insight: IFH Group
The IFH Group was established in 1945 as King’s Weld Shop of Rock Falls, Ill., a small weld repair shop. It was incorporated in 1966 as J. L. King Co. Inc., taking on fabrication work. As the company grew, its name was changed to Sauk Valley Equipment Co. The balance of the building where the […]
Manufacturer insight: Continental Hydraulics
In operation since 1962, Continental Hydraulics is a manufacturer of hydraulic pumps, valves and power units used in some of the most hostile environments imaginable—most recently 5000-ft. under the sea, to help the BP oil spill effort in the Gulf of Mexico. The company formerly operated as a division of Continental Machine Inc., whose parent […]
Why we won’t kill the Imperial System
Back in grade school, we were told that the Imperial System was a thing of the past, that eventually we’d be living the Metric System life, with all it’s base-10 logic built right in. We’d be just like the rest of the world. But those predictions have proven about as accurate as the flying cars […]
Not fluid power, but some powerful fluids — Hurricane Sandy update
I’m used to writing about fluid power of the motion control variety. But this week, I’m reminded of the unassailable power of even unpressurized water—especially when it decides to come into my finished basement and ruin almost everything. Ah, Hurricane Sandy, you’ve been a maddening thing, even here in Ohio, hundreds of miles from the […]
Safety should be at the forefront of hydraulics
I had a nice chat with Greg Brown of RYCO Hydraulics at MINExpo last month, and it all revolved around safety. Greg was showing me their Crocbite product, an ingenious product for connecting large hoses that are frequently used in longwall mining applications. Instead of the traditional “staples” that connect large hoses, RYCO designed a […]
