CGBN

PLANTS, CENTERS, AND FACILITIES

HFT to make first rolled glass manufacturing facility for photovoltaic solar panels

Canadian Premium Sand contracted with HFT to conduct preconstruction design and engineering on the first North American integrated glass manufacturing facility to produce glass for photovoltaic solar panels. The glass plant will be built in Selkirk, Manitoba; the sand facility will process low iron silica sand at a facility north of the glass plant.

Envelon opens BIPV solar module factory in Germany

Evelon, a building-integrated photovoltaic solar module manufacturer, opened a facade panel factory in Bavaria, Germany. The factory has an annual production capacity of up to 300,000 square meters of solar-driven facade modules.

Glennmont and MN to invest EUR 700m in European renewables

London-based fund manager and clean infrastructure investor Glennmont Partners tied up with Dutch financial services firm MN to invest EUR 700 million (US$674.6 million) in renewable energy projects on brownfield sites across Europe.

O-I to invest BRL300 million in Brazilian glass manufacturing expansion

O-I is to expand its glass manufacturing facility in Vitória de Santo Antão, Brazil. The BRL 300 million (US$55.5 million) investment will be used to expand the glass bottle factory acquired in 2010 from Grupo Cornélio Brennand.

Greenland Minerals dealt setback in legal fight for rare earth project license

Australia’s Greenland Minerals Ltd. said an arbitration tribunal declined its request for interim orders against the Greenland government’s draft decision to reject the miner a license for the Kvanefjeld rare-earths project.

UK project installs 3D concrete printed wastewater chamber

A project in the United Kingdom’s water industry successfully used 3D concrete printing to develop and install a wastewater chamber, leading to significant reductions in carbon, costs, and labor.


ACQUISITIONS AND COLLABORATIONS

Strategic Materials buys Ripple Glass

Glass recycler Strategic Materials Inc., headquartered in Houston, Texas, acquired Missouri-based Ripple Glass, accelerating Strategic Materials’ plan to strengthen glass collection programs and increase glass recovery rates across North America.

Watlow signs agreement to acquire Eurotherm from Schneider Electric

Watlow, a designer and manufacturer of complete industrial thermal systems, signed an agreement to acquire Eurotherm from Schneider Electric, the global leader in the digital transformation of energy management and automation.

RWE agrees to acquire Con Edison Clean Energy Businesses, Inc.

RWE AG, one of the world’s leading renewable energy companies, signed a purchase agreement with Con Edison, Inc. to acquire all shares in Con Edison Clean Energy Businesses, Inc. Once completed, this acquisition will make RWE the number 4 renewable energy company and the second largest solar operator in the  United States.

Verallia Cognac and Fives sign electric glass making agreement

Verallia and Fives signed a contract to replace traditional gas furnaces with the Fives’ all-electric technology at the Cognac glass manufacturing plant in France. This switch will enable significant reductions in CO2 emissions.

N.C. A&T receives $10M to open clean energy research center

North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University will open the Center for Electrochemical Dynamics and Reactions on Surfaces (CEDARS), funded by a four-year $10.35 million grant from the Department of Energy. CEDARS is an interdisciplinary effort to establish clean energy initiatives.

SCHOTT achieves first successes in its climate neutrality initiative

In 2020, specialty glass manufacturer SCHOTT announced plans to become climate neutral across its production by 2030. Now, the company is celebrating its first milestones. In addition to switching to 100% green electricity and making a 60% reduction in carbon emissions, it launched important projects to develop more climate-friendly melting tech.

The Abstra Tile Collection by Kohler WasteLAB receives sustainability product award

The Business Intelligence Group named the Abstra Collection by Kohler WasteLAB a Sustainability Product of the Year in the 2022 Sustainability Awards program. The Abstra Collection is made from more than 99.5% recycled materials.

Ultralow-power semiconductor leader Ambiq announces new chief financial officer

Ambiq announced that Scott Goodwin joined the company as chief financial officer. In his role, Goodwin will primarily oversee Ambiq’s accounting and finance teams, among other corporate functions. Goodwin has more than 20 years of experience in accounting and finance roles.

All 50 states plus D.C. and Puerto Rico greenlit to move EV charging networks forward

The Biden-Harris Administration has approved Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Deployment Plans for all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico ahead of schedule under the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Formula Program. All states now have access to all FY22 and FY23 NEVI formula funding, totaling more than $1.5 billion.

White House seeks input on draft microelectronics strategy

The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy is seeking comments on a draft National Strategy on Microelectronics Research developed in response to the CHIPS for America Act. Comments are due October 17.


MARKET TRENDS

Efforts to transform US nuclear industry entering full bloom

Over the last several years, Congress has passed multi-pronged policy initiatives and provided billions of dollars in funding to spur the deployment of “advanced” nuclear reactors. An FYI article outlines the sprawling array of projects that are now in progress.

Recycling isn’t enough to slow plastic pollution

As promising as chemical recycling and next-generation plastics may sound, experts say some of the most realistic solutions to plastic pollution involve eliminating it from packaging as much as possible.

With more solar panels entering the US waste stream, EPR policy and standards emerge

As more solar panels are expected to enter the waste stream, experts at a recent Northeast Recycling Council webinar said policy and recycling markets are working hard to catch up.

‘Sense of crisis’ has gripped South Korean chip industry, warns minister

South Korea’s science minister says a “sense of crisis” is gripping the country’s semiconductor industry, as the east Asian nation braces for greater challenges from the U.S. and China in an intensifying global chip war.

China refractory minerals outlook in transition

IMFORMED’s China Refractory Minerals Forum 2022 took place online Sept. 14, 2022. In his opening presentation, IMFORMED director Mike O’Driscoll provided an overall picture of world refractory mineral supply. A recap of that presentation, with specific focus on China, appears on the IMFORMED website.


NEW PRODUCTS

BD introduces new glass prefillable syringe

The new BD Effivax Glass Prefillable Syringe was designed in collaboration with pharmaceutical companies. It is designed to reduce the risk of line stoppage and improve the total cost of ownership, manufacturing capacity, and supply availability.

AGC Glass Europe aims to reduce carbon footprint with new float glass range

AGC Glass Europe will produce a float glass range by the end of 2022 that features a reduced carbon footprint of less than 7 kg of CO2 per m2 for clear glass (4 mm thick). AGC says its production plant in Moustier, Belgium, will be the first company plant to produce low-carbon glass. AGC will then transfer its low-carbon strategy to other sites.

Vetropack produces lightweight returnable bottles

Vetropack Group produced the world’s first returnable bottles made of thermally tempered lightweight glass. The lightweight glass bottle is up to 30% less weight than a standard returnable bottle and is more resistant to abrasion, which results in higher circulation rates.

Agr International unveils the ThicknessPen for container glass industry

Agr International unveiled the ThicknessPen, a portable thickness gauge for the container glass industry. The ThicknessPen differs from other measurement devices with its patent pending, dual-mode operation that offers users the option to measure using either a magnetic or capacitance mode, whichever is most appropriate for the application.

Startup replaces graphite with silicon to super-charge batteries

Ionic Mineral Technologies has a mass-manufacturing strategy for the development of a silicon-based, drop-in replacement for the graphite typically used in commercial lithium-ion energy-storage devices.

ROSS multishaft mixers

Ross VersaMix multishaft mixers are ideal for processing medium- to high-viscosity applications up to several hundred thousand centipoise, such as thick slurries, pastes, gels, and suspensions. VersaMix models range from laboratory to large-scale capacities up to 4,000 gallons.

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