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Nkomazi SEZ To Boost Mpumalanga

The Minister of Trade and Industry, Dr Rob Davies says the recent designation of the Nkomazi Special Economic Zone (SEZ) in Mpumalanga will contribute significantly to the economic and industrial development of the Nkomazi region and the province at large.

Davies designated the Nkomazi SEZ as the 10th Special Economic Zone in South Africa recently. The Nkomazi SEZ will be developed as an agro-processing hub, supported by logistics and other related services.

To date, the special economic Zone programme has attracted 115 private companies with a total value of R11.6 billion from private investments leveraging on the R4.6 billion of public investments. The SEZ programme has created more than 14 020 direct jobs as well as many multipliers.

According to Davies, the introduction of SEZ Tax incentives, which include the reduced 15% Corporate Tax Incentive, Employment Tax Incentives, Customs and excise incentive and Accelerated Depreciation of Building allowance have brought a much needed investment confidence into the programme and the country.

“Taking advantage of the Tax incentive package and the SEZ investment pipeline, the dti target is to increase the number of investments into the zones and double the rand value of operational investments from R11.6 billion to R23 billion by the end of 2019,” says Davies.

Last month President Cyril Ramaphosa launched the 124.5-hectare area, Atlantis Special Economic Zone (SEZ) in Atlantis, Western Cape Province. The Atlantis SEZ is designated for the manufacturing of green technologies, alternative waste management, energy efficient technology, alternative building material and many other clean technologies.

COEGA SEZ Serves As A Springboard To The Rest Of Africa

With Asia being the largest recipient of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) flows in the world, Africa has also seen a significant growth in FDI inflows.

United Nations Investment Trends Monitor (UNCTAD) demonstrates a resilient FDI flow to developing economies. The report highlights a 3% increase in FDI flow to developing economies, with Africa having registered a modest increase of 6% in 2018 (US$40 billion, up from revised US$38 billion in 2017).

The report further tracks South Africa’s steep fall in FDI inflows since 2014, comparing it to the registered strong recovery demonstrated by South Africa, with inflows amounting to US$7.1 billion in 2018 compared to US$1.3 billion in 2017. Such was driven by large investments in mining, petroleum refining, food processing, information and communication technologies and renewable energy.

In an effort to encourage growth in FDI flows for the Sub Saharan region, the Coega Special Economic Zone (SEZ) has dedicated much of its long-term strategy to focus on investment opportunities, which will secure a firm position for Africa globally. As a result, Coega SEZ is recognized as the leading SEZ in Africa and a gateway to world markets.

The SEZ’s strategic location and adjacency to the deep water Port of Ngqura has seen it become a springboard to investors looking to explore the greater African market. “Our location is unique – it provides an opportunity for potential investors to penetrate the African market,” says Dr Ayanda Vilakazi, CDC unit head brand, marketing & communications.

This has led to the Coega SEZ becoming home to various leading Fortune 500 companies seeking access to a wider market. The CDC, currently home to 43 operational investors with an investment portfolio in excess of R7 billion boasts a number of investors playing in the African market.

“The story of First Automotive Works (FAW) SA is one we are very proud of. We celebrate the success they have had in the African market with some of their trucks proving to be customer favourites in Tanzania and the wider SADAC market,” highlights Vilakazi.

At the back of this, the Coega SEZ has also seen the latest inclusion of another Fortune 500 company seeking to penetrate the African market, BAIC SA. The investment valued at R11 billion, once operational will enhance the diverse portfolio of export orientated investors at the Coega SEZ.

Late last year, the Coega SEZ announced the recent inclusion of HELLA – a Germanbased lighting and electronics specialist. HELLA announced its intentions to embark on a strategic decision with their operations in Sub-Saharan Africa that will enable them to serve as the gateway into Africa. The R30 million investment is set to start operating out of their new facility middle of this year.

Airbus Delivers The 400Th A320 Family Aircraft From FALA

Airbus has delivered the 400th A320 Family aircraft from its Final Assembly Line Asia (FALA) in Tianjin, China.

The A320neo was delivered to national flag carrier Air China, based in Beijing. Powered by Pratt & Whitney GTF latest generation engines, the aircraft features a comfortable two-class cabin layout with 158 seats. The milestone is a tribute to the excellent industrial cooperation and partnership between Airbus and the Chinese aviation industry.

The Airbus A320 Family Final Assembly Line Asia (FALA) is a joint venture between Airbus and a Chinese consortium comprising Tianjin Airport Economic Area Zone & Tianjin Port Free Trade Administrative Committee and China Aviation Industry Corporation (AVIC). Airbus and the Chinese Consortium hold 51% and 49% of the shares of the joint venture respectively. Airbus has four A320 Family production facilities around the world, including Toulouse – France, Hamburg – Germany, Tianjin – China and Mobile – United States.

Featuring the widest single-aisle cabin in the sky, the efficient A320neo Family incorporates the very latest technologies including new generation engines and Sharklets, which together deliver at least 15% fuel savings at delivery and 20% by 2020. With more than 6,200 orders received from more than 100 customers, the A320neo Family has captured some 60% share of the market.

Airbus To Develop Satellite Bus

DARPA describes the Blackjack program as an architecture demonstration intending to show the military utility of global low-earth orbit constellations and mesh networks of lower size, weight and cost.

DARPA wants to buy commercial satellite buses and pair them with military sensors and payloads. The bus drives each satellite by generating power, controlling attitude, providing propulsion, transmitting spacecraft telemetry, and providing general payload accommodation including mounting locations for the military sensors.

“Airbus has previously co-invested hundreds of millions of dollars in high-rate manufacturing technology and supply chain logistics to build large constellations of small satellites,” said Tim Deaver, Director of US Space Programs at Airbus Defense and Space, Inc. “Airbus is committed to growing manufacturing capability in the US and our government customers can leverage this commercial capability to develop low-earth orbit constellations to complement large existing systems.”

This contract positions Airbus Defense and Space, Inc., of Herndon, Va., and its strategic joint venture partner, OneWeb Satellites, of Exploration Park, Fl., as the ideal service providers for Blackjack.

High production rates and design-to-cost management techniques enable OneWeb Satellites to offer low cost constellation solutions for the U.S. government and current customers. Constellations of inexpensive satellites permit wide scale disaggregated architectures enhancing survivability across many different mission areas.

OneWeb Satellites is pioneering new value propositions in space. They are leading the design and manufacturing of ultra-high performing satellites at high-volumes.

“We have created a game changer with our overall design, supply chain and production system,” said Tony Gingiss, CEO, OneWeb Satellites. “Our team is transforming the space industry and we are in the midst of demonstrating we can deliver on our promises.”

OneWeb Satellites brings to bear capabilities which dramatically lower the cost and shorten acquisition timelines for customers thanks to a modular design and agile serial production of satellites.

The OneWeb Satellites satellite manufacturing facility in Florida is the latest step in Airbus’ continued and long-standing commitment to growth in U.S. manufacturing, job creation and investment.

Airbus is the largest consumer of U.S. aerospace and defense goods in the world – buying more than any other company or even country. Airbus invested $16.5 billion with U.S. companies in 2017, supporting 275,000 American jobs.

Boeing Launches Longest-Range Business Jet Ever

“Our most exclusive customers want to travel with the best space and comfort and fly directly to their destination. The new BBJ 777X will be able to do this like no other airplane before it, redefining ultralong range VIP travel,” said Greg Laxton, head of Boeing Business Jets, at the biannual Middle East Business Aviation Association Show (MEBAA).

Customers can choose between two models: the BBJ 777-8 and BBJ 777-9. The BBJ 777-8 offers the longest range of 21,570 km and a spacious 302.5 m2 cabin.

The BBJ 777-9 provides an even larger cabin measuring 342.7 m2, while still offering ultra-long range of 20,370km. This model opens up almost unlimited interior design options to ensure ultimate comfort for long distance travel.

To demonstrate the versatility of the airplane’s spacious cabin, BBJ unveiled interior concepts from three leading design firms: Greenpoint Technologies, Jet Aviation and Unique Aircraft Design. Each concept shows how the BBJ 777X can be transformed to suit the tastes of any VIP customer.

The strength of the BBJ fleet of airplanes was highlighted at the air show as Boeing announced it recently booked another order for its BBJ MAX family. The order from an unidentified customer brings total orders for the BBJ MAX to 21.

Based on Boeing’s best-selling 737 MAX airplane, the BBJ MAX offers more than three times the cabin space as most of its competitors and the ability to fly 12,964 km.

Milestone In The Expansion Of BMW Brilliance Automotive

The long-term expansion of the BMW Brilliance Automotive Ltd. (BBA) Joint Venture has achieved a significant milestone.

The company approved the sale of a 25 percent shareholding in BBA to the BMW Group. As announced on the 15th anniversary of BBA, the BMW Group intends to increase its stake in BBA from 50 percent to 75 percent and both partners signed a corresponding agreement. As part of the agreement the contractual term of the joint venture, which would currently expire in 2028, is to be extended to 2040. The transaction remains subject to the approval of the relevant authorities. The deal is scheduled to close in 2022 at the latest when the joint venture requirement for auto manufacturing in China will be lifted.

It is the BMW Group’s goal to further strengthen its long-term cooperation with CBA, increase production capacity in Shenyang and continue to expand the localization of additional models including new energy vehicles (NEVs). Therefore, an investment of more than three billion euros in new and existing plant structures in Shenyang over the coming years was announced recently. With its highly flexible production system, the new plant in Tiexi will be able to build vehicles with fully electric, partially electric and conventional drivetrains on a single production line. Further extensive remodelling and expansion measures will also be carried out at the neighbouring plant in Dadong. Its structure will be expanded to accommodate future BMW model variants and the expected increase in customer demand. As a result, from the early 2020s the total annual production capacity of BMW automobiles at the BBA plants will gradually increase to 650,000 units, creating 5,000 new jobs.

Mazda Develops World’s First Cold-Stamped Parts

Mazda Motor Corporation, working separately with Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Metal Corporation and JFE Steel Corporation, has developed the world’s first cold-stamped vehicle body parts made from 1 310 MPa-class high-strength steel.

The parts are used in Mazda’s new generation SKYACTIV-Vehicle Architecture, which will underpin upcoming models starting from the all-new Mazda3.

Parts using 1 310 MPa-class high-strength steel.

High-strength steel enables automakers to make parts from thinner sheet metal while retaining the necessary yield strength. This results in a lighter vehicle body, which contributes to improved handling stability and fuel economy. A strong body is also essential to ensure crash safety performance and the application of higher-strength steel has been widely anticipated.

Until now, cold-stamping of vehicle body structural members has only been possible with 1,180 MPa or lower-classed steel, due to the material’s formability and the difficulty of ensuring dimensional accuracy after processing. Working in collaboration with the above-mentioned companies, however, Mazda has found an appropriate set of processing conditions that make the process possible with 1,310 MPa-class high-strength steel, according to Mazda’s in-house research.

The all-new Mazda3 uses 1 310 MPaclass high-strength steel for the front pillar inner, the roof rail inner, the hinge pillar reinforcement, the roof rail reinforcement, the No. 2 crossmember and the side sill inner reinforcement, saving about 3 kilograms over the same parts in the previous model.

EMO Hannover 2019 – Smart Technologies Driving Tomorrow’s Production

By early December 2018, 1,780 exhibitors from 41 countries had registered for the upcoming EMO Hannover 2019. Anyone can view the online list of exhibitors at www.emo-hannover.de

Carl Martin Welcker, CEO and President of Alfred H. Schütte GmbH in Cologne, representing EMO Hannover as its General Commissioner.

“We are delighted with the fantastic response that EMO Hannover, the world’s leading trade fair for metalworking, has again received from all sides,” says EMO General Commissioner Carl-Martin Welcker. “The exhibitor directory shows a clear plus in comparison to the last EMO and already reads like a who’s who of the international machine tool industry,” he continues.

Market leaders in all technology sectors, such as DMG Mori, FFG, Mazak, Siemens, Grob, Doosan, Fanuc, Okuma, Makino, Index, GF Machining Solutions, Chiron, Trumpf, SLM, Stratasys, Paul Horn, Iscar, Sandvik, Kuka and many, many more, will be present. New companies are added daily. “It’s also good to see that many exhibitors have increased their stand space and are now even more representative than last time”, says Welcker.

EMO Hannover 2019 will take place from 16 to 21 September under the motto Smart technologies driving tomorrow’s production! A new exhibition area IoT in production underscores its claim to position itself as a platform for networking in production. Dr. Wilfried Schäfer, Managing Director of EMO organiser VDW (German Machine Tool Builders’ Association), explains, “IoT in production provides a complete overview of the central aspects of networking, including data security, data analysis, process monitoring, predictive maintenance, smart data management and much more”.

Dr. Wilfried Schäfer, Executive Director of the VDW (German Machine Tool Builders’ Association).

Many advantages for members of the Club of Metalworking

EMO Hannover 2019 therefore promises to be particularly exciting. This is also attractive for the members of the Club of Metalworking who want to come to EMO. The VDW founded this network for international experts in production technology in May of 2018. “The advantages of a membership are being exploited for the first time at EMO Hannover,” says Schäfer. It is free of charge and offers attractive services. Every member, from skilled worker to managing director, is welcome – in addition to admission tickets, there is an online forum, free public transport tickets for visiting the trade fair, a newsletter and a lounge for club members. Interested parties can register online at www.clubofmetalworking.de.

Colchester Multiturn CNC Lathe

The new MultiTurn is a simple, flat-bed CNC lathe now incorporating the powerful and user-friendly Siemens 828D control with Shopturn as a standard feature, although Fanuc 0iTF with Manual Guide i can also be fitted should the customer specify it.

The MultiTurn takes a highly established, robustly engineered lathe concept from Colchester that makes it the perfect machine for many of today’s CNC turning applications. The MultiTurn is everything that you come to expect from a Colchester lathe – robust, stable and highly precise, irrespective of the component size handled.

The Siemens 828D control with Shopturn has a well-earned reputation for being highly user-friendly and intuitive, ensuring that operators can cut quickly and easily with very little training. However, the Shopturn system is also powerful enough for more advanced CNC users to output maximum productivity quickly.

The Colchester MultiTurn lathe has been designed specifically for CNC users looking for increased versatility on one-off and small batch production, first time CNC buyers and jobbing shops looking for real programming simplicity and education and training establishments needing a real lathe with step-by-step simplicity.

600 UK offer 6 Colchester MultiTurn models, starting with the compact MultiTurn 1000, which has a 330mm swing over bed, a 7.5kW motor, outputting spindle speeds of 3500 rpm, right through to the heavyweight MultiTurn 6000, which has a massive 760mm swing over bed and an 18.5kW motor giving spindle speeds of up to 1400 rpm.

The MultiTurn 6000 also has bed length options ranging from 1.5 to 6 metres, ensuring that the MultiTurn is capable of turning any component, regardless of size, right through to long shafts, billets, bar stock and castings.

For more information, please contact F&H Machine Tools – Tel: 011 386-5840.

Intelligent Machine Productivity In A Compact Footprint

The latest entry in Okuma’s 2SP-H Series of two-spindle CNC lathes is designed to provide consistent quality in mass production while increasing efficiency through process-intensive machining and automation.

The lathe enables stable unattended production over long runs via a high-speed loader feeding blanks. Due to the machine’s unique design, the loader is able to enter the 2SP- 2500H regardless of the turret’s position. Since turret retraction is not necessary, workpiece transport and changeover times are greatly reduced.

With 5,000min-1, the lathe’s turning spindle features the fastest spindle speed of its class. The 2SP-2500H offers unrivalled floor space utilization with the smallest-in-class machine width of 2,200mm. Despite its compact dimensions, the machine provides an impressive maximum turning diameter of 250mm.

The 2SP-2500H is 20% faster than previous models. With a maximum spindle speed of 6,000min-1 and a doubled max motor output of 7.1 kW, the machine’s milling capabilities are on par with that of a small machining centre. Other applications include powerful face milling, drilling and tapping.

Okuma’s Intelligent Technology application Thermo-Friendly Concept minimizes thermal deformation and enables supreme accuracy. Okuma’s Tool Life Forecaster predicts the remaining time before an exchange is required and prevents cutting edge breakage, thus reducing costs.

For more information, please contact F&H Machine Tools – Tel: 011 386-5840.

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