The Holden site at Elizabeth, South Australia, is expected to cease manufacturing by the end of 2017. Thoughts are now turning to possible future uses for the site, which currently employs about 1600 workers. [ + ]

HAM-LET is launching PuRight, an enhanced version of 316L stainless steel, which offers lower inclusion content, low carbon content for enhanced welding, low sulfur content for enhanced electro-polishing and better corrosion resistance. [ + ]

Metso Automation USA has received a patent from the US Patent office for Automated Determination of Root Cause. The patented method determines the most likely root cause using a "big data" technique. [ + ]

BHP Billiton's Jimmy Wilson acknowledges that BHP is trailing Rio Tinto on autonomous trucks and rail in the Pilbara, but he insists that for any technology, the second generation is always better than the first. [ + ]

MathWorks' MATLAB Tour is a series of free, one-day events which bring together engineers, scientists, technical managers, and academia to discuss how MATLAB and Simulink software are addressing advanced science and engineering challenges. [ + ]

The biennial Yokogawa Solutions Conference, the largest and most successful to date, was attended by delegates representing a broad spectrum of the process control industry, along with vendor partner companies. [ + ]

Automation technology provider Pilz will hold a series of one-day robot safety training courses to provide those who integrate robotic systems with a comprehensive understanding of the essential requirements of robot safety. [ + ]

Honeywell Process Solutions has announced it will be responsible for training technicians at a new 200,000 barrel/day refinery being constructed in Thanh Hoa Province, Vietnam. [ + ]

The challenges posed by a high Australian dollar and slower economic growth should inspire manufacturers to focus their attention inwards in the quest to remain competitive. [ + ]

The third Hazards Asia Pacific process safety conference will be held on 21-23 April 2015 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. [ + ]

Honeywell Process Solutions will supply automation technology for a new Fort Hills Oil Sands project in Alberta, Canada, scheduled to begin operating in late 2017. [ + ]

Toshiba (Australia) has announced it is now a Business Alliance Partner with GS1 Australia. [ + ]

A new research and development facility in Nanjing, China, will focus on developing flow metering and measurement technologies that will help process manufacturers tackle their toughest engineering challenges. [ + ]

Emerson Process Management's online purchasing and support for Rosemount measurement products is now available to process manufacturers and producers in Australia. [ + ]

CiDRA has announced that it has entered into a distributor agreement with Yokogawa Australia & New Zealand to sell CiDRA's SONARtrac range of flowmeters into the Australian and New Zealand minerals processing sector. [ + ]