Daily Manufacturing News Digest – the industry stories you should be aware of today

Posted on 21 Jul 2023 by The Manufacturer

Each day The Manufacturer compiles the top manufacturing news stories from around the web. To make your life a little easier, we trawl through all the major trade publications, broadsheets and business magazines to find you the most important manufacturing news each morning. Don't forget to bookmark this page and check back daily.

Airbus Helicopters in the UK and the High Value Manufacturing Catapult announce strategic partnership

Airbus Helicopters in the UK has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the High Value Manufacturing (HVM) Catapult – the UK’s leading group of research, development and innovation centres.

This strategic partnership will see both organisations establish a framework under which they will jointly investigate opportunities to work together on future opportunities. Find out more on The Manufacturer

World first 100% SAF transatlantic flight taxis closer to takeoff

Virgin Atlantic and Rolls-Royce today confirm the successful Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) blend ground test on the Rolls-Royce Trent 1000 engine. The test marks a key milestone in the project which will see the world’s first 100% SAF flight travel across the Atlantic from London Heathrow to New York JFK on a Boeing 787 Dreamliner, set to take off on 28 November 2023.

In addition to the test, fuel suppliers Air bp and Virent have been announced to supply the 60 tonnes of SAF to be used in the world first, supporting consortium research, testing and the flight itself. The SAF will be produced through the Hydroprocessed Esters and Fatty Acids (HEFA) pathway as well as synthetic aromatic kerosene (SAK) SAF at an 88% and 12% blend ratio. Find out more on Virgin Atlantic

New robotics technology to provide remote medical treatment in hazardous environments

Game-changing robotics technology to provide remote medical treatment to casualties in high-risk emergency environments has been developed by researchers at the University of Sheffield.

Using medical telexistence (MediTel) technology, researchers from the university’s Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre (AMRC), Sheffield Robotics and Department of Automatic Control and Systems Engineering, have successfully created a mobile, robotic-controlled uncrewed ground vehicle (UGV), which boasts virtual reality (VR) capability, to enable medics and operators to assess critical casualties in hazardous environments, allowing them to perform a remote triage while also ensuring their safety. Find out more on The Manufacturer

DS Smith raises sustainability strategy ambitions

DS Smith, a leading provider of packaging solutions, has raised its sustainability strategy ambitions having already achieved significant progress. Find out more on DS Smith

Channel Tunnel operator LeShuttle orders six new Alexander Dennis Enviro200

Alexander Dennis has announced that it will supply six Enviro200 single deck buses in a bespoke specification to LeShuttle, part of Getlink group.

LeShuttle operates shuttle trains for road vehicles through the Channel Tunnel between terminals at Folkestone and Calais. Find out more on Alexander Dennis

DS Smith Hellas to invest 33 million euros in capacity and sustainable packaging development

DS Smith Hellas, the leading manufacturer of sustainable packaging solutions in Greece, has announced a strategic investment plan to be implemented in the next two years across all its three sites in the country.

The investment totalling an amount of 33.9 million euros is focused on equipment upgrades including purchasing state-of-the art machinery for innovative packaging solutions and capacity enhancements. Find out more on The Manufacturer