It goes without saying that the bicycle is a part of locomotion culture in Germany. 97 percent of people in Germany can ride a bike. They use bicycles not only for bike tours in their free time but also on a daily basis for shopping or commuting to work. Due to rising petrol costs and the constantly congested roads at peak times, residents of large cities in particular see the bicycle as a true alternative to the automobile. FAULHABER drives are installed here in various components.
What is going on in the neighbourhood? We all want to know, whether we admit it or not. Applied to the whole of humanity and Earth, the question is: What is going on in the Milky Way? We know surprisingly little about this, because we literally have a hard time seeing the wood for the trees. But the MOONS project initiated by British astronomers aims to change this. Technology from FAULHABER will play an important role.
From before the Industrial Revolution until the present day, manufacturers have shared common goals: producing a certain number of parts, in a certain amount of time, at a certain cost. Manufacturing processes evolved from craft-made single-item methods to mass production lines and output of increasingly greater numbers of identical parts: a high-volume/low product mix (HVLM) scenario. Most recently, digital technology in programming, machine tool controls and workpiece handling systems are facilitating a manufacturing environment known as Industry 4.0 that enables cost-efficient manufacture of highly diverse parts in small batches: high-mix/low-volume (HMLV) production.
The European REACH regulation, which aims to ensure a high level of protection for human health and the environment, imposes strict rules on the use of chemical substances. In order to protect employees in its production sites in Champagné and Marolles en Brie, SOURIAU is adapting its electroplating processes in response to these new regulatory constraints and at the request of its customers. MARIE LE SCAON, Technical Manager of Surface Treatment at the Champagné, factory, provides an update on the solutions envisioned by the company as substitutes for hexavalent chromium.