From: J. R. Molloy (jr@shasta.com)
Date: Sun Sep 03 2000 - 21:06:27 MDT
Worthy of investment
Pyramid Operating Systems is the originator's spin-off company:
http://www.pyramidos.com/investor/article3.html
"In one quantum leap forward, incremental changes of the past in the composites
industry are giving way to a total system breakthrough," says Gene Kirila, CEO
of Pyramid Operating Systems. Kirila refers to his firm's new VEC (TM) operating
system, the VEC 5.5 Cell. The "Virtual Engineered" composites system links
materials, equipment, process control, human interface, and advanced technology
in one program. A key component of the operating system is Floating Mold (TM), a
patent-pending, closed-mold technique that uses two composite laminate skins in
a liquid, air-tight seal of two pressure vessels filled with non-compressible
fluid. The system collects and analyzes materials data, then creates complete
histograms of the resin environment during the composite-producing process.
Control parameters include: temperature, viscosity, flow rate, mass density, gel
times, and peak exotherms on a real-time basis.
Also check out Nanopowders from Utron:
Nanopowders, rapid compaction spur new metallurgical processes
Utron Inc. has developed a combustion gas chamber to quickly compress metallic
powders into small parts, and eventually mass-produce small and big components
based on the process. It's one of many efforts by powder-metallurgy scientists
to take talcum, powder-size grains of metals and turn them into pressed parts.
Current methods use pressure and heat to slowly press out small batches of
parts. Making large parts in this fashion requires long exposure to heat, with
possible undesirable molecular changes resulting. With the combustion gas
chamber process, Utron hopes to mass-produce parts "on millisecond time scales,"
according to Dr. Arul Mozhie, Utron senior scientist. The Utron process evolved
from pulsed power and high-pressure combustion technologies developed for
hypervelocity launch and other defense applications. The process uses
high-pressure pulses, produced by the controlled combustion of propellants, to
consolidate the tiny copper and steel powders Utron made using a higher momentum
flux gas medium. The work was pursued under a contract awarded by the Ballistic
Missile Defense Organization. FAX (703) 369-5298.
http://www.manufacturing.net/magazine/dn/archives/1998/dn0504.98/tech.html
Genmar uses the trademarked Virtual Engineered Composites:
http://www.genmar.com/html/t_armor.html
http://www.genmar.com/html/p_article26.html
http://www.bizjournals.com/twincities/stories/2000/07/17/story7.html
http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/823619/0001047469-99-037045.txt
The process of manufacturing fiberglass boats has remained virtually unchanged
for 50 years, but Genmar Holdings of Minneapolis has come up with a
technological breakthrough that could revolutionize the marine industry, said
Jan Teply, the company's Director of Engineering. It is Virtual Engineered
Composites (VEC), a new closed-mold fiberglass manufacturing process that works
in a highly automated, computer-controlled environment.
VEC technology produces perfect boat parts up to four times faster than
conventional open mold processes. It produces "a stronger, lighter boat of
consistent quality" while exceeding all applicable environmental standards,
Teply said. Genmar plans to expand its application to other marine products and
license the technology to companies in other industries like construction,
transportation and recreation, Teply stated.
http://www.nreca.org/edu_events/conferences/newtech/html/2000/manufacturing.html
----- Original Message -----
From: <GBurch1@aol.com>
To: <extropians@extropy.com>
Sent: Sunday, September 03, 2000 6:44 PM
Subject: INDUSTRY: Factory in a Box
> Check this out:
>
> http://www.time.com/time/magazine/articles/0,3266,50608,00.html
>
> Greg Burch <GBurch1@aol.com>----<gburch@lockeliddell.com>
> Attorney ::: Vice President, Extropy Institute ::: Wilderness Guide
> http://users.aol.com/gburch1 -or- http://members.aol.com/gburch1
> ICQ # 61112550
> "We never stop investigating. We are never satisfied that we know
> enough to get by. Every question we answer leads on to another
> question. This has become the greatest survival trick of our species."
> -- Desmond Morris
>
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