Industry News
ELIZABETH LARSON

SAE nominates first woman president

The Society of Automotive Engineers has nominated its first woman president, Rodica A. Baranescu, chief engineer of Navistar International Transportation Corp. Baranescu joined SAE in 1980 and has been an active member, serving a two-year term as a member of the SAE Board of Directors in 1995-97. On March 2, she was elected an SAE fellow, an honor which recognizes members' important engineering achievements. Born in Romania, Baranescu holds a doctorate in mechanical engineering from the Technical University of Bucharest, Romania. Visit SAE's Web site at www.sae.org .

Small-business Y2K help center opens

Small manufacturers and other small businesses looking for free help in dealing with the year 2000 computer problem can contact the National Institute of Standards and Technology's newly opened Y2K Help Center for Small Business. The center provides technical support to users of Conversion 2000: Y2K Self-Help Tool, developed by NIST's Manufacturing Extension Partnership. The software helps businesses conduct an equipment inventory, identify core business systems, develop contingency plans, and plan and manage remediation projects. The center also will provide information on equipment manufacturers' and vendors' databases that contain Y2K compliance information. The Y2K Self-Help Tool is available on the Y2K Help Center Web site, y2khelp.nist.gov.

Quality publishers merge

Portland, Oregon-based consulting and publishing company Productivity Inc. and Quality Resources, a publisher of quality and performance books, have merged as part of the acquisition of Productivity by Kraus Organization Ltd. The new company, a subsidiary of KOL, will continue to be known as Productivity Inc. Productivity will remain headquartered in Portland, and the Quality Resources offices in New York will become Productivity's East Coast editorial office. "The merger creates the leading U.S. company focused solely on process improvement for the manufacturing industry from management to the shop floor," says Herbert W. Gstalder, KOL's president. Visit the Productivity Inc. Web site at www.productivityinc.com .

BSI acquires South American inspection business

The British Standards Institution has purchased Acsa Loss Control, a vehicle-inspection business with locations in Argentina and Brazil. Acsa has developed a successful niche business in the region for inspecting vehicles in transit from car plants to showrooms. The Buenos Aires-based company has 80 employees, and its 1998 sales reached $3.9 million. "Following the recent opening of BSI Inc. offices in Brazil, this acquisition further demonstrates the company's commitment to global expansion," says Nigel Withey, BSI Inc.'s vice president and general manager. "We're excited about adding Acsa's successful car-inspection business to our global family." Visit BSI's Web site at www.bsi-inc.org .

Partnership to benefit electronics industry

NEPCON, a provider of electronics industry shows, has announced a partnership with the American Society of Test Engineers. "NEPCON organizers look forward to ASTE's professional input regarding the ways NEPCON can further serve test engineers and the electronics manufacturing industry as a whole," says Lorenz Hassenstein, NEPCON's industry vice president. ASTE's contribution to the NEPCON conference program also will increase educational opportunities at the show for test engineers, adds Hassenstein. Visit ASTE's Web site at www.astetest.org or NEPCON's Web site at www.nepcon.com .

CNC company opens technology and training center

OMAT-USA, a leading provider of CNC add-on optimization devices, and RL Stephens Tool & Equipment Co. have announced the opening of their new Technology and Training Center, built in response to customer demand for the ever-expanding lines of high-technology products for CNC machine tools. The state-of-the-art, multimillion-dollar facility houses a machining center equipped with OMAT's OptiMil and OptiTurn products, as well as CMMs. The tech center will also serve as the regional training facility for OMAT Control Technologies. Visit OMAT's Web site at www.omatusa.com .

Software companies join

Tecnomatix Technologies Ltd., a pioneer in computer-aided production engineering solutions, has signed an agreement to acquire Unicam Software Inc. of Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Unicam is a leading provider of production engineering software solutions to the printed circuit board assembly market, a segment of the electronics industry that Tecnomatix also addresses. Tecnomatix will continue to develop, market and support the two companies' product lines as a combined operation under the management of Michael Marsh, Unicam's founder and president. "We're extremely pleased to join Tecnomatix," says Marsh. "We believe that our consolidated expertise will allow us to expand our market presence and support global manufacturing customers.

IndustryFact:  Small manufacturers provide more than half of all that is made by U.S. manufacturers.