Industry news4Filtration+Separation May 2008

In briefPeerless Mfg Co has announced the latest addition to its group of companies with the recent formation of Peerless Manufacturing Canada Ltd, located in the city of Calgary, Canada. The new office will be the focal point of Peerless’ line of separation, filtration, and environmental equipment for the oil and gas market.

Peter J. Burlage, CEO of the company, stated: “Peerless has a strong history of supplying high quality equipment to facilities located in Canada, particularly to the tar sands region which is experiencing ever increasing investment in facility development and expansion.”

www.peerlessmfg.com

Alfa Laval has received an order for its Packinox plate heat exchangers for a refinery in Saudi Arabia. The order value is about SEK50 million. The plate heat exchangers will be used to produce diesel fuel for the Ras Tanaura refinery in Saudi Arabia.

“This order underlines the very strong position that Alfa Laval has established in the refinery industry and the ongoing investments in the refinery industry, which Alfa Laval will continue to benefit from,” said Lars Renström, CEO and president of the Alfa Laval Group.

The order is scheduled for delivery in 2009.

www.alfalaval.com

Graver Technologies, supplier of filtration and separationproducts, has received the State of Colorado’s Acceptance Review for use of its cartridge filter models QCR, QMA, and ZTEC-B as a technology that meets Surface Water Treatment Rule (SWTR) requirements for giardia lamblia and cryptosporidium removal.

www.gravertech.com

John Crane plans to acquire Indufil BVJohn Crane, manufacturer of mechanical sealing systems and associated technologies, has announced its plans to acquire Dutch company Indufil BV. Final completion of the acquisition is subject to regulatory approvals.

Indufil BV produces filtration systems used for rotating equipment fluid, fuel and gas conditioning for the petrochemical and power generation sectors.

Mike Mansell, managing director of John Crane EAA, commented: “This is a perfect illustration of our growth strategy in action as we seek to increase the scope

of technology-based products associated with rotating equipment in our core markets. It will also increase our service offering to the aftermarket which can be supported through our existing global network. This comes only months after we acquired Sartorius Bearing Technology. That move allowed us to add engineered bearings to our offering and these will now be joined by Indufil’s specialist filtration systems.

“Our current intention is that Indufil will remain in its location and become the headquarters of the John Crane filtration systems business

unit. Indufil’s market is worth over £300 million and this acquisition gives us access to that potential. It sells to customers who already benefit from John Crane’s technology and the addition of these new products will enable us to widen the scope of service that we can offer these customers. As the petrochemical and power generation markets continue to expand it will generate significant opportunities to grow the Indufil business and with the backing of John Crane’s global network we feel ideally placed to exploit this growth.”

www.johncrane.com

Zenon founder awarded Singapore water prize Dr Andrew Benedek, founder of Zenon Environmental, has been awarded a Singapore water prize for his development of low-pressure membranes, which have enabled drinking water to be produced from highly polluted water.

The Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize is an international award recognising an individual or organisation for outstanding contributions to the world of water management. Named after Singapore’s founding father, Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew, the award comes with a cash prize of SGD$215,000.

“Dr Andrew Benedek is held in high esteem by the global water industry community for his pioneering work in low-pressure membranes. For this outstanding contribution, he deserves to be the recipient of the inaugural Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize,” said Professor Anthony Gordon Fane, UNESCO Centre for Membrane Science and Technology, University of New South Wales.

An award certificate and cash prize will be presented to Dr Benedek, during Singapore International Water Week, which begins on 23 June.

www.siww.com.sgWinner of the award, Dr Andrew Benedek.

Polymer Group Inc announces 2007 resultsPolymer Group Inc has announced results of operations for 2007.

Net sales for fiscal year 2007 increased 3.7% to US$1.06 billion, driven primarily by growth in the nonwovens segment.

Gross profit for 2007 was US$168.9 million, 8.1% up on 2006. The gross profit margin increased by 65 basis points to 15.9% despite significant increases in raw material costs in the fourth quarter. Fourth quarter 2007 gross profit of $38.9

million was $2.6 million lower than the fourth quarter of 2006, primarily due to the severe and rapid increases in raw material costs during the end of 2007.

PGI’s chief executive officer, Veronica M. Hagen commented: “Our underlying improvement in 2007 was achieved during a very busy year for the company as we worked to position ourselves for growth and market leadership.During 2007, PGI successfully ramped up its medical operations

in Suzhou, China, benefited from new product roll outs in North America, closed two plants in the U.S. and one in Europe transferring certain business and equipment to other sites, installed a state-of-the-art spunbond line in Argentina and installed and introduced a new technology, Spinlace™, to the market. These initiatives were successfully executed during the year and are expected to provide benefits in 2008 and beyond.”

www.polymergroupinc.com

fs4504_pg4_11.indd 4fs4504_pg4_11.indd 4 25/04/2008 16:01:4425/04/2008 16:01:44