EXAIR has launched a new interactive factory microsite designed to help manufacturers quickly identify products that can improve efficiency, safety and performance throughout their facility. The digital experience features a fully interactive factory floor map with clickable hotspots positioned throughout key production and maintenance areas. Each hotspot highlights how specific EXAIR products can be applied in real-world industrial processes, giving users a practical, visual way to explore engineered compressed air solutions for their operations.

The new digital plant allows users to navigate through different areas of a manufacturing facility and interact with application-specific product recommendations. Each hotspot provides product images, concise explanations of how the product functions in that environment, and direct access to product pages for fast, convenient purchasing. From conveying and cooling to blowoff, static elimination, and industrial cleanup, the platform demonstrates how EXAIR solutions integrate into everyday manufacturing challenges. Built to simplify product discovery and improve the customer experience, the microsite offers an engaging new way for engineers, maintenance personnel and plant managers to evaluate solutions tailored to their needs.

This tool is part of EXAIR’s ongoing commitment to providing customers with accessible tools and technical resources for solving industrial challenges. In addition to the new digital experience, EXAIR offers a wide range of support resources, including detailed product line cards, application guides, blog articles, Efficiency Lab, videos, technical documentation, and direct access to Application Engineers for personalized assistance to help customers confidently select the right solution for their application. https://exair.co/micro

Brightly Software, a Siemens company, will demonstrate how manufacturers can bridge the gap between shop floor operations & maintenance and top floor management with Asset Essentials on Stand J46 at Maintec 2026. Maintec 2026 forms part of Smart Manufacturing Week 2026 and takes place at the NEC Birmingham from 3-5 June 2026.

The event marks one of the first major UK industry showcases for Asset Essentials as Brightly expands its presence in the UK manufacturing sector.

At Stand J46, there will be live demonstrations of Asset Essentials, showcasing how it can transform maintenance strategy from reactive to predictive. This enables organisations to understand how real-time machine data can automate maintenance workflows, trigger work orders, support planning and scheduling, and improve visibility across maintenance, engineering, and operations.

About Asset Essentials

Asset Essentials gives manufacturers one platform to control asset management, work orders, asset lifecycles, spare parts inventory & purchasing, compliance, analytics and reporting. It also connects older and previously disconnected assets through smart IoT-enabled technology. This technology allows its users to easily identify and maintain poorly performing assets before they become a major problem. If assets do fail, automatically generated work reports ensure you minimise downtime, saving users time, money and resources. 

As a Siemens company, Brightly Software brings together enterprise asset management (EAM) and computerised maintenance management system (CMMS) capabilities with direct integration to Siemens industrial automation technologies, including WinCC SCADA and Siemens PLCs.

Tom Reames, Account Director, Brightly Software, comments: “Maintec provides a great opportunity for us to introduce Asset Essentials to the UK manufacturing market. Our mobile-first CMMS and Asset Management is built for modern operations, and at the event, we will be demonstrating how connected maintenance can help manufacturers improve uptime, visibility, and operational efficiency. Asset Essentials connects maintenance technicians, assets, and work orders in one intuitive platform with AI Insights. As a Siemens company, we understand that many maintenance teams are running inconsistently because their software is disconnected from their machines. In utilising Asset Essentials, manufacturers can move beyond reactive maintenance by linking machine data directly into maintenance workflows and asset management processes. We look forward to welcoming visitors to our stand and sharing insights.”

Visit Brightly Software, a Siemens company, on stand J46 in the Maintec area of Smart Manufacturing Week to see the future of integrated EAM/CMMS in action.

For more information about Asset Essentials, visit: https://www.brightlysoftware.com/en-gb/products/asset-essentials

The patented Chip Trapper offer a fast easy way to clean chips, swarf and shavings out of used coolants and other liquids. The Chip Trapper vacuums the coolant or liquid that is filled with debris into the included drum, trapping all the solids in a reusable filter bag. With a turn of the flow valve, clean liquid pumps back out. Expensive coolant that used to last only six weeks can now last six months with regular use of the Chip Trapper. It is ideal for use on machines with sumps, parts washers, tanks and storage containers.

Chip Trapper is compressed air powered and has no motors or impellers to clog or wear out. Safe operation is assured with a built-in pressure/vacuum relief and an automatic safety shutoff valve that prevents spills or overfilling. The Chip Trapper comes complete with the stainless steel two-way pump assembly, directional flow valve, 30, 55 or 110 gallon drum, lever lock drum lid, shutoff valve, 10' vacuum hose, 20' compressed air hose, chip wand, (2) filter bags and a drum dolly. https://exair.co/190-CTRdir

A new separator, pump and mixer have greatly improved slurry handling at a popular village-based dairy farm in Warwickshire.

Slurry from 105 Holsteins had become an ongoing challenge at Chesterton House Farm in Harbury, near Royal Leamington Spa, with it typically being too runny to put into spreaders and too thick to pump.

George Clarke who is in a business partnership with Louise Trice who owns the farm, said:

“To be fair, what we had before was just a pit that all the scrapings and everything went into, so it was a mess. We could see the compaction in the fields (200 acres) at silage time, with all the wheel marks from the spreader, where the grass hadn’t grown as it should have.”

George contacted Midland Slurry Systems of nearby Shipston-on-Stour, who have been working with Chesterton House Farm since before 40-year-old George was born.

He added: “Seeing big puddles being made everywhere from the spreader wasn’t good at all, so as part of us wanting to keep the farm moving forward, we knew it was time to make changes.”

Looking for a simple, cost-effective system that would largely take care of itself, George worked closely with Giles Russell at Midland Slurry Systems to introduce an EYS separator to mechanically separate the solid and liquid fractions of the fibre-rich slurry.

An integral part of the package also includes a 7.5kW Landia Chopper Pump to continuously reduce particle sizes as it transfers slurry up from the new 4m x 4m, 2m deep reception tank, that receives slurry through a new sewerage channel. The slurry (approximately 10% dry matter) in this vessel is kept fresh and homogenised by a 5.5kW Landia mixer. Installation, which was completed within three days, also included an ultrasonic level sensor for the reception tank, so that the new slurry system can work automatically, processing about 9m³ of slurry per day.

‘Good job of uniformly homogenising the slurry’

Giles Russell from Midland Slurry Systems, said:

“Because the Landia mixer does such a good job of uniformly homogenising the slurry, the fibre portion rides along the front of the auger and slides along the screen, keeping it clean. We’ve also developed a way of programming the separator, so that it is reversible, which prolongs its lifetime. We also know that Landia pumps and mixers will keep on running and running.”

George Clarke, who began working on the farm at weekends when aged 13, continued; “The only thing that will cause a problem is incidental solids that you get on any farm.  So far, we’ve had a load of string, and when we got a bit keen trimming back our conifers, but overall, the whole system is very reliable indeed and frees up time. The Landia mixer kicks in first for a few minutes, getting a good swirl going to blend the slurry.  Then the Landia Chopper Pump and the separator kick in. When it was wet last winter, the system would run every day, and now every three to four days when it is drier. Even if the slurry is reasonably thick, the system only needs to run for a couple of hours; less of course if it is thinner. And since we invested in 50kW of solar panels, it doesn’t cost a lot to run. Everything is very reliable, and if we ever need any advice or help, Midland Slurry Systems are always there for us.”

‘Noticeable improvement in grass growth’

Liquid slurry is pumped to the farm’s new 75m x 35m x 4.5m deep lagoon by a separate pump, whilst the dry matter from the separator is sent to a nearby arable farmer.

George Clarke added: “We expect to see a very noticeable improvement in grass growth for silage, and a reduction in the amount of bagged fertiliser we have to buy, which will be a big benefit.”

Each cow at Chesterton House Farm produces around 10,000 litres of milk pa, which goes to Arla, but the introduction of some vending machines has not only brought in some additional revenue, but at its location in the centre of the village, has shown many local people that the farm has a very valuable role to play. The success of the fresh milk from the vending machines (up to 1,000 litres sold per week) has seen George and Heather add a coffee machine, as well as sell products such as eggs, yoghurt and cakes at what has become a very popular hub and meeting place.

“It’s definitely improved our relationship with the village,” said George. “People now have much more of an idea of the work we do.”

Positioning maintenance as a core capability to support reliability, scale, and operational excellence

Building the foundation for reliability and scale

Operating across multiple terminals in Germany (Bremerhaven, Hamburg, and Wilhemshaven), EUROGATE Technical Services is responsible for maintaining complex and mission critical infrastructure, serving not only EUROGATE terminals but also other terminal operators.

With increasing technical complexity and rising expectations around availability, reliability and cost efficiency, the organization recognized the need for a more structured and data driven approach to maintenance.

Historically, maintenance processes were strongly focused on execution. While this delivered important improvements, it became clear that the next step required deeper insights into asset performance and lifecycle management. With a clear understanding of what was required to modernize EUROGATE Technical Services’ maintenance operations, Ultimo was selected for its usability, mobility, and data transparency, something lacking in the existing system landscape.

Enabling a reliability-driven operating model

The decision to implement Ultimo reflects EUROGATE Technical Services’ ambition to move toward a reliability driven operating model. The platform will support structured maintenance planning, incident management, and transparent documentation, while enabling data driven decision making across the organization. A key element of the transformation is the introduction of mobile working for approximately 450 technicians in the field. By providing technicians with direct access to information at the point of execution, EUROGATE Technical Services aims to improve efficiency, data quality and responsiveness in daily operations.

“Implementing a modern asset management platform like Ultimo enables a new standard of reliability, transparency and operational excellence,” said Stefan Jann, Managing Director of EUROGATE Technical Services.

Ultimo, a certified SAP partner, will operate alongside SAP ERP, which remains the backbone for financial and administrative processes. This integrated setup ensures end to end consistency while allowing each system to focus on its core strengths.

The transformation is being rolled out in phases across EUROGATE’s terminals, allowing the organization to learn and improve step by step. This approach supports a smooth transition while building internal capabilities and embedding new ways of working.

Ultimo’s trusted partner MaxGrip will support EUROGATE Technical Services with the implementation, translating its asset management ambitions into practical improvements. And through its approach of combining strategic expertise with hands-on experience, MaxGrip will help ensure the program goes beyond system implementation to deliver measurable performance gains, organizational development, and long-term value creation. Not only will MaxGrip implement the system, but they will also help EGTS to embrace the best practices of asset management, manage the transition from the current EAM system, and enable a successful system integration

Steven Elsham, Ultimo CEO, summarized his excitement, “For EUROGATE Technical Services, maintenance is not just a support function. It’s a strategic capability that creates measurable value. And by strengthening its asset management foundation with Ultimo, EUROGATE Technical Services are building a future-ready technical operation that can support growing volumes, increasing complexity and higher performance expectations. We look forward to supporting them on that journey.”

This initiative marks a significant step toward a more resilient, efficient and data driven EUROGATE Technical Services, where asset management plays a central role in delivering operational excellence across its terminal network. “Ultimo will be a key enabler of digital asset management. Future priorities include advanced analytics and AI-supported performance optimization. We also want to move toward predictive maintenance,” concludes Stefan Jann.

Industrial process heating specialist Babcock Wanson UK has launched a new Hybrid Add-on electric boiler to the UK market, designed to integrate seamlessly with existing gas or oil fired steam boilers, enabling customers to electrify their operations without making existing assets redundant.

Developed by Standard Fasel, part of the Babcock Wanson Group, the modular low-voltage Hybrid Add-on boiler provides an accessible and practical route to electrification. Rather than requiring full boiler replacement, the system connects directly into the existing installation, providing additional steam capacity using electricity while reducing fossil fuel consumption and associated emissions. This approach allows businesses to protect previous capital investment, minimise disruption, and take meaningful steps toward lower-carbon operation.

The Hybrid Add-on has been specifically designed to support long-term future proofing. By allowing operators to switch flexibly between fuel and electricity depending on energy prices and availability, the system supports resilience in an increasingly complex energy landscape. It can also utilise periods of surplus renewable electricity, helping organisations align with sustainability targets while contributing to smarter energy use.

Available in modular 200 kW, 400 kW and 800 kW versions, the compact units can be connected to a standard 400 V electrical supply and feature unlimited turndown, natural circulation with no pumps required, and minimal integration requirements. The design ensures fast, low-risk implementation with limited impact on existing boiler house infrastructure.

The launch builds on Babcock Wanson’s wider strategy of supporting industrial customers through the energy transition with practical, engineered solutions. It complements the company’s range of electric boilers and hybrid technologies, reinforcing its position as a partner for organisations seeking to decarbonise while maintaining operational performance.

“With many industrial sites, the challenge is not a lack of ambition around decarbonisation, but the fear of stranding valuable assets,” said Etienne Fourie, Technical Sales Manager for Babcock Wanson UK’s Process Engineering Division. “The Hybrid Add-on boiler addresses this directly. It enables businesses to electrify their steam systems in a pragmatic way, reducing emissions today while keeping their existing equipment productive and future-ready.”

The new Hybrid Add-on boiler is available in the UK through Babcock Wanson. For more information and a copy of the new brochure, contact Etienne Fourie at Babcock Wanson at 

This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or on + 44 (0)20 8953 7111.

Global hydraulic and industrial hose solutions leader replaces static catalogues with a single, intelligent source of digital product truth

Hydroscand today announced it has implemented Akeneo Digital Showroom to transform how it manages and distributes complex product information across its global markets.

Hydroscand is a leading provider of hydraulic and industrial hose solutions with a strong local presence supported by global expertise managing a catalogue of more than 30000 products. To minimize customer downtime in 20+ countries the requirement for accurate product information is critical.

Previously, product information was distributed across catalogues, PDFs and an eCommerce site, while service technicians in the field often relied on printed materials that were not always fully up to date. The approach created challenges around data accuracy, maintenance and speed when launching new products or updating technical specifications.

Hydroscand implemented Akeneo’s Product Cloud to centralise product information and create a single version of the truth across all channels. As part of the project, Hydroscand worked closely with Akeneo on the development of its Digital Showroom solution, designed to make complex product discovery faster and more precise for sales teams, distributors and customers.

“Hydroscand’s products are technically complex, which means precision is absolutely critical,” said Linda Löfstedt Karlsson, Head of Product Information and System Owner for Akeneo at Hydroscand. “When a distributor, engineer or technician wants to find a product, they must be confident they have found exactly the right product. By working with Akeneo to build our Digital Showroom, we have created a platform where finding the correct product is now faster, easier and significantly more precise.”

Using Digital Showroom, Hydroscand now manages all product information centrally, ensuring that product management, marketing and sales teams are working from the same dataset.

The system supports collaboration across internal teams and simplifies the process of enriching product information, managing translations and distributing consistent data across digital channels and partner ecosystems.

“Our collaboration with Akeneo has been a perfect journey,” continued Karlsson. “The team has been incredibly open-minded when it comes to feedback and very fast to respond. That co-creation process meant we were able to build exactly what we needed rather than trying to force our processes into a rigid system.”

The transformation also marks the end of Hydroscand’s reliance on printed catalogues. With product information now centrally managed and continuously updated, the company plans to phase out catalogue production entirely, a move that will significantly reduce production time, costs and environmental impact while ensuring customers always access the most current information.

Hydroscand is also developing a mobile application to support technicians working in the field, enabling them to access accurate product information wherever they are.

“Industrial companies are under growing pressure to deliver the same level of product discovery and accuracy that customers expect in consumer eCommerce,” said Romain Fouache, CEO of Akeneo. “The way Hydroscand is using Akeneo Digital Showroom shows how powerful that transformation can be when complex product data is properly structured and managed. With Akeneo as a single source of product truth, Hydroscand can provide faster search, consistent information across channels and a much stronger experience for distributors, technicians and customers worldwide.”

“In the future we expect search to feel more like working with a knowledgeable colleague,” said Karlsson. “AI will help us guide users more intelligently through complex product choices, making it even easier to find exactly what they need.”

www.akeneo.com