Another great Olympic team – the engineers behind 2012

The athletes, the volunteers and the great British public have all been celebrated but what about the other team who ‘made’ the Olympics? In the latest edition of The Engineer magazine, ‘The Gamesmakers’ article looks at the people behind the engineering infrastructure for the opening and closing ceremonies. In an interview with Piers Shepperd, the ceremony’s technical director, there is a fascinating insight into how the needs of the ceremony were built into the stadium right from the start. In particular, a huge aerial cable-net system was needed involving a mass of remote-control winches and trolleys. Timing was vital to avoid collisions between such things as 32 Mary Poppins and an 18ft Voldemort. Thomas Heatherwick’s design for the cauldron involved making 23 tonnes of metal compact enough to fit on the 18m diameter lift below the stage. For more on the range of engineering expertise behind the ceremony, read page 16 of the latest digital edition http://www.centaur2.co.uk/emags/theengineer/te-092012/

PPMA 2012 at the NEC – for all involved in process and production.

Wherever your responsibilities lie in the production chain from food processing to filling machinery or packaging innovations, this year’s PPMA show at Birmingham has a lot to offer. The annual exhibition from the Process and Packaging Machinery Association takes place at the NEC from the 25- 27^th September with nearly 300 stands and a machinery advice area with representatives from the PPMA itself. Industry sectors represented cover everything from pharmaceuticals and confectionary to publishing and energy management. The exhibition also features a series of live debates at ‘The Manufacturing Forum’, hosted by the editors of Packaging News, Process Engineering and Machinery Update. Topics to be discussed include industry training, sustainability in the packaging industry and the issues surrounding introducing new pack innovations. For all those involved in production management or process engineering, read more about the event here and register for free. http://www.ppmashow.co.uk/