Stora Enso Consumer Boards has taken on the role as venture capitalist through the purchase of Activation AB. This Swedish company specialises in cd packages and associated packaging machinery. Through such acquisitions, Stora Enso Consumer Boards wants to speed up technological developments and create new product concepts in strong knowledge clusters.

A new electropneumatic pump module, the AVM 5050, has now been introduced for controlling and monitoring vacuum systems that are designed to move materials using suction cups. The module has been developed by the vacuum technology company Piab to ensure the safe and rapid handling of sheet metal parts, etc., and to minimise expensive downtime and rejects in the automotive and white goods industries.  The module, which can be controlled from a PC or PLC, has a built-in energy-saving feature and ensures that the vacuum is maintained in the event of a power cut.

Europe's leading consumer packaging board producer, Stora Enso, is launching new power brands Cupforma and Trayforma for the cup and tray markets. For the cup market the company seeks growth in promotional and coffee-to-go products, while the main potential in the tray market is in non-food applications. To encourage the design of non-food trays, the company has announced the Trayforma International Design Awards competition.

The Swedish company Somas Instrument AB has designed a new pneumatic actuator(type A) in which the play between the valve and the actuator has been eliminated. This is achieved via a clamping joint that in combination with a commercial bushing leads to high friction between the actuator's drive shaft and the valve's spindle. According to the company, this will considerably increase the possibilities for process optimisation and safer operation.

Moisture damage and unhealthy buildings are a permanently present problem. However there is no reason why people should suffer illness due to poor indoor air quality. Nowadays there is an excellent fund of knowledge about unhealthy buildings, and the problems can often be solved without the need to evacuate residents or to empty an entire workplace. This is the view of the Carl Bro company Sycon Barab, a well-known environmental consultancy which since the mid-1980s has offered expertise on the indoor environment and associated damage to buildings.  "Buildings are always subject to some damage or other. Certain things cause health problems, others don't. What is important in making premises healthy is to find precisely those faults that give rise to health problems", says the company's Managing Director, Erik Winqvist."So as to quickly find the reasons and take the necessary measures it's important to have a good knowledge of construction techniques and a well-defined investigation strategy", stresses Erik Winqvist.

SPCI 2002, 4-6 JuneStockholm International Fairs Stand A21:30 (Alnab)

After the largest investment for more than 30 years, the first paper was reeled off at the Holmen-owned Hallsta Paper Mill in Hallstavik, 100 km north of Stockholm, Sweden. The start was also an impressive display of the advanced planning and time management of a reconstruction and investment project implemented parallel to the mill's ongoing production. A thousand extra workers and perfect "just-in-time-deliveries" were needed during the 70 days available for production stops, which in industry terms is an extremely short period. One result of the now completed investment, which approached SEK 2.3 billion, is one of the world's most modern plants for high-quality paper for newspapers and magazines.

Stora Enso predicts digital printing will take a strong position in packaging markets and become a mainstream process. Strong growth in demand over the last six months for board products that are suitable for digital processes supports the company's forecast. Pira International, which follows developments in the packaging industry also believes that digital printing will account for almost 20% of all printing by 2010.

Sweden invests more in biotech per capita than any other country in the world. The country also has the fourth-largest biotech industry in Europe, characterised by a successful entrepreneurial approach, well-developed infrastructure, well-trained workforce and a favourable financial growth climate.In particular, Sweden's internationally focused researchers have been quick to realise the potential of genomics and have rapidly established a global reputation in research fields such as stem cells, where 24 of the total of 64 lines that have been identified by the American National Institute of Health are to be found in the country. Sweden is also at the forefront in the highly complex field of protein research, with several successful companies and universities. This work is headed by the Karolinska Institutet, an organisation whose activities have generated five Nobel Prize winners. It is within areas such as these that new developments and advances will be presented when Sweden implements its largest ever biotech trade fair venture at BIO 2002. Almost 20 companies and organisations are presenting their new developments in a 1200 ft² stand within the framework of the nationally financed Swedish Bioscience Programme.

Hägglunds Drives has launched a new range of hydraulic motors, named Compact CB. They combine space economy with high torque and are reportedly maintenance free and operate at a very low noise level. The new product line is for example suitable for heavy duty applications such as Shredders, Feeders and Roll Mills and is - according to the manufacturer - by far the most compact drive solution on the market.The CB builds upon existing designs with a high mechanical efficiency, but provides a wider choice with regard to application in conjunction with increased performance and reliability. It is based on the specified needs of users derived from a unique technical survey in 13 different countries.