
October 15, 2019
A proud supporter of post-secondary institutions across Western Canada, Spartan Controls has donated leading edge technology to the University of Calgary’s Schulich School of Engineering for a new instrumentation and measurement systems laboratory.
This state-of-the-art lab will introduce students to a variety of industrial process measurement, automation, and controls techniques that are used in real industrial settings and will provide students with the skills needed to design measurement systems for use in a wide range of industrial applications.
“Spartan Controls is extremely proud to have the opportunity to continue our support of the University of Calgary. We have had a strong relationship with the Schulich School of Engineering for many years and look forward to the future,” says Grant Wilde, President and CEO of Spartan Controls.
“In the industrial automation sector, the technologies and trends change very rapidly,” said Wilde. “Our commitment will help to ensure that students, faculty and staff are exposed to and trained on the latest technologies, products, and solutions. Having this exposure helps to ensure graduates are ready to significantly contribute to their future employers’ success. Our support also provides Spartan with the opportunity to work with future leaders and even future Spartans.
Spartan Controls began supporting the Schulich School of Engineering in 1998 through the Engineering Internship Merit Awards. The partnership evolved over the years and in 2009, Spartan made a gift of equipment to an analytical lab in the Department of Chemical and Petroleum Engineering.
“Spartan Controls is a long-standing partner of engineering education,” says Bill Rosehart, Dean of the Schulich School of Engineering. “We are proud of this relationship and are pleased Spartan Controls has expanded its support to an NSERC Chair in Design Engineering and gift-in-kind of equipment. We appreciate Spartan Controls’ generosity and continued investment in our students and researchers.”
Students across engineering disciplines will benefit from the equipment, which will also offer new opportunities for teaching and research collaborations. Spartan’s donation includes servicing and providing supports for the new equipment and training services within the laboratory to ensure students, faculty and staff are up to date on the newest technology and industry trends.
Source

With Canadian manufacturing suffering from a growing labour shortage, the participation of industry in skills development is emerging as a vital component in hiring and retention.
The needs are stark: The Canadian Exporters and Manufacturers Association says almost 40% of its members have jobs they can’t fill. Five years from now, 60% expect to be short-staffed, especially when it comes to skilled trades. Statistics Canada forecasts the country’s labour force growth rate will remain below 0.2% for the rest of the decade, below replacement levels.
This growing shortage is affecting companies of all sizes. Already, some manufacturers acknowledge losing out on contracts because they can’t find the manpower to fulfill them.
In reality, the challenge is two-fold: to replenish and expand the workforce to help close the gap between the number of job seekers and vacancies through 2030 when the last baby boomers reach age 65, and ensure workers get opportunities throughout their careers to upgrade or add to their skillset as current technologies evolve and new ones emerge. Festo, through Festo Didactic, one of the world leading provider of equipment and solutions for technical education, intends to help Canada meet this challenge on both fronts. In essence, the approach Festo has always taken is that the learning never stops.
Read more here
New Product

Emerson recently introduced the ASCO™ Series 209 proportional flow control valves, which offer the highest standards of precision, pressure ratings, flow characteristics and energy efficiency available in a purpose-built, compact architecture. With this combination of size and performance, Series 209 valves allow users to precisely regulate the flow of fluid in a wide range of devices that require exacting performance, like those found in the medical equipment, food and beverage, and heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) industries.
Accuracy, response time and repeatability are critical in high-precision flow control applications, such as controlling tool speed in dental chairs, the flow of steam in coffee makers, water flow in cooling systems and hydrogen flow in fuel cells. Series 209 valves have low hysteresis (less than or equal to 5%), excellent repeatability (less than or equal to 1%) and high sensitivity (less than or equal to 0.2%) that contribute to their precision.
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Featured Product
Teledyne FLIR Integrated Imaging Solutions is pleased to announce the all new Ladybug6— the latest addition to its field proven Ladybug series. Ladybug6 is the leading high-resolution camera designed to capture 360-degree spherical images from moving platforms in all-weather conditions. Its industrial grade design and out-of-the-box factory calibration produces 72 Megapixel (MP) images with pixel values that are spatially accurate within +/- 2 mm at 10-meter distance.
“The new Teledyne Ladybug6 is designed for mobile mapping and all-weather inspection projects requiring excellent image quality and high resolution,” said Mike Lee, Senior Product Manager at Teledyne FLIR. “With the addition of Ladybug6, we are now pleased to offer a wider variety of spherical cameras with higher resolutions ranging from 30 MP to 72 MP.”
To learn more, click here