This weekly roundup highlights the ceramic, glass, refractories, brick and related news stories that garnered the most attention during the previous week.

Industry 4.0, also known as the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT), is proving to be a revolutionary trend that will shape the industrial landscape in the coming years. Adding intelligence to physical objects has never been as easy and inexpensive as it is today.

Drying is a necessary step in the processing of all ceramic products and components, whether it takes place as a separate step or is a preliminary step in the firing process. Ceramics are made from different combinations of materials that can be in slurry form or even more liquid, in the case of slip-cast ware at the start of the fabrication process.

Many processed materials need to be thermally dried under controlled conditions. Most drying is done in open atmosphere or oxidizing ovens in batch, continuous belt, or tunnel feed styles. However, certain materials require protection from oxygen or other atmospheric contaminants during or after drying.

Across the board, the ceramic industry has benefitted from three significant pieces of technology introduced to us over the last 45 years: high-velocity combustion, low-mass kiln cars, and digital control technology. First came high-velocity combustion, which gave us high rates of convective heat transfer. It delivered improved temperature uniformity, faster cycles, fuel savings and increases in “A” grade recovery, as well as many other documented secondary benefits.

August always seems to be such a chaotic month in our household. Between home improvement projects, vacation schedules, and back-to-school plans, it can be difficult to limit our focus and prioritize what’s really needed vs. what would be nice or fun to do. Everything that needs to be taken care of is important to a certain extent (the lawn isn’t going to mow itself!), but what if the weather’s beautiful and the kids want to go to the pool? The sheer volume of options can become overwhelming.

The roller kilns in the XXL family, which feature extra-large channels from 3,500-3,850 mm wide, are the biggest in the Sacmi single-layer kiln range. Wider channels allow an increase in the number of incoming tile and therefore boost kiln output compared to other machines of the same length. For example, the XXL 385 kiln lets manufacturers position a row of four 800 x 800 mm porcelain tile (with subsequent squaring), three 1,000 x 1,000 mm tile or two 1,600 x 3,200 mm slabs.

The governing body of the Italian Ceramic Machinery Association (ACIMAC) was recently elected at the association’s annual general meeting.