Scientists have Discovered how the Romans made Self-Healing Concrete, a reason why the colosseum and pantheon are still impeccably standing An unexpected and sustainable ancient manufacturing strategy may hold the key to designing concrete that could last for millennia. The ancient Romans were masters of engineering, constructing vast networks of roads, aqueducts, ports, and massive buildings, whose remains have survived for two millennia. Many of these structures were built with concrete: Rome’s famed Pantheon, which has the world’s largest unreinforced concrete dome and was dedicated in 128

The year 2021 was extremely positive for the Italian industry of machine tools, robotics and automation, which reported double-digit increases for all key economic indicators. This trend should continue even in 2022, the year when all the ground lost in 2020 should be recovered. This is in short what was illustrated by Barbara Colombo, president of UCIMU-SISTEMI PER PRODURRE, the Italian machine tools, robots and automation systems manufacturers' association, during the traditional end-of-year press conference. As highlighted by the preliminary year’s data processed by the Studies Dept. &

The figures for July-September 2020 clearly reflect what’s happening in this key segment of the Italian mechanical engineering industry. In general, the orders of machinery and tools for wood and furniture are recording a decreasing trend below expectations, which indicates a partial improvement of the economic situation compared to the previous quarters, strongly impacted by the lockdown. This trend indicates that the industry’s production system has identified the necessary countermeasures to carry on, within a context where the role of digital communication tools to support business is

Glass processing technologies enjoyed a positive 2019; especially brilliant for hollow glass. Expectations ran high for 2020 and then, the COVID-19 pandemic re-wrote the script. For now, reliable forecasting is impossible. INDUSTRY PERFORMANCE IN 2019 Positive results in 2019 (+2.7%) were driven by a rise in exports (+3.7%) allowing Italy’s glass processing technologies industry to continue the growth trend that has kept it in a starring role for the last decade. Thanks in part to the revision of the customs codes used in the survey, it achieved an absolute value of overall sales in excess of

Dr. Francesco Donatelli, an Italian-trained Associate Professor at the Department of Anesthesia at the Montreal General Hospital was searching for help designing and manufacturing a non-invasive oxygen therapy hood, modelled on the helmets used by doctors in Italy, to treat the country’s devastating number of COVID-19 patients. The helmet used in Italy’s hospitals is made of lightweight, rigid plastic. It can be used for non-invasive ventilation and CPAP therapy (continuous positive airway pressure). Patients who wear the hood are still able to speak, drink and listen. Since the respiratory

Glass has always impressed artists and poets with its peculiar features. As it was a synonym for purity and fragility, over time it gained a special place in the heart of those who desired to be surrounded by “fragments” of delicate beauty. From its origins, Venice has been a vibrant centre of maritime trade flows. Thanks to the Venetian typical taste and an extraordinary intuition towards this investment, Venice created Murano in the late 1200s – which became the focus of glassmaking worldwide. VITRUM 2019 is proud to celebrate the work, creativity and skills of the Murano glass masters

The year 2018 was really good for wood and furniture industry technologies. The final figures processed by the Studies Office of Acimall, the Confindustria member association that represents industry companies, have driven up previous forecasts: 2018 closed with domestic production at 2.514 billion euro, up by 10.6 percent from the previous year. Definitely a significant result, the best in the past ten years, net of inflation, achieved with a first semester that was very positive on both the domestic and the export side, followed by a second half that basically maintained the same levels of

2018 PRELIMINARY BALANCE Again this year we can say that "…the barometer for woodworking and furniture industry machinery and plants keeps pointing to nice weather". We used the same expression at the end of 2017, which closed with 11.6 percent growth over 2016, and we are repeating it this year to tell you about an excellent 9.5 percent growth recorded by production in the past twelve months compared to 2017. All economic variables analyzed by the Studies office of Acimall, the Confindustria association that represents industry companies, indicate that 2018 was another positive year

The July-September period reaffirmed the current industry trend, characterized by consolidation after strong growth in 2017. After major investments in Italy and abroad in recent months, woodworking and wood-based materials companies finally have a new and updated fleet of equipment. As a result, the need to invest is now decreasing. This consideration is essential to analyze the results for the third quarter 2018 processed by the Studies Office of Acimall, the Confindustria member association that represents the manufacturers of machinery and plants. On the whole, figures indicate a slight