News Briefs

July 1, 2000
Siecor Adopts New Name Siecor, Hickory, N.C., has officially adopted its new name: Corning Cable Systems. This name change is a result of Corning Inc.s recent acquisition of Siecors and Siemens worldwide cable and hardware operations. This global implementation will continue into 2001. Horton Controls Joins Legrand North America The Watt Stopper, Santa Clara, Calif., recently acquired Horton Controls,

Siecor Adopts New Name
Siecor, Hickory, N.C., has officially adopted its new name: Corning Cable Systems. This name change is a result of Corning Inc.’s recent acquisition of Siecor’s and Siemens’ worldwide cable and hardware operations. This global implementation will continue into 2001.

Horton Controls Joins Legrand North America
The Watt Stopper, Santa Clara, Calif., recently acquired Horton Controls, Inc., a Birmingham, Ala.-based company with more than 15 years of experience applying lighting controls to commercial and industrial buildings. The Watt Stopper designs and manufactures lighting control panels, occupancy sensors, HID and daylighting controls, and energy-efficient power strips.

New ASTM Spec
Available August 1, a new specification will present an economical method of manufacturing single input stranded copper conductors used to deliver high-voltage electrical power to industrial and residential sites. American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) B 902, standard specification for compressed round stranded copper conductors, hard, medium-hard, or soft using single input wire construction, will apply to conductors that will be insulated for electric power delivery systems.

Grand Eagle Acquires Shares of ABB Service
Grand Eagle Companies, Inc., Chicago, recently acquired 100% of the outstanding stock of ABB Services Inc. (a U.S. unit of ABB) in another move to expand into new growth markets. The sale includes all U.S. businesses related to workshop repair, field repair, rotating equipment, and low-voltage electrical equipment.

Excluded from the deal are all existing businesses related to ABB Full Service—the long-term partnerships by which ABB takes over design, execution, personnel, and management of clients’ maintenance operation. The acquisition particularly strengthens Grand Eagle’s presence in the areas of engineering and power services, project management, and training.

Grand Eagle Companies includes Eastern Electric Apparatus Repair Co., Ohio Transformer Inc., and North American Coil Corp. The acquired businesses will now operate as Grand Eagle Services while the coil operations will become part of North American Coil with operations in the U.S. and Canada.

Wiremold Acquires HOMACO, Inc.
The Wiremold Co., West Hartford, Conn., recently acquired HOMACO, Inc., Chicago, a leading manufacturer of telecommunications products, including equipment racks, cross connect systems, terminal blocks, floor frames, wall modules, and cable runway.

According to Art Byrne, President and CEO of The Wiremold Co., “The addition of HOMACO telecommunications systems complements our InterlinkCabling System. Together, we can offer a full range of copper and fiber optic connectivity solutions from the closet or panel to the workstation.”

HOMACO will continue to operate from its location in Chicago and use its current sales and distribution network.

First Commercial HTS Plant
American Superconductor Corp., Westborough, Mass., recently announced it will build a new facility dedicated solely to the manufacturing of High Temperature Superconductor (HTS) wire. The new, green-field plant is expected to produce 10,000 km of HTS wire in its first year.

The company’s high power density HTS wire carries more than 100 times the electrical current of copper wire with the same dimensions. Key initial applications for this wire are power cables, industrial motors, and electrical generators.

The new 355,000-sq-ft plant will be built at the Devens Commerce Center, 35 miles northwest of Boston. American Superconductor expects to start occupying the building and training new employees in the summer of 2001. Full production is expected to begin in early 2002.

Southwire Expands Copper Rod Products
Southwire Co., Carrollton, Ga., recently announced plans to expand its copper rod product line with the installation of a VertiROD continuous casting system.

The new Southwire system will allow the company to increase production of copper rod sizes larger than ½ in. in diameter while offering several new products, including oxygen-free rod and copper alloys.

Along with the larger diameter rod, Southwire will add several new products to its copper line—oxygen-free copper rod and copper alloys—all of which will be manufactured on the VertiROD System.

AMX International Creates MPS and J.D. Edwards Integration
A provider of software and e-Business solutions for the architectural, engineering, and construction (AEC) industry, Meridian Project Systems (MPS), Washington, D.C., has joined J.D. Edwards and AMX International, a J.D. Edwards Select Consulting Alliance Partner, to develop the first functional interface system of its kind: the AMX Prolog Adapter.

J.D. Edwards’ OneWorld and Meridian Project System’s Prolog Manager software provide increased functionality for managing business operations and processes for thousands of clients worldwide; however, the two solutions have never been connected with a functional system interface—until now.

The robust nature of the AMX Prolog Adapter provides clients with many value-added benefits, including eliminating duplicate data entry within J.D. Edwards and Prolog Manager. This provides enhanced data integrity, and streamlining communication—all with minimal administration and maintenance requirements.

For additional information about AMX International, call (208) 523-3671, or visit the Web at www.amxinc.com.

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