The European Chemical Industry Council (Cefic) predicts that the output of the EU chemical industry—excluding pharmaceuticals—will grow by 2.6% in 2007, up from 2.1% in 2006. However, a downturn is expected in 2008, when a growth rate of 1.9% is predicted. In 2007, consumer chemicals production is expected to increase by 4.5% and by 3.0% […]

West Chester, PA 11/6/07—VWR International has purchased Omnilabo BV, a Netherlands-based distributor of laboratory products, from private equity firm Nimbus. Founded in 1979, Omnilabo has 42 employees based in the Netherlands and Belgium. “The acquisition of Omnilabo is a great fit with our Dutch and European distribution operations,” said Manuel Brocke-Benz, senior vice president and […]

The US-China Business Council’s (USCBC) 2007 Member Priorities Survey reflects a mood of optimism. Eighty-three percent of the respondents stated that their operations in China were profitable and two-thirds said that the profitability rate of their Chinese operations is equal to or higher than their companies’ global rate. Ninety-two percent of respondents expect sales increases […]

The Brazilian Steel Institute (IBS) estimates that steel production in the country will be approximately 34.3 million tons this year, up from 30.9 million tons in 2006. Brazilian steel firms invested $18.9 billion over the years 1998–2006, with most of this investment going to the maintenance and modernization of existing facilities. A new round of […]

Farfield Scientific entered into a strategic partnership with Monash University to create biosensor surfaces for the structural analysis of membrane protein function. SEQUENOM named Richard Lerner to its Board in July. He is president of the Scripps Research Institute. A consortium that includes deltaDOT, Xcellerex, BioPharm Services and Dowpharma was awarded a $7.9 million DARPA […]

Tightness in the credit markets sparked by the US subprime mortgage crisis, rising oil prices and the falling US dollar have increased fears of economic instability in recent months. Higher than normal levels of uncertainty are evident in recent surveys of major corporations. However, such uncertainty has not dampened all enthusiasm. The Business Roundtable’s third […]

Budget requests for Science and Technology (S&T) programs in Japanese Fiscal Year (JFY) 2008 (April 2008–March 2009) have been released by the Council for Science and Technology Policy (CSTP). The total amount requested is ¥4,033.2 billion ($35.1 billion), a 14.9% increase from the JFY 2007 budget of ¥3,511.3 billion. The budget request from the Ministry […]

Shimadzu released MetID Solutions software for its LCMS-IT-TOF mass spectrometer. Thermo Fisher Scientific introduced the Thermo Scientific ConFlow IV Universal Interface for GC, LC and elemental analyzer systems coupled with isotope ratio mass spectrometers, enabling immediate switching. Syft Technologies launched the Voice200 selected ion flow tube mass spectrometer, featuring detection limits to 50 ppt. Advanced […]

According to Booz Allen Hamilton’s third annual report on the “Global Innovation 1000”—the 1,000 largest corporate R&D spenders—R&D spending increased 10% in 2006 to $447 billion. Booz Allen Hamilton estimates that the Global Innovation 1000 accounted for 84% of total corporate R&D and 52% of all R&D spending last year, which was estimated at $540 […]