♦  The market analyst ARC Advisory Group is predicting that the global market for low-power AC drives will resume steady growth during the period to 2014. In a new study, it says that this trend will be driven by: growing investments in infrastructure and manufacturing industries worldwide; the need for energy supplies to keep up with rising demand; and pressure from industry for sustainable systems that cut energy use.

♦  The International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) has called for a global taskforce to co-ordinate technology-based energy-efficiency initiatives in an effort to increase coherence, and reduce duplication and wasted time. It has launched a white paper, Coping with the Energy Challenge, that outlines how the energy chain needs to be altered to achieve carbon emission reduction targets of 20% by 2020. It also identifies areas offering highest potential for short- and medium-term energy-efficiency results, and their standardisation needs.

♦  Deutsche Messe, the company that organises the Hannover Fair, is launching its first manufacturing event in North America. The inaugural Industrial Automation North America will take place in Chicago from 10–15 September, 2012, alongside the International Manufacturing Technology Show (IMTS). Deutsche Messe has formed a strategic alliance with the Association for Manufacturing Technology, which organises IMTS.

♦  According to a forecast by the market analyst ABI Research, the market for personal robotics will be worth more than $19bn by 2017, driven in large part by sales of telepresence and security robots.