With more than 5000 attendees, the 35th anniversary of the International Powder & Bulk Solids Conference/Exhibition, held May 4-6 at the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont, IL, was deemed a huge success by those involved.

Combining the world’s most comprehensive showcase of solutions for dry processing and bulk solids handling with the world’s foremost conference on powder technology, PTXi/International Powder & Bulk Solids once again demonstrated that it is a convenient way to learn what’s new, what’s improved, and what’s coming in the dry processing/bulk solids handling industry. Attendees were able to see live demonstrations, perform “hands-on” evaluations, make side-by-side comparisons of similar products, and get the information needed to make wise purchasing decisions.

Attendees were able to gain fresh ideas, valuable information, and get up to speed on the latest advanced technology at the new Innovation Briefs Theater, where industry experts from the world’s leading OEM suppliers delivered concise sessions, brimming with informative content geared to help improve attendees’ manufacturing process and profit margins.

On the show floor, there was both innovation and interest. 3i’s Technologies held a press conference during which John Pettit, president, unveiled the first of the company’s new BatcHHouse brand of products, the Rotary Scalpel. This new technology offers a new level of precision in dispensing small increments of material into a batch or package (see the cover of this issue for more details).

3i’s also introduced the BatcHHouse bulk density meter, a completely automated sensor solution that measures in-line, real-time, dynamic density, eliminating the need to take manual samples, make off-line measurements and manually log data, as well as the Process Performance Assurance System (PPAS), a system for on-line troubleshooting and optimization of process lines.

“Information, intelligence and innovation are at the heart of our company,” said Pettit. “3i’s provides the products and business support services needed to ensure that today’s manufacturing plants run with the ultimate in process efficiency today and every day.”

Fike Corp. introduced a new brand for its entire line of explosion protection solutions. The name EPIC -– which stands for Explosion Protection Integrated Components -- will be used to brand the company’s products for explosion venting, flameless venting, explosion isolation (chemical and mechanical), explosion suppression, and explosion detection and control systems.

“By establishing one primary brand for our explosion protection offering,” said Jim Morgan, Fike’s director of marketing, “Fike is better able to communicate how all our products work together to provide a complete solution.”

Industrial Magnetics Inc. introduced the RotoDrawer, a rotary style drawer-in-housing magnet to remove ferrous metal from powder and bulk processed products that have difficult flow characteristics and a tendency to bridge and choke when using traditional, stationary tube style magnetic separators. The magnet features a motorized, cylindrical configuration of Rare Earth magnetic tubes on a horizontal plane that continually rotate through a gravity fed product stream. The rotational design of the magnet, as well as the unique splitter bars that serve to further break up any clumps of product, keep the flow moving through the housing while capturing any ferrous metal contamination and purifying the product.

Tecweigh unveiled the GRC32 gravimetric rate controller. Designed for screw feeders, the GRC32 controller is a 32-bit microcontroller with a complete platform of optically isolated analog and digital I/O. It also has Fieldbus protocols, a robust removable memory device (1GB), and simulated rate or weight running modes.

Cleveland Vibrator Co. expanded its line of vibratory screeners with the 36-in. twin-motor sifter. Engineered with three control variables – vibrator force, frequency, and drive angle – this new sifter boasts a 3-D motion that ultimately results in greater throughput of difficult to screen products.

“With our twin motor sifter design, you see that the transducer is attached to an aluminum rim with the wire cloth attached on the bottom, similar to a sieve,” explained David Strong, product development engineer, Cleveland Vibrator Co. “This enables an exclusive transfer of vibration that increases the life of the sifter’s wire cloth, which is different from traditional methods where the transducer is attached to the center of the wire cloth allowing heat to prematurely fail the fine wires and reducing the screening area.”

These were just some of the new and innovative equipment that was on display on the bustling show floor.

“We have attended the PBS show for 20 years and the 2010 show was the best we’ve seen in many years,” said William J. Callaghan, show manager, Continental Products Corp. “The variety of industries visiting our booth was exciting and the quality of contacts we made was tremendous. Projects we have worked on for years have come back to life! We met company presidents, the VP of operations, and production and process engineers from all over North America with active projects.”

Peter Lorenz, president, Lorenz Conveying Products, agreed. “We were very surprised by the activity at the PTXi show this year. Customers were coming to our booth with drawings, quote requests, and project details to share. The show definitely exceeded our expectations.”

Thomas J Hofman, vice president, Material Transfer & Storage Inc., echoed those sentiments. “The overall quantity and quality of the attendees was better than expected given the current economic conditions.”

Jeff Dierig, global marketing manager, Sweco, provided a glowing review of the event. “The 2010 International Powder & Bulk Solids show was one of the best Powder Shows that we’ve experienced in recent history. The attendee booth traffic was at times overwhelming, which is a rare occurrence at any show these days. Before the doors even closed on Day Two, we had our first confirmed order from the show. It has been a long time since we’ve had that experience at any exhibition.”

Bob Grotto, president, Virto/Elcan Industries, felt the same way. “I was pleasantly shocked at the level of leads we had at the show. We reached our goal at 11:30 am on Wednesday and then added plenty of gravy on top of that.”