Representatives from Honeywell sign a Letter of Intent and Memorandum of Understanding with representatives from COMAC, AVIC, and FACRI to be the fly-by-wire flight control system provider for the new C919 single-aisle commercial airliner.

Honeywell announced it has been selected by Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China, Ltd. (COMAC) as the fly-by-wire flight control system provider for the new C919 single-aisle commercial airliner. Mark Howes, President of Honeywell Aerospace Asia Pacific signed the Letter of Intent together with Mr. Lu Guangshan, President of AVIC Electronics Group, and Mr. Wu Guanghui, Senior Vice President of COMAC.

Honeywell was also recently chosen by COMAC to provide the wheels and brake control system, and fuel-efficient auxiliary power unit for the C919 commercial airliner.

Honeywell fly-by-wire flight control technology is used on many commercial aircraft, including COMAC’s ARJ-21 regional jet, the Boeing 787 and the Embraer 170/190 family.  Fly-by-wire systems enable an electronic interface between the cockpit and the aircraft flight control surfaces to ensure a pilot can smoothly and safely handle the aircraft.  The Honeywell system for the C919 includes a complete autoflight system with automatic landing capability.

Honeywell will integrate the fly-by-wire system that includes electronics, actuation, MEMS sensors, sidestick and other cockpit controls to provide the C919 a complete flight control capability that optimizes aircraft performance with reduced weight, volume and power requirements.

 For more information, read the press release.

Norm Gilsdorf, President of Honeywell Process Solutions, presents an industry perspective to more than 500 Honeywell customers at the Honeywell Users Group Americas symposium.

This year marked the 35th anniversary of Honeywell Users Group (HUG), a five-day event to enable Honeywell Process Solutions’ (HPS) leaders and customers to share best practices and strategies for enhancing business results. 

The theme of this year’s event was “Dynamic Solutions. Endless Possibilities.” Held in Phoenix, Arizona, the event included the opportunity for customers to come together to learn about the latest HPS technologies and provide input on HPS’ research and development priorities.

Key technologies announcements during HUG included:

• OneWireless™ R200, the process industry’s first truly universal wireless mesh network solution, is now fully compliant with the ISA100.11a standard, which will allow plants to design a wireless network with different types of wireless coverage.
• Experion R400, the newest version of Honeywell’s flagship Experion® Process Knowledge System® (PKS), features enhancements to protect manufacturers from the high cost of evolving technology and includes new turbine-control capabilities for power generators.  Experion PKS is Honeywell’s process automation and control system that sends data from critical plant subsystems directly to operators to help improve decision making in the control room.
• Field Advisor™, Honeywell’s newest addition to its family of mobile productivity solutions, helps industrial facilities keep their equipment running within safe operating limits and at optimum performance.

For more information about the event, visit Honeywell Users Group website.

Honeywell’s Delphi combustion efficiency panel and Reveal touch screen display have been recognized for excellence in product design in the 6th annual Dealer Design Awards Program sponsored by The Air Conditioning Heating & Refrigeration News (The ACHR News), the leading trade magazine in the heating, ventilating, air conditioning, and refrigeration industries.

Delphi, which won a Silver award in the Miscellaneous category, provides flame safeguard control, fuel air ratio control, O2 trim, and variable frequency drive (VFD) control in a single, integrated panel with an easy-to-use touch screen user interface.  Fuel air ratio control with O2 trim can provide energy savings of 5-7% per year.  VFD control can reduce electrical costs by up to 30% per year.

Honeywell’s Reveal™, which provides real-time building automation status information, also received an Honorable Mention in the Commercial Controls Products category. Reveal is small enough for easy mounting in small equipment rooms and is built on the NiagaraAX Framework®.  It interfaces seamlessly with all WEBs-AX controllers and makes information accessible from all systems connected to these controllers.

An independent panel of 30 contractors served as judges in the contest which had more than 100 entries from different industry brands.

For more information, read the story in The ACHR News.

Honeywell announced it has been selected by Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China, Ltd. (COMAC) to provide the wheels and brakes, Brake Control System (BCS), and tires for the new C919 airliner.

Honeywell’s 75-year heritage of wheels and brakes development ensures C919 operators will receive long life, up to 2,200 landings per overhaul, and high reliability from their wheels and brakes.

Honeywell operates 10 facilities throughout China, including Aerospace maintenance and manufacturing facilities in Xiamen, Nanjing, Suzhou, and Shanghai.  The Asia Pacific business is based in Shanghai.

Honeywell is collaborating on the COMAC C919 pedal-to-ground solution with Hunan Boyun New Materials Co., Ltd., Changsha Xinhang Wheel & Brake Co., Ltd. A joint venture will be formed to provide the wheels and brakes system for the new C919 airliner.

For more information, read the press release.

Honeywell announced it has been selected to help Abu Dhabi Gas Development Company Ltd achieve safe and efficient production at the Shah Gas Development Project, which is expected to significantly increase the Emirate’s domestic gas supply. When it reaches full production capacity in 2014, the site is expected to process some 1 billion cubic feet of gas per day. Abu Dhabi Gas Development Company Ltd is a subsidiary of Abu Dhabi National Oil Co. (ADNOC).

Although the Shah Gas field was discovered more than 40 years ago, dangerously high levels of hydrogen sulfide have prevented ADNOC from extracting the gas, which is critical to domestic and industrial growth in the region. To help reduce the risk of safety incidents, Honeywell is providing its Experion® Process Knowledge System® (PKS) and Safety Manager technologies, which can be integrated to give personnel a complete view of process and safety information across the site. This approach helps operators more effectively manage the safety systems throughout the plant. In addition to this core system, Honeywell will design, engineer and implement a broad array of new technologies and advanced applications that will help the plant operate as efficiently as possible from the first day of production.

Honeywell will provide its OneWireless™ industrial wireless network both inside the plant and at the gathering field well pads to track key personnel and assets during both construction and operational phases. Operations staff will be equipped with wireless gas detectors that will transmit alerts when dangerous gases are detected. They will also have Honeywell’s wireless Dolphin™ handheld and Webpad computers that will allow them to develop consistent and safe operating rounds and procedures and view and manage key control parameters.

For more information, read the press release.

Honeywell announced that its Spectra Shield® and Gold Shield® materials will provide bullet-resistance to body armor for Indian paramilitary and police forces.

As part of a contract awarded by India’s Ministry of Home Affairs to MKU Pvt. Ltd., an India-based supplier of body armor, Honeywell’s Gold Shield and Spectra Shield composite materials will be the primary ballistics protection incorporated into 59,000 jackets that each contain two breast plates. The first shipment of armor is likely to be sent to the Central Reserve Police Force by the end of June 2010.

Modernization of India’s police forces has been a top priority for the Ministry of Home Affairs. According to Informa, PLC, an international market research firm, the Indian homeland security budget is set to grow by 25 percent in 2010, making it the fastest-growing market for homeland security equipment in the world.

The body armor, designed and manufactured by MKU, is intended to protect against a variety of pistol, ground and small arms threats. The soft armor containing Gold Shield can substantially reduce injuries caused by a bullet’s impact, but with improved weight, flexibility and comfort. The breast plates containing Spectra Shield offer protection from multiple bullet hits, angle shots and high-velocity rifle rounds.

MKU is one of the leading suppliers of personal and platform ballistic protection solutions globally. Its products are in service in more than 60 countries around the world. It currently has several innovative products in the pipeline and various patent applications pending.

For more information, read the press release.

Honeywell announced that its T-Hawk™ Micro Air Vehicle, the only fielded unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) with hover and stare surveillance capability, has recorded its 10,000th flight since its introduction.

The 10,000th flight was part of an Explosive Ordinance Disposal evaluation exercise in Iraq.

Honeywell’s T-Hawk Micro Air Vehicle is a 17-pound vehicle that can hover and stare and offers an option of electro optical or infrared camera sensors for real-time surveillance without exposing soldiers to enemy fire.

At just 14 inches in diameter, the Honeywell T-Hawk vehicle is small enough for a backpack and can be deployed within five minutes. The T-Hawk features vertical take-off and landing and can fly up to 10,000 feet at 46 miles per hour, in winds up to 20 knots. Honeywell delivered the first production T-Hawks to the U.S. Navy in August 2009.

For more information, read the press release.

Honeywell signed a contract with the U.S. Department of Energy for a $27.3 million grant to produce a critical component of lithium-ion batteries used in hybrid and electric vehicles.

The grant is intended to help Honeywell become the first domestic supplier of high-purity lithium hexafluorophosphate (LiPF₆), a conductive salt that is one of four critical components in rechargeable lithium-ion batteries. Lithium-ion batteries are becoming more popular for use in a variety of applications because they are lighter and smaller than other batteries, hold their charge well, and can handle the numerous charge and discharge cycles required by modern electronics and vehicles.

The grant was awarded as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 and is designed to accelerate the market introduction and penetration of advanced electric drive vehicles, reducing fuel consumption and vehicle emissions of greenhouse gases.

According to independent market research published by Avicenne, a leading market research firm, demand for lithium-ion batteries is expected to grow more than 40 percent, from $7.2 billion in 2010 to $10.1 billion in 2015, driven by demand for plug-in hybrid and all-electric vehicles.

For more information, read the press release or watch a video about how Honeywell is enabling better batteries for cars.

Honeywell can trace its roots back 125 years to 1885, when an inventor named Albert Butz patented the furnace regulator and alarm. He formed the Butz Thermo-Electric Regulator Co. in Minneapolis on April 23, 1886, and a few weeks later invented a simple, yet ingenious device that he called the “damper flapper.”

Today, Honeywell holds more than 28,000 patents or pending patents worldwide and was ranked in the top 10 among U.S. companies and the top 25 worldwide by the Intellectual Property Owners Association in the number of U.S. patents granted in 2009.

In 2009, Honeywell also successfully launched 600 new products. And, in 2010, Honeywell was named one of the “Top 10 Most Inventive Companies” in the U.S. by Forbes magazine and a “Most Innovative Company” by Fast Company.

With approximately 122,000 employees worldwide, including 19,000 engineers and scientists, Honeywell has a relentless focus on quality, delivery, value, and technology in everything we make and do.

For more information, interact with and explore some of Honeywell’s most innovative and differentiated technologies.

The ballpark for one of Major League Baseball’s most popular teams, the New York Mets, recently installed the latest fire protection and voice evacuation systems from NOTIFIER by Honeywell.

The new 1.2 million square foot Citi Field ballpark in Flushing, New York, now serves as the home for Major League Baseball’s New York Mets. To protect occupants, the open-air facility, and countless concessions, facility management chose a state-of-the-art fire alarm and voice evacuation system from NOTIFIER.

More than 2,000 initiating devices, the majority being smoke detectors, are now installed throughout the Citi Field network. The ONYX Series fire alarm control panels use a patented FlashScan® protocol, which can poll 318 devices in two seconds and initiate a full system response in less than five seconds.

For more information, visit NOTIFIER by Honeywell.