BHP Billiton's Jimmy Wilson acknowledges that BHP is trailing Rio Tinto on autonomous trucks and rail in the Pilbara, but he insists that for any technology, the second generation is always better than the first. [ + ]

The biennial Yokogawa Solutions Conference, the largest and most successful to date, was attended by delegates representing a broad spectrum of the process control industry, along with vendor partner companies. [ + ]

Automation technology provider Pilz will hold a series of one-day robot safety training courses to provide those who integrate robotic systems with a comprehensive understanding of the essential requirements of robot safety. [ + ]

The challenges posed by a high Australian dollar and slower economic growth should inspire manufacturers to focus their attention inwards in the quest to remain competitive. [ + ]

Honeywell Process Solutions has announced it will be responsible for training technicians at a new 200,000 barrel/day refinery being constructed in Thanh Hoa Province, Vietnam. [ + ]

The third Hazards Asia Pacific process safety conference will be held on 21-23 April 2015 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. [ + ]

Honeywell Process Solutions will supply automation technology for a new Fort Hills Oil Sands project in Alberta, Canada, scheduled to begin operating in late 2017. [ + ]

Toshiba (Australia) has announced it is now a Business Alliance Partner with GS1 Australia. [ + ]

A new research and development facility in Nanjing, China, will focus on developing flow metering and measurement technologies that will help process manufacturers tackle their toughest engineering challenges. [ + ]

Emerson Process Management's online purchasing and support for Rosemount measurement products is now available to process manufacturers and producers in Australia. [ + ]

CiDRA has announced that it has entered into a distributor agreement with Yokogawa Australia & New Zealand to sell CiDRA's SONARtrac range of flowmeters into the Australian and New Zealand minerals processing sector. [ + ]

The University of Sydney's School of Geosciences will lead the Basin GENESIS Hub, which takes a radical new approach to analysing sedimentary basins and harnesses new technology. [ + ]

New CSIRO technology that treats mining wastewater has been successfully used at a commercial mine in Queensland. The technology, called Virtual Curtain, reduces sludge by up to 90%. [ + ]

Romaco Group has been recognised for its innovation by Wirtschaftswoche magazine. The company was awarded first prize in the Pharmaceutical Machinery segment and named runner-up in the Process and Packaging Machinery category. [ + ]

The ARC has awarded $3.2 million to the University of Newcastle to establish a new research hub. To be developed in collaboration with industry, the hub will be dedicated to futureproofing Australia's iron ore production and exports. [ + ]