Tens of thousands of engineers and technical managers from across Europe gathered in Northern Italy last month for a series of events loosely termed Technology Exhibition week. These included Fluidtrans Compomac (fluid power), Mechanical Power Transmission and Motion Control, Plast (plastics and plastics-processing machinery), Xylexpo (woodworking machinery) — all held in Milan — and Lamiera (…

Devoting 11-12% of sales to R&D has proven to be a successful strategy for SAES Getters, a producer of scientific and industrial applications where stringent vacuum conditions or ultra high pure gases are required. SAES' product applications span from the display industry, in all its forms from conventional CRTs to the new generations of flat displays, to the manufacturing of components…

The company, a Milan-based innovation think-tank that specializes in the production of components for ultra-high vacuum and gas purification applications for industrial customers invests at least 10% of its revenues in research and innovation annually, a practice it says saved the company. In 2009, SAES Getters recorded its worst sales in the 70 year history of the company, $164 million. It…