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Industry - A real steel

Wireless sensors that alert steel mill operators to abnormal temperatures and vibrations that foretell wasted energy and imminent failure are expected to pay big dividends. Through the Department of Energy's Industrial Technologies Program, Oak Ridge National Laboratory has been commissioned to install and operate wireless sensors and controls to assess the energy savings of a suite of technologies, said Wayne Manges, a program manager in ORNL's Measurement Science and Systems Engineering Division. The measurements of motors and other components will be sent by secure radio signals to plant operators and archived for energy analysis. Similar technology used in the nuclear industry is avoiding down time and providing millions of dollars in savings. The steel mills involved in this project are in Braddock, Pa., and Cayce, S.C.