6. Slovenian Innovation Forum attracts a record 4.000 visitors 
The sixth Slovenian Innovation Forum at the Ljubljana fairgrounds has closed it doors with a festive presentation of awards to the authors of the best innovation. A lively activity at the central two-day national innovation event has also attracted a record number of visitors - about four thousand. The Slovenian Innovation Forum took place from 22.-23. November 2011 at the Ljubljana fairgrounds for the sixth time in a row. This year's innovation forum has brought a number of records. The organisers received a record 235 applications for innovations, some of them ground-breaking on a global level. 

 This year, Slovenia has celebrated its 20. birthday, and this jubilee was also celebrated by the companies founded in the time after Slovenia gained independence. IB-PROCADD is one of the companies that dictated and still dictate the development in electrical and mechanical engineering in Southern and Eastern Europe. Its global operations enable the company IB-PROCADD to be recognisable world-wide, and in the future they are betting especially on 3D-technological processes, automation, business process management and interactive television (Over The Top). 

 The variety of thermal spraying processes requires a large palette of different technical gases. Issues often encountered in practical work include the selection of a proper fuel gas, oxygen, and the filler material transport gas. Different gases can be used, such as hydrocarbons, acetylene, and hydrogen. In addition to a proper technical selection of the torch, selecting the right gas is also essential. The spray torches often enable the user to exchange the nozzles for different types of gas. In flame spraying, fuel gas offering a higher temperature of the gas is often recommended (acetylene). Spray torches can use up to one kilogram of acetylene each hour. The acetylene supply must therefore be properly sized to cover the consumption. The gas pressure is usually 5 to 7 bar, and the trends point to raising the pressure up to 10 bar. 

 The research department was founded on 10. November 1961 in what was then the Jesenice Iron Works. In 2011, Acroni celebrated the 50. anniversary of organised research and development activity in the company. They honoured the opportunity with a festive academy on 25. November at the Tone Čufar theatre in Jesenice. Development activity in the steel industry has a rich tradition in Jesenice. Already in the period of Kranj industrial company, the predecessor to Jesenice Iron Works, Lambert von Pantz discovered the process for the production of ferromanganese (an iron and manganese alloy) in blast furnaces. Jesenice Iron Works was founded after World War 2, after it took the whole production program from what was then the Kranj industrial company. 

 From 3. to 7. October 2011, Brno simultaneously hosted the 53. MSV International Engineering Fair and the 6. International Transport and Logistics Fair. Despite a difficult economic position in Europe, the atmosphere at both fairs was positive and optimistic. The leading engineering fair in Central Europe has recorded an increased interest of exhibitors – more than 1600 – who devoted special attention to professional visitors. The organisers also noted an increase in the number of visitors, which exceeded the last year's numbers already on the fourth fair day. The organisers expected approximately 79.000 visitors, or 10 percent more than last year. The final visitor number amounted to 79.296 visitors from 65 countries, 6.601 or 8,4% of them coming from abroad. The share of foreign exhibitors exceeded 35 percent, a number still smaller than the results of other large fairs around Europe. 

 The article describes the introduction of a new coupling device for vehicles with trailers, designed for the needs of passenger and freight transport, for the construction sector and for special-purpose vehicles. The production implementation process was executed in a number of stages, from designing the structural element in 3D (Catia), designing and manufacturing the die and accessories for casting, to process simulation and modeling, and to creating a cast prototype from grey cast iron. The patented idea originates from the German company Masani, while all the stages of process modelling, test casting and final control were executed at the Kemal Kapetanović metallurgical institute in Zenica.