EoW September 2009

The International Magazine for the Wire and Cable Industries

Redistribution of brain power

In a period of unremitting gloom an occasional silver lining glimmers.

The latest is that Wall Street, the City, and the financial sector in general has lost its allure for our best mathematic and scientific minds. For the past decade, apparently, the draw of high salaries, and even higher bonuses, has acted as a magnet to the brightest and best leaving American and European universities. When an industry is lost or severely curtailed there will be a knock-on effect of entrepreneurism. Workers will work – somewhere – or make those opportunities for themselves. The analytical skills that brought us quantitative trading systems can be equally applied to sectors outside finance and now, without the competition of the financial industry, graduates and others are looking seriously at bringing their skills to the fields of medicine, education and government. For example, a recent Jobs Fair at Massachusetts Institute of Technology saw what one commentator described as, “a surge of interest in companies – including non-profit organisations – that would never have stood a chance on campus before, pitted against the promise of Lehman Brothers and Goldman Sachs.” There is similar anecdotal evidence from UK universities, as graduation events take place this month. Of course, industry is still suffering from a lack of confidence. There are few companies willing to risk investment in research and development, new tooling and operator training while the timetable and degree of economic recovery is still unmapped. But once the recovery is underway, then the banks – leaner and more accountable, we hope – will have a major role to play in nurturing the start- ups and entrepreneurs whose energies would previously have been directed into creating daring trading strategies. I think we can be excused for doubting the benefit to mankind of innovative thinking in the finance sector.

* US$33 purchase only Front cover: PAVE Automation Ltd See page 112 for further details E ditor :........................................ Gill Watson F eatures E ditor (USA) : ..........Dorothy Fabian E ditorial assistant : .................Christian Bradley D esign /P roduction : ................Julie Tomlin P roduction : ...............................Lisa Benjamin S ales M anager : ........................Paul Browne S ales & M arketing : .................Giuliana Benedetto ( I nternational )

Italian speaking sales Hendrike Morriss German speaking sales Linda Li Chinese speaking sales Jeroo Vandrevala Indian sales

A dvertisement C oordinator : ............................Liz Hughes A ccounts M anager : ................Richard Babbedge S ubscriptions : ...........................Liz Hughes P ublisher : ..................................Caroline Sullens F ounder : ....................................John C Hogg

INTRAS OFFICES

E urope :

46 Holly Walk, Leamington Spa Warwickshire CV32 4HY, UK

Tel : +44 1926 334137 Fax : +44 1926 314755

Email : intras@intras.co.uk Website : www.intras.co.uk Website : www.read-eurowire.com

USA :

E ditorial Dorothy Fabian

272 First Avenue, Apt 12G New York, NY 10009, USA Tel : +1 212 614 9266 Fax : +1 212 614 9266 Email : dfabian@rcn.com Jintras Ltd , Jeroo Vandrevala Subarna (Ground Floor) P21/N, Block A, New Alipore

I ndia :

Kolkata 700 053, India Tel : +91 33 2407 07 01 Fax : +91 33 2407 07 00 Email : jeroov@vsnl.com

Let’s hope this new creativity will have advan- tages and reper- cussions beyond the creators’ bank accounts.

US copies only : EuroWire (ISSN No: 1463-2438) is published bi-monthly by INTRAS Ltd and distributed in the US by DSW, 75 Aberdeen Road, Emigsville, PA 17318-0437. Periodicals postage paid at Emigsville, PA. Postmaster : send address changes to EuroWire, PO Box 437, Emigsville PA 17318-0437 www.read-eurowire.com © 2009 Intras Ltd, UK ISSN 1463-2438

Gill Watson

4

Whenyouhave finishedwith thismagazineplease recycle it