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  • VIEWS & OPINION: more >>

  • LIGHTING: more >>

    • How to generate warm white light with LEDs

      by Andreas Stich, Horst Varga, Christian Neugrig, Jan Marfeld and Felix Michel, Osram Opto Semiconductors

      An innovation in the ongoing development of solid-state lighting technology makes it possible to generate warm white light with high colour rendering index.   In many lighting applications, conventional light sources are currently being replaced or displaced by more energy and cost-efficient technologies such as compact fluorescent lamps or LEDs. In this context, LED lighting […]

    • The selection and application of occupancy sensors

      by Stirling Marais, Cosine Developments

      This article explores occupancy sensors, their types, advantages, disadvantages and their installation criteria Occupancy sensors reduce energy consumption by only activating lighting if people are present. They use a variety of techniques or a combination of detection mechanisms such as infrared, acoustic, microwave or ultrasound to sense human presence. Their use is now commonplace […]

    • A safety guide to LED lighting

      Information from SAFEhouse

      The user is faced with many choices when selecting suitable LED lamps and fittings for lighting interior and exterior areas. Product branding, where importers have the ability to mark products with the brand names of their choice, complicates the issue as it is difficult to evaluate such brands based on past experience with products […]

  • SWITCHGEAR & DRIVES: more >>

    • A guide to miniature circuit breakers

      Information from SAFEhouse

      In South Africa, miniature circuit breakers (MCBs) have become so commoditised over the past 20 years that their all-important function has been blurred and, in most cases, misunderstood. The MCB replaced the fuse in incoming distribution boards in the 1960s, and increased the safety standard of the incoming protection by making it impossible to […]

    • Preventing electrical arcs

      by Frank Hampton, Malaysian Switchgear Distributors

      The cost of controlling electrical arcs relating to MV switchgear is enormous and industry should be proactively prevent them instead of controlling the results reactively. In our industry, most plants require the removal of apparatus from active service to complete this maintenance. This process will almost always have an impact on production to some […]

    • Mitigating the effect of voltage sags on VSDs

      by Mike Rycroft, features editor, EE Publishers

      Voltage ride through is a common feature in power quality systems which allows equipment to continue operation (maintenance of the voltage) during voltage dips and sags appearing on the grid. However these systems do not always guarantee continued operation of variable speed drives (VSD). To overcome this, VSD sag ride-through systems have been developed. […]

  • MECHANICAL TECHNOLOGY: more >>

    • Numerically controlled machine tools Part 3

      by JC Morris, 1972

      From the ICMEESA archive In Part 3 of this article, we explore the dawn of numerical control with emphasis on machining centres, dimensional and profiling applications, as well as manufacturing systems. The first numerically controlled (NC) machine commercially available to industry was simple and its function was to perform light operations such as drilling, […]

    • Numerically controlled machine tools: Part 2

      by JC Morris, 1972

        In Part 2 of this article from the ICMEESA archive, we take a brief look at the electronic mechanism capable of controlling many machine tool elements completely automatically. The much simplified block diagram in Fig. 1 illustrates the clearly definable individual major elements in numerical control (NC). The lines of interaction between these separate […]

    • Improving rotating machines’ performance

      by Harald Großmann, Sulzer

      The high density of rotating equipment used in refineries means that effective asset management of pumps, turbines, compressors, motors and generators can play a vital role in maintaining plant up-time and achieving overall equipment effectiveness (OEE) targets while ensuring high safety levels and profitability. Rotating components within any production process will eventually wear and […]

  • INSTALLATION & CONTRACTING: more >>

    • Explosive gas atmospheres: flash fires at filling stations

      by Pieter Coetzee, Explotac

      Far too many fires and burn injuries result from the careless or inappropriate use of petrol. Because it is so common in our environment. We tend to think of petrol as safe. Petrol gives off highly flammable vapour even at very low temperatures due to its flash point of -45°C. Filling stations carry a […]

    • Applying handheld test tools to preventive maintenance

      Information from Comtest

      Preventive maintenance is far more cost-effective and efficient than performing maintenance when failures occur. Unplanned downtime caused by equipment failures costs manufacturers millions in revenue every year. In some industries, the labour costs alone associated with downtime are calculated by the second. Preventive maintenance – measuring key indicators on critical equipment to discover impending […]

    • Which cable to choose – UL listed or UL recognised?

      Information from Helukabel

      Cables for devices or machine design will not necessarily be acceptable in the US and Canadian markets just because they have an Underwriters Laboratories (UL) mark. The North American market is important for selling internationally produced machinery and plant engineering. UL approval is just as important for manufacturers because it facilitates entry into the […]