Vision leader expansion in India.

LMI Technologies (LMI)plans the relocation and expansion of its India operations into a brand-new workspace in Bengaluru. Strategically aligned with LMI's long-term geographic expansion objectives, this new facility will be shared with the Allied Vision team, fostering closer collaboration and synergy between the TKH group entities.

New Location.
LMI Technologies Pvt Ltd
No. 49, Spatium Aranya, Shilpa Vidya,
1st Main Road, JP Nagar Industrial Area Road,
Sarakki Industrial Layout, JP Nagar 3rd Phase,
Bengaluru, Karnataka, India - 560078.

This strategic transition marks a significant upgrade from LMI's previous regional layout and is designed to act as a robust foundation for scaling local system integrator business, engineering support, and regional application capabilities.

By co-locating with Allied Vision, LMI expands its regional infrastructure to effectively combat local low-cost competition in the factory automation sector across the APAC market. The new office underscores LMI’s commitment to operating as a high-value solution partner—delivering advanced 2D and 3D vision technologies, comprehensive integration assistance, and optimized inline workflows directly to manufacturers in the region.

"Our geographic expansion into this brand-new workspace is a pivotal step in strengthening our regional presence and technical infrastructure," said Len Chamberlain, Chief Commercial Officer. "Sharing this facility with Allied Vision enables us to leverage shared expertise, deepen our local partnerships, and deliver an elevated level of hands-on support to our customers as manufacturing capacity continues to shift and scale within India."

The state-of-the-art office will establish a stronger hub for FactorySmart® sensor training, product demonstrations, and localized inspection feasibility testing.

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@lmi3d @UnnGmbh @PresseBox #PAuto #India

Supporting battery energy storage system deployment.

Software provides digital framework to maximise output, maintain grid stability, and ensure reliable, round-the-clock clean power delivery.

Emerson's Ovation™ Green supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) software is supporting Adani Green Energy Limited’s 3.55 gigawatt-hour (GWh) battery energy storage system (BESS) at Khavda, Gujarat, India — the world’s largest single-location battery storage deployment outside China. Developed by AGEL as part of its integrated renewable energy ecosystem, the BESS project is among the fastest executed globally.

Adani Green Energy Ltd’s 30 GW project at Khavda, Gujarat, India. Pic:Adani Green Energy.

Adani Green Energy Limited is India’s largest renewable energy company with more than 20 gigawatts (GW) of operational renewable energy capacity. The company aims to achieve 50 GW by 2030 and plans to add more than 10 GWh of battery storage in financial year 2027, scaling its battery storage portfolio to 50 GWh over the next five years to strengthen grid resilience and accelerate renewable energy integration.

The Ovation control and SCADA software — a small, yet critical part of the large-scale project—combines powerful control with expansive plant data in one integrated, scalable system. Seamless integration provides operators with intuitive access to the information needed for maximising output, maintaining grid stability, enhancing asset utilisation and operational excellence and ensuring safe operation.

Adani Green Energy selected Emerson as its automation partner for this landmark project, deploying the Ovation Green SCADA and the Ovation 4.0 software release with OCR3000 controllers. The system orchestrates millions of datapoints across power conversion systems, battery management systems, high-voltage switchboards and grid remote terminal units, ensuring seamless integration, grid compliance and operational reliability. The majority of AGEL’s 3.55 GWh BESS project capacity is controlled by Emerson’s Ovation platform.

“Emerson is proud to be part of India’s clean energy journey with Adani Green Energy,” said Anil Bhatia, Emerson’s vice president and managing director of India. “Our Ovation Automation Platform has long been trusted for mission-critical control in India’s power sector. With this successful gigawatt-scale deployment, Ovation software has proven to be the right platform for any kind of power generation — from traditional thermal plants to large-scale renewable storage.”

The AGEL 3.55 GWh BESS project at Khavda, Gujarat (India) was delivered within just 10 months from the commencement of on-site construction, setting a global benchmark for speed and scale in utility-scale energy storage. By combining powerful control with massive plant data in a single, integrated, scalable system, Emerson’s Ovation platform enables maximising output, maintaining grid stability, and ensuring reliable, round-the-clock clean power delivery.

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@EmersonExchange @AdaniGreen @Emerson_News @EMR_Automation @HHC_Lewis

Ai‑powered automation transforms green hydrogen and complex industries.

Schneider Electric is deepening its collaboration with Microsoft to help make it easier for industrial companies to modernise their operations, break free from proprietary legacy systems and deploy Ai-powered automation at scale.

 

At the heart of this collaboration is a conviction that industrial automation is overdue for the same open, software-driven transformation that reshaped enterprise IT. Today, most factories and energy plants still run on hardware-locked control systems that are expensive to update, slow to adapt and difficult to extend with Industrial Ai. Schneider Electric is building the technology that showcases a better alternative exists.

 

In collaboration with h2e POWER, an Indian green hydrogen pioneer, the two companies have deployed India’s first fully autonomous solid oxide electrolyser system, empowering operators to shift their focus from routine monitoring to more strategic, high-impact work. The system has surpassed 6,000 hours of stable operation in part- and full-load conditions and has demonstrated just-in-time predictive maintenance and promise in cutting electricity consumption by up to 10%, in a process where electricity accounts for more than 70% of total hydrogen production cost.

 

A Collaboration Built to End Legacy Drag

The Schneider Electric collaboration with Microsoft combines Schneider Electric’s role as a global energy technology partner and pioneer of open, software‑defined automation with Microsoft Azure cloud, Ai, and edge infrastructure. The goal is a practical, vendor-neutral path for industrial companies to modernise without scrapping existing investments or halting production.

 

Central to this is the Industrial Copilot, which extends intelligence to the edge using Microsoft Azure’s cloud and Ai services approach for local inference and reinforcement. It automates the engineering tasks that slow modernisation most: writing control logic, configuring systems, and navigating documentation. Engineering teams using it report up to 50% time savings, with production line changes that once took weeks now completed in hours.

 

Underlying everything is Schneider Electric’s EcoStruxure™ Automation Expert, the world’s first open, software-defined automation platform. By separating software from hardware, it lets customers run and reuse their automation applications across different equipment, vendors, and generations of infrastructure. Microsoft Azure provides the secure cloud and edge backbone that connects it all, from individual sensors to enterprise dashboards.

 

Together, the two companies are offering something the industrial world has lacked: a migration path that meets organisations where they are, not where they “should be.”

 

Proving It in the Field: Green Hydrogen with h2e POWER

Green hydrogen is central to global decarbonisation plans; however, producing it cheaply and reliably at scale remains a challenge. Solid oxide electrolysers (SOECs) offer the highest efficiency of any hydrogen production technology, but their operating conditions are so demanding that it has been difficult to maintain equitable net energy consumption and operate them autonomously.

 

h2e POWER, an India-originated green tech company based in Pune with operations in India, Germany and the USA, had exactly this challenge. Its SOEC system is technically superior, but limited real-time visibility and the absence of open, scalable automation were pushing operating costs well above design targets.

 

Working with Schneider Electric, they deployed a new Ai-powered control solution on h2e POWER’s 20 kW SOEC system. The solution continuously monitors and adjusts the electrolyser in real time, managing thermal balance, hydrogen flow, energy inputs, and safety and equipment health, remotely.

 

The results speak to both the technology and the collaborative approach. Energy efficiency improved, stack wear was significantly reduced, and the levelised cost of hydrogen, the industry’s key economic metric, fell by up to 10%, equivalent to around €500,000 per year for a typical 10 MW plant. The system has now run for more than 6,000 hours, making it one of the most durable autonomous electrolyser demonstrations in India, and probably anywhere in the world.

 

“SOECs have always offered unmatched efficiency, but true commercial scale depends on sustainable operations, optimised energy consumption, durability, predictive maintenance and remote, autonomous control. With Schneider Electric’s open, software‑defined automation and Microsoft’s AI capabilities powered by Azure, our systems are becoming smarter, more responsive, safer, and dramatically more scalable. This open architecture also means we can redeploy intelligence across our entire installed base across multiple locations, without the lock‑in that has constrained industrial innovation for decades,” said Mr. Siddharth Mayur, Founder & Managing Director, h2e POWER.

 

“What we’re seeing at h2e POWER shows the future of industrial automation," said Dayan Rodriguez, Corporate Vice President, Manufacturing and Mobility, Microsoft. "The system is powerful and built to scale. Enterprise dashboards unify data across every site, machine learning improves with every hour of operation, and open standards make the control logic fully portable.”

“Every CIO and plant leader asks the same question: can software‑defined automation truly perform under real‑world industrial conditions? At h2e POWER, the answer is clear,” said Gwenaelle Huet, Executive Vice President, Industrial Automation at Schneider Electric. “Industrial leaders don’t need another vision; they need a migration path. Our collaboration with Microsoft and the Industrial Copilot delivers exactly that, proving even the most complex energy systems can run as intelligent, autonomous assets.” 

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@SchneiderElec @h2epower  #PAuto #Power #India

Plant of the Year for communications and connectivity.

FieldComm Group, the global industrial automation standards organisation defining open, interoperable standards for industrial communication, device management, and enterprise connectivity, has named SRF Limited’s Dahej facility as the recipient of its 2025 Plant of the Year Award. The recognition honors SRF’s outstanding achievements in digital transformation, operational excellence, and innovation using FieldComm Group technologies.

The Plant of the Year Award recognises end users that demonstrate exceptional use of Field-Comm Group techno-logies, including HART technologies, Foundation Fieldbus, FDI, FDT/DTM, PA-DIM, & Ethernet-APL, to improve operations, reduce costs, and increase availability. SRF Dahej joins an elite group of global facilities advancing the future of industrial automation.

Located in Gujarat (IND), SRF Dahej has become one of the world’s most advanced specialty chemical and fluorochemical complexes. By deploying HART®, WirelessHART®, and FOUNDATION™ Fieldbus technologies across its 300-acre site, SRF has integrated more than 40,000 smart field devices, enabling seamless communication, advanced diagnostics, and readiness for IIoT and Ethernet-APL connectivity.

“SRF’s digital transformation journey reflects their deep commitment to innovation and continuous improvement,” said Ted Masters, President and CEO of FieldComm Group. “Their systematic adoption of open communication standards has delivered measurable results, enhancing safety, improving reliability, and achieving multi-million-dollar savings. This exemplary use of FieldComm Group technologies to drive operational excellence is exactly what earned SRF Dahej the 2025 Plant of the Year Award.”

SRF’s modernisation began in 2010 with the adoption of HART technology and has since expanded into a comprehensive digital ecosystem built on FOUNDATION Fieldbus, WirelessHART, and Instrument Asset Management Systems (IAMS). These initiatives have delivered more than $10.7 million in cumulative savings through improved uptime, faster commissioning, and predictive maintenance strategies.

SRF’s adoption of open, interoperable standards has transformed its approach to lifecycle management, asset performance, and sustainability. The plant’s roadmap extends to 2030 with plans for AI-driven analytics, predictive maintenance, and full Ethernet-APL integration across greenfield and brownfield operations.

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@FieldCommGroup @srflimited #PAuto #Standard #India

Ten million chipsets!

Silicon Labs and Wirepas have announced that they have shipped 10 million wireless SoCs running Wirepas’ RF mesh connectivity software, primarily in the Indian market with the Silicon Labs sub-GHz FG23 SoC. These chips power some of the world’s largest and most demanding industrial mesh networks across sectors including smart electricity metering, emergency lighting, industrial monitoring and building automation.

The two companies have a long history of collaboration enabling robust, ultra-resilient and massively scalable IoT networks that meet the scale, security, and reliability demands of industrial-grade applications. This milestone confirms that their joint solution is not just technically sound, it is market-proven at scale, and ready to support the digital backbone of global infrastructure.

In December 2024, Silicon Labs and Wirepas announced that four million smart electric meters using Wirepas Mesh software had been deployed in India built on the sub-GHz FG13 and FG23 platforms, helping the country meet the goals of its Advanced Metering Initiative. The solution provides reliable, cost-effective connectivity across dense, complex environments, being a critical enabler for India’s ambitious grid modernization and electrification goals.

Another standout success is in Norway, where more than one million similarly-equipped smart meters are connected in a single decentralized mesh network, one of the largest of its kind in the world. These types of deployments demonstrate that robust, self-healing mesh connectivity can now support national-scale infrastructure, laying the groundwork for smarter, more efficient, and more sustainable infrastructure powering cities and industries.

Other segments are also gaining momentum, with some, such as the emergency lighting sector, experiencing very high adoption rates.

“Our partnership with Wirepas is built on a shared vision: to enable industrial-grade wireless connectivity at scale,” said Ross Sabolcik, Senior Vice President of Product Lines at Silicon Labs. “By combining Silicon Labs’ energy-efficient wireless platforms with Wirepas’ decentralized mesh stack, we help our customers build massive, secure, and resilient IoT networks faster and more cost-effectively. We’re excited to continue driving transformation across industries together.”

“This 10-million milestone demonstrates the unmatched scalability and resilience of our joint solution,” said Teppo Hemiä, CEO of Wirepas. “With Silicon Labs’ hardware and our mesh software, we’ve enabled massive networks that simply work, even in the most challenging conditions. Our partnership is helping industries solve real problems at the infrastructure level, accelerating the digitalization and electrification of society.”

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@Wirepas @siliconlabs #IIoT #Communications #PAuto

Supporting metal quality and reducing costs.

LADA Foundry is focused on delivering top-quality products from its SG/ductile iron plant, which requires accurate measurements of the liquid metal during the casting process. Traditionally the foundry used dip thermocouple tips in combination with a pyrometer which takes longer and increases operator risk and cost. AMETEK Land’s Cyclops 055L portable pyrometer can address all these issues.

Capable of taking a non-contact measurement in under two seconds, the Cyclops improves operator safety with its point-and-shoot function, allowing the operator to be positioned several metres away from the molten metal.

It also significantly reduces the use and cost of disposable dip-type thermometers and improves measurement accuracy with its clear, wide-angle field of view and clearly defined measurement area for precision sighting.

After implementing the Cyclops into its process, LADA Foundry stopped using thermocouple tips completely, resulting in a cost savings of approximately INR 7,000,000.

LADA Foundry Plant Head, Mr. Yuvraj Patil, said: “The Cyclops 055L provides us with a safe, accurate and fast temperature measurement, and is helping us to improve production at our facility. Because the Cyclops is portable, we can measure each mould pouring temperature, and at the furnace, which helps to avoid super-heating.”

Its rugged instrument casing means the Cyclops 055L is used by foundry operators worldwide and in a wide range of applications including melting furnaces, ladle treatment locations, pouring sectors, blast furnace runners and liquid metal transfers. 

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@landinst @codacomms #PAuto #Steel #India

Informatics & LIMS for India.

Elab Informatics has been appointed as distributor of Autoscribe Informatics prestigious Matrix Gemini LIMS in India. Elab Informatics has focused on growing its Lab Informatics consulting services uo to now. This agreement enables Elab to also sell and support Matrix Gemini LIMS software in addition to offering configuration and informatics consulting services to clients.

The comprehensive configuration tools built into Matrix Gemini allows Elab to tailor each LIMS to the exact needs of each client without the need for custom coding. The tools use an intuitive ‘drag and drop’ workflow screen editor to create and modify unlimited numbers of screens, without the need for programming skills. In this way, the LIMS can be designed quickly to exactly match local user requirements.

Elab has quickly built a strong reputation in guiding clients through laboratory digitization programs, linking LIMS to instruments and corporate systems to drive efficiency and regulatory compliance. The new agreement gives the company access to the world’s most configurable software, perfect for their diverse spectrum of laboratory types, including research and development, quality control, biobanking, stability, and environmental monitoring.

“The versatility of Matrix Gemini LIMS provides the perfect platform for consulting organizations such as Elab to dominate their chosen markets,” said John Boother, Autoscribe Informatics. “India is predicted to be among the fastest growing economies over the next few years, with S&P Global predicting an average growth rate of 6.7% up to 2031. The combination of a fast-growing economy, Elab Informatics expertise and customer reach, and the flexibility of Matrix Gemini LIMS, provides a unique opportunity for Elab to grow their market share much faster than the already impressive growth rates across this region.”

“We are excited to be offering Matrix Gemini LIMS to our clients”, said Prashant Gandhi, founder and director of Elab Informatics. “The unusually flexible nature of Autoscribe’s software allows us to help our clients achieve their lab digitization vision, drive automation and efficiency, and meet regulatory requirements across a broad section of industries. Our already broad client base including manufacturing, pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and environmental industries will all benefit from the Low Code Development Platform (LCDP) on which Matrix is based. It allows us to rapidly configure LIMS solutions to fit client needs without resorting to software programming methods traditionally used. The result is faster deployments that are more easily supported in the field, and more upgradeable over the lifetime of the LIMS, reducing overall costs for our clients.”

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 @AutoscribeLtd @AutoscribeCorp #LIMS #Laboratory #India

Automation production facility opened in India.

Endress+Hauser has opened a new production building on its campus in Aurangabad (India). This milestone not only underlines the company’s commitment to the region but also reaffirms its continued investment in world-class production and working environments.

The formal inauguration of the building took place on 1 August 2023 in the presence of the Endress+Hauser Temperature+System Products management, as well as high-ranking representatives of various industry associations. 

After the official inauguration of the new building, a family party was held, giving employees’ relatives the opportunity to visit the new premises. In addition, employees celebrating anniversaries were honored for their many years of service to the company in the presence of their family members. The day was rounded off with an evening banquet at which traditional Indian cuisine was served.

Sustainable infrastructure and office concept.
The new production building is a modern facility for the manufacture of temperature measurement technology and system products as well as liquid analysis. The two-story building covers a total area of 5,400 square meters and was realized with an investment of 4.4 million euros. The first floor houses new production spaces for Endress+Hauser Temperature+System Products, offices and a modern cafeteria. The second floor houses production and office space for Endress+Hauser Liquid Analysis.

To minimize the environmental impact, a solar installation covers 80 percent of the building’s electricity consumption, in line with the company’s goal of CO2 neutrality. Special insulating glass reduces heat transmission and increases the building’s energy efficiency. The sustainable concept supports internal and external collaboration and promotes an inspiring work environment.

Continuous growth in the region.
Since its establishment 11 years ago, the site has become a key location for the production of high-quality products for customers in India and Southeast Asia. The newly constructed production building represents a strategic investment to support continued growth in the region and to serve these emerging markets even more efficiently with premium Indian-made products.

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@Endress_Hauser @Endress_IN @Endress_UK @Endress_US #PAuto #USA

Automation & electrification for cold rolling mill.

ABB has been appointed to provide electrification and automation systems for ArcelorMittal Nippon Steel India’s (AM/NS India) advanced steel cold rolling mill (CRM) in Hazira, Gujarat (Ind). The contract at the flagship manufacturing plant comes through John Cockerill India Limited (JCIL), the original equipment manufacturer (OEM) for the project.

A leading integrated flat carbon steel producer in India, AM/NS India has a crude steel capacity of 9 million metric tons per annum with state-of-the-art downstream facilities. It produces a fully diversified range of flat steel products, including value-added steel, and has a pellet capacity of 20 million metric tons.

AM/NS India, which is a joint venture between two of the world’s leading steel companies ArcelorMittal and Nippon Steel, is setting up the new CRM as part of its downstream expansion plan.

ABB is providing advanced electrification and automation systems, including the ABB Ability™ System 800xA distributed control system (DCS) and associated equipment and components, to support enhanced energy efficiency, optimized zinc consumption and high levels of corrosion resistance throughout the steel production process. This will support AM/NS India in its bid to reach greater levels of sustainability at Hazira.

“Our goal is to help create smarter steels for brighter futures, brighter futures for people and the planet. To do this, we place safety, innovation, and technology at the heart of our manufacturing operations and product development and ABB’s technology will support us in this,” said Mr. Dilip Oommen, Chief Executive Officer, ArcelorMittal Nippon Steel India (AM/NS India). “The new processing lines are designed to produce new-age value-added steel, embedding the most demanding quality standards. This expansion will help us meet the growing demand for high-end steel, while also enhancing our portfolio of value-added, sustainable steel.”

“We are proud of having been chosen by such a first-class steelmaker for the supply of two highly automated processing lines, combining cutting-edge equipment with integrated quality control and enhanced energy efficiency,” said Frédéric Midy, Project Director, John Cockerill Industry. “The fight against climate change is part of John Cockerill’s mission. This new contract will not only enable us to accompany AM/NS India on its journey towards sustainability but will also contribute to the country’s low-carbon economy ambitions.”

“The metals industry is essential for the transition to a net-zero world. Working with JCIL on this milestone project will support AM/NS India in developing one of the most sustainable, efficient, and modern steel operations,” said Vinod C, Local Division Manager, Process Industries, ABB.

The new CRM with advanced processing lines is due to be commissioned in 2024.

@ABBgroupnews @ABBMeasurement @abb_automation #PAuto

Temperature measurement in metal product manufacture.

AMETEK Land has supported a major metal products manufacturer to significantly reduce its costs. Based in Faridabad, Haryana, India, Amar Udyog is a leading manufacturer of grey iron, ductile iron, and SiMO machined castings, and has become a highly reputed OEM supplier for many popular brands.

The company operates a sophisticated manufacturing unit with a production capacity of 18,000 tons per annum, using cutting-edge technology to manufacture components for industries including the agricultural and automotive sectors.

Product quality is essential to meet customer requirements and specifications, and this is dependent on reliable, accurate temperature measurements at the foundry stage.

To achieve these measurements, Amar Udyog had been using dip thermocouples, which have a 13-14-second measurement time and require an operator to get quite close to the process*. The disposable thermocouple tips must be replaced frequently, costing time and money.

He was looking to reduce its high costs for maintenance, calibration, and monthly consumables, which included a typical monthly spend of INR 95,000 on replacement thermocouple tips.

To solve this challenge, AMETEK Land supplied two of its Cyclops 055L 2F portable pyrometers for this application. This device takes a non-contact measurement in under two seconds and is ergonomically designed for single-handed use.

The Cyclops 055L 2F also increases safety, as the operator can be positioned five or six metres away from the molten metal. They simply point the Cyclops 055L 2F at the liquid, then pull the trigger when a measurement is required.

AMETEK Land also provides NABL calibration and service support for the Cyclops 055L 2F in India, so Amar Udyog can access rapid local assistance if required.

Puneet Vinayak, Director at Amar Udyog, said: “Using the Cyclops 055L 2F has significantly reduced the amount we spend on thermocouple tip replacements each month. The instruments are easy to use, provide fast, accurate measurements, and increased safety for the user. We would definitely recommend AMETEK Land, both for their liquid metal measurement solution and for the expert support they have provided.”

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* The Amar Udyog case study.

@landinst  #PAuto #LiquidMetal #India

Marketing drives in India.

Bhupesh Katakkar has joined the global innovator and manufacturer of variable frequency drives (VFD). He has worked with Invertek for more than nine years as a sales partner with a detailed knowledge of the automation sector and industries in India, having worked as an industrial electronics engineer in the drives and controls industry since 1992.

Bhupesh Katakkar

“Having worked with Invertek for many years I know only too well how its VFD technology is respected worldwide for its reliability, durability, and energy efficiency in motor control applications. Within the next three to five years I want to see Invertek as one of the top drives players in the Indian market and a force to reckon with,” he said.

“We have great potential for growth in India and it’s going to be exciting times developing new opportunities in a wide range of industries throughout the country.”

He will be responsible to Justin Peters, Factory Sales Manager, at Invertek Drives who has responsibility for the global sales team.

“Bhupesh has a thorough understanding of the market in India and having worked with us for many years as a sales partner he fully understands the strengths and benefits of our Optidrive variable frequency drive technology. We look forward to developing our brand and sales within the region,” said Justin.

Earlier this month Invertek revealed plans for a new £6.3m Innovation Centre at its global headquarters in in Britain. This is in addition to more than £10m being invested by its parent company, Sumitomo Heavy Industries, in an extension to its manufacturing facility, allowing it to increase production to 1.2m units a year.

A new Application and Training Centre has also been completed at the site and is due to be officially opened in June.

@Invertek_Drives #PAuto

Metal quality and casting safety.

AMETEK Land has supported a major India-based manufacturer in its metal quality and casting safety goals.

DN Castech, an engineering components manufacturer operating in Gujarat, works with many major global brands and must ensure a high-quality product through accurate measurements of the liquid metal during the casting process.

The company had been using dip thermocouples for this application. However, these have a long measurement time, require operators to get quite close to the hot process, and use disposable tips.

Experiencing high costs for maintenance, calibration, and monthly consumables, DN Castech wanted to find a more cost-effective solution that would also improve both measurement accuracy and user safety.

The company turned to AMETEK Land’s Cyclops 055L portable pyrometer, which provides highly accurate measurements of liquid metal temperatures in the range of 1,000 to 2,000 °C (1,832 to 3,632 °F), with high repeatability. The Cyclops 055L takes a fast non-contact measurement within two seconds and is ergonomically designed for single-handed use. It increases safety as the operator can be positioned 5 or 6 metres away from the molten metal, simply pointing the device and pulling the trigger when they wish to take a measurement.

AMETEK Land also supplied its Model RPI 10000 BT LED display unit, which connects wirelessly with the Cyclops 055L using Bluetooth to provide instant, real-time temperature measurement updates on its 4-inch-high, seven-segment screen. With a 50-metre connectivity range, the LED display unit allows the pyrometer to be used easily throughout the foundry to validate temperature data for quality and process control, without the safety hazards that cable connections could cause.

Before the Cyclops 055L was introduced, DN Castech was spending around 540,000 rupees a year on dip thermocouples, using 30 thermocouple tips per day. Since the Cyclops 055L has no consumables and eliminates the time spent replacing tips, it offered a rapid return on investment.

It also met DN Castech’s requirements for a more accurate and safer liquid metal temperature measurement solution.

Shri Dhirubhai Patel, Managing Director at DN Castech, said: “The Cyclops 055L has been easy to use and provides a fast measurement. It is highly accurate, even while pouring, right up to the last mould. Its performance and excellent return on our investment mean we would certainly recommend AMETEK Land for this application.”

@landinst @codacomms #Pauto #India

Carbon canister performance.

Many Signal Group customers employ the company’s gas analysers to measure the combustion emissions from engines that are under development. However, internal combustion engine vehicles also represent an opportunity for evaporative emissions, so vehicles are fitted with a carbon canister to prevent such releases. MAHLE ANAND Filter Systems, a leading global manufacturer of carbon canisters is using a flame ionisation detector (FID), Signal’s S4 SOLAR analyser, as part of its ongoing research and development programme, to optimise the performance of the carbon canisters which it supplies to global and domestic automotive manufacturers.

Based at the MAHLE ANAND Filter Systems facility in Pune,(IND), test laboratory manager Sagar Awate has been using Signal’s heated FID analyser for over two years for measuring total hydrocarbons (THC). “The S4 SOLAR FID Analyser is an important instrument within our research and development programme,” he explains. “We are constantly trialling new fuels and investigating the emission level (DBL – diurnal breathing loss) of our carbon canisters over a range of different temperatures as per the CARB and EPA procedures which are used worldwide. A temperature profile gradient is created with the use of a programmed environmental chamber.

“By collecting and analysing evaporative emissions from the carbon canister over a specific temperature profile, we are able to fully assess the canister’s bleed emission level. The analyser therefore plays a vital role in finding the THC ppm value from the gas sample collected inside a Kynar bag, and we are pleased to report that S4 SOLAR FID Analyser has performed very well. With a user-friendly interface and operating software that is simple to configure, our staff are very comfortable with the use of the instrument.”

Carbon canisters
The main function of carbon canisters is to reduce the amount of air pollution that vehicles create, whilst also increasing fuel efficiency. Hydrocarbon vapours arise from fuel in the fuel tank, even when the engine is turned off, and carbon canisters are designed to trap that vapour and feed it back into the engine.

Carbon canisters are filled with charcoal or carbon pellets that are able to adsorb hydrocarbon vapours. The canister input (tank port) connects to the fuel tank, while the canister output (purge port) connects to the purge valve in the vehicle's intake manifold. The vent port of the canister is open to the atmosphere.

When a vehicle is turned off, there is a pressure imbalance within the fuel tank which causes fuel to evaporate. As the tank is connected to the canister by means of hoses/pipes, all of the vapours generated inside the fuel tank enter the carbon canister. In line with the canister’s design capacity, it holds the vapours coming from tank whilst the vehicle is in the parked condition. Whenever the engine is started, the purge valve opens and the vapours inside the canister are desorbed into the air passing to the engine, where they are combusted. This process is known as “purging” of the carbon canister. During the purging process, fresh air from the atmosphere enters into the canister through the vent port and flows toward the engine, carrying fuel vapour with it. It takes a few minutes to complete the purging process; after which the ‘fresh’ canister is able to absorb vapour from subsequent cycles. Canisters remain functional while vehicles are running.

Monitoring evaporative hydrocarbons
The carbon canister tests are based on the procedures outlined in the United States Council for Automotive Research (USCAR) LEVIII / TIER 3 Bleed Emission Test Procedure (BETP)) Recommendations.

The USCAR procedure enables equipment manufacturers to produce repeatable and reproducible results. Two methods of hydrocarbon capture are specified in the document; the Bag Method and the SHED (sealed housing evaporative determination) Method; both of which require the use of a FID. Signal Group is able to provide FID analysers for both methods.

FID is a standard reference method for the analysis of gaseous hydrocarbons. The FID is a highly sensitive but non-selective sensor which employs a flame to strip hydrogen atoms from a hydrocarbon molecule, forming carbon radicals and electrons. This is usually a short-lived condition with the charged components quickly recombining, however, in an electrostatic field, components with opposite charges are driven towards electrodes. This creates an effective current within the flame, which is proportional to the number of molecules of hydrocarbon present.

The SOLAR range of FIDs are the latest 4th generation design; benefitting from knowledge and experience gained over 40 years to deliver accuracy, reliability and ease of use. Commenting on the advantages of this latest technology Signal Group Managing Director James Clements says: “Every S4 analyser is supplied with software to enable operation of the analyser remotely using LAN/RS232. This means customers can access their monitoring data from anywhere and at any time, and if they have any service questions, we are able to log in remotely.”

@GasAnalysers @ANANDGroupIndia @_Enviro_News #PAuto #Environment #India

Celebrating automation professionals.

The International Society of Automation celebrated the first-ever International Automation Professionals Day on 28 April. The digital event engaged automation professionals from all around the globe to recognize their efforts in the vastly growing automation industry.

Carlos Mandolesi

ISA President Carlos Mandolesi said that automation professionals make up many diverse sectors, and having a day dedicated to those in the field can offer a learning opportunity for those unfamiliar with automation. “It is very common that our friends, relatives, and population in general do not understand what we do when we say that we work with automation. It is important to have our own date to celebrate and promote the automation profession. ISA, as the home of automation, is the perfect organization to create it.”

The focal point of the day was a call to action in which automation industry professionals and automation students were encouraged to submit photos of themselves working in the field, or testimonials about how they hope to have an impact in the world through automation.

Mandolesi said that he was thrilled to see the positive feedback from all around the world. “The response was so amazing. I wanted to reply to all the social media posts to demonstrate how happy I was,” he said. “It was a huge success.”

Several sections also had their own celebrations to correspond with the day, including the ISA Pune Section in India. Vishal Pansare, vice president of the digital manufacturing division at Logicon Technosolutions, said that his section held an event to recognize those in the field.

Automation and manufacturing industries in Pune (India) were recognised on Automation Professionals Day.

“The ISA Pune Section celebrated this day by organizing a grand event where all members, automation professionals, and key leaders from large manufacturing companies located in Pune, like Tata Motors, Cipla, Thermax, and Coca-Cola, were invited,” he said. “The theme was how automation and digitization has been helping manufacturers in India, the latest trending technologies in manufacturing fields, and how they can be implemented by the factories.”

Pansare also added that days like this are important for those in automation. “Days like International Automation Professionals Day are necessary to create awareness around the world about the field and how it contributes to our day to day lives.”

Mandolesi is already looking forward to next year’s celebration and appreciates those who participated. “Thank you to all professionals, members, staff, and sections that invested time to create a post on social media or who organized large events to celebrate the day,” he said. “You are responsible for the success of our first International Automation Professionals Day. Thank you!”

@ISA_Interchange #PAuto #AutomationProDay #India

Automation system at new cement plant.

Birla Corp subsidiary RCCPL is to employ ABB Ability™ Expert Optimizer and other digital technologies to maximize production at its new cement plant at Mukutban in Maharashtra (India).

ABB will supply RCCPL with ABB Ability™ Expert Optimizer, an advanced process control solution for controlling, stabilizing, and optimizing industrial processes and which will allow the cement producer to increase production, minimize carbon footprint and reduce fuel consumption to meet energy usage goals.

“Early involvement in the development of this greenfield project means we can bring a holistic approach to the design of the complete system," said Krishnadas Manjaparra, business head of industrial automation process industries for South Asia, Middle-East, and Africa, at ABB. "We have been able to draw from our strong portfolio of automation and electrification products and solutions and bring varied insights from our years of experience working with small operators, global players and the turnkey execution of large projects. We have an established track record in India where more than half of cement plants already run with the ABB automation systems and which ensure maximum efficiency and run consistently shift to shift, irrespective of operator expertise. What makes us unique is also our newly launched ABB AbilityTM Collaborative Operations Center in India that allows us to provide operations support during the post-commissioning life cycle of the plant to keep the productivity and efficiency at peak levels continuously."

Birla Corporation currently produces cement at seven locations in India with a combined capacity of nearly 15.5 million tonnes per annum. The 3.90 million tonnes per year greenfield plant at Mukutban, Yavatmal in the Indian state of Marharashtra is about 400 kilometers north of Mumbai and incorporates a 40 MW captive power plant and a 10.60 MW heat recovery system.

ABB will also provide the new cement plant with electrification infrastructure items such as MV Switchgear with MV relays on IEC 61850 communication and LV Switchgear with ABB UMC100.3 intelligent motor controllers which combine intelligent motor protection and control functions and fieldbus communication, and fault diagnosis in a single device.

The ABB digital solutions and electrification products will be integrated with ABB Ability™ System 800xA, which is ranked by ARC advisory group as the #1 DCS (distributed control system) platform in the market globally for the 20th consecutive year. ABB Ability™ System 800xA is also an electrical control system, a safety system and a collaboration enabler with the capacity to improve engineering efficiency, operator performance and asset utilization.

ABB Ability™ Expert Optimizer uses linear and non-linear model predictive control and neural networks to manage critical plant components, including kiln, alternative fuels, mills, and blending. It can find the best operating conditions to maximize output and can immediately detect deviations among various processes in cement production. This capability is backed by the remote ABB Ability™ Collaborative Operations Center support, from where experts continually monitor the system for any abnormality and can help retune the system remotely for new process conditions.

#PAuto #Cement @abbindustryserv @ABBgroupnews

MES solutions provider has new MD in India.

Rajesh Vedak has been appointed Managing Director of Werum IT Solutions India Private Ltd. In his new role, he will oversee all business development activities and operations in India. He will be actively involved in strategic planning to further expand Werum India and strengthen the company's position on the local market.

Rajesh Vedak

"Rajesh Vedak was instrumental in streamlining our business offering in India over the last few years," says Jens Woehlbier, CEO of Werum IT Solutions GmbH. "We are in an exciting phase of expanding our infrastructure and operations in India. With an aligned setup and with Rajesh as our new Managing Director India, we can further improve our support for the Indian pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical manufacturers. I wish him great success in his new position."

Rajesh Vedak looks back on more than 20 years of experience in the Indian life sciences industry. In 2016, he joined Werum as Country Manager India. In this role, he has created a strong foundation for a sustainable long-term support structure to offer Werum's best-in-class manufacturing IT solutions to regional pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical manufacturers.

Previously, he had held different functional and managerial positions at various solution providers supporting biopharma manufacturers in India. Moreover, he had worked at Merck Millipore.

#PAuto @Werum #India

Cybersecurity Lab for India.

Their newest cybersecurity lab has been opened by Emerson.  It helps manufacturers confidently to adopt digital transformation strategies, while protecting the integrity of their plant operations, networks, systems and data. The facility, part of Emerson’s larger global cybersecurity network, reinforces Emerson’s commitment to offer the most advanced automation solutions to its customers worldwide.

Pic:@TechHerald_in

“Cybersecurity is frequently cited by customers as a top consideration for Industrial Internet of Things adoption,” said Lal Karsanbhai, executive president of Emerson’s Automation Solutions business. “Emerson’s investment in a broad portfolio of technologies and services is helping global leaders accelerate their digital transformation with confidence.”

The new centre, staffed by a team of cybersecurity experts in Pune, India, builds on existing capabilities and further strengthens Emerson’s technology portfolio to support the highest levels of product security across the development lifecycle. The Pune lab will focus on defining security requirements, designing threat models and security walkthroughs, maintaining security practices and simulating cyber-attacks in industrial environments to identify and address potential vulnerabilities.

The latest addition to Emerson’s global network of cybersecurity facilities is located at the Emerson Innovation Centre in Pune, which houses 900 employees focused on innovating for the future and coordinating training for development engineers.

“Our customers are looking for a partner to help navigate the complex technology landscape so they can design a secure and robust digital ecosystem for their operations,” Karsanbhai said. “This new centre further extends our leadership in industrial transformation and enhances our ability to collaborate with customers on the critical element of cybersecurity as they adopt the latest digital technologies to optimise performance.”

@EMR_Automation #PAuto @Emerson_News @HHC_Lewis

Emissions monitoring in India.

Visitors to CEM India 2019 (New Delhi 24-26 Sept.) can now register online. Focusing on continuous emissions monitoring, the event will provide access to information on new Indian environmental regulations, along with the latest monitoring methods and technologies for reliable regulatory compliance.

Following the extraordinary success of the 2017 event, organiser Marcus Pattison says: “In addition to air emissions, the 2019 event will also address the monitoring of industrial effluent, so we have had to enlarge the exhibition space, but at the time of writing only a handful of stands remain available.

“With leading international technology manufacturers signing up to attend, CEM 2019 will provide a unique opportunity to see the whole world of environmental monitoring at the same time, under one roof.”

The Indian Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) is responsible for the planning and execution of a nationwide programme for the prevention, control or abatement of water and air pollution, and a speaker from CPCB will open the conference by providing an update on the implementation of Continuous Emission Monitoring Systems (CEMS) in India.

With new environmental regulations on both emissions to air and water, a broad spectrum of Indian industries will have to implement reliable monitoring programmes to demonstrate compliance. Consequently, there is an enormous requirement for monitoring equipment and technology, so CEM 2019 will be an ideal opportunity for Indian companies, consultants, regulators and researchers to find the best and most cost-effective solutions to their monitoring needs.

Over 700 visitors attended the 2017 event, 95% of which were looking to purchase monitoring equipment. Feedback from the visitors was unanimously positive; for example, a CPCB visitor said: “It was a wonderful learning experience. I learned a lot about the certified technologies relating to the advanced CEM technologies that have been adopted worldwide.”

The CEM India 2019 Conference will provide visitors with detailed information on emissions monitoring, and the Exhibition will enable them to discuss practical monitoring issues with industry experts. As a consequence CEM India 2019 will be an essential event in the diary of anyone affected by the new Indian environmental regulations.

#CEMIndia #Environment @_Enviro_News 

Gas analysis leader's appointments on both sides of Atlantic.

Servomex has appointed three new Regional Sales Managers (RSMs) to its sales teams for the Americas and EMEAI regions.

Jesse Underwood and Rodney Clark have both joined the Americas team. Working with the company’s Industrial Process and Emissions (IPE) customers, they will report to Servomex’s VP Sales Americas IPE, Bob Heth, who is based in Houston, Texas.

Stéphane Barret will be based in France as part of the EMEAI team. Supporting customers in France, southern Europe and Africa, he will report to Jan Hordijk, Regional Sales Leader EMEAI.

Underwood becomes RSM for the Americas IPE Gulf 1 Texas region, responsible for managing and developing channel partnerships and direct sales in Texas. A former Senior Business Development Manager at Emerson, he has a wealth of experience in the analytical industry as an RSM, product manager and product specialist, as well as in direct sales.

Clark is the RSM for the Americas IPE Gulf 2 East region, managing channel partnerships and driving direct sales in that region, which includes Louisiana, Arkansas, Oklahoma and part of Texas. He is an experienced product sales specialist with an extensive history of working in the instrumentation and analytical manufacturing industry, most recently as a Product Sales Specialist at ABB.

Bob Heth said: “I’m pleased to welcome Jesse and Rodney to their new roles and I’m certain their knowledge will be of great benefit to our customers. Both have a great understanding of the technical and application environments in which the IPE market segments operate, which will help our customers find the right solutions for their applications.”

Barret joins the Servomex team from Endress & Hauser, where he was Account Manager for Development Gas Analysis for France and Algeria. He also provided some technical support for liquid gas analysis.

Jan Hordijk said: “I am delighted to welcome Stéphane to Servomex and wish him every success. His expertise, applications knowledge and experience will provide enhanced support for our customers in the region.”

@Servomex  #PAuto #NthAmerica #EMEAI

New office reflects Indian environmental emphasis.

The Indian Government is giving increasing importance to the control of air, water and noise pollution.  Ion Science  continuing to expand globally has opened  an office in Hyderabad.

KS Chari

Ion Science India Pvt. Ltd will primarily focus on sales of its wide range of volatile organic compound (VOC) monitors within pharmaceutical, refinery and petrochemical applications across the Indian subcontinent.

The new Indian office will be headed up by KS Chari who comments: “Establishing Ion Science India will allow us to reach up to 70% of our customers directly and offer an added level of assurance regarding product quality and commitment to service.

“It will be especially beneficial to the major refinery and petrochemical customers that prefer direct contact with instrument manufacturers. We will also be developing relationships with regional sub dealers in due course.”

The newly established business will also target the region’s growing indoor air quality (IAQ) market with demand for photoionization detectors (PIDs) from HVAC, glass and ceramic manufacturers, chemical processors, institutions, pollution control boards and Indian Green Building Council rating systems (IGBC) requiring VOC-free paints and varnishes.

India’s Environment bodies have guidelines such as USEPA Clean Air Act for National Ambient Air Quality, Continuous Emissions Monitoring, Factory Directorate monitors factories on various problems concerning safety, health, efficiency and well - being of the persons at work places, that covers Occupational Safety and Health aspects of workers.

In addition, all major commercial spaces, factories and office buildings apply for Indian Green Building Council (IGBC) rating which requires monitoring of toxic gases.

Ion Science chose Hyderabad for its central location to the industrial hubs of Chennai, Vizag, Raipur and Mumbai, as well as its excellent rail, road and air connections. Recent estimates of the economy of the city’s metropolitan area have ranged from $40 billion to $74 billion (PPP GDP) and have ranked it fifth or sixth most productive area of India.

@ionscience #PAuto #India @elhcomms