Monday, 28 September 2026

Reducing the impact of chemical contamination of sensors.

Dust, humidity, corrosive media and chemical contamination can impair the measurement performance of industrial sensors. Depending on the application, these stresses affect different sensor areas and can cause measurement drift or increase maintenance requirements. E+E Elektronik addresses these challenges with application-specific protection concepts for sensor elements, connections and other sensitive areas. With ChemShield, E+E Elektronik is now adding a protective barrier specifically developed for chemically demanding applications.

E+E Shield Technologies
The protection concepts from E+E Elektronik act where environmental conditions can affect sensor performance. Each technology fulfils a different function.

SensShield is a protective coating for the sensor element as well as its connections and solder joints. It reduces the impact of dust, dirt, oily contamination, salts, humidity and corrosive exposure. At the same time, the coating helps prevent stray impedances caused by deposits on the sensor surface or connection leads.

LeadsShield protects particularly sensitive sensor connections and solder joints through targeted encapsulation. Only the sensor element itself comes into contact with the medium being measured. This protects critical connection areas from corrosion and contamination without unnecessarily affecting the sensor's response characteristics.

ChemShield adds a barrier against chemical contamination to these protection concepts. The coating is applied to defined areas such as the sensor element and solder joints. It reduces the impact of harmful chemical substances and supports long-term stable measurement performance in chemically demanding environments.

Contaminated Sensor
For chemically demanding processes.
Chemical exposure places particularly high demands on the sensor element in humidity measurement. Process media can change, oils age or oxidise, and residues from production and cleaning processes can affect sensitive sensor areas. This can lead to measurement drift and reduced long-term stability.

ChemShield forms an additional barrier against these influences. This extends the application range of selected E+E Elektronik humidity and moisture in oil sensors to environments with increased chemical exposure.

Long-term stable moisture measurement in oil.
One key area of application is moisture measurement in oil. Ageing, oxidation and contamination can change the chemical properties of an oil and place additional stress on the sensor element. ChemShield reduces the impact of these changes and supports long-term stable moisture measurement.

The technology is used, among other products, in the EE360 and EE364 moisture in oil sensors. Depending on the application and product configuration, this also makes them suitable for demanding lubricating, hydraulic and insulating oils as well as selected natural ester oils. ChemShield also provides additional protection against chemical exposure in contaminated turbine, compressor and hydraulic oils.

Enhanced protection for industrial humidity applications.
In industrial humidity measurement, chemical contaminants can also affect sensor performance. Typical applications include test and climate chambers, fume cupboards, pharmaceutical environments with intensive cleaning, biofilters, fertiliser environments, and specialised drying and fermentation processes.

For selected applications, E+E Elektronik combines ChemShield with SensShield. In the EE310 humidity and temperature sensor, this combination supports long-term stable measurement performance even under increased chemical exposure. The specific configuration is matched to the respective process conditions.

Protection matched to the measurement task.
E+E Elektronik does not take a one-size-fits-all approach to sensor protection. What matters is which components are exposed to which stresses in the respective application. SensShield, LeadsShield and ChemShield can therefore be used selectively and combined as required.

This allows the level of protection, measurement performance, response characteristics and serviceability to be matched to the specific application. The goal is reliable, long-term stable measurements even under demanding industrial conditions.


#Epulse #PAuto

Pump portal.

The launch of MyNETZSCH, a new digital customer portal has been launched by Netcsch Pumps & Systems, demonstrating its continued commitment to customer satisfaction.

With MyNETZSCH, the company is expanding its digital service offering with a central customer portal designed for operators, service managers, and purchasing professionals. The platform brings together key information and processes related to NETZSCH Pumps & Systems in one place, providing fast access to machine data, technical documentation, and spare parts ordering.

Through digital self-service features, MyNETZSCH helps companies streamline information and procurement processes while simplifying day-to-day service operations. Users benefit from location-independent, 24/7 access and a platform tailored to their individual requirements.


@netzschpumps @pressebox @UnnGmbh #Pauto

Friday, 25 September 2026

Comprehensive automation resource update.

"Giving professionals a lasting foundation they can build on throughout their careers."


This newly updated Fourth Edition of A Guide to the Automation Body of Knowledge is the only officially authorised book covering ISA’s body of knowledge core competencies. This revised guide provides an overview of important automation concepts and processes, while also describing the technical skills required to implement them in today’s industrial environment. The book enables readers to effectively study for the ISA Certified Automation Professional® (CAP®), ISA Certified Control Systems Technician® (CCST®) and/or Professional Engineer (PE) Control Systems Engineer (CSE) exams.
In addition to this important guide, ISA’s roster of new book titles published through Wiley in 2026 include:
•Successful Instrumentation and Control Systems Design, Third Edition by Michael D. Whitt
• Loop Checking: A Technician’s Guide, Second Edition by Harley M. Jeffery and Paul M. Franklin
• Calibration: A Technician’s Guide, Second Edition by Michael P. Cable and Alan W. Bryant
• Data-to-Information Handbook: Building Effective Display Systems for Refining Processes by Ike Brackin, Mark J. Nixon and Dave Strobhar

Edited and written by nearly 30 leading experts from all aspects of automation, A Guide to the Automation Body of Knowledge, Fourth Edition includes information on:

  • Process and analytical instrumentation, discrete control, continuous and batch control, control valves and final control elements
  • Basic discrete, sequencing and manufacturing control, advanced control, process modeling and digital twins, digital and analog communications and data management and system software
  • Networking and cybersecurity, safety and reliability, system checkout, testing, start-up, troubleshooting and project management
  • Manufacturing operations management, automation justification and performance analysis, motors and drives, electrical systems, asset management and maintenance, motion control and vision systems and control systems including PLCs, DCSs and SCADA

"What makes this guide so valuable is its focus on the fundamentals — the core concepts and skills that every automation professional needs to master, regardless of how quickly technology trends shift,” said Rick Zabel, managing director of ISA publications. “This edition ensures that grounding remains strong, giving professionals a lasting foundation they can build on throughout their careers."

A Guide to the Automation Body of Knowledge is widely known as an indispensable text for automation engineers, managers, technicians, control systems integrators, students and educators. The Fourth Edition is now available for purchase through ISA’s publishing partner, Wiley, as an e-book as well as a print version.


@ISA_Automation @WileyGlobal  #PAuto #Automation #TandM

Rethinking valve platform architecture?

Addresses growing demand for higher airflow in automation.

Across factory automation, packaging, water treatment, and automotive manufacturing, machine builders are facing a familiar challenge: higher airflow demands in increasingly compact machine designs. Moving to a larger valve platform can solve the airflow problem but introduces new complexity — different interfaces, different configurations, and disruption to established machine architectures. Emerson has developed the AVENTICS™ XV05 High Flow Valve System to address this gap directly.

Their XV05 High Flow variant delivers up to 1,200 L/min — enabling OEMs and machine builders to achieve greater airflow capacity without moving to a larger valve system.

Now available globally, the XV05 High Flow is an extension of the established AVENTICS XV platform — the same architecture, the same electrical connection options, the same communication protocols, and the same modularity that machine builders already rely on. The difference is flow capacity: up to 1,200 L/min, compared to 1,000 L/min for the standard XV05. Larger ports and dedicated high-flow fittings deliver the increased airflow where applications demand it, while compatibility with the standard XV05 means High Flow and standard modules can be combined within a single valve system.

The XV05 High Flow is available in front-, top-, and bottom-ported configurations, giving design engineers the flexibility to integrate higher airflow capacity into new and existing machine layouts without redesigning the broader pneumatic architecture. Applications well suited to the new variant include pilot valve systems for process valves in water treatment, package molding equipment, slicing and cutting units requiring high actuator force, cleaning systems, pneumatically driven winches in oil and gas operations, and automotive manufacturing equipment with high airflow requirements.


• See also Next Generation Pneumatic Valves.(24/2/2025) 

@AVENTICS @EmersonExchange @Emerson_News @EMR_Automation @mepaxIntPR #PAuto #Machine_Building

Thursday, 24 September 2026

CAD model review on the phone.

Engineers, reviewers, and suppliers explore CAD models, PMI, and metadata on a phone or tablet.

Tech Soft 3D, the provider of engineering software development toolkits and industrial applications, has released SpinFire Insight for Mobile, a free companion app to its SpinFire Insight desktop viewer, now available on iOS and Android. 

Design review without a desk.
Engineering teams reviewing 3D models are typically tied to a workstation. Suppliers, quality staff, and project managers who need to check a design, confirm manufacturing information, or answer a question about a part often have to wait until someone with desktop access is available. This slows down reviews and adds friction to communication across distributed teams.

The new SpinFire Insight for Mobile gives teams the benefits of 3D CAD visualization wherever they may be. The app opens standard 3D formats, including STEP, IGES, and PRC, along with publishing formats 3D PDF and U3D, and reads ACT3D files created in the desktop version of SpinFire Insight. Users can navigate models with touch controls, apply standard views, switch between rendering modes, inspect part metadata, and access CAD views and PMI (Product Manufacturing Information) directly from a phone or tablet.

"Engineering data has always lived on a computer, but the questions about it don't wait for someone to sit down at a workstation," said Lionel Vieilly, Senior Product Manager - Industrial Applications. "SpinFire Insight for Mobile puts that data in people's pockets, so a supplier, a reviewer, or a project manager can pull up a model, check a dimension, or confirm a manufacturing note the moment it comes up, not hours later. It’s a small shift with a big impact on team efficiency and speed "

Fitting into existing engineering workflows.
The app is designed for quick, on-the-go review rather than replacing desktop workflows. For advanced design review, measurement, markups, or major CAD formats such as CATIA, SOLIDWORKS, NX, Creo, and Inventor, SpinFire Insight for Desktop remains the primary tool. SpinFire Insight for Mobile is intended to sit alongside it, giving teams a way to check model data, respond to a question, or review PMI when they are away from their workstation, without requiring a full CAD license or desktop session.

By making CAD data accessible from a phone or tablet, SpinFire Insight for Mobile reduces the delay between a question being raised and a model being reviewed. Technical, suppliers, and non-technical stakeholders alike can inspect geometry, manufacturing information, and metadata wherever the work takes them, supporting faster communication and fewer bottlenecks in distributed engineering and manufacturing organisations.

The app is available now as a free download on the App Store for iOS and Google Play for Android.


@TechSoft3D @UnnGmbh @pressebox #PAuto #Design

Asset condition assessment streamlined.

Thermal imaging cameras to bring AI-driven asset condition assessment directly onto the camera.

Flir has announced the worldwide availability of the MentorLens® app by MentorAPM on its professional-grade iXX-Series thermal imaging cameras, bringing AI-driven asset condition assessment directly onto the camera. Developed by MentorAPM, a provider of asset performance management software for critical infrastructure, the app allows maintenance and reliability teams to capture nameplate, condition and thermal imagery on a single device and send it straight to the asset record, without the file transfers and manual data entry that have long slowed condition monitoring programs.*

In industrial operations, the value of a thermal inspection is determined less by the image itself than by what happens to it afterward. Files are moved from an SD card to a laptop, thermal metadata is altered or lost along the way, and findings end up in a folder rather than in the system where maintenance work is actually planned. Running natively on the iXX-Series, the MentorLens app removes that handoff. Images upload from the camera directly to the asset record with their thermal data intact, and technicians can create new assets or update existing ones without leaving the camera. All Flir imaging and hardware controls remain available, including MSX, palette selection, lamp and laser, so the same device that captures the thermogram also captures the nameplate photo and the condition photo.

Once the images are synced, MentorLens processes them automatically. Nameplate and tag data is transcribed into standard asset attributes, visual imagery is scored for condition, and thermal imagery is measured against operating baselines taken from the asset's own nameplate data or from manufacturer manuals. Reports return observed anomalies, temperature readings and recommended actions, and because previous assessments for the same asset are carried into the analysis, degradation is tracked across inspections rather than judged one image at a time.

“Customers don't need more inspection data. They need actionable information that helps them prevent downtime and make better maintenance decisions," said John Gould, Sr. Director of Strategic Business Development, FLIR. "With MentorAPM integrated into the iXX-Series workflow, thermal findings become part of a broader asset health picture. Data is automatically evaluated against previous conditions and delivered to the teams responsible for maintenance planning, enabling earlier intervention and more effective predictive maintenance programs.”

For the wider organisation, the benefits go beyond the inspection itself. Condition and thermal results feed the MentorLens platform, where rules can automatically trigger preventive work orders and where condition history, work history and SCADA events are held against the same asset record. Reports are exported as standardised PDFs, and the underlying data can be pushed by API into an existing CMMS or EAM system, so operators are not obliged to change their system of record in order to benefit. Every AI-assisted workflow keeps a human in the loop, with a person confirming what is committed against the asset.

“For most operators the hardest part of asset management is still the most basic one, which is knowing what you own and what condition it is in,” added Tacoma Zach, CEO of MentorAPM. “Putting our app on the iXX-Series means high-quality thermal data now enters that picture at the point of capture, from the same technician and the same device. In plants where downtime is measured in millions of dollars an hour, the payback on that is very quick.”

First proven in water and wastewater utilities, the combined solution is now being adopted in manufacturing, metals, and oil and gas, where thermographic inspection has typically been outsourced to specialist contractors at considerable expense. MentorAPM reports that customers using MentorLens achieve up to 10x faster field data collection and cost savings of more than 75 percent against conventional condition assessment methods. The MentorLens app is available worldwide now for Flir iXX-Series users with a MentorAPM subscription.


* Both companies will present the integration at the SMRP 34th Annual Conference, held 28 September to 1 October 2026 at the Raleigh Convention Center in Raleigh (NC USA). Tacoma Zach, CEO of MentorAPM, leads an Innovation Lab session titled "From Camera to Asset Intelligence: AI Workflows for Reliability Teams" on Tuesday 29 September, 1:15 to 2:15 PM ET, in Innovation Lab #3. The session walks through practical workflows using MentorLens with Flir thermal cameras to capture equipment information, analyse visual and thermal conditions and generate structured asset intelligence automatically. John Gould of Teledyne FLIR joins the session to discuss the iXX-Series.

@flir @MentorAPM  @mepaxIntPR  #PAuto #Manufacturing


Wednesday, 23 September 2026

Flow calibration in Middle East.

The announcement signals company's expanding automation and industrial technology footprint across the Middle East and Africa.

Emerson has announced plans to build the Emerson Middle East & Africa Service Center, a new automation solutions service and operations centre, in the Umm Alhoul Free Zone. The facility will expand Emerson’s local capabilities for customers in Qatar and across the Middle East and Africa. It will include the region’s first certified in-country flow calibration lab, along with other critical automation technologies designed to help customers optimise operations, reduce turnaround time, minimise costs and accelerate project timelines.

Emerson's Judson Duncan (left), group president, global sales, signs the agreement with Qatar Free Zones Authority's Chief Executive Officer, H.E. Sheikh Mohammed Bin Hamad Bin Faisal Al-Thani.

“This new investment reflects Emerson’s strategic commitment to accelerating innovation in Qatar and supporting the Middle East’s most critical operations,” said Judson Duncan, group president of Global Sales at Emerson. “Our additional capabilities will enable customers to operate with greater agility, reliability and cost efficiency.”

Strategic investment aligned with Qatar National Vision 2030.
The new 3,500-square-metre facility reinforces Emerson’s expanding industrial technology presence in the region and advances Qatar National Vision 2030 objectives around economic growth and diversification. The new site will add to the existing footprint of manufacturing, service and distribution locations in the Middle East across Saudi Arabia and UAE along with a broad service network of Emerson accredited service partners in the region.

New capabilities for Qatar.
In addition to being equipped to calibrate large-size flow meters for high-pressure and high-volume operations, the Qatar facility will feature:

  • Measurement instrumentation solutions and skid training systems
  • Off-the-shelf inventory and spare parts distribution
  • A training and experience centre for customer operations teams
  • Staging and integration services for distributed control systems

The facility is planned to open in phases: control systems staging and measurement solutions services, spares inventory and the training centre will open in December 2026 with the certified flow calibration lab opening in early 2027.

The announcement was formalised at a signing ceremony on the sidelines of Qatar Economic Forum (QEF) in New York City with Qatar Free Zone dignitaries, including Sheikh Mohammed Bin Hamad Bin Faisal Al-Thani, chief executive officer, Qatar Free Zones Authority, and Sheikh Faisal bin Thani bin Faisal Al-Thani, minister of commerce and industry and chairman of Qatar Free Zones Authority.


@EmersonExchange @Qatar_Customs @Emerson_News @EMR_Automation  @HHC_Lewis #PAuto #Qatar #Calibration