The safety and well-being of tunnel users depend on excellent ventilation. With its compact electric drives, ABB helps designers and operators of major infrastructures to meet the major technical challenges. In Canada, ABB proudly contributes to the safety of the Louis-Hippolyte Lafontaine tunnels in Montreal and the Crosslinx project in Toronto by installing its ACS880-17 and ACS880-37 series drives.
Having reliable information is crucial for drilling technicians so that they can respond quickly and make corrections when needed. The term Measurement While Drilling (MWD) refers to the use of measurement modules behind a drill head. How does it work? The control system measures angle, vibration, and drilling speed. The pulser unit sends the collected information back to the surface, across thousands of meters, through pulses in the drill mud ( called Mud Pulse Telemetry or MPT). These pulses are generated by an actuator system driven by maxon’s Heavy Duty assembly.
Within the industry, maintenance of machinery and plant is routine work. But not everyone is aware of how to minimize future costs and risks for downtime already from the start. Although it is so apparent! Everywhere in our society, machines are used for producing varying items, process materials, pump fluids, etc. These machines must be given the correct prerequisites to do the job for which they were designed.
ABB recently hosted Billions of Better Decisions – Empowering the Workforce with the Industrial Internet of Things, a panel moderated by Molly Wood, Climate Investor and Journalist, and Managing Director of Launch. There she interviewed three industry experts: Peter Terwiesch, President of Process Automation at ABB, Ahmed Hashmi, Senior Vice President, Digital at bp, and Michael Wade, Professor of Innovation and Strategy and Director of Global Centre for Digital Business Transformation at IMD. This article highlights what these experts address as the mega trends of digitalization and sustainability and how leaders can use the industrial IoT to make better decisions and tackle the massive threat of the climate crisis.
Did you know that an ABB large motor or generator is 98% recyclable, with the remaining 2% of materials available to be incinerated for heat recovery? ABB Large Motors and Generators in Sweden have recently joined forces with Stena Recycling to offer our customers an opportunity to recycle their old machines. The deal ensures that end-of-life motors/generators are recycled in an environmentally friendly way and the metals are reused in new products made in Europe.
With technological advancement and growing uncertainty amid the global pandemic, we have adapted to new ways of working, rehashed our priorities and business strategies with safety at the epicenter of our operations. Today, most large industrial companies facing workplace hazards have a devoted health, safety, and environment (HSE) management system that ensures safety for not only the employees but customers as well.
The safety requirements for mining machines are high; a long and complex process ensues before the machine is ready for use. To meet all the necessary safety specifications, the technology “behind it” must be programmed, tested and then installed on the machine.
As we began 2022, global material shortages and rapidly increasing costs have now become the new reality. The types of materials that have suddenly become difficult to procure are wide-ranging and include computer chips for automotive manufacturing, wood for new construction, and electrical components – just to name a few. One of the major material components that affect the cost and availability of wire and cable is copper. This widely used metal, which traditionally has been a volatile commodity, has been steadily increasing in price, which is due to several supply and demand issues.
When choosing a motor for robotics, do you really need to compromise? Kollmorgen looks at three trade-offs commonly encountered when customers select a motor for a robotic application. In this article, they explore these challenges – and provide insights, so you do not necessarily have to make a compromise.
Marine vessel operators are increasingly commissioning electrically powered and controlled bow thrusters as an energy-efficient and environmentally safer alternative to hydraulic-based systems on boats. With 100 per cent more efficiency and little or no environmental hazards such as oil or other contaminants leaking from hydraulic lines, it has become cost-effective to build new or retrofit electric thrusters controlled by variable frequency drives (VFD).
When operating electric motors with frequency converters, undesirable bearing currents often occur that can significantly impact the service life of the rolling contact bearings. Scientists at TU Darmstadt have investigated these bearing currents – and found out that they can be reduced in some cases with the help of screened motor supply cables.
Hydrogen is an increasingly popular energy carrier. It can be readily produced from water using renewable electricity, and it burns without any greenhouse gas emissions. It is colorless, odorless, and does not spill. It’s no wonder there is a great interest in hydrogen engines as a part of destination zero. In this article, Cummins explains how hydrogen fuel can power a vehicle by comparing the similarities and differences between hydrogen and diesel and gas engines and provides some examples of hydrogen engines in mobility and transport.
Stefan Lehnert recently discussed functional safety in hydraulics with Lukas Marschall. In their presentation, How to Successfully Implement the Requirements from Functional Safety on Your Hydraulic System, they consider regulations, product offerings and application examples with respect to hydraulic systems. The IH04 modules are the latest product offering from Bosch Rexroth. These modules are not yet available in North America; however, Bosch Rexroth is exploring how quickly they can make a certification for the US. Still, the applications and information in this article are relevant for those who work on presses or other machines and want to implement functional safety.
A premier manufacturer of moving stage displays for A-list entertainers was tasked with designing an overhead lighting device that transforms from a globe, into individual petals forming a flower. Each “petal” needed to be actuated independently. The entire structure needed to be as lightweight as possible to attach above the stage in diverse locations, and to minimize shipping costs. High ticket prices and large concert revenues at each event required a highly reliable actuator solution with 100% safety and no risk of failure.
ABB has been awarded two major contracts by Plug Power Inc., a leading provider of turnkey solutions for the global green hydrogen economy, to provide the electrical systems for two new hydrogen plants in North America, set to collectively produce 60 tons of green hydrogen per day. Green hydrogen is produced with renewable energy sources and emits zero carbon when used as fuel.
Data has always existed in the manufacturing environment – in the temperatures, pressures, sounds, and appearance of machinery – but is has not always been easy to access it. Manufacturing professionals would spend years, if not decades, gaining the expertise that would help them understand the meaning of certain measurements and observations. The Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) promises to revolutionize this learning process by turning such observations into quantitative trends that can be leveraged for decision-making. Consequently, many manufacturers are eager to figure out the best way to dip their toes into the water of IIoT. In this post, Omron looks at some of the overarching strategies for making the most of this new way of using data.
This project is funded [in part] by the Government of Canada.
Ce projet est financé [en partie] par le gouvernement du Canada.
