220,000 people integrate and join the network at #HM15.

Spotlight on “Industry 4.0”, robots and intelligent energy systems while India sets new standards as Partner Country.

Germany’s Dr Angela Merkel and India’s Shri Narendra Modi at opening ceremony of 2015 Hannover Meße

Stories shared with Read-out from this years Hannover Fair! Other Reports: • Automation World • The Industrial Ethernet Book • ProfiBus/Net Reports! • Gil Community

After five action-packed days of industrial innovation, dynamic networking and lead generation, HANNOVER MESSE 2015 – the world’s leading trade fair for industrial technology – drew to a close on Friday, 17 April, to rave reviews by exhibitors and visitors. With “Integrated Industry – Join the Network” as its keynote theme, HANNOVER MESSE 2015 soared to new heights, striking an inspirational note among exhibitors and attendees from industry, business and government.

The show placed major emphasis on the digitization of manufacturing as well as on human-machine collaboration, innovative subcontracting solutions and intelligent energy systems – topics which pulled in the crowds. More than 220,000 trade visitors – 70,000 of whom came from outside Germany – used HANNOVER MESSE to catch up on the latest technologies and make key investment decisions.

“HANNOVER MESSE 2015 has made it unmistakably clear: Industry 4.0 has arrived, and is sweeping every sector of industry. Digital integration is becoming a key aspect of modern manufacturing, and this trend is set to continue at a rapid pace,” commented Dr. Jochen Köckler, member of the Managing Board at Deutsche Messe. “Over the past several days, some 6,500 companies from 70 countries have showcased technologies for tomorrow’s production plants and energy systems. And India has made a real splash as this year’s Partner Country, creating a truly impressive showcase to promote its ‘Make in India’ campaign.” Under the motto of “Integrated Industry – Join the Network”, HANNOVER MESSE 2015 gave tangible shape to the vision of the “intelligent factory”. In the factory of the future, information will be seamlessly exchanged between machines and products, ensuring optimal results and peak efficiency.

According to Köckler, “HANNOVER MESSE 2015 has demonstrated that ‘Industry 4.0’ is far more than an inspirational buzzword – it is a reality. For the first time, the smart-factory solutions advertised here can be bought for direct implementation at customers’ plants.” Robots also figured prominently at the fair, drawing keen visitor interest with their captivating demonstrations of speed, precision and power. HANNOVER MESSE 2015 also revealed a new trend in this field, with protective barriers no longer separating robots from people, but robots taking their rightful place alongside human co-workers as versatile team players handling monotonous and physically demanding tasks. “Robots have been uncaged and can now directly support production crews,” said Köckler. But integration is not confined to mere production operations, as energy systems also rapidly become intelligent, driving the transition to renewable forms of energy. An increasing number of decentralized power generators – including wind, solar, hydroelectric and biogas plants – are being hooked up to the grid. “The challenge of combining all these forms of energy generation into a single intelligent power grid, and distributing this power adequately to consumers, has been impressively addressed by the many exhibitors showcasing their pioneering solutions for the energy sector at HANNOVER MESSE,” Köckler noted. “Around the globe, there is a lot of debate about whether Germany is not only a leading industrial nation, but also a leader in terms of Industry 4.0. A quick look at the show’s attendance figures says a lot about this,” remarked Dr Köckler.

Of the more than 220,000 visitors at HANNOVER MESSE, 70,000 were from abroad – a new record. “From rank-and-file SME employees to the CEO of industry giant Foxconn – all of them came here to Hannover to explore the opportunities for more integrated, faster, more individualized production. That means they are in the market for leading-edge technology – that is, for Industry 4.0. And they know that Germany is already far down the 4.0 path, and this why they turn to HANNOVER MESSE for the related expertise.” The pulling power of Industry 4.0 was also highly evident in the strong demand for guided tours, forums and events addressing the topic at the fair. According to Köckler: “The 4.0-related guided tours for visitors were booked solid. So was the Industry 4.0 forum. And we ran out of copies of the Industry 4.0 visitor guide in the first few hours. The supporting program of panel discussions and events also proved highly popular.” HANNOVER MESSE visitors were delighted with India’s confident, innovative and fresh presence as this year’s Partner Country. India succeeded in positioning itself as an up-and-coming industrial nation, with more than 400 companies displaying their goods and services at the show. India’s objective was to encourage foreign companies to set up shop there, and to encourage Indian enterprises to form even closer partnerships with German business and industry. “India put in an impressive performance, here in Hannover and throughout Germany, making ideal use of the opportunities generated by the Partner Country showcase. It has set new standards for partner countries at HANNOVER MESSE,” remarked Köckler. In the words of Anupam Shah, Chairman of EEPC India (Engineering Export Promotion Council of India): “Hannover Messe 2015 has been a tremendous success for India in every respect. As the Partner Country at one of the world’s largest engineering fair and under the leadership of the Prime Minister of India, Shri Narendra Modi and Commerce & Industry Minister, Shrimati Nirmala Sitharaman, Indian companies were able to showcase their technical skills, engineering capabilities and human resources before a global audience. EEPC India, which is the lead agency for India that brought 350 companies of diverse economic scales to display their engineering competence, is truly proud of having undertaken this mammoth task successfully under the guidance of the Indian Ministry of Commerce and other agencies. Major Indian companies like Roots India, HEC, to name a few, signed MoUs with their German counterparts. EEPC India also signed an MoU with BVMW, the leading German association of SMEs with 2,70,000 members. EEPC India expresses its sincere gratitude to German Chancellor Dr Angela Merkel, Vice Chancellor Mr Sigmar Gabriel, Minister-President of Lower Saxony, Mr Stephen Weil and other senior officials for their support in making India’s participation a grand success. EEPC India pledges to build this relationship for mutual benefit in the years to come.”

450 blisters per minute!

PLC, motion control, drive as one unit: A complete solution for PG Express described by Alexander Hack, Market Development Manager,Kollmorgen, Ratingen (D). Bringing in latest technological innovations, Kollmorgen is participating in strengthening the packaging & metal forming market segment in a big way.

Alexander Hack

It is in this pursuit of excellence, Kollmorgen has supplied the complete automation solution to IMA PG for their PG Express machine. IMA-PG India Private Limited is a pioneer in the field of Thermoforming machines in India having introduced its first machine in 1978. It is today well-respected for its ability to innovate and engineer solutions to meet constantly changing demands. It offers a complete range of packaging solutions that includes machines for applications such as cartoning, rotary vacuum forming, rotary sealing, flat sealing and tube-filling besides of end-of-line packaging. Kollmorgen has been associated with IMA PG for the last two years where they have supplied Automation Solution products like Motion Controller, HMI, Servo drives, Servo Motors, I/Os, etc. Through world-class knowledge in motion, industry-leading quality, and deep expertise in linking and integrating standard and custom products, Kollmorgen provides OEMs with the competitive advantage they need to succeed.

AKD PDMM brings high performance PLC and Motion Control into technologically advanced machines.

It is in this pursuit of excellence, Kollmorgen has supplied the complete automation solution to IMA PG for their PG Express machine. IMA-PG India Private Limited is a pioneer in the field of Thermoforming machines in India having introduced its first machine in 1978. It is today well-respected for its ability to innovate and engineer solutions to meet constantly changing demands. It offers a complete range of packaging solutions that includes machines for applications such as cartoning, rotary vacuum forming, rotary sealing, flat sealing and tube-filling besides of end-of-line packaging. Kollmorgen has been associated with IMA PG for the last two years where they have supplied Automation Solution products like Motion Controller, HMI, Servo drives, Servo Motors, I/Os, etc. Through world-class knowledge in motion, industry-leading quality, and deep expertise in linking and integrating standard and custom products, Kollmorgen provides OEMs with the competitive advantage they need to succeed.

PG Express – a backgrounder

The machine can now produce upto 450 blisters per minute thus making production much faster. Currently the P G Express machine is installed at a leading pharmaceutical manufacturer in India and is running successfully from last eight months…

PG Express machine is a blister packaging machine which is used for forming blisters. Blister is a pack of some tablets (e.g. 10, 4, 5, 1 etc.) made as per design which is used to hold the tablet. This machine is manufactured by IMA PG from the last three to four years but this was the first machine where Kollmorgen supplied the entire automation solution. It is a 3 axis machine used for Indexing, feeding and punching the blister. Major flow of machine operation is formation of blister, dropping of the actual tablet, sealing of the blister and finally cutting of the blister. Kollmorgen has improved the machine speed through excellent system performance. The machine can now produce upto 450 blisters per minute thus making production much faster. However, the OEM started developing obstacles in controlling the temperature which is a critical aspect of this machine because sealing is dependent on the effective temperature control. If the temperature is not controlled properly then the quality of final blister would be bad & it won´t be sellable in market.

Reliability right from the start
When the OEM approached Kollmorgen with this problem, they were quick to respond. An inbuilt function for temperature control was installed which is around 15 times faster than the external controllers. This saves additional PID controller  costs and more importantly it results in better quality and less wastage.

The program is controlled using AKD PDMM controller. This is a drive based motion controller with integrated PLC functionality, which is specially designed for small and compact machines typically used in packaging machines. AKD PDMM brings high performance PLC and Motion Control into technologically advanced machines. The integrated Motion Controller can synchronize up to 8 axes with 250 µs cycle time. It supports various motion control functions from simple point to point positioning to linear and circular interpolation. PDMM can take care of PLC logic, temperature control, motion control, HMI control & drive control for entire packaging machine.

To allow the highest flexibility and freedom of programming, Kollmorgen Automation SuiteTM software has been used where PLC logic, HMI programming, Motion control & drive control are all integrated at one place. It complies with IEC 61131-3 standard for programming languages.

To make the machine user friendly for the OEM, easy software development was done using the Pipe NetworkTM which is one of the key differentiators by Kollmorgen. The software development was done in just 10 days as compared to 45 days by competitors thus saving valuable time and money for the client. With the Pipe NetworkTM it is possible to get rid of mechanical components (e.g. gear, cam) in the machine by defining equivalent motion blocks in the software. This is extremely user friendly, easy to implement & easy to troubleshoot. The user simply needs to draw the scheme & ultimately connect to the machine axes as per requirements. All necessary interconnections are done automatically in the program. The biggest benefit for programmer & end user is the ease of programming & troubleshooting with clear visual understanding of the scheme.

After-Sales Service & Support
At Kollmorgen, the »after sales service and support» to the customer is of prime importance. In this case the first commissioning of the machine was done with the help of global expertise in this kind of application.

Major flow of machine operation is formation of blister, dropping of the actual tablet, sealing of the blister and finally cutting of the blister.

Senior application development engineers from Germany did the entire conceptualization & programming. It was because of the hard work and dedication of the Kollmorgen team that the actual time for conducting trials & finalizing the performance took just 10 days (against 45 days taken by competitor).

Currently the PG Express machine is installed at a leading pharmaceutical manufacturer in India and is running successfully from last eight months. From the beginning, Kollmorgen has kept a dedicated application & sales engineer for IMA PG.

After the successful implementation of this machine, Kollmorgen subsequently got two new prototypes- PG Super & C350 and successfully executed the same. It was a moment of pride when Kollmorgen recently got the serial production orders for PG Express.

Control elements in India

Control valves, actuators, and positioners market in India driven by domestic demand

The control valves, actuators, and positioners market in India is largely driven by process industries, which are under multiple pressures: to improve energy management; adhere to standards and regulations; streamline production processes; and reduce costs. Economic instability and exchange rate fluctuations caused some uncertainty in 2011 but the market is still growing. India’s domestic demand driven market propels rapid industrialization and economic growth. Growth is further regulated by monetary and fiscal policies. While the economy of India has slowed down due to weakening external demand, the robust domestic demand continues to remain strong. Due to its domestic-demand-driven economy, India has emerged as one of the fastest growing economies in the world.

According to ARC Advisory Group’s research, the total control valve, actuator, and positioner market in India will register CAGR of over 7.5 percent by 2016. ARC’s latest study, “Control Valves for India Market Research Study”   provides an in-depth analysis of the control valve, actuator, and positioner business in India. In addition to market analysis and forecasts, the study also covers the current market nuances, strategic issues, and the future outlook. The report also highlights the factors that influence the control valve market in India and its dynamics.

Expanding Economy Drives the Market for Control Valves in India
According to G. Ganapathiraman, Country Manager, ARC Advisory Group, and co-author of this study, “Process industries, such as chemical, oil and gas, power, refining, and others, which extensively use control valves, are expanding in India and this provides the impetus for the growth of the control valves market. India is emerging as an important market for control valve suppliers seeking sustainable long-term growth oriented markets.”

India Attracts Global Control Valves Suppliers
According to the principal author of ARC’s study, Ritika Agrawal , “Global suppliers are attracted not only by the country’s demand for control valves, but also by the advantages that the country offers, such as the low cost arbitrage, availability of design and engineering capabilities, and world-class casting and forging facilities, and such others.”

The country not only acts as a good demand-centric market, but also as an excellent manufacturing base that can serve the growing markets in the region. While the market offers opportunities, the suppliers’ strategies ultimately contribute to success in the marketplace. Suppliers should understand the market nuances, identify emerging opportunities aligning with the overall corporate objectives, and develop their growth strategies.

 

Developing economies’ growth fuels DCS market in Asia.

The major growth in Distributed Control Systems (DCS) revenues continues to come from developing nations. Growth in countries such as India and China is conspicuous because of sluggish growth rates in other regions of the world. While developed nations are just holding their own (at best) in DCS investments, in developing countries, several recent trends are becoming increasingly important for success in the DCS business. These two countries are undergoing rapid growth and industrialization in Asia. At the time of this report, however, China’s growth is slowing. Even with a slowdown in China, Asia remains a leading growth engine for the global DCS marketplace, representing almost 35 percent of the world market.

ARC expects the top five growth industries in Asia to be oil & gas, mining & metals, cement & glass, water & wastewater, and electric power, in that order, with associated increases in DCS revenues. The growth of these industries is expected to be above average. Demand for oil will continue to increase in the long term despite short-term demand shortfalls. Oil exploration and production is taking the industry into increasingly remote and hostile regions, increasing demand for remote operations and subsea production. The power industry is also growing at a healthy rate over the forecast period. Developing economies, such as India and China, continue to invest in new power capacities and world-class power generation facilities. While pent up demand for mining & metals and cement & glass investments caused sizeable increases from 2010 to 2011, the growth is expected to return to a more moderate level over the forecast period.

ARC Foresees the Robust Growth of DCS in Asia
According to ARC Advisory Group’s research, the total distributed control systems market in Asia will exceed $6,300 million in 2016. ARC’s latest study, “Distributed Control Systems for Asia Market Research Study” provides an in-depth analysis of the DCS business in Asia. In addition to market analysis and forecasts, the study also covers the current market nuances, strategic issues, and the future outlook. The report also highlights the factors that influence the DCS market in Asia and its dynamics.

G. Ganapathiraman, Country Manager, ARC Advisory Group, India and co-author of this study says, “The trends that drive the DCS business in Asia vastly differ from those in developed nations. Due to the economic growth in China and India along with the other BRIC countries, investments in infrastructure, oil and gas production, and in refining are rising, leading to increased demand for DCS.”

In 2011, ARC saw a much larger increase in revenue over 2010 than previously anticipated. The order book started improving at the end of 2009 and was quite strong throughout 2010 and the first half of 2011. Because the DCS business is primarily project based with an average nine month lag time from order book to recognized revenue, this strong order book translated into an excellent revenue year for 2011 with Asia’s revenue up over 4.5 percent from 2010.

Not a Mickey Mouse event….

Learning the central motif in the third Automation Week.

Other Reports
How Your Plant Resembles an Amusement Park! (Paul Studebaker, Sustainable Plant)
Advanced Control Foundation at ISA Automation Week  (Terry Blevins, Blog)
A tale of two conferences (Gary Mintchel, Automation World)
ISA Automation Week 2012: Innovation in Orlando (Jim Montague, Control)
Automation Professionals Share Challenges, Solutions at ISA Automation Week 2012 (ISA Official Release)
Automation Professionals attend ISA Automation Week (Automation.com)
ISA Automation Week 2012 (Barry Young ARC)
Not a Mickey Mouse Event, ISA Week Overview (Automation Week)
Fall Leaders Meeting & Automation Week, It’s A Wrap! (ISA Interchange)

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President Bob Lindemen Comments:
Real conversations start here!

Proceedings AVAILABLE

Last year we reported on the annual ISA Automation Week held in the port city of Mobile (AL USA). We said that the ISA played to its strengths and demonstrated these to be in the area of training and dessemination of knowledge.

This year in the larger venue in Florida’s Orlando, the strengths and the weaknesses of the event were clear. But the event could by no means be called a flop still less a disaster or a Mickey Mouse event. (See note at bottom of page for this reference “Mickey Mouse Event!”).

Peter Martin introduces the first keynote speaker!

Strong and relevant programme.
The strength was undoubtedly technical programme. ISA again demonstrated unequivically that its top priority was this programme it truly does serve as the cornerstone of the event. It was a world-class conference covering the latest and hottest topics in automation and control across several technical tracks. Each track offered in-depth sessions—ranging from basic to advanced—with information critical to several identified automation and control career paths.

We were unable to attend many of these sessions but those we did attend were quite remarkable in the quality and clarity of the presentations, the breadth of knowledge imparted, the intelligence of the questions asked as well as the number of delegates attending each. The Programme Chairman, Peter Martin of Invensys and his Vice-Chair, Alison Smith of Aspen certainly deserve credit for such a relevent programme.

It was divided into strands or tracks, as they called them, under two broad headings. The first such were called Operational Excellence Tracks which included Control Performance , Asset Performance, Human Perfornace and Safety/Environmental topics. The Technology Excellence Tracks included Wireless and the currently hot topic of Security. As can be seen some of the tracks would have a certain overlap with others and there were inevitably clashes in the programme as due to limitations of time sessions on say Human Performance and Security, or Wireless and Asset Performance would occur at the same times. ISA tried to alleviate this somewhat by providing the conference proceedings for delegates on line on their site. (Only attendees registered to the conference have access to these papers!).

Topics of interest included the Intriguing “Governments & Industrial Security,” “Operational Excellence – the essential Driver of increased profitability, ” “What your DCS knows but wont tell you,” “Are Humans needed in a crisis,” “Getting results from Social Media,” “Establishing an effective plant cybersecurity program,” and, from John Barth of Apprion, “Turnrounds, Real Time and Beyond: How a wireless plant network changed the way we do turnarounds.”

To help people navigate what to attend of the dozens of sessions, ISA again used “Pathfinder” indicating the job function or professional goals who would have most interest particular areas or interests. These headings were Engineer, Technician, management, Acedemia, Marketing and this year for the first time Executive for those particularly interested in how Automation drives excellence and the bottom line.

Any of the sessions I attended rarely had less than about thirty attendees and some had many more.

Walt Disney: Lessons for Industrial Production

Lessons from Walt Disney!
Each day started with a keynote event and on the first day we were addressed by Greg Hale, who is Chief Safety Officer and VP at Walt Disney. He is responsible for the safety of cast members, as staff are called and millions of visitors at the various Walt Disney parks and resorts throughout the world. Despite the name of Walt Disney’s most famous creation it was quite obvious that his organisation was certainley no “Mickey Mouse”organisation. He pointed out that this was due to Walt Disney’s “keys to success,” the four critical areas every employee learns to prioritise that lead to the company’s global reputation for excellence. The keys are “safety, courtesy, show and efficiency,” and he pointed out they ought mean as much to running a sustainable plant as they do to selling Mickey Mouse.

The second day there was an open discussion on the Future of Automation an intriguing insight into the views of suppliers, consultants and end-users into where our profession is or ought to be going. This panel included Invensys Operations Management CEO Michael Caliel, Chet Mroz, CEO Yokogawa America, and Wolfgang Morr, General Manager of NAMUR.

Finally on day three, Travis Capps, VP of Energy & Gasses at Valery Energy Corporation reinforced the oft expressed opinion becoming more and more real to us, “It’s not business as usual anymore.”

Dick Morley surrounded by disciples

Lessons from the Master!
An abiding memory for us was the “Fireside Chat” session with the “Father of the PLC,” Dick Morley, on Tuesday evening. Morley’s Chat offered attendees a rare opportunity to sit and talk with one of automation’s best known legends, a leading visionary in the field of advanced technology development and an inventor who holds more than 20 technology patents. I will hold the sight of “Father” Morley surrounded by a phalanx of devotees like a Greek philosopher of old holding his disciples enthralled with his wisdom. Long may he continue to do so!

Where were the big boys?
We’ve talked about the strengths but of course there were drawbacks and deficiencies too. I suppose the weakest point was the “Solution Providers’ Showcase.” This was the exhibition area and the main problem here was the size of the hall. It was too big for what was on display. The displays and the opportunity to meet stand personnel were good and the delegates were happy enough from what we could ascertain from visitors. The organisation allowed for a large gap in presentations in the middle of the day for eats and networking on the floor. But where oh where were the big solution providers? Where was ABB? Where was Emerson? Where was Rockwell? Where was Endress & Hauser? Where was Yokogawa? Yes some of them provided speakers but unless one attended those particular sessions how could one know?

Siemens were there however and the ISA Partners, Honeywell, Invensys, Cooper Bussman, Maverick, A3 Controls, Fluke and OSIsoft. I was a little disapointed too in the number and variety of tweets eminating from the event using the hashtag #ISAutowk, comparing it, perhaps unfairly, to company sponsored events.

A really busy stand was the ISA Book Store which seemed to be throbbing with activity anytime I passed it and included several new Books still warm from the printing presses.

50 Years of ISAT

This was my last year as ISA Publications Department VP and it was a particular honour for me to present awards on behalf of the Department to the eminent and learned authors. The 5oth birthday of ISA Transactions, the Journal of Automation was also marked. Dr Russ Rhinehart, immediate past Editor, gave a run down on the journal and how it anticipated so many trends and development in the field over the last fifty years and also the emergence of many of the papers from outside of the USA, demonstrating the true international or global reach of the profession. He then cut the Birthday cake. Fire restrictions forbade the burning of fifty candles!

Show Daily from Automation.Com & InTech
Day 1    Day 2    Day 3

The show daily newsletter was published on line each day as last year by InTech, ISA’s magazine and automation.com. This will help get a flavour of the show “as it happened!”

Speaking with ISA Executive Director, Pat Gouhin, while not alluding to its weaknesses confirmed our own view,  “We’ve had an incredible week, with dozens of true legends in their fields sharing their knowledge and insights with a motivated, excited group of attendees.”  This enthusiasm was clear in a comment by a Nigerian delegate “ISA Automation Week has been a stimulating, friendly, learning-intensive event.”  And a tweet (#isautowk)  as everybody was heading home on the last day said “Always learning!” This feature, “Learning,” was echoed again and again by delegates so much so that it could be described as a motif for the event.

This is the third year of Automation Week and hopefully ISA will be able to tweek the changes to ensure a fully successful and exciting event on all fronts in Nashville Tennessee USA for 2013.

Technical Programme Overview!

• “Mickey Mouse Event” This expression refers to something that is small and not too bright, like a mouse. No relation to the Disney Corp.

This report was quoted in the October issue of Industrial Automation & Process Control Insider as follows:

“Eoin O’Riain, of Read-out.net, now in his last year as ISA Publications Department vp, recently reported on the ISA Automation Week, held in Orlando, Florida. The strength of this ISA event was in the technical programme. Peter Martin of Invensys and Alison Smith of Aspen organized a worldclass conference covering the latest and hottest topics in automation and control across several technical tracks. Under the Operational Excellence Tracks these were Control Performance, Asset Performance, Human Performance and Safety/ Environmental: the Technology Excellence Tracks included Wireless, and a hot topic: Security.

On the second day there was an open discussion on the Future of Automation, with a panel that included Invensys Operations Management ceo Michael Caliel, Chet Mroz, ceo at Yokogawa America, and Wolfgang Morr, general manager of NAMUR.

The weakest aspect of the event was the “Solution Provider’s Showcase”, an exhibition hall for commercial sales booths, that was just too big, with no attendance from suppliers like ABB, Emerson, Rockwell, Endress+Hauser and Yokogawa. Those present, like Siemens, and ISA partners Honeywell, Invensys, Cooper Bussman, Maverick, A3 Controls, Fluke and OSIsoft had the full attention of the delegates.

As one delegate from Nigeria commented, the week was a “learningintensive event”: reflecting the ISA strength in ‘Training and Dissemination of Knowledge’”

ABB & Zenith join forces for life sciences in China & India

Combined expertise to help customers in China and India meet new industry regulations

ABB and system integrator Zenith Technologies have announced that they will work together to develop and implement automation solutions that will help life science customers in China and India meet new regulatory and product safety requirements.

Headquartered in Cork (IRL), Zenith Technologies is a leading Global Automation and MES Engineering company which focuses exclusively on the life science industry.

ABB will collaborate with Zenith to implement solutions based on ABB’s market leading System 800xA and Freelance automation systems, for the growing life sciences industry in China and India. ABB and Zenith will also deliver solutions that use ABB’s PAT (Process Analytical Technology) and MES (Manufacturing Execution Systems) technology. Increasing governmental regulations, and new requirements that mandate compliance with Food & Drug Administration (FDA) standards and other food safety regulations have made it imperative for life sciences companies in China and India to be able to accurately track products at all points in the manufacturing process to ensure high quality and safety.

“ABB’s field-proven automation solutions, combined with Zenith’s expertise in implementing systems designed to meet these validation requirements, will help our mutual customers in this region improve their overall process and product quality, and meet current and future regulations,” said Tobias Becker, head of ABB Control Technologies. “Our collective knowledge can help our customers better understand how these requirements impact their manufacturing process and what steps are needed to comply with them.

Asia to be the new magnet for sensor manufacturers!

Sensors to benefit from shift toward better automation

New and expanding applications, coupled with the shift to enhanced automation processes and controls, are restoring growth to the global market for proximity and displacement sensors, which suffered negative growth rates in 2009.

New analysis from Frost & Sullivan, Analysis of the Proximity and Displacement Sensors Markets, finds that the market earned revenues of $2,427.5 million (ca €1950m) in 2011 and estimates this to reach $3,048.1 million (ca €2450m) in 2018. The research covers inductive, photoelectric, capacitive, magnetic, ultrasonic and LVDT sensors.

“The need for better automation is expected to allow for the conversion from older and less sophisticated controls to state-of-the-art automation,” notes Frost & Sullivan Senior Industry Analyst V. Sankaranarayanan. “As a result, the number and range of sensors used in equipment is increasing.”

Due to the rising sophistication in manufacturing processes, end-users are demanding more functionality from proximity sensors. Advanced network technologies (CompoNet and IO-Link) and diagnostic capabilities are some of the technical advancements that are also anticipated to boost market prospects.

Growth in mature markets such as Western Europe and North America is expected to be slow. The potential for further growth is limited, as most industrial processes are already using proximity and displacement sensors. In contrast, Asia is becoming progressively more important due to surging production and automation.

“Production in emerging economies, such as China and India, is becoming increasingly automated,” explains Sankaranarayanan. “Robust economic growth in these regions is expected fuel the demand for proximity and displacement sensors.”

Proximity sensors find application in almost every industry (due to the importance of feedback), underlining the widespread consumer demand for them. In addition to China and India, growth opportunities are also surfacing in other smaller Asian countries that have embarked on a path of economic development.

Keys to success will be emerging network technologies, solutions instead of products, regional growth markets and a successful distribution strategy.

“It is important to offer more than just a sensor; market participants will have to focus on providing complete solutions,” concludes Sankaranarayanan. “Price pressures will continue to pose a challenge, so vendors will need to constantly advance on the technological front.”

Sensors sensing growth?

We have talked about Promising signs in process automation market recently, which had an American flavour,  and we also shared an article which had a British viewpoint on recovery, Manufacturing recovery firmly on track!
Here Tony Ingham of Sensor Technology answers the question Could the sensors sector be a microcosm of the whole national economy? He certainly thinks so. Here he looks at what it will take to run a small technology company in the second decade of the millennium and suggests parallels with the wider world. Yes he is talking about the British experience but surely there are also lessons to be learned in other economies large and small.

Sensing Growth Opportunities
By Tony Ingham

Tony Ingham

You might think it perverse to say something positive about the recent recession, but it had a characteristic that I have rarely seen before – in bad times or good. It helped a lot of people realise what really makes economies tick.

In previous recessions, most peoples’ reaction was to work harder on winning sales, i.e. keep doing what they had been doing and hope for an upturn. This time though, people saw the weaknesses of the whole financial sector and began to analyse how and why economies work.

There has been a realisation that there is a massive difference between fast paper profits and fundamental wealth creation. The engine room of the economy is not the City of London, it is the primary industries, such as manufacturing and agriculture. These create thousands of jobs up and down the country, rather than concentrating so much wealth into the hands of a few lucky individuals that they become divorced from economic reality.

In fact, manufacturing, engineering, science and technology have all fared relatively well over the last couple of years – most of the pain was felt in other sectors. So it is not that surprising that manufacturing is currently our strongest sector.

But the important point is that it must remain so. Manufacturing can be wonderfully profitable if managed correctly over the whole term of its products’ lifecycles. It creates masses of jobs at all levels. It creates yet more jobs in the supporting sectors such as research, development, engineering and design. Its products are easily exportable, so will suck overseas revenues into our coffers. It is also very stable; the need for capital production equipment, highly skilled staff and a sophisticated supporting infrastructure makes it relatively difficult to relocate once it is established.

At the moment, the government is full of praise for manufacturing, but this simply is not enough. This and future governments must support manufacturing and the other technical industries. It needs to develop policies that encourage and promote manufacturing, help exporters, support enterprise and finance R&D; that generate enough trained scientists, engineers, technicians and designers, that improve the social status of those that serve their country via the technology industries. It’s a big ask, but the Chinese and Indians are doing it; the Japanese and Germans did it 50 years ago and the Americans did it 50 years before them.

So where does the sensor sector fit into all this? Well sensors are now widely used across so many areas that they are a bell-weather for the whole economy.

Overall, the sensor sector weathered the downturn well. Early in the recession many car makers and other major industries shut down production for 3 months to reduce stock. But they also took the opportunity to invest in new manufacturing systems, including sensors. Furthermore, sensors are wonderfully exportable, so manufacturers often remained busy servicing clients abroad.  And while the recession was bad, the sectors that suffered the most – finance, banking etc – were not major direct purchasers of sensors.

The UK sensors sector is currently underdeveloped, so offers many opportunities for building strong manufacturing companies that could easily become world leaders and major exporters.

The sector got going on a worldwide basis in the late-1970s or early 1980s, when traditional craft-based instrument making was giving way to sophisticated manufacture of high tech sensors. Unfortunately, at this time manufacturing was definitely not in favour in the UK. Instead, the government of the day was happily clearing away what it saw as union-infested, decrepit,  smokestack industries, so that new sunrise industries could take root (in a free market, without government support). So while the UK got call centres and pension advisors, sensor manufacturing flourished in countries where capital enterprise was supported, where labour forces did not have a black name, where a growing manufacturing sector provided a domestic market.

I must at this point say that there were exceptions, notably our own company Sensor Technology which researches, designs, develops, and manufactures sensors in the centre of England. It is a self-evident truth that what we have achieved could be replicated by other sensor manufacturers, especially if general UK manufacturing grows.

There is a virtuous circle to be developed. The more sensors that are used, the greater the manufacturing volumes; this lowers unit prices and also allows investment in automated production and improved quality systems, which encourages yet more usage.

The driving forces for the development of sensor technology include miniaturisation, robust solid state controllers replacing delicate mechanisms, wireless solutions, increasing intelligence, improved connectivity and ‘open’ communications. New drivers will also emerge, and new markets will open up.

Since Sensor Technology first set out its stall, cars have gone from having a handful of sensors to literally thousands, factories have become automated, soaking up sensors, entirely new markets have opened up such as home electronics, mobile devices, medical equipment, CCTV and surveillance, etc. Future growth will be even greater, and it is there for the taking – hopefully by a strong UK sensor manufacturing industry!

Moderate growth for field process instruments

The worldwide market for Process  Field Instruments will grow at an average annual rate of about 5  percent from 2010 through 2015 according to the most recent forecast update of Process Instrumentation and Automation markets conducted by  the Global Foresight Group™.

Process field instruments include all key pressure, temperature, flow  and level instruments.

In 2010, North America accounted for  approximately 30 percent of the total market demand for process field instruments, while Europe (EU) was 23 percent.  BRIC countries (Brazil, Russia, India and China) made up another 19 percent of the
demand.  All other countries provided the remainder.

BRIC countries will provide the highest growth rates for these  instruments in the forecast period.  This will continue the decline  of the North American and European market shares.

Automation scholorships announced

ISA Announces Recipients of 2010 ISA Educational Foundation Scholarships

Alexey Tirtchny

Evgeny Bakin

Konstantin Gurnov

Three of the Russian students

The International Society of Automation (ISA) has announced the winners of the 2010 ISA Educational Foundation Scholarships. These scholarships are awarded to college and university students who demonstrate outstanding potential for long-range contribution to the fields of automation, instrumentation, and control. The scholarship awards support tuition and related expenses and research activities and initiatives.

ISA awarded more than $62,000, which was distributed among students in two- and four-year colleges and universities, and graduate students. Contributions to the ISA Educational Foundation come from the following sources: Norman E. Huston Endowment, the Paros-Digiquartz Fund, the Bob and Mary Ives Endowment, the Wilbanks scholarship, the ISA Chemical and Petroleum Industries Division Endowment, the ISA Food and Pharmaceutical Industries Division Endowment, the ISA Executive Board Scholarship, ISA Life Members Committee Scholarship, ISA Section and District Scholarships, and the General Education Fund.

The 2010 recipients are:
In two-year programs:
Cody Simpson
Northern Alberta Institute of Technology; Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
Thaen Watkins
Western Wyoming Community College; Rock Springs, Wyoming, USA
Michael Columbo
Massosoit Community College; Massosoit, Massachusettes, USA
Joshua Alfaro
Vanier College; Saint-Laurent, Quebec, Canada
Betsy Dorsett
Lee College; Baytown, Texas, USA
Benjamin Martin
Central Texas College; Killeen, Texas, USA
Benjamin Pohlman
Front Range Community College; Westminister, Colorado, USA

In four-year programs:
Ronald Rodriguez
Southern Polytechnic State University; Marietta, Georgia, USA
Robert Sherbert
Drexel University; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
Ane Muvadgah
University of Central Oklahoma; Edmond,Oklahoma, USA
Sneha Shishodia
Institute of Technology; Nirma University; Ahmedabad, Gujarat, India
Rishita Sarabhai
Institute of Technology; Nirma University; Ahmedabad, Gujarat, India
Foram Dhebar
Sardar Vallabhbai Patel University; Basad, Gujarat, India
Nicole Legenski
Penn State University; Reading, Pennsylvania, USA
Jonathan Martin
Messiah College; Grantham, Pennsylvania, USA
Brian Kosoris
Southern Polytechnic State University; Marietta, Georgia, USA
Michael Lopresti
University of Missouri; Colombia, Missouri, USA
Terrance Eakin
Ohio State University; Columbus, Ohio, USA
Jadeja Kamal
University of Texas at Dallas; Richardson, Texas, USA

In graduate programs:
Alexey Tirtchny
St. Petersburg State University of Aerospace Instrumentation; St. Petersburg, Russia
Evgeny Bakin
St. Petersburg State University of Aerospace Instrumentation; St. Petersburg, Russia
Konstantin Gurnov
St. Petersburg State University of Aerospace Instrumentation; St. Petersburg, Russia
Georgy Kuyumchev
St. Petersburg State University of Aerospace Instrumentation; St. Petersburg, Russia
Carlos Andrade-Cabrerra
Instituto Tecnologico Estudios Superiores de Monterrey; Monterrey, Mexico
Ikechukwu Okanu
Idaho State University; Pocatello, Idaho, USA
Mahdi Sharifzadeh
Imperial College; London, England