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ICP Electronics Australia has announced the release of the ACT-457A, an all-in-one access controller and proximity reader.
According to the company, the ACT-457A is Microsoft Windows CE5.0 pre-installed, which enables it to be easily set-up and programmed without an additional on-site computer.
The ACT-457A also features a large 5.7 inch colour touch display with a resolution of 640 x 480, increasing ease of data input and overall readability.
Other features include built-in 2W speakers, bi-directional microphone and 300K pixel webcam with low-light capabilities for real-time image capture and facial identification.
The terminal casing is made from durable plastic with an IP64 compliant front panel.
With its anti-shock / anti-vibration shields and extended temperature range (-10°C ~ 55°C), the ACT-457A is resistant to vandalism and difficult environmental conditions, ICP Electronics said.
ICP Electronics Australia
02 9457 6011
sales@icp-australia.com.au
www.icp-australia.com.au
Manitowoc Cranes has introduced the MLC100 100 tonne capacity crawler crane to the Chinese market.
The MLC100 is the first in what will be a new product line from Manitowoc Cranes, the company says.
The crane has a maximum boom length of 73 m as well as a 24 m fixed jib option.
The maximum combination length is 58 m of main boom working with 24 m of jib.
This gives a maximum tip height of 81.8 m.
The MLC100 features a Tier III-compliant Cummins QSL300 engine that produces 224 kW.
The crane’s pilot-controlled hydraulic system means smooth operation and precise control to increase lifting productivity and facilitate safe operations.
It can be transported in four truck loads when the crane is configured with its 70 m boom plus 24 m fixed jib.
Manitowoc Cranes plans to introduce a 150 tonne crawler crane to the Chinese market by the end of 2010.
Bucyrus has recently delivered the 50th ExPC, a rugged PC for use in explosion-hazard areas, at OKD’s CSM II mine in the Czech Republic.
The first was delivered to Xi Shan in China in January 2003.
The ExPC collects and visualises data from drives, roof supports, shearers and plows at the coalface.
It also transmits this data via fibre-optic cable or DSL to the mine network for visualisation, control and troubleshooting.
The computer features an explosion-protected housing, an armoured glass screen and a waterproof keyboard with a built-in mouse.
It also has intrinsically safe ports and network connection guarantee smooth data exchange with other control systems.
No mechanical damage has been reported on any of the 50 ExPCs in use in mines around the world, Bucyrus says.
The ExPC has a powerful processor and the 19 inch display is the largest on the market.
Eaton has launched an advanced power system controller for telecommunications network operators.
The SC200 V3, part of Eaton’s ‘Smarter Energy’ portfolio of products, features automated site energy control options that could save energy costs for many network operators.
The new controller introduces two site-programmable options that raise the bar on network energy control and apply to a wide variety of network operator needs.
The first key feature, Smart Alarms, uses Boolean logic to control individual network sites automatically across a range of site variables.
The second feature is the Eaton Fuel Saver (EFS) for hybrid network sites, which uses a diesel generator as a backup to a poor alternating current (AC) grid supply, or where the site runs entirely on generator, 24 hours a day, every day.
Optimum Handling Solutions has developed scissor lifts that feature an automatic load height detection system using an electric eye.
This electric eye scans the load height in order to maintain an optimum working height for the scissor lift operator.
Logic Lift scissor lifts were used to overcome a materials handling issue at a packaging and paper plant. There loads were causing bending, reaching and twisting issues at the end of a conveyor line.
Static spring type pal-evators were being used for some areas, but another solution was required for areas that had high personnel traffic.
Optimum Handling Solutions suggested that low profile scissor lifts could be used to negate the need for forklifts as the low profile scissor lift can be unloaded by a pallet truck.
Adding the Logic Lift sensor was an obvious advantage in view of increasing production at the same time as reducing fatigue by lessening the effort required by the operator.
The Logic Lift photo eye is adjusted to a comfortable working height for each individual operator and then automatically controls the level of the scissor lift table so that the pallet layer being stacked is kept constant.
The operator does not have to press any control buttons once he has started stacking the pallet.
The logic lift photo eye sensor also works in the opposite direction when pallets are being unstacked.
The scissor lift table is automatically elevated as each layer is taken off.
Wärtsilä Australia has released its fast and safe ‘dry’ cleaning method for generators, motors and electrical systems.
This method prevents the need for chlorinated and flammable solvents and other liquids that may be dangerous in industrial applications.
Wärtsilä’s Dry Ice Blast Cleaning process is a ‘cool’ cleaning process and not abrasive, and can be regularly used on hard or delicate surfaces. Its Dry Ice Blast Cleaning system fires dense, dry-ice (CO2) pellets at high speed against dirty surfaces, ensuring all waste lands onto the ground as pellets rapidly evaporate – resulting in a clean and dry surface. The dry ice also has a sub cooling effect as the thermal shock shrinks debris particles and loosens them from the surface. It is this kinetic energy that blows dirt away quickly and efficiently.
The application can be performed on-site with little dismantling and is suitable for generators, switchboards, circuit breakers, electric motors and various other electrical and mechanical applications.
Generator cleaning in particular can now be expedited with a short downtime.
Wärtsilä’s Dry Ice Blast Cleaning is effective on a variety of surfaces including metals, plastics, ceramics, fibreglass, composite and stainless steel. The entire process is a clean one, complying with relevant environmental, health and safety standards.
Cleaning is performed with a mixture of CO2 ice and pressurised air. Drying is carried out with pressurised air and heaters if required.
Drive solutions specialist, SEW-Eurodrive, is now offering motor and drive technology training courses via the company’s new DriveAcademy training program.
Based on the same in-depth technical training syllabus used to educate SEW-Eurodrive’s own engineers, DriveAcademy provides end-users and system integrators with a comprehensive set of skills required to get the most out of motor and drive technologies and applications.
Launched on 1 November, DriveAcademy training courses cover a wide range of topics, including project planning—covering drive application, selection and usage, decentralised systems, maintenance and condition monitoring.
Product-specific classes are also offered, providing insight into the implementation and operation of some of SEW-Eurodrive’s most popular technologies—such as the company’s MOVIDRIVE ‘B’ application inverter, MOVI-PLC PLC/motion controller and the MOVITRAC frequency inverter families.
All courses are offered for a variety of end-users, including drive engineers, service application engineers, operations managers and maintenance technicians.
Modelled after a Fire Fighting Fog Nozzle, the Bumper Nozzle is constructed from stainless steel, fibreglass-reinforced nylon, and Santoprene Rubber. It is designed to survive in potentially corrosive work environments, making it suitable for wash down solutions on boats and marinas to the factory floor.
The Bumper Nozzle is encased in Santoprene Rubber, which acts as a shock-absorber, protecting the Bumper Nozzle from knocks. According to Technical Projects this ensures that, if the nozzle is ever dropped, it does not scratch, dent, chip, or mark any surface.
With no trigger to hold in position and an indented grip, Technical projects says the lightweight Bumper Nozzle can be held for long periods without strain or fatigue. The nozzle allows for adjustment from a powerful jet to a broad fan by twisting the nozzle head. It also features a two way shut-off, allowing a user to turn the nozzle on or off in either direction.
Bumper Nozzles can easily be disassembled with a simple Allen Key should it need to be cleaned or to re-lube the nozzle. The Bumper Nozzle has a ¾” BSP Female connection and can attach easily to a common garden hose. It is also available with hot-water option.
Ansell has announced the release of its HyFlex 11-435 glove, which the company says in response to the need for high level hand protection that provides day long comfort for people handling sharp or slippery objects and materials.
According to Ansell, this knitted and seamless, 13-gauge supported and dipped cut resistant level 5 glove provides extreme resistance to cuts, abrasions and burrs and complies with AS/NZS 2161.3:2005.
The company says the HyFlex glove’s ergonomic design significantly reduces user fatigue by minimising resistance to normal hand and finger movements.
HyFlex gloves have been developed for people working in environments where they are required to handle slightly oily parts or glass, sharp objects, components, sheet metal and ceramics.
“Engineered from a proprietary composite of nylon, fibreglass and Dyneema, the silicone-free HyFlex is antistatic, while the glove’s liner provides excellent breathability and a “cool” feeling,” Ansell sales and marketing director, Jérôme Feuvrier, said.
“Its unique design prevents polyurethane penetration through the glove liner, resulting in a softer, more natural feel on the skin.”
Ansell
1800 337 041
protection@ap.ansell.com
www.ansell.com.au
Gas Turbine Efficiency (GTE) has announced the commercial release of the ECOMAX automated tuning system family of products and Monitoring and Diagnostic (M&D) services for the full product portfolio.
According to the company, The ECOMAX product line and M&D service provides power plant operators with a proactive and customizable performance monitoring of gas turbines that eliminates onsite gas turbine tuning, optimizes performance and increases reliability.
The application of ECOMAX and the monitoring of gas turbine performance is designed to help to optimise the performance of power plants, through the application of decision support systems, designed to augment existing processes.
The variances in fuel, ambient conditions and combustion dynamics that have typically been managed by manually tuning gas turbines are processed by the ECOMAX platform in real time and are acted upon automatically, GTE said.
In addition, GTE’s M&D center provides real-time monitoring and notification services for identification of emerging issues.
ECOMAX allows plant operators to set an operational objective for their turbine.
Gas Turbine Efficiency
www.gtefficiency.com
media@gtefficiency.com
Narva has improved the Titan Xenon H.I.D work lamps.
Titan’s heavy duty mounting system has been fitted with a specially designed double acting shock absorber mechanism to dampen sudden shock and absorb vibration.
The stainless steel supporting plate and hardware in the mounting system, including nyloc nuts, also provide extra resilience and enhance the shock absorber system.
Titan lamps are constructed of one piece of reinforced nylon for impact resistance and the glass lens is especially hardened to withstand sudden changes in temperature often occurring during pressure washing after prolonged periods of use.
A potted cable exit plus a recessed GOR-TEX breather are incorporated into the one piece housing preventing water ingress due to changes in air pressure and the lamp is now rated to IP67. Deutsch plugs, double insulated cable and improved seals are fitted as standard.
The brilliant white light is produced by the Gen 5 ballast and D1S globe providing faster ignition and warm up times for convenience and safety.
The use of H.I.D means brilliant illumination and increased safety, reliability and longer life (3,000 hrs) reducing downtime and maintenance costs to a minimum.
The improved Narva Titan H.I.D work lamps are available in 12 and 24Volt with options of Flood and Spot beam patterns.
Weetech W454 is a high-end test system suitable for the measurement of cable assembly and component parameters for aerospace, military, medical and transportation industries.
The W 454 is capable of providing test voltages up to 2250 V DC and 1500 V AC, as well as current up to 3 A.
This system can distribute test points via external matrix cases and offers adapter cable ID for instant recognition of devices under test (DUT).
Functional testing of program power, electronic controls and sub-assemblies is also available.
Functional tests include operation of keys and switches, testing of DUTs via programmable voltages up to 40 volts and external voltage measurement up to ± 500 V (DC to 1kHz)
High voltage isolation tests can be performed up to 2250 V DC and 1500 VAC at ramp-up speeds of 100 V/ms, 1,000 V/ms, and 500 V/s as well as at programmable speeds, variable from 25 to 200 V/s with AC arc detection.
Component measurement includes determination of serial or parallel RL / RC networks at frequencies to 100 kHz, testing of twisted pair / shielded cables from 10 pF to 1 µF, capacitor tests to 10,000 µF and inductors to 1 Henry. Additional test parameters include impedance, admittance, phase angle, dissipation factor and quality factor.
Emulation testing is accomplished through external supply of voltages variable to 250 V AC or 125 V DC, emulation of switching sequences, connection of electronic loads, and measurement of time-dependent voltages and currents.
Motorola has launched the MTP850Ex TETRA, Australia’s first ATEX and IECEx-certified digital radio, which the company says could significantly improve safety levels on mine sites.
The MTP850Ex TETRA portable radio combines the features of digital radio communications, including voice quality and clarity, user control, text messaging and other digital applications, with recognised international safety ratings.
According to the company, this makes it the only TETRA IECEx-certified digital handset in the 800 MHz band, certified for use in hazardous and dusty environments in Australia.
Motorola says the digital radios were previously not available to industries with potentially hazardous gas or dust safety requirements.
The MTP850Ex has a built-in GPS receiver so managers can quickly locate staff in the case of an emergency.
Additionally, the Dimetra LiTE system can also be integrated with other systems to automatically send audible and visual alarms to the handsets of other individuals in the case of a system failure or when monitoring thresholds are exceeded.
Voltech has released software for pre-compliance testing for harmonics, inter-harmonics and flicker.
The new software meets the pre-compliance requirements of EN61000-3-2 (harmonics), and EN61000-3-3 (flicker) as well as EN61000-4-7 (harmonics and inter-harmonics).
Its uses data obtained by the proprietary software incorporated in Voltech’s PM1000+ power analyser.
According to the company, Voltech’s pre-compliance software can eliminate laboratory time involved in full compliance testing.
Voltech’s PM1000+ Precision Power and Energy Analyser is suitable for standby power, energy and inrush current measurement.
Voltage and current can be measured up to 600 V RMS and 20 A RMS with crest factors up to 20.
A Voltech Ballast Current Transformer is available to measure accurate energy usage data for fluorescent lighting having current and voltage phase errors of less than 1º and 3º.
Westek Electronics distributes Voltech products in Australia.
ICP Electronics Australia has announced the release of the UPC-12AH/GM45, a 12.1 inch all-in-one UPS Panel PC with touch technology and smart battery backup for factory and industrial applications.
According to ICP Electronics, the UPC-12AH/GM45 chassis is strong, hard-wearing and is constructed of die-cast aluminium with an IP65 compliant front panel.
The UPC-12AH/GM45 features the Intel GM45 chipset with 45nm mobile Core2 Duo processor support or onboard ULV Intel Celeron M 1GHz with Intel 910GMLE chipset support.
Battery backup power is designed to protect users from the threat of power outages and lost data while Dual Gigabit Ethernet reduces the risk of the network crashing or virus infection, ICP Electronics said.
Other features include an optional 1000 nit sunlight readable panel, an ambient light sensor that detects light for automated screen adjustments to optimise viewing, remote power On/Off switch, 802.11 b/g/n Wi-Fi support, 1x PCI expansion slot for expansion options, and 1x Compact Flash Type II socket and standard VESA 75/100 mounting.
ICP Electronics Australia
02 9457 6011
sales@icp-australia.com.au
www.icp-australia.com.au
PRODUCT SHOWCASE:
Until recently, a non-negative oral fluid (saliva) drug test obtained at a worksite was unable to be confirmed by an accredited laboratory. Testing officers had to switch to a urine confirmation test or use some other method for determining fitness for work.
Royal Medical Supplies has recently made available a confirmation test kit comprising oral fluid collection / extraction devices, security seals, chain of custody form and instruction sheet, all contained in a pathology collection bag.
These kits can be used whenever a non-negative result is obtained using any commercially available oral fluid drug test, including the ExpressCheck Oral Fluid Drug Test.
More information can be found at www.royalmedical.com.au
Russell Fraser Sales have unleashed their new range of low priced infrared thermometers. The compact and easy to use infrared thermometers offer wide temperature ranges and variable emissivity to effectively measure object surface temperatures.
All models feature the Infrared (IR) sensor which is long range and contact free, enabling continual measurement of an object’s surface temperatures.
The HP892 features a temperature range of 200°C to 1800°C and accuracy of ±2°C or ±2%. The distance to spot ratio is 80:1 with the variable emissivity ranges from 0.1 ~ 1.00 (adjustable). Weighing in at just under 500g, the unit has a back light, data hold and auto power off.
The HP880 & HP880EK models have a temperature range of -30°C to 550°C. With a weight of only 130g, these light models feature variable emissivity of 0.1 to 0.95 (adjustable). THE 880EK also features a K-type thermocouple (TC) sensor which requires direct physical contact and measures the temperature of the object it touches through the simple transfer of heat to the sensor within the probe.
Russell Fraser Sales
02 9545 4433
rfs@rfsales.com.au
www.rfsales.com.au
The Profibus Association of Australia (PAA) and the Profibus International Training Centre (PITC) have organised a series of accredited Profibus training courses in Perth and Brisbane this November.
Leading UK trainer Andy Verwer will once again conduct the training courses, following his involvement in the successful courses held in 2006, 2008 and earlier this year.
Verwer has over 30 years of experience working and teaching in the automation and control industry and is a key member of the Profibus International organization in the UK.
Over 200 Profibus graduates in Australia have attended training seminars conducted by Andy Verwer.
The courses include a one-day Certified Profibus Installer Course, a one-day Profibus Commissioning and Maintenance Course and a three-day Certified Profibus Engineer Course.
These courses can be taken separately or together over a week.
The Perth sessions will be held at the ATI Mirage from 9 November, while the Brisbane courses will be held at the Rendezvous hotel from 16 November.
The Installer Course provides an essential prerequisite for the other courses and can be taken on its own for those who just need to know about the physical layout and wiring.
The Commissioning and Maintenance Course teaches participants how to use a modern Class1/2 master, analyser and oscilloscope to verify devices and health check working networks.
The Engineer Course is the flagship qualification from Profibus International and covers the operation of Profibus networks and all aspects of the protocol involved in DP and PA systems.
The Installer Course and the Commissioning and Maintenance Course are prerequisites for the Engineer Course.
Scientific and engineering consultant Heggies has been appointed by the Tiwest Joint Venture to handle a variety of challenges at the company’s Kwinana pigment plant.
Heggies has been contracted to look at a variety of environmental and health risk issues, including, occupational and environmental noise, land contamination and occupational health.
It will carry out noise amelioration projects, groundwater surveys, risk assessments and other reviews.
Heggies says it is a specialist firm of consulting engineers and scientists that provides a high level of consulting services across a broad range of activities.
The company undertakes projects in all states of Australia, as well as in New Zealand, South East Asia and the Middle East.
Hawk Measurement Systems has applied its non-intrusive Gladiator remote microwave switches to help solve a blocked chute problem for an industrial client.
The customer had problems obtaining early indications of blocked chutes on a feeder connected to a vibrating screen with mixed particle sizes.
Probes proved unsuitable, because the ‘on’ delays had to be used to overcome intermittent impact by the product on the probes.
The customer wanted a fully fail-safe blocked chute switch that could be pre-tested on each start-up of the conveyer system.
Each blocked chute problem was costing the clients thousands of dollars in down time.
Hawk Measurement Systems says it used its non-intrusive Gladiator range remote microwave switches.
Because of the high impact and vibration in the transfer chutes, the Gladiator has a toughened wear resistant UHMW Polyethylene face.
The company mounted the microwave sender and microwave receiver remotely in an area where maintenance personnel could gain access.
The units can be up to 500 m apart.
The microwave worked with dry material, wet material, fines and bulk material.
