New assembler for CEAG explosion-protected electrical equipment

A new systems builder and installer of explosion protected electrical equipment has been set up in the Midlands region. The company is focused on providing customers with rapid response, engineering-led assembly, panel building and wiring services for installation in the petrochemicals, oil and gas and pharmaceuticals industries.

Based in Coventry, Tech-Ex Systems Ltd was established almost 12 months ago by company director Harnak Sandhu, a Degree-qualified electrical and electronics engineer with more than 18 years' experience in the industry. Tech-Ex Systems is a Certified Partner for Cooper Crouse-Hinds UK Ltd (CEAG) and offers panel building, wiring and assembly for all CEAG products, including control stations, distribution boards and terminal boxes in both GRP and Stainless Steel.

As Harnak Sandhu comments: "Prior to setting up the business, I went out and asked OEM, End User and Contractor customers of explosion proof electrical equipment what they actually wanted from a systems builder. The answer was unanimous - they wanted local support that included flexibility, engineering, assembly and wiring services, particularly for the more complex systems, as well as reduced lead times, from order placement to installation of the complete system. Tech-Ex Systems is a result of these discussions and of my own experiences in the industry."

Refer to picture above: A selection of panel building, wiring and assembly products, including: control stations, distribution boards and terminal boxes in both GRP and Stainless Steel. All of these are CEAG products assembled by Tech-Ex Systems.

According to Sandhu, the key is to understand the customer's individual requirements and application, followed by providing a cost-effective, customised solution that matches that need. "By working with us, the customer will have direct contact with engineers and production, who can make decisions and offer advice first hand."

"Technical documentation for approval is turned around faster than the industry has experienced to date, as we have full CAD software facilities, and any changes will be implemented efficiently as we are closer to the customer. Having worked with key accounts since the business was set up, the company, with its dynamic and flexible approach, has proved to be the ideal recipe the clients want."

Cooper Crouse-Hinds (UK) Ltd in profile
As part of the Cooper Industries Group, Cooper Crouse-Hinds (UK) Ltd is the number one company in the field of explosion protection. Committed to technological progress, the company develops and manufactures a range of products that cover all the requirements currently placed on modern, explosion-protected, electrical installation technology, including illumination, safeguarding, signalling, controlling, instrumentation and distribution of electrical energy in potentially explosive atmospheres. In the company's production plants in Germany, England and Spain, the company manufactures a wide range of products for explosion protection.

Cooper Crouse-Hinds supplies products that comply with all the latest directives and standards - worldwide. In addition to systems and components built to ATEX Directives and European Standards, the company also provides solutions that have been certified to both IEC and NEC standards. Moreover, the company also has a large number of other national approvals, e.g. for Eastern European countries, China and North America. With Cooper Crouse-Hinds you can get all you need from one source.

For further information,, email: sales@ceag-crouse-hinds.co.uk   Refer to next page

First 'BEVELJET' cutting installation in UK

The first UK sale of Water Jet Sweden's recently-launched 'BEVELJET profiler' is set to open up the market to a whole range of new applications. Work that was previously considered to be beyond the scope of water jet profiling, especially weld preparation for thick metal sheet, can now be readily accomplished.

Refer to pictures, Top: The new WJS BEVELJET waterjet head for both straight and high-precision bevel-edge cutting, and below: Water Jet Sweden NC3515S BEVELJET Profiler.

Following an £800,000 investment-programme last year, a Midlands company has this year installed a Water Jet Sweden 4020 ED 'BEVELJET' profiler. Previous success by the company had been secured through the intensive use of CNC laser cutting machines, CNC presses and welding equipment, plus considerable fabrication work in the aerospace and automotive fields. Now, with the addition of its first CNC waterjet profiler, a greater range of materials can be processed and, by having a bevel cutting facility incorporated, it can offer far greater product design scope to its customers. 

The decision to purchase a 'BEVELJET' profiler came after consultation with six suppliers, factory visits to established users both in Britain and overseas and the production of samples by the leading contenders. Because the company operates at the 'high end' of both profiling and sheet metal fabrication, one typical key requirement was the ability to produce profiles and holes with a minimum of taper and this is something for which the 'BEVELJET' is ideal. The fact that such beveled faces can be produced accurately enough and of a quality that requires no secondary operation, allied to having a working area of 4 x 2m, means that the equipment will also be a benefit when producing very long edges ready for welding.

"In fact," says Chris Baker, managing director of WJS (UK): "There is a big need for equipment capable of preparing the beveled edges of all kinds of material ready for welding in the fabrication market."

It is anticipated that, as the construction industry begins to recover and looks for cheaper ways of securing pre-prepared sheet, so will the demand for this kind of facility increase.  Not surprisingly it was the welding industry, mainly through its sub-contractors, who highlighted this need when responding to market research undertaken by Water Jet Sweden. Since launching the "BEVELJET" profiler, the Swedish company says it has experienced an unprecedented increase in demand from the welding sector and the product has been very successful.

"Water jet users have shown themselves to be very clever in adapting the basic process to all sorts of unexpected uses and I don't doubt that, as the flexibility of the new "BEVELJET" profiler becomes more apparent, it will be exploited in a similar fashion," explained Chris Baker.

Already the system has demonstrated its 360º capabilities by producing large diameter beveled holes in thick steel base plates into which tubular stanchions can be welded. Another extension of the role of the waterjet process that is foreseen is its ability to work with formed or pressed sheet, thereby freeing the process from the earlier perceived limitation of being suitable only for profiling flat material.

For further information, e-mail: info@wjsuk.com     Refer to page 93

Atlas Copco is first to offer Carbon Zero
compressors certified for 100% energy recovery

Atlas Copco has introduced a Carbon Zero range of air compressors equipped with advanced heat recovery systems proven to recover 100% of the electrical energy input in the form of hot water. The compressors can, as a result, dramatically reduce energy costs for a wide range of industries. The unique compressors are the first in the world to be certified by the TÜV institute as having "net zero energy consumption".

The Carbon Zero innovation provides effective heat transfer, within specific design conditions, of relative humidity so that a considerable proportion of electrical power input can be recovered in the form of hot water at 90°C. This provides significant benefits for industries employing hot water or steam within process operations such as food and beverage, pulp and paper, chemicals and power plants.

By using the compressor output hot water either directly, or as pre-heated boiler feed water, the consumption of process heating fuel and its associated carbon dioxide emissions can be dramatically reduced or, in some cases, eliminated altogether.

The renowned, independent TÜV institute (German Technical Monitoring Association) earlier this year supervised tests on Atlas Copco's oil-free screw compressor series ZR 55 - 750, equipped with built-in energy recovery systems. The tests demonstrated that under specific design conditions, 100% of the electric energy consumed could be recovered for heating water.

"We are very pleased to offer our customers a compressed air solution that can recover 100% of the input energy," says Stephan Kuhn, President of Atlas Copco's Compressor Technique business area. "Today our customers face stringent targets to reduce carbon dioxide emissions. The Carbon Zero compressor will have significant impact towards preserving the environment and also on our customers' bottom line. Energy efficiency has been at the core of our product development for a long time. The global need to reduce CO₂ emissions confirms we have been, and are, on the right track."

Energy saving in compressed air systems is vital since energy consumption typically represents over 80% of a compressor's lifecycle cost. Compressed air systems on average account for approximately 10% of industrial electrical power consumption, it can represent as much as 40% of a plant's electricity bill. That is why Atlas Copco has continued to be an innovator in energy-efficient compressed air solutions for many years.

For further information, e-mail: gba.info@uk.atlascopco.com or view website: www.atlascopco.co.uk   Refer to page 52