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All industries require access to reliable, uninterrupted power as well as robust dependable contingency measures to fall back on in the event of a failure.  Yet despite the importance placed on maintaining the supply of energy, Siemens says UK manufacturers are failing to recognise the risks posed by critical ageing electrical energy assets.  Manufacturers are being cautioned: more needs to be done to strengthen energy resilience plans if the challenges of tomorrow are to be met.

“Critical electrical power equipment, which has accumulated over decades, forms a significant backbone of today’s manufacturing industry.  Either housed in a single location or clustered across multiple sites, a complex patchwork of modern and legacy technologies makes up the electrical systems powering UK manufacturing.  Interspersed throughout the country, these engineering assets have been added to, adapted, maintained and repaired or replaced over time; all are at various stages and states of health in a sprawling complicated picture of electrical systems,” says Toby Horne, senior lead for Siemens Energy Resilience – a multi-discipline practice in the UK with a remit to help businesses formulate a more strategic, comprehensive and innovative approach to energy resilience and modern power systems.

Continues Horne: “These systems are supplying energy to, in almost all cases, mission critical operations but years of reactive maintenance, planned or emergency repairs and differing or inconsistent service practices have made it near impossible, for a significant proportion of businesses, to accurately gauge how these electrical assets are actually shaping up.  Many are not aware of whether their systems can handle even greater demands, others are simultaneously grappling with an energy transition that is adding supply diversification, on-site energy production and decarbonisation targets to their sites – posing additional risks, more points of failure and ever more pressure.”

Siemens is advocating a smarter, more sustainable way to manage energy resilience which will provide better insulation against the dangers of blackouts, the complete interruption of power that halts operations and brownouts, partial or temporary reduction in system capacity.  Branded – Resilience-as-a-Service – the ‘vital signs’ of a business’ electrical estate are scrutinised from every conceivable angle.  The multi-pronged approach comprises three programmes: Risk Identification, Risk Management and Efficient Issue Resolution; designed to boost operational efficiency, business performance and minimise risk over the long term.

On how businesses can build more energy resilience into their critical power infrastructure, Horne says: “A lack of visibility makes it difficult to see and understand the level of risk within your power infrastructure, but the outcome of downtime is severe – interruption to operations, damage to reputation, unforeseen costs accrued (in fines or revenues) or even a risk-to-life – requiring a more a proactive stance, instead of the conventional view through a maintenance-lens.  Risk can never be eliminated but the right resilience strategy, supported by a knowledgeable and trusted partner, can manage and mitigate the threats.”

During the risk identification process, Siemens experts will perform a thorough audit to identify the risks associated with all the installed electrical equipment at the manufacturer.  The process will help identify risks more intelligently, manage electrical equipment across sites and accommodate changing energy supplies including green energy, decarbonisation and on-site generation and storage.  Risk Management involves the proactive management of electrical assets and maintenance of its health to mitigate risk, streamlining the electrical infrastructure estate for simpler, more cost-effective management over time.  While Efficient Issue Resolution grants access to global parts sourcing and world-leading capabilities to help resolve issues faster, repair assets on site and understand the optimum pathways for the power estate.

Horne says: “The prospect of imminent power infrastructure failure is ‘real’.  There are approximately 65,000 panels of Siemens Reyrolle brand switchgear installed in UK industries, of which 70% predate the 1970’s.  All continue to underpin critical power systems and remain fully supported by Siemens. There are also, as many, other similarly-aged assets from different manufacturers and, if not maintained correctly, all could potentially fail and create challenges.”

Horne adds: “It could mean a food producer’s line losing power which causes wastage and a drop in quality during a production run or an automotive manufacturer experiencing an unplanned blackout that incurs a 30-mins complete line restart; placing pressure on targets.  We’ve had a business with £100k a year lost production through a handful of unplanned blackouts.  After review, we recommended a £50k part change to remedy the issue – a solution, which in under six months had paid for itself.”

An issue of strategic importance, Horne says energy resilience merits discussion in the boardroom: “Manufacturing is one of the most energy-intensive industries.  Any power outages or pricing fluctuations can have significant ramifications on day-to-day operations and production output.  The cost to businesses can be eye-watering when you consider ‘3% of all working days are lost in manufacturing through machine downtime, which costs UK business £180 billion each year.’ There is an impression that many are sleepwalking into potential danger, not wholly aware of the risks.  A resilience strategy helps to save time, stress and strain.  UK manufacturers must embrace the concept and make it their own personal responsibility to prepare for the energy challenges of today and tomorrow.”

How would your home look like if you let dirt and mess accumulate for years? It would be a health hazard and would also make it impossible to find what you need when you need it most. In the end, you would reach a point when the problem simply couldn’t be overlooked. This is the situation that many plant managers are facing after accumulating huge quantities of manufacturing data over the years. Here Neil Ballinger, head of EMEA at automation parts supplier EU Automation, explains the concept of data cleansing.

By implementing a data-driven company culture, manufacturers can exponentially improve virtually any aspect of production. Big data can be used, among other things, to maximise energy efficiency, improve the business’s predictive maintenance strategy, and prevent downtime caused by equipment failure. To do this, manufacturers need accurate and reliable data.

But when data is collected and accumulated for several years, its quality can start to decline. Dirty or rogue data is data affected by issues such as duplicates, inaccuracies, inconsistencies, and out-of-date information. When plants reach this point, it’s time for a good clean-up.

Not the exception

Dirty data is the norm, not the exception. As companies evolve, the amount of data they collect grows in quantity and complexity. High employee turnover, the use of different enterprise resources planning (ERP) solutions across several departments, and lack of standard guidelines for data entry complicate the situation. For these reasons, achieving perfect data is almost impossible, especially in large organisations.

Data cleansing, or cleaning, is the process of detecting and correcting or eliminating incomplete, inaccurate, out-of-date or irrelevant data. It differs from data validation in that the latter is automatically performed by the system at the time of data entry, while data cleaning is done later on batches of data that have become unreliable.

There are a lot of data cleansing tools available, such as Trifacta, Openprise, WinPure, OpenRefine and many more. It’s also possible to use libraries like Panda for Python, or Dplyr for R. The variety of solutions on the market means that manufacturers might want to consult a data analyst to choose the best one for their business case.

How dirty, exactly?

Regardless of the solution employed and the type of data being cleansed, the first step is assessing the quality of the existing data. In this phase, a data analyst will assess the company’s needs and establish specific KPIs for clean data. Legacy data is then audited using statistical and database methods to reveal anomalies and inconsistencies.

This can be done using commercial software that allows the user to specify various constraints. The existing data will be uploaded and tested against these constraints, and data that doesn’t pass the test should be cleansed.

During this phase, manufacturers should establish which input fields must be standardised across the company. Standardisation rules can help businesses prevent the build-up of dirty data in that they minimise inconsistencies and facilitate the uploading of clean data into a common ERP.

Keep it clean

After the audit, the cleaning process can begin. Data will pass through a series of automated software programmes that discard what is not compliant with the specified KPIs. The result is then tested for correctness and incomplete data will be amended manually, if possible. A final quality control phase will ensure that the output data is clean enough to by seamlessly uploaded into the chosen ERP.

However, just like when cleaning our homes, a big clean-up every now and then is not enough. The best approach is to implement a culture of continuous data improvement, distributing tasks among each member of the team. Developing practices that support ongoing data hygiene is the key to success.

For more information on how to use big data to optimise your business, visit www.euautomation.com.

From 1st to 5th March, Analog Devices (ADI) will participate in embedded world 2021 DIGITAL.  Taking place this year as a completely digital event, the trade fair together with its associated conferences will be held in a virtual format. Analog Devices will employ its virtual exhibition stand to showcase its technology offerings ranging across sensing, data acquisition, signal processing, data networking, machine learning and AI, through to power provision and power supply design. ADI will also host a number of round-table sessions as part of the on-line event.

Highlights among the many demonstrations will be:

3D Depth Sensing – in Depth

Having seen rapid adoption in consumer market sectors, such as Augmented and Virtual Reality, and gaming, the techniques of 3D Depth Sensing have much to offer the broader embedded space. A featured demonstration and video in ADI’s portfolio will describe how the company continues to advance its time-of-flight (ToF) sensing technology, and how it can be applied to provide spatial awareness to a broad range of systems. Giving industrial robotics a more accurate “view” of their environment can yield performance and safety benefits: the same is true of logistics and automated materials handling. ToF systems are also being applied in areas as diverse as occupancy monitoring (people counting) in smart buildings, through to gesture detection in automotive user-interface designs. The demonstration will highlight ADI’s partnership with Microsoft aimed at mass-market deployment of 3D imaging, using Microsoft’s Azure Kinect.

Actionable Insights from Condition Monitoring

Condition-based monitoring of machine health is a field in which Analog Devices has an unmatched breadth of expertise and experience, covering the complete path from initial measurement through to actionable insights. ADI’s condition-based monitoring solution, determining the health of machines through spectral analysis of vibration data, includes the company’s MEMS sensors, high-resolution data acquisition systems, mastery of a wide range of networking standards, both wired and wireless, and ADI OtoSense. This last is ADI’s artificial intelligence (AI) offering that applies machine-learning techniques to identify trends in the captured data, enabling intervention at the optimum time through Actionable Insights.

AI Monitors Motors, 24/7

The OtoSense Smart Motor Sensor technology will also have its own dedicated demonstration, specifically focussing on how it can yield a dedicated and highly-accurate predictive maintenance platform dedicated to electric motors, employing Artificial Intelligence and machine learning techniques. In addition to multi-axis vibration data – with elements in common with the condition-based monitoring demonstration outlined above – magnetic field and temperature measurements also feed into algorithms that provide a comprehensive view of the health of a motor. The demonstration will show how a system that is simple to configure can immediately begin a predictive maintenance regime to watch for the development of known fault types, both electrical and mechanical.

Power Supply Design: Optimised from the Outset

A further highlight of ADI’s on-line exhibit will centre on power provision, and in particular, on tools aimed at simplifying power supply design, and ensuring first-time-right, optimised outcomes. Many of the key objectives of PSU design are unvarying; efficiency, minimised board area, minimised cost, and lowest EMI. Faced with system boards that call for more numerous, and more complex power rails, designers face a considerable challenge. ADI has a long history of providing design tools to address exactly this issue, and the 2021 virtual exhibition stand will showcase the latest additions and enhancements. Addressing the problem from a system level is the starting point, using a sequence of ADI tools to plan a power tree, select devices and simulate the power system at a detail level.

Power over Data Lines

A related area is that of power provision over data lines, and of power-over-Ethernet, which will have its own dedicated demonstration. Single-pair Power over Ethernet (SPoE) technology provides standardised and interoperable power delivery that also includes comprehensive port-to-port fault isolation and telemetry, enabling system health monitoring from a power perspective.

Further demonstrations will showcase ADI’s ultra-low power, single-pair, Ethernet data networking for field sensor connectivity (10BASE-T1L); the Eagle Eye solution for occupancy monitoring in “smart” building management; a broad range of the latest data acquisition and signal handling/routing developments; and, in a different sphere of activity, ADI’s suite of offerings in       e-Mobility, including battery management and data connectivity solutions for electric vehicles.

Round Table Sessions – Meet with ADI’s Experts

Introduced by the organisers of embedded world 2021 as part of the all-digital, on-line format is the facility for round table discussion sessions. Requiring pre-registration and with fixed numbers of attendees per session, the 30-minute events will provide the opportunity to explore specific topics in more depth. ADI will host round table sessions on condition monitoring technology (March 1st, 15:00); on power management and power design software tools (March 3rd, 12:00); and, for those aspiring to join the ADI team, an insight into the company’s graduate training program (March 5th, 11:00).

Registration for these sessions can be done after registration for the virtual event.

embedded world 2021 DIGITAL takes place from 1st – 5th March 2021.  A “ticketed” registration system is in place and the organisers’ home page is at; https://www.embedded-world.de/en

Aviation expert Air France has expanded its vibration analysis capabilities, which are vital to safety checks carried out on aircraft engines, with an integrated repetitive test system – Tescia.

Aircraft vibration involves checking the balance is correct at two points on the engine; this is monitored by permanently mounted accelerometers that continuously record the vibratory displacement. This displacement must remain within a very precise tolerance level, as the slightest unbalance brings testing to a standstill, which is both costly and time consuming.

To ensure accurate assessments, without disturbing engine operation, Air France approached test and measurement specialist HBK for a solution. After analysing Air France’s requirements, HBK’s engineering team recommended integrating its Tescia system – a complete toolkit comprised of LAN‐XI data acquisition hardware and a dedicated PC – into Air France’s Zephyr test bench.

Ivan Rouesné, Zephyr’s Dubanc Manager explains: “The vibration measurement may seem like a minor detail compared to everything we do on a GE90 -115 type engine. In a performance test, large forces are developed, and the slightest sign of unbalance is to be avoided at all costs.”

Ivan continues: “On the GE90-115 engines powering the Boeing 777, measurements made on two couplings, which rotate at different speeds, are constantly monitored and must not exceed a set level of displacement. We were able to interpret their vibration behaviour easily on the Tescia system, which immediately gave us simple information from complex processes such as the use of tracking filters to obtain clear and reliable signals.”

Read the full details on: https://www.bksv.com/en/Customers/Aerospace/air-france

More information about Tescia is available on HBK’s website: https://www.bksv.com/en/products/daq-data-acquisition/Tescia

Selwood is a world leader in pump manufacturing, the leading pump rental solutions company in the UK and a renowned supplier of plant and construction equipment for hire and sale. For over 70 years the company has been “Proud to Deliver’ and now does so via a network of branches across England and Wales and a 500 strong team. More here.

The Canal and River Trust looks after 2,000 miles of waterways. After the industrial age, many canals fell into disrepair, but have now been given a new lease of life as leisure areas for narrow-boating, kayaking, walking, running, cycling, birdwatching and fishing. Crossing open land and cities alike, they have been particularly valuable during the recent pandemic. The Trust is charity. Its fantastic work ensures that 2,980 bridges, 1,580 locks and 335 aqueducts are available to the public. To learn more or donate, click here.

The Trust operates around 240 facilities, offering services to canal users. Facilities include cess pits and chambers, into which boats can pump waste. Historically, tanks were emptied on a schedule based on historical usage. This could mean that tanks were emptied too soon, increasing the number of collections and therefore expense. Conversely, emptying at the last moment could incur emergency collection costs and emptying too late would mean the odorous, hazardous waste over-spilling into leisure areas.

Selwood were familiar with Powelectrics’ ‘connected sensor’ solutions from previous projects, such as monitoring fuel levels on diesel pumps. The company installed Metron telemetry on the septic tanks to monitor waste levels using Powelectrics’ SPS hydrostatic pressure sensors inserted into tanks.

Regular data and 75% and 95% high level alarms are sent to nominated personnel at both Selwood and the Trust, via Powelectrics’ MetronView cloud.

There is also a low level alert at 10% so users can verify that collections have occurred as planned and an alert if readings have been missed, indicating a possible fault, that should be investigated.

This m2m solution means logistics can be planned based on actual levels. Costly emergency collections are no longer necessary, cutting expense and offering enhanced service to Trust. Historical level data is also available for trend analysis.

For this project, battery-powered Metron telemetry devices were used, as external power is not generally available. Batteries typically last 4 years reporting once /day. For this project some units report twice daily. Externally-powered and solar-powered Metron units are also available.

Carl Whitfield, Selwood Electrical Asset & Support Manager explained: “We’ve been installing Powelectrics kit for a few years. Its reliable, robust and great value.

“Some of the installation sites have been arduous, with tanks under car parks, access roads and tow paths.

“We’ve even had to install the Metron devices inside tanks, under manholes, with a variety of external antennas to suit the circumstances.

“Powelectrics deliver exceptional technical support, particularly as the tanks are older, underground structures with no record of the dimensions. We have to guestimate capacity initially, but Metron devices can be reconfigured remotely via MetronView, so Powelectrics help us tweak the scaling if necessary.”

Dominic McCann, CRT Senior Building Surveyor added: “Having the Metron telemetry system installed in all our cesspits within the Trust’s operational portfolio has proven a great benefit to the monitoring and management of our wet waste systems across England and Wales.

“The alert system and cloud based monitoring system has meant we can monitor waste levels on a daily basis remotely, helping to significantly reduce the risk of any environmental overtopping incidents.

“It has also helped us to analyse trends of use, allowing us to change emptying schedules and deliver cost savings and efficiencies to the Trust.

“The ease of use of the system is a particular highlight for me!”

Powelectrics’ Metron4 supports 2G & 4G for global deployment. It offers four analogue inputs, expansion cards for pulse counting & RS232 and options to develop RS485 & CANBUS interfaces. With solar, battery & external power options, IP67 enclosure & operational temperatures – 25 to +65°C, its able to deliver sensor data & alerts into many global applications!

MetronView offers customisable reports and a common API, so data may be drawn into other platforms for application-specific processing. These can be developed by Powelectrics or by customers.

SPS hydrostatic pressure sensors are widely used for tank level. Powelectrics supplies versions that combine temperature and level sensors, others with PTFE cable and 316 stainless steel. ATEX versions & versions for hygienic and aggressive environments are available.

Powelectrics’ ‘connected sensor’ solutions are employed in many industries including chemicals, pharmaceuticals, Adblue, fuels, oils, LPG, lubricants, food and beverage, waste & recycling, landfill & leachate, agriculture, utilities, pumping and environment, rail and security.

For further information or to discuss your application, please call Powelectrics on +44 (0)1827 310 666, use this contact form or send the company an email – sales@powelectrics.co.uk

TÜV SÜD National Engineering Laboratory today launches its Data Analytics service to help the water industry improve leakage detection rates and significantly lower operating costs.

Regulatory authorities and global environmental pressures are demanding better water management and a reduction in leakage rates. The water industry must therefore improve measurement accuracy of water flows passing through distribution networks, to control over abstraction rates and advance leakage rate estimation.

The new Data Analytics service will use statistical modelling techniques to predict meter performance based on live and historical data. In addition, diagnostics information can be used to understand what may be negatively impacting a meter by analysing hidden patterns to identify specific fault conditions, such as electromagnetic or acoustical interference, mechanical damage or leakage.

Gordon Lindsay, Head of the Digital R & D Group at TÜV SÜD National Engineering Laboratory, said: “Thanks to advances in technology and increased connectivity through the Internet of Things, vast amounts of data exist but only a fraction of its potential benefit is realised. Our new Data Analytics service uses data in real-time to detect when a meter is not performing to specification and identify the cause of this failure. This means that the water industry can more accurately detect meter problems, as well as estimate the level of leakage in the system, to deliver increased measurement confidence, reduced downtime and cost savings.”

Validation of models created by the Data Analytics service can be conducted in TÜV SÜD National Engineering Laboratory’s accredited calibration facility. This increases end-user confidence in results by reducing any levels of error, assuring them that the problem-solving method suggested by the Data Analytics service will be effective in the real-world.

Farnell, an Avnet Company and global distributor of electronic components, products and solutions, is offering customers access to a free webinar on EMC debugging with oscilloscopes and vector network analysers (VNAs) in partnership with leading Test and Measurement supplier Rohde & Schwarz.

The webinar will take place on 2nd March and will include:

• Fundamentals of practical EMI/EMC design and troubleshooting of electronic circuits.
• Explanations on how EMI debugging can be a successful process using state of the art scopes to analyse time and frequency domains of signals from different probes (voltage and current), near field probes, LISN, and antenna.
• Introduction to the VNA which, for many engineers not familiar with RF design, is an unknown instrument.
• Practical demonstrations using DC/DC converters and digital electronics to demonstrate the effectiveness of the techniques covered in the webinar.

The schedule for the webinar is:

Tuesday, 2nd March, 2021

08.30am – 11.30am GMT

The webinar will be hosted by Arturo Mediano, an electrical engineer and founder of the HF-Magic Lab, a specialised laboratory for design, diagnostic, troubleshooting, and training in the EMI/EMC/SI and RF fields.

Rohde & Schwarz is one of the world’s largest manufacturers of electronic test and measurement equipment. Their products set standards in research, development, production and service. Rohde & Schwarz’s solutions are in demand worldwide for signal generation or analysis in labs or production, from audio range right up to the highest microwave frequencies. Rohde & Schwarz offers a broad spectrum of market-leading solutions for the newest technologies including electronics, wireless, RF and microwave applications.

Farnell stocks a broad range of Rohde & Schwarz products including oscilloscopes, RF test equipment and now offers engineers a helpful probe selector tool.

Digitalisation over the past decade has meant food and beverage manufacturing and processing has become a highly automated business. The need for fast and reliable electrical connections to prevent machine downtime and disruption on the supply chain is crucial to growing this £121 billion industry. Here Dawn Robinson, European product manager for electrical connector specialist PEI-Genesis, explores the considerations when choosing a connector for a food processing environment.

According to a Oneserve survey of British manufacturers, three per cent of all working days are lost annually to machine downtime, equating to almost 50 hours of work and approximately £31,000 per facility.

In food and beverage processing, studies have identified water-damage and corrosion as possible reasons for machine downtime. It is undoubtable then, that every machine component should be carefully considered — electrical connectors are no exception.

Industry challenges

A case study by cable and connector supplier Harting found that food and beverage processes are subject to regular water ingress problems with their glands and connectors. This often occurs when connector seals are not able to withstand rigorous cleaning with high-pressure water streams, leading to corrosion from cleaning chemicals, like hydrochloric acid. As a result, the food manufacturer is constantly having to replace the electrical components and seals, resulting in production disruption and mounting repair costs. What’s more, recurrent damage to the electrical machine components put the factory at risk of fire.

Unfortunately it isn’t a case of adjusting cleaning protocols, as they must be thorough to comply with the Food Standards Agency’s Hazardous Analysis of Critical Control Point (HACCP) principles. However, even the most rigorous processes struggle to remove all contaminants. According to tests conducted at the Research Institute of Sciences and Engineering in Sweden, even after hygienic cleaning, levels of bacteria can remain high on food processing machinery.

For example, residue can get stuck in dirt pockets on the hoods of electrical connectors and as a result, bacteria can spread onto the machine areas in direct contact with the food. If bacterial contamination were to occur and product recalls were necessary, not only would it be costly and disruptive, but the health of the consumer would be at risk.

Contaminant-free connection

Specialist engineers are now waking up to the demands of the industry and, as a result, have tailored connector design to address the common issues. So, what design features make a connector suitable for this challenging environment?

Firstly, connectors need to be able to transmit power in areas requiring cleaning with jet water streams and acidic chemicals. This means the hoods and housings must be water-tight, so power transmission is maintained despite rigorous cleaning threatening the electrical interfaces. When choosing a connector, you can look out for IP69K protection, housing approved by the Food and Drug Administration and an ECOLAB certification. For example, the Harting Han F+B range offers all three. With power connections protected, high production rates can be maintained, preventing disruption to the supply chain.

Connectors for food and beverage processing must also be easy to handle. Ideally, operators shouldn’t need to open control cabinets to decouple machinery or call in for an expert to replace parts when the solution is relatively simple — service teams are already under pressure to rectify problems efficiently. Best practice for food manufacturers is therefore to choose a plug and play device, designed for easy and quick changeovers.

Regularly replacing and repairing connectors will eat into production times and costs. By specifying a product that is easy to use, can withstand cleaning processes and has the relevant certifications, manufacturers can reduce machine downtime.

Find out how food and beverage connectors can be adapted to your individual machine designs by visiting the PEI-Genesis website.

Automation software supplier, COPA-DATA is hosting a new webinar for the pharmaceutical sector. The Data Integrity webinar, held on March 18, at 09:30am (GMT), will help users understand the maintenance and assurance of data accuracy across digital systems that store, process and retrieve data. Giuseppe Menin, Industry Manager of COPA-DATA, will host the event. Registration is free, but spaces are limited. To secure your position, register on the COPA-DATA website.

Data integrity is imperative for the pharmaceutical sector, with organisations collecting and analysing data throughout their production processes. For pharmaceutical manufacturers to make informed decisions and remain compliant with regulations, this data must be complete, accurate and protected from alteration.

COPA-DATA’s webinar explains why digital data systems, and platforms like COPA-DATA’s zenon, are essential for companies transitioning to a digitally connected plant, while optimising and securing data capture.

The Data Integrity webinar will be hosted by COPA-DATA’s Pharmaceutical Industry Managers Giuseppe Menin and Bernhard Korten.

Menin has worked in a variety of roles in electrical engineering, PLC and CNC system programming and software development for several decades. During this time, he has gained insight into the unique nuances of the pharmaceutical industry, from machine manufacturers, specialised OEMs and manufacturers of medical products.

This has resulted in Menin becoming a valued member of the International Society of Pharmaceutical Engineering (ISPE) and the ISPE Pharma 4.0 – Plug & Produce Working Group. The group is currently working to design new architectures for pharmaceutical manufacturing and steer the pharmaceutical sector towards more flexible, interoperable and sustainable production.

Korten, on the other hand, specialises in data integrity and boasts over a decade’s worth of experience working across several roles at COPA-DATA, including Pharmaceutical International Sales Manager where he gained global insights into requirements and regulations. Korten will perform a live technical demonstration of a modern Aseptic Filler SCADA project during the webinar as a show of how data integrity can be achieved at a machine level.

Data integrity requirements explained

The webinar introduces attendees to data integrity requirements for the pharmaceutical industry, offering guidance on how companies can achieve data integrity from isolated machines level to a fully connected plant.

The webinar also provides industry-specific solutions to businesses, with an overview and a practical demonstration of COPA-DATA’s zenon platform for pharmaceutical features. Here, Menin explains how zenon’s Automation Integration Layer (AIL) can connect legacy manufacturing equipment to IT infrastructure, while complying with data integrity regulations — before closing off the webinar with a Q&A session.

“The webinar is another example of COPA-DATA taking learning online,” explained Menin. “Moving these events to an online platform allows us to share our Data Integrity knowledge globally — no matter where our users are in the world.

“Data must be accurate regardless of the sector, but it’s even more important for pharma companies. That’s why, at COPA-DATA, we have designed our industrial automation software platform, zenon, to address pharmaceutical data integrity challenges so data can be stored safely, while improving production efficiency.”

Ready to join the free Data Integrity webinar? Visit the COPA-DATA website to register your attendance for the event on March 18, 9:30 (GMT).

Professor Friedhelm Loh, Owner and CEO of the Friedhelm Loh Group, appointed Markus Asch (49) as CEO of Rittal International Stiftung & Co. KG and Chairman of the Management Board of Rittal.

He is therefore responsible for all the Business Units of the world’s leading provider of solutions for enclosures, power distribution, climate control, IT infrastructure, software and service with 9,700 employees. Asch also assumes overall responsibility for Rittal Software & Service (RSS) International with the Eplan and Cideon units and 1,400 employees. With software solutions, system technology and machines for automation, the three companies of the Friedhelm Loh Group optimize the processes of their customers in control and switchgear engineering across the board and drive future business areas.

Over the past 25 years, Mr. Asch has held various management positions at Alfred Kärcher SE & Co. KG, the family-owned company and world market leader for cleaning equipment, most recently as Deputy CEO and CTO. Under his leadership, Kärcher Professional was able to evolve into the clear technology and market leader in the B2B sector. Mr. Asch accelerated the development of modular and scalable product and solution platforms and successfully aligned the sales organisation to develop new customer and market potentials.

“Mr. Asch brings along many years of experience in the management of globally successful family-owned companies to this challenging new position,” Professor Friedhelm Loh says: “He has a high technical understanding of products, production and solutions and sees himself as a driver of innovation. Mr. Asch visibly focuses on the customer and thinks and acts from a global perspective.”

“I look forward to working with Professor Loh, the management and the employees at this impressive global market leader,” says Markus Asch, “And I am proud to serve the company and help develop it.”