Control System World

With the award of another landmark ruling in the Shanghai No. 2 Intermediate People’s Court of China, Rotork has again successfully defended its internationally recognised trademarks.

In the latest judgment, Shanghai Rotork Automation Instrumentation Co. Ltd. and Rotork Actuator Co. Ltd. (based in Zhejiang) were found to have infringed Rotork’s English and Chinese trademarks by using the name Rotork either in English or Chinese on products and in advertising for goods, not covered by their China registered trademark, in so doing creating a misleading and undesirable influence in the market for Rotork’s electric actuator products.

In addition to ceasing these activities, the defendants were ordered to pay a total of 2 million RMB in damages, which is four times the maximum statutory damages figure. The defendants were also ordered to publish a declaration in the international valve industry magazine Valve World to eliminate the undesirable influence created by their infringements. The defendants have lodged an appeal against the judgment to the Shanghai Higher People’s Court, pending the outcome of which the lower court’s judgment is stayed. Rotork is confident of its position on appeal.

This is the third successful judgment for Rotork in relation to its proprietary rights in China. In 2009, Rotork successfully defended its internationally recognised trademark and copyright in the Shanghai Courts against infringements by Autork Digital Instrument Co. Ltd. (also known as Greatork). The Shanghai Intermediate People’s Court and Higher People’s Court also found Autork to have been engaging in unfair competition through the use of false publicity for which they were fined the maximum amount of statutory damages. Furthermore, Autork was ordered by the Courts to cease these infringements with immediate effect.

Rotork has also been successful in defending its intellectual property rights in other parts of the world. In 2007 the Dutch District Court found Autork liable for slavish imitation, breach of copyright and violation of design rights relating to Rotork’s IQ and IQT series of actuators and also infringing Rotork’s internationally recognised trademark.

In a wide ranging judgment, Autork was ordered by the Court to stop infringing Rotork's proprietary rights throughout the whole of the expanded European Community. The Court further instructed Autork to remove infringing product from storage addresses, distribution points and customers.

In Germany and Holland the Autork stand was removed from high profile trade shows after Court action by Rotork in the German and Dutch Courts established intellectual property infringement by Autork against Rotork. An appeal by Autork was dismissed by the Court in 2009, thus concluding the proceedings.

It’s often easy to oversimplify the considerations when choosing a computer for your instrument control application. The computer can be the most crucial part of your instrument control system. It provides flexibility over traditional boxed systems by connecting to the instrument, running the software to control the instrument, analyzing the measurements, and saving the results. Ask yourself these six questions to uncover the right computer for your application.

DownLoad Article

National Instruments announced the 21 recipients of the company’s 2012 Global Supplier Awards. NI selected award recipients based on the suppliers’ performances in cost, quality, global support, delivery, technology and innovation. Suppliers are scored quarterly with periodic reviews to facilitate better communication and identify possible improvement opportunities.

NI awarded suppliers who, through commitment to excellence, continuous improvement and innovative practices, delivered outstanding performances within the NI global supply chain.
H&S Manufacturing Co., a global provider of precision sheet metal fabrication, machining and mechanical assemblies, received this year’s Supplier of the Year award for its superior global customer service, on-time delivery, cost savings and consistent performance beyond expectations.
NI honored Xilinx, a programmable logic devices supplier and key technology provider, with the NI Eagle Award for its ongoing collaboration with NI R&D. The company’s exceptional support of NI’s next generation of products using Zynq system on a chip allows NI to extend the boundaries of graphical system design.

In addition to H&S Manufacturing and Xilinx, NI awarded the following suppliers for Best in Commodity Class, Overall Scorecard Performance, Quality and On-Time Delivery:

· Arrow Electronics

· Arvato Digital Services

· Bare Board Group

· BizLink

· Dell, Inc.

· Eastek

· Flextronics Global Enclosures

· iRex

· Marking Systems

· ModusLink

· Quanser

· ROAL Electronics

· SCA Packaging

· Sunbelt Supply

· TTI Inc.

· Via System

· Westak

· Xerox Hungary

· Zollner

Engineers have long struggled with how to use Fieldbus in hazardous areas. The installation of Intrinsically-Safe (I.S.) fieldbus has typically required the use of installation schemes mixing wiring methods such as Division 1 and Division 2 (Zones 0, 1, 2). However, new concepts such as the High-Power Intrinsically-Safe Trunk allow for the use of fieldbus in hazardous areas without complex installation. This white paper reviews the different methods of fieldbus installation in hazardous areas and breaks down the advantages and drawbacks of each.

Click 'Bridging the Intrinsically-Safe Fieldbus Disconnect' to read article from Moore Industries

ABB, the leading automation technology group, received an order to provide electrification, automation and drive solutions for Medcem’s greenfield cement plant project in Turkey. The contract was awarded in July 2012.  The new plant will be located in Mersin, on the Mediterranean coast. With an estimated 10’000 tons of clinker per day, the plant will have the largest production capacity in Turkey. Production start-up is planned for March 2014.

ABB’s scope of supply for the greenfield project includes its state-of-the-art control System 800xA, Expert Optimizer process optimization software, medium and low voltage electrical motors, ACS800 series low voltage drives, ACS1000 and ACS6000 series medium voltage drives, ZS1 series medium voltage cubicles, MNS series low voltage cubicles, site erection, installation, commissioning and services. The equipment will provide high availability of the complete production process and raise efficiency through high-quality production at low energy consumption.

SOR 1500 Series switches are designed for harsh environments and process materials where rugged components are critical. This family of switches provides a less expensive alternative to the traditional chambered switch and is suitable for most point level applications.

• All stainless steel construction
• Pressure from vacuum to 1500 psi, temperature from -40°F to 400°F
• Complete isolation of the process from the switch – no o-rings or seals
• Switch options designed specifically for low current DC power applications
• Horizontal switches may be oriented for high- or low-level action – no need to stock 2 different switches
• CSA Approved, SIL

Type 1510 Electrical Level Switch:

The 1510 is a horizontally mounted, float-operated level switch suitable for plant and OEM applications where open or closed contacts are required to signal presence or absence of liquid at a discrete level. The float extension arm moves a magnet which actuates or de-actuates a hermetically sealed reed switch. Actuation/de-actuation can be reversed by rotating the unit 180 degrees. The 1510 has a Manual Check and a Low Power option.

Following are other type switches available from SOR:

Type 1530 Pneumatic Level Switch

Type 1540 Side-Mount Pneumatic Level Switch

Type 1550 Vertical Electric Level Switch

For details on this product click SOR 1500 Series Level Swicthes

AMETEK Solidstate Controls, a leader in highly customized uninterruptible power supplies (UPS), has launched its new website: www.solidstatecontrols.com. The site offers visitors easier navigation, greater content control and the availability of live document readers.

On the new website, Solidstate Controls features a host of new product offerings, including the DP2, the latest addition to its digital ProcesPower® line of industrial uninterruptible power supply (UPS) systems, and the DCR, the latest addition to its ProcessPower line of industrial battery chargers, as well as two new families of newable energy inverters—the EPP for off-grid applications and the RECon line of grid-tied UL 1741 inverters.

With the launch of the website, Solidstate Controls offers its customers additional decision-making tools for selecting industrial power conversion equipment. The site also strengthens Solidstate Controls worldwide presence, which currently consists of a sales and technical assistance network in more than 20 countries and installed equipment in more than 70 countries worldwide.

AMETEK Solidstate Controls is a recognized leader in highly customized inverters and UPS systems for critical processes involving harsh environments such as power generation (including fossil fuel and nuclear power utilities).

In 2012 Solidstate Controls celebrates 50 years of building the world’s most robust and reliable inverters and UPS systems. All AMETEK Solidstate Control inverters and UPS systems come with custom design assistance, global 24/7 field service and 40-year design life.

Foster Wheeler AG (Nasdaq: FWLT) announced today that subsidiaries of its Global Engineering and Construction Group have been awarded an engineering and procurement contract by Sadara Chemical Company (Sadara) for a packaging center at Jubail Industrial City in the Eastern Province of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

The packaging center will be part of a world-scale, fully integrated chemicals complex that is being built by Sadara, a joint venture between Saudi Arabian Oil Company (Saudi Aramco) and The Dow Chemical Company (Dow). When complete, the complex – the largest ever built in a single phase – will be owned and operated by Sadara. The packaging center contract has been awarded as an extension to the front-end engineering design (FEED) contract awarded to Foster Wheeler in 2008.

The Foster Wheeler contract value for the project was not disclosed and will be included in the company’s third-quarter 2012 bookings.

The packaging center, expected to be completed in the second half of 2014, will serve as a logistics handling hub for Sadara’s chemical complex. The facility will handle packaging, storage and loading of high value-added chemical products and performance plastics for road and rail transport within the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and for export to overseas markets.

“Foster Wheeler is honored to be awarded a contract by Sadara for the packaging center,” said Umberto della Sala, Chief Operating Officer of Foster Wheeler AG. “This award follows our successful completion of the FEED stage for the packaging center and reflects our client’s continued confidence in Foster Wheeler’s ability to execute large and technically complex projects. It further continues Foster Wheeler’s long-standing association with Saudi Aramco and Dow. This is the second major unit awarded to Foster Wheeler under its FEED contract with Sadara, the first being the propylene oxide unit which was awarded in December 2011 and is currently being executed by our Thailand office. Underpinned by our proven track record in providing world-class project execution and project management skills, Foster Wheeler is committed to bringing our global in-depth technical experience and expertise to assist Sadara in realizing its project and investment goals safely and with no compromise on quality.”