Control Automation Feature Library

Operations Engineer's library catalogues editorial features going back five years.

Access to all archive material is free to all, including non-members of IPlantE (the Institution of Operations Engineers) or BES (Bureau of Engineer Surveyors), under the umbrella of SOE (Society of Operations Engineers). However, to discover the many benefits of becoming an SOE member, please click here.

06/02/2012 Pole position Although control valve, actuator and positioner technologies develop only relatively slowly, there have been advances that offer practical, diagnostic and cost/benefit issues. Brian Tinham reports » Read More

06/02/2012 Manchester Airport saves 4,000 MWh on ABB drives and motors A project to upgrade the air handling units at Manchester Airport is saving 4,000 MWh, as well as cutting CO2 emissions by over 2,000 tonnes a year. » Read More

06/02/2012 Emerson’s smart wireless technology helps Swedish paper mill Swedish paper and board firm Korsnäs Gävle is reporting better environmental compliance verification since installing Emerson Process Management's Smart Wireless instrumentation. » Read More

06/02/2012 Restored Italian mill generates clean micro-hydrolelectric power A former water mill, at Travesio in northern Italy, has been renovated and converted into a micro-hydroelectric scheme, and is now saving 500 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions per year. » Read More

06/02/2012 Welsh Water improves efficiency with new gearboxes Welsh Water is reporting improved efficiency at one of its sewage treatment works since replacing old worm gear drives on six half-bridge scrapers with planetary gearboxes that were a direct fit for the original boxes. » Read More

06/02/2012 Cement fan solution keeps plant in production A design fault on a large centrifugal fan that could have caused Hanson Cement's plant in Clitheroe to stop production, due to a failure to comply with emission regulations, has been resolved by Brammer. » Read More

06/02/2012 Really Useful Products’ makes really useful savings International plastics manufacturer Really Useful Products says it is enjoying a 10% increase in productivity – equating to an extra £3 million of turnover – yet without investment in additional machinery. » Read More

06/02/2012 Maintec 2012 With this year's Maintec show just a few short weeks away, Brian Tinham takes a lok at what engineers, technicians and mangers can expect to find » Read More

06/02/2012 Plant & Asset Management 2012 Does the industrial maintenance sector need another exhibition? The organisers of MACH, Drives & Controls, Air-Tech and IFPEX clearly think so. Brian Tinham looks at the line-up » Read More

06/02/2012 Shock tactics About 1,000 accidents at work involving electric shock or burns – of which around 30 prove fatal – are still reported to the HSE annually. Brian Wall investigates procedures that could prevent needless deaths » Read More

06/02/2012 Electric motor loading Electric motor loading is key to energy efficiency. That's the warning from Marek Lukaszczyk, who wants plant engineers to assess their electric motors as a matter of urgency. Brian Tinham reports » Read More

06/02/2012 Mass production Coriolis mass flowmeters have been improving in sophistication and reducing in cost for at least 25 years, but now the race is on for multi-phase metering. Brian Tinham reports » Read More

06/02/2012 DSEAR hazards Although DSEAR (Dangerous Systems and Explosive Atmospheres Regulations) was enacted back in 2003, its implications for hazardous plant are still misunderstood. Barrie Church explains » Read More

06/02/2012 Bio or non-bio? Bio energy plants are being touted as offering significant economic as well as environmental benefits. Steed Webzell explains the sustainable technologies involved and assesses what plant engineers need to know » Read More

06/02/2012 Power play Combined heat and power, and energy storage plants are the biggest games in town. Brian Tinham looks at latest developments » Read More

06/02/2012 It’s all about engineering As Chancellor George Osborne ramps up the rhetoric on manufacturing, with his 'march of the makers' theme, while Prime Minister David Cameron and much of the coalition cabinet dance to a similar 'rebalancing the economy' tune, British ... » Read More

07/12/2011 Cool and legal Nearly every commercial and industrial building has refrigeration plant. Some is well maintained, some not – until things go wrong. John Cherry updates plant engineers on their duties » Read More

07/12/2011 Pedigree steam traps save Marston’s £60,000 in first year One year after upgrading its steam traps with up-to-date equipment from Spirax Sarco, Marston's Brewery is reporting savings of £60,000 in energy and hot water costs. » Read More

07/12/2011 Pulsar ultrasonics are no slouch to sludge Wessex Water is reporting success with seven new sludge blanket monitors, from Pulsar Process Measurement, at its Christchurch sewage treatment works. » Read More

07/12/2011 Wastewater treatment plant slashes down-time and maintenance Shasun Pharma Solutions is reporting vastly reduced maintenance, zero recalibration, and easier, more accurate and more reliable monitoring since moving to Hach Lange sensor equipment for its wastewater plant. » Read More

07/12/2011 Variable speed drive compressor cuts Celotex energy costs Insulation board manufacturer Celotex is reporting reduced energy consumption and improved air supply quality since replacing its compressor with an Atlas Copco variable speed drive, oil-free unit, equipped with a heat regenerative IMD ... » Read More

07/12/2011 MasoSine pump provides rapid drum unloading at Britvic Britvic is reporting that four MasoSine SPS pumps, from Watson-Marlow, built into a bespoke drum unloading system, are allowing its plant to unload 45 gallon (200 litre) drums of fruit juice concentrate, four at a time, in just two minutes. » Read More

07/12/2011 Extracting rewards Avoiding risk, safeguarding the workforce and complying with health and safety regulations are key goals of dust and fume extraction equipment. But there's also a financial reward to be reaped, reports Brian Wall » Read More

07/12/2011 Maintain your guard Health and safety regulations continue to be breached, with sometimes tragic, as well as costly consequences. David Lewis reviews the legal landscape and some salutary cases » Read More

07/12/2011 Bearing the brunt Long-term performance of plant and machinery owes a great deal to using the right lubricants in the right quantities at the right time. Get it wrong and it could prove very costly, warns Brian Wall » Read More