Category Archives: Information

UK Electronics Company Develop Parts For Britwind Wind Turbines

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UK electronics company develop bespoke coil and machinery for wind turbine manufacturer

AGW Electronics have designed and developed a bespoke coil and associated winding machine for UK wind turbine manufacturer Britwind.

Due to the compact nature and unusual shape of the wind turbine, standard products were unable to be used. AGW have not only ensured that the coil was wound with great control and precision, but also manufactured a specific machine allowing them to fulfil this order.

Initially, Britwind approached AGW with a prototype coil that had been made in parts where the separate wire strands had to be soldered together. This had been challenging and the coil that was developed was subject to vulnerability and quality problems, as well as taking up some needed space in the design.

AGW were able to develop a bespoke coil which had a continuous run of the wire strands (so no solder joints) despite the coil winding having to change direction.

“We knew that we would be able to provide a solution to our client’s challenge, however, initially we did not have a machine at that time that was capable of making the specified coil. As specialists in the design and manufacture of bespoke electronics components we manufactured a specific machine to allow us to fulfil their requirements.”
Nigel Godwin, MD AGW

We hope that our new development for this company will allow us to work further with other similar companies in this industry with cost effective results.

“The winding component was very technically challenging, however AGW displayed their knowledge and years of technical experience throughout the process and their winding technique achieved a very consistent control of the coil. We had great communication with AGW all the way through the project and we were very impressed by their resourcefulness in building a bespoke machine.”
Mike Wastling, Technical Director, Britwind.

agw britwind-logo

Workshop – HSE Inspectors Guide to Electrical Safety

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Workshop – HSE Inspectors Guide to Electrical Safety – 14th September 2016

This workshop will be delivered by current and former Specialist Electrical Inspectors with extensive industry experience including giving guidance to duty holders, experience with serious incident investigations and enforcement action. The workshop is based on HSE’s practical enforcement experience which arises out of the businesses it inspects, generally those in the higher risk industries but also those where although the hazards can be high, the risks are thought to be well-controlled.

The workshop will give you a practical understanding of what HSE inspectors are looking for in the control of general electrical safety risks, including the risk and appropriate controls. You will review known high risk electrical safety issues together with the appropriate controls based on HSE’s investigation experiences and understand the practical application of HSE’s Enforcement Management Model.

The course will cover:

  • Relevant legislation, guidance and industry best practice.
  • High-risk and priority issues an HSE inspector will focus on in general electrical safety.
  • Managing electrical distribution networks and controlling risks to third parties; legislation, guidance.
  • How to reflect on and plan for any necessary improvements in the control of risks associated with electricity before an HSE inspector calls.
  • Electrical safety issues that are likely to trigger enforcement action.
  • What happens when things go wrong? (An insight into forensic investigation)

Who should attend?

Health and Safety Professionals responsible for managing or advising on the interface between businesses and the HSE.  Business owners, senior managers and technical specialists responsible for managing and controlling general electrical safety risks. Owners and operators of both public (licenced) and private (unlicenced) electrical distribution networks.

Venue

The course will be run at the HSL laboratory in the spa town of Buxton. Buxton is in the heart of the Peak District and has good links to mainline train stations and Manchester International Airport.

Details of hotels in the Buxton area can be found at www.visitbuxton.co.uk

Cost

The cost of this course is £495 per person (includes course notes, lunch and refreshments).

More Details

For more details, or to book on this please click here

Details via HSL website.

 

Where Does The UK Get Its Energy From ?

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The UK is consuming less energy than it did in 1998 and more of the energy we are consuming is coming from renewable sources.

However, at the same time, the decline in North Sea oil and gas production has meant the UK has become increasingly dependent on imports of energy.

But just how dependent are we? How do we compare to our European neighbours? And what are we importing and where is it coming from?

UK energy: consumption down and renewable energy up

There was a 17% fall in the amount of energy used by the UK between 1998 and 2015.

This may be explained by:

  • the increased use of energy-efficient technologies by households and firms
  • government policies designed to reduce energy consumption
  • a decline of UK manufacturing, especially in energy-intensive industries

Reliance on imported energy rises back up to 1970 levels

Despite the overall fall in UK energy consumption and the increasing use of renewable and waste sources, the UK’s reliance on imported energy has returned to the levels last seen around the mid-to late-1970s.

In recent years our reliance on imported energy has been on an upward trend but it has now fallen from its recent peak in 2013.

All EU countries now import more energy than they export

All EU countries imported more energy than they exported in 2014. In terms of rankings, of the 28 EU countries the UK was the 12th most dependent on foreign sources of energy; less reliant than Germany and Italy but more reliant than Sweden and the Netherlands.

Furthermore, in 2014 the UK’s import dependency was below the EU average and the UK was the least dependent on foreign sources of energy out of the five EU countries who consumed the largest amounts of energy overall (namely Germany, France, Italy, Spain and the UK).

However, even though the UK’s reliance on imported energy is still below its EU neighbours, the UK is now more in line with them than it has been in recent history.

Since 1998 the UK has gone from being a net exporter to a net importer of energy while Germany, Spain, France and Italy have all consistently imported more energy than they exported.

From oil and natural gas from Norway to coal and diesel from Russia – just where do our energy imports come from?

In 2015 the UK’s main types of imported fuel were crude oil, natural gas and petroleum products (for example, petrol and diesel). We also imported electricity and coal and other types of solid fuel (like wood) in smaller amounts.

Electricity imports

It might seem strange but the UK does actually import electricity that is created elsewhere. Imports of electricity made up 1% of our fuel imports in 2015.

This electricity is imported via interconnectors and it comes mainly from France and the Netherlands.

Information via gov.uk

power-lines

AEG Creates Hybrid Energy Storage System

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AEG Power Solutions, a global provider of power electronic systems and solutions for industrial power supplies and renewable energy applications, today announced it has developed a unique Hybrid Energy Storage System which combines standard battery storage with power-to-heat technology to reduce the total cost of energy storage operation.

The solution can be installed in any type of facility which uses thermal processes, including local heat networks in combination with an electrical distribution network.

With the Hybrid Energy Storage solution from AEG PS, the power conversion system (PCS) becomes the central key element operating the power management and controls both the battery as well as the heating system. The PCS and all equipment required for grid connection (e.g. transformer and switch gear) therefore are used for both the batteries and the heater. The platform allows for all typical applications of standard battery energy storage in particular, frequency regulation; bby combining both systems, the capacity of the thermal storage adds up to the battery storage capacity.

“Technically, in a stand-alone battery energy storage system, explains Andreas Becker, Product Manager at AEG Power Solutions, it’s necessary to keep a battery charge stable at the 50% level in order to provide grid frequency regulation. By combining it with a power to heat system, we allow extra energy to go to the thermal process. The battery can then operate at 100% capacity.”

This in fact leads to dividing the battery total capacity required by almost two. Taking into account that they represent usually around 70% of an energy storage installation, the economic benefit of the innovation is obvious and the payback period of the investment is approximately 3 years faster in a primary control power market.

AEG Power Solutions engineers the complete solution and provides the key components such as the power conversion hardware and the power management software.

AEG PS is an innovator in energy storage and management thanks to its many decades of experience in the world of UPS, power electronics, batteries as well as international grid connection compliance. This unique combination of know-how has been leveraged to design products and solutions for energy storage.

AEG

Factories Act 1961

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Factories Act 1961 – Memorandum on the Electricity Regulations

Today I was having a look at some old books I had and I found a copy of the Factories Act 1961 – Memorandum on the Electricity Regulations produced by the Health and Safety Executive.  Makes an interesting read, some old ways of working in this one !

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