Electricity + Control December 2018

round up TRANSFORMERS + SUBSTATIONS

Africa’s first ester transformer fluid factory opens

create local employment opportunities through the use of locally grown raw ma- terials used in manufacturing MIDEL fluids. Giles Salt, CEO of M&I Materials com- mented, “Developments in the energy infrastructure sector across Africa pres- ent a great opportunity for our products. The opening of this manufacturing facility demonstrates our commitment to Sub-Sa- haran Africa, and we look forward to provid- ing products and technical support to pow-

M&I Materials has announced the opening of manufacturing operations in South Afri- ca, to produce its MIDEL brand of fire safe and biodegradable ester dielectric fluids for electricity transformers.The plant is the first in Africa to make ester transformer fluids, and is the latest addition to MIDEL’s growing global manufacturing footprint. MIDEL has already been selected by a South African transformer manufacturer to supply the fluid for 6 000 transformers operated by Eskom. MIDEL has been trusted by the world’s leading utilities and transformer manufac- turers since the 1970s, and is a fire and environmentally safe alternative to the traditional transformer coolant, mineral oil, which is flammable, toxic and non-biode- gradable. UK-based M&I Materials opened an office in South Africa in 2017, and en- tered into a manufacturing agreement with ISEGEN South Africa to manufacture the MIDEL natural ester fluids which are made from local soybean or rapeseed crops. The M&I Materials plant at ISEGEN will be used exclusively for the manufacture of MIDEL fluids. The M&I Materials investment will

er utilities and transformer manufacturers across the region.” Johannesburg-based Victor Khuboni, MIDEL’s Business Devel- opment Manager for Sub-Saharan Africa, pointed out that manufacturing MIDEL es- ter transformer fluids in Africa will support local manufacturing, increase skills devel- opment and create transformational oppor- tunities in local communities.

Enquiries: Vin Staniforth. Email vinstaniforth@mimaterials.com

Ribbon cutting: The opening of the plant was marked by a ceremonial ribbon cutting, and a celebratory breakfast attended by representatives from across the electricity infrastructure sector.

Factory Tour: The attendees were given a detailed tour of the factory facilities.

Saving space withWEG CWB range of contactors

to purchase additional auxiliary contacts. This feature also offers greater flexibility as it facilitates optimisation of the internal space in electrical panels. In another innovation, the contactors have been engineered with integral surge suppressor blocks without increasing the physical size of the devices. This limits undesired interference which could be caused during the opening of the con- tactor coils and allows for the front mount surge suppressor to be easily removed without the use of special tools. Energy saving is achieved through the low consumption of the coils used in the WEG CWB contactors and because the coil con- sumes such low current it is possible to allow direct switching from PLCs without the need for interface relays. This facilitates space and cost savings for the end-user. Enquiries:Tel. +27 (0) 11 723 6000 or email marketing@zestweg.com

Engineered to provide the most compact contactor solution, the WEG CWB range of devices offers a width space saving of up to 18%. Add to this that the range was developed according to IEC 60947 and UL 508 international standards and you will understand why this new generation contactor is finding such favour with elec- trical contractors. Developed in two frame sizes, the new WEG CWB line of contactors meets a range of industrial and domestic application requirements. The first contactor in the range, covering up to 38 A, has a width of only 45 mm while the second contactor, ranging from 40 to 80 A, has a width of 54 mm. Two mounting options, standard DIN rail or oblong mounting holes, make inter- changeability easy. Significantly, the space saving offered by the WEG CWB contactors, especially when compared to similar prod- uct ranges, will allow contractors to use six contactors where pre- viously only five could be used. Another innovative engineering feature is the use of WEG’s Ze- ro-Width mechanical interlocking system. Traditionally, contactors use a mechanical interlock device that is external to the contactor. The Zero-Width system facilitates quick and easy mechanical inter- locking between contactors, without the need for tools. In addition, this feature allows the user to build a reversing starter up to 38 A with a total width of only 90 mm. Built-in front 1NO+1NC auxiliary contacts not only further enhance the space saving benefit of the WEG CWB contactors, but also eliminate the need for contractors

Electricity + Control

DECEMBER 2018

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