New Danfoss VLT® Decentral Drive E cient, reliable and powerful

NEWS
IN BRIEF
Rockwell Automation has reported
sales for the 2010 fiscal year worth
$4,857m – a 12% increase on 2009.
CEO Keith Nosbusch reports signs
that spending on large capital
projects is improving, although
timings are still uncertain. He is
predicting a revenue growth for 2011
of 8–12%.
RS Components is offering more
than 30,000 own-brand products
under the RS Essentials banner, with
the claim that they are, on average,
20% cheaper than branded
manufacturers’ prices. The precise
savings will vary, with some being
above 20%. The products include
bearings, tools, controls, power
supplies and cables. All of the
products are tested in-house by RS.
The market analyst Frost & Sullivan
predicts that the European Scada
market, which as worth $1,325m in
2009, will expand to more than
$1,900m by 2016. This growth will
be driven by investments in Europe’s
electricity and water sectors,
supported by EU funding. Security
regulations and compliance demands
will also spur demand, it adds.
The Welsh Assembly is investing
£26m in a project called Astute
(Advanced SusTainable
manUfacturing TEchnologies) aimed
at boosting manufacturing industry
by creating more than 130 skilled
jobs and helping 350 enterprises and
40 collaborative r&d projects to get
off the ground. The scheme, which is
targeting the automotive and
aerospace sectors, is being led by
Swansea University.
Parker Hannifin and Brammer have
signed a strategic pan-European
partnership agreement, designed to
extend the level of support and
product availability that both
companies offer to customers in the
fluid power sector. Initially covering
15 countries, the agreement will
provide guaranteed supply of Parker
pneumatic, hydraulic, filtration and
instrumentation components and
systems to key accounts and endusers.
David Harrow, managing director of
Godiva Bearings, has been
appointed president of the European
Power Transmission Distributors
Association for 2010/2011.
Despite declining during 2009, the
global market for gears, drives and
speed changers is expected to surge
in the coming years. A recent report
from Global Industry Analysts says
that Europe remains the largest
market, accounting for more than
30% of global sales, but Asia-Pacific
is the fastest-growing region with an
annual growth rate predicted to be
more than 5% for the next few years.
Global drives sales
‘will return to 2008
levels next year’
THE GLOBAL market for low-voltage AC and DC
drives will return to double-digit growth this year
with revenues reaching $10.5bn, and 16.4
million drives being shipped. In a new report, the
market analyst IMS Research predicts that drives
sales will return to 2008 levels during 2011.
Although the drives market did suffer as a
result of the recession, it was not as severely
affected as many other automation product
markets. Total revenues in 2009 are estimated
to have been $9.3bn – a 13% decline from
2008, and just below 2007 levels. Around 13.9
million drives were shipped during 2009 – an
8% drop from 2008.
Unit sales declined much less (in percentage
terms) last year than revenues because of a shift
in demand from standard and premium drives
to compact models. This shift resulted from
customers’ increased price sensitivity due to the
downturn, coupled with the increased
capabilities of compact drives, allowing them to
be used in a wider range of applications.
“Companies across the board have reported
Spectris pays $51m for
industrial comms specialist
THE BRITISH instrumentation
and controls group Spectris
has bought the US industrial
networking specialist N-Tron,
for $51m. The acquisition is
in line with Spectris' strategy
to expand its key business
segments.
N-Tron, based in Mobile,
Alabama, will become part
UK owner:
an N-Tron Ethernet switch
of Spectris’ Industrial Controls segment and will co-operate
with another US subsidiary Red Lion Controls, which supplies
operator interface products. N-Tron, which employs around
60 people, will keep its own brand and sales structure.
N-Tron’s industrial communications products include
managed and unmanaged Ethernet switches, media
converters, power-over-Ethernet equipment, and wireless
access devices.
“The acceptance of Ethernet in the industrial market for
integrating shop-floor information within the business IT
infrastructure is rapidly increasing,” says Spectris CEO, John
O'Higgins. “N-Tron's hardware capabilities will enable us to
leverage Red Lion's communications technologies to meet this
demand and to build our position in the industrial controls
market around the world.”
Spectris, whose headquarters are in Egham, Surrey, employs
around 5,800 worldwide and has offices in 29 countries.
increased compact drives sales both during the
downturn and in the recovery, causing large
disparities between revenue and unit growth,”
says IMS analyst, Sarah Sultan. “As the
premium drives business begins to recover over
the next several months, the disproportion
between revenue and unit growth is expected
to diminish.”
IMS expects the Asia-Pacific region to
overtake EMEA (Europe, the Middle East and
Africa) as the largest regional market for drive
sales this year. The EMEA market is still
struggling as a result of the financial crises in
various European countries, and the weakness
of the Euro.
Nevertheless, IMS is forecasting a small
positive growth in the EMEA region during
2010, with a return to double-digit growth
during 2011. By contrast, it predicts that the
Asia-Pacific region will to grow by more than
20% in 2010, after declining by only a few per
cent during 2009.
www.imsresearch.com
Modified
enclosures
take 7 days
RITTAL HAS announced a
service called RittalXpress that
will deliver custom-modified
enclosures within seven
working days of an order being
placed online or by phone.
The service has been created
following market research and
discussions with customers
which revealed a need for a
turnkey service that delivers
cost-effective, pre-configured
enclosures quickly.
Customers can order
enclosures via a dedicated Web
site, where they can search for
products by application, size, IP
rating, material or part number.
Compatible accessories can
then be added from a selection
suitable for the chosen part.
Modifications can be
specified, including simple
square or round holes, or more
complex cut-outs such as holes
for fans and filters, and baying
kits. The modifications can be
made to any enclosure face.
www.rittal.co.uk
4 November/December 2010 www.drives.co.uk