From 10 to 15 July 2011 the Illumination Engineering Society of South Africa (IESSA) will host the 27th session of the International Commission on Illumination (CIE) at Sun City. IESSA is proud to host this important event and invites everyone with an interest in lighting to attend... (more)
ECA(UK) president warns of ticking time bomb for UK industry
Information from Voltimum.co.uk
Speaking after her inauguration as the first female president of the ECA (Electrical Contractors' Association) in the UK, Diane Johnson gave a stark warning about the skills shortage there. "We are sitting on a ticking time bomb. If we don't act now, we will not have the home-grown talent needed to fulfill this country's potential."... (more)
Cable and conductor theft
Information from Eskom
All too often in South Africa the responsibility for electricity-related deaths and injuries can be laid at the feet of people who steal conductors, electricity cables and make illegal connections to the network. Even when injuries do not result, these illegal activities cause overloading of the network and unplanned outages... (more)
How to transform your business - get your black belt in "Six Sigma"
by EE Publishers staff writer
Book Review: The Six Sigma Way by PS Pand, RP Neuman and RR Cavanagh. Part 4 of a four-part series. This might be "the most important new core competency your organisation will need to develop in the 21st century. Understanding what customers really want"... (more)
Response to "An energy crisis or not?"
by Frank Spencer, Emergent Energy
I am surprised at the negative tone expressed towards diversified energy, carbon emission caps and renewable energy by Dr. Philip Lloyd in "An energy crisis or not?" He expresses that "diversity of energy resources is a luxury you can afford if you have enough."... (more)
Response to Frank Spencer (above) by Dr. Philip Lloyd, CPUT
First, I must disagree with your love of diversity. Technologies become more robust as they are more widely applied, and that is particularly true in a single economy. I give you the example of France, which decided to go nuclear. It now has 58 reactors of essentially an identical design... (more)
PneuDrive Challenge - the winners!
Information from SEW Eurodrive
The members of the team were IN Deetlefs, T Mofokeng, RS du Plessis, AC Oelofse. Their entry was named: "Tshabalala - The Soccer Ball Shooting Machine". The judges looked for a balance between creativity and business acumen. The winning team won a ten-day all-expenses-paid trip to Germany... (more)
Low voltage halogen - lamps and systems
by Brian Rowell, Lightworx
Low voltage lamps have been around since the mid 80s and created quite a stir in the lighting market. Due to their small size, precise beam control and relatively high light output, their acceptance was very wide and covered many applications... (more)
Absolute photometry and solid state lighting (SSL)
Information from Lighting Analysts
The recent explosion in LED based lighting products (SSL) has resulted in confusion among those not familiar with the photometric testing procedures necessary for such products... (more)
Modules or hybrids?
Information from Vepac
When considering commercial off-theshelf (COTS) DC/DC converters, it is important to compare the traditional hybrid approach with the use of COTS modules to establish whether the benefits of COTS have any disadvantages and whether the claimed advantages of hybrid circuits are real... (more)
Applying variable speed drives on a generator power source
by John T Streicher, Rockwell Automation
This article is about powering a typical AC drive from a generator source. Some data is theoretical and some from installations. It is hoped that this article will give readers a better understanding of the drive/generator system... (more)
Creating memorable architecture while saving energy
Information from ABB
In order to minimise energy consumption and running costs, the Peter Mokaba Stadium installed a KNX control solution. Over 153 distribution boards were completed with ABB MCB and KNX devices. The installation consisted of 270 devices and eight lines, with a total of 1064 I/Os on the system controlling lighting... (more)
Calibration - the science of applied accuracy Information from Endress+Hauser
Accuracy - it's the one test no flow meter can afford to fail. A customer paying $100 a barrel of crude oil and achieving an accuracy improvement of only 0,1% for 100 000 barrels a day could gain $3,6-million a year in extra profit... (more)
Power quality instruments add reliability to oceanographic research
Information from Comtest
Safety and operational considerations make it essential to monitor the battery arrays in deep-sea submersible research vessels, so a Fluke digital multimeter was selected to do the job. The meter serves as a permanently mounted voltmeter that constantly monitors the state of the batteries... (more)
Battery monitoring
by Loic Moreau, LEM
The infrastructure that underpins contemporary society must operate with very high reliability. In contrast to the advanced technology deployed in high tech applications, most of them rely on a very mature technology: the lead-acid battery... (more)
An invitation from the lighting sector 