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Issue No 88                                                                                             March 2015
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Tubatsi Moloi
Cable theft and the plight of the municipality
by Tubatsi Moloi, SA Local Government Association 
 
The monthly cost to South Africa of copper cable theft rose to R13,2-million in October 2014, 43% higher than in the previous year, according to new South African Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SACCI) statistics... (more)

Mark Mfikoe
Retirement funds to be consolidated
by Mark Mfikoe, ECA
 
To best serve the members of the Electrical Contracting Industries Provident Fund, the boards of trustees of the Electrical Contracting Industries Retirement Funds have decided to merge all retirement funds... (more)
R1-billion Kusile contract cancelled, reinstated with ABB
by Chris Yelland, investigative editor, EE Publishers

Eskom announcesd the termination of the approximately €100-million (approx R1-billion) control and instrumentation (C&I) works contract placed with Alstom in 2011 for its 4800 MW Kusile power station... (more)
Mark Botha Workgroup advances efficient lighting, appliances, equipment
by Mark Botha, EE Publishers

Southern Africa could reduce electricity usage by over 35 TWh by transforming its markets to efficient lighting, appliances and equipment. This is equivalent to a 5000 MW saving, enough to electrify 16-million homes... (more)
Fault-tolerant high-power LED systems driving multiple independent loads 
by Prof. Njoroge Gitau, University of Pretoria

The Power Research Group in the Department of Electrical, Electronic and Computer Engineering at the University of Pretoria has developed fault-tolerant LED drivers which are suitable for supplying multiple independent loads... (more)
Extraordinary measures: the role of the lux meter
by Ivan Perre, London Underground

London Underground must provide safe levels of light for customers and staff, but this could be difficult without reliable lux measurements. The company is embracing LED lighting for its low-energy consumption and, more significantly, reduced maintenance... (more)
Ground fault protection in variable frequency drives
by Mervin Savostianik, Littelfuse 

This article explains some aspects of how high resistance grounded (HRG) systems work; examines the various challenges with monitoring ground faults HRGs, and shows how technology can resolve those challenges... (more) 

Electrical, insulation and thermal measurements for motors and drives
Information from Comtest
 
Electrical, insulation resistance and thermal measurement are three tests that can troubleshoot motors, drives and associated electrical panels, and prolong their operational lifetime. Most facilities must obtain maximum life out of their motors because they are expensive to replace... (more)
Explosive environments: fundamentals of area classification 
by Dr. Johannes Auret, Expolabs
 
A guide for plant management and technical staff on how to conduct an area classification, the process whereby the degree of exposure to explosive atmospheres for a plant area is determined... (more) 
Pushing Hall effect technology to new limits
Information from Denver Technical Products
 
Regardless of the type of sensor used in production plant, current transducers can make the link between different systems for monitoring and control accurately, and over a wide temperature range... (more) 
EE winning letter
by Pieter Badenhorst, Mitech 

A pressure reduction station was installed at a Malaysian plant to reduce the pressure of between 30 and 80 tonnes per hour of steam from 106 to 3,5 bar. The station consists of a pressure reducing valve, a conventional desuperheater and a cooling water control valve... (more)

Industrial power and energy savings initiatives in South Africa
by Mike Rycroft, EE Publishers

The electricity crisis of 2008 sparked numerous initiatives to reduce power demand and energy use. This article provides a summary of some of these, their effectiveness and impact. The main purpose of these programmes was to reduce the demand on the grid and to free up generating capacity... (more) 
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