Automation Software News

The U.S. in recent days suspended licenses for nuclear equipment suppliers to sell to China's power plants, according to four people familiar with the matter, as the two countries engage in a damaging trade war.The suspensions were issued by the U.S. Department of Commerce, the people said, and affect export licenses for parts and equipment used with nuclear power plants.Nuclear equipment suppliers are among a wide range of companies whose sales have been restricted over the past two weeks as the U.S.-China trade war shifted from negotiating tariffs to throttling each other's supply chains.

A new Mayflower has been launched in Plymouth, 400 years after its historic namesake set sail from southwest England to America.The new vessel won't be carrying pilgrim settlers across the Atlantic. In fact, it won't hold any crew or passengers at all. The sleek AI- and solar-powered trimaran is autonomy level five, meaning it can operate independently with no human intervention. Next year, it will embark on the famous ocean voyage from Plymouth, England to Plymouth, Mass. completely autonomously…

ABB to deliver advanced integrated automation and electrical solution for largest Italian public work project of the last century. ABB will supply the complete integrated electrical and automation system for Mo.S.E. (the Italian acronym for experimental electro mechanic module), a flood barrier system designed to block the high tides and storm surges that enter the Venetian Lagoon year after year through three inlets and regularly flood the historic center of Venice. ABB received the automation order in 2015 and the electrical order in early 2016. Together the orders total more than $38 million. The innovative solution will utilize ABB’s Internet of Things…

WAGO’s new software development environment e!COCKPIT supports automation tasks, from hardware configuration, programming, networking and simulation to visualization – in one easy-to-use, intuitive package. e!COCKPIT offers a seamless synchronized platform for automation development, allowing engineers to develop applications quickly and conveniently, slashing their time-to-market. Optimized to work with the PFC200, e!COCKPIT  helps users leverage the multiple fieldbus compatibility…

Vard Holdings Limited (VARD) has announced that through its subsidiary Seaonics, it has acquired ICD Software, a leading provider of automation and control system software for the offshore and marine sectors. Established in 2011 and 51% controlled by VARD, Seaonics delivers winches, cranes and handling equipment to the offshore and maritime sector. The company has developed cranes for critical offshore lifting operations up to 250t, and is one of the market leaders for Launch and Recovery Systems (LARS). Prior to the transaction, Seaonics employed 50 employees in Norway and a subsidiary in Poland. ICD Software is specialized in the development of automation software and control systems, and employs 63, half of which in Norway and the remainder in two subsidiaries in Poland and Estonia.

Kalmar, part of Cargotec, has been awarded a contract to provide an integrated automation system to handle operations at Victoria International Container Terminal Ltd's (VICT) new terminal in Melbourne, Australia. According to the contract, Kalmar will be responsible for the delivery of the control systems of automatic stacking cranes (ASCs) and AutoShuttles, and terminal logistic system (TLS) as well as for the integration of the system components and terminal operating system (TOS). The value of this new automation contract is approximately EUR 15 million and it has been booked into Cargotec's 2014 fourth quarter order intake. The contract follows an order for 12 ASCs and 11 AutoShuttles received in September 2014. Furthermore, the TOS will be provided by Navis, part of Cargotec.

Konecranes has signed an agreement to deliver an Automated RTG (ARTG) system to Indonesian state-owned terminal operator PT Pelabuhan Indonesia III (Persero), (“Pelindo III”). This will be the world’s first commercially operational Automated RTG system. The order comprises 11 ARTG cranes, Remote Operating Stations (ROSs) and container yard automation infrastructure such as intelligent container stack gates. Delivery is scheduled for 2015. The parties involved have agreed not to disclose the value of the order. The government of Indonesia is building a nationwide freight transport system to improve the movement of goods through the country’s vast waterways. As part of this program, Pelindo III will extend its Terminal Petikemas Semarang (TPKS) in Semarang, Central Java.

Mirage Machines, an Acteon company, received a significant uplift in sales last year due to ongoing targeted online lead generation campaigns. Specialist engineering company Mirage, based in Derby U.K., supply high spec on-site machines to companies around the world, specializing in pipe maintenance and hot tapping equipment for the oil and gas industry. Mirage launched a new website in early 2013 and sought to capitalize on a long standing historical trend of traffic closely correlating with sales.

ABB won an order to provide an energy management system for one a new Viking Line cruise ferry, being built at STX Turku in Finland and due for delivery in 2013. The new ship measures 214m long and has a top speed of 22 knots, able to carry 2,800 passengers o the route connecting Turku, Finland and Stockholm, Sweden. The ship will use liquefied natural gas (LNG) as its fuel, which will be a first for a passenger vessel of this size. Through efficient use of this fuel, the ship will have extremely low emissions and virtually zero marine emissions. Viking Line chose ABB’s energy management system for marine applications software - EMMA…

ABB to provide energy management system for new Viking Line ferry. Smart energy tool to provide substantial fuel savings for environmentally friendly cruise ferry, helping it reach a target of zero marine emissions. ABB, a power and automation technology group, has won an order to provide an energy management system for one of the world’s most environmentallyfriendly cruise ferries, which is due to be delivered to Viking Line in 2013. The ship is being built in Finland at the STX Yard in Turku.

Corvus Energy Implements Greenlight Innovation’s Sophisticated Battery Test Equipment. Greenlight Innovation’s End-of-the-Line Test System to Verify Lithium Polymer Battery Performance. Corvus Energy Ltd., a leading lithium-polymer battery pack integrator, announced today that it has selected Greenlight Innovation’s sophisticated and reliable battery test equipment to verify the performance of its 6.5 kWh battery modules at multiple manufacturing sites. Corvus Energy manufactures and integrates energy solutions for commercial and industrial applications, ranging from airport ground handling equipment to truck APUs, marine hybrid, and heavy industrial applications.

Machinery plant maintenance represents a major expense for ship operators. In addition to normal maintenance expenditures, unexpected breakdowns have a significant cost impact. Recognizing the importance of preventing equipment failures, companies continue to adopt automation for machinery monitoring at a rapid pace. Continual improvements in the price/performance ratio of automation systems have also fueled their increased use in shipboard machinery plant monitoring. As a result, more ships with automated machinery plants exist today than ever before. However, just as a typical Internet search can easily create "information overload", so too can process automation create a "data overload" situation for the engineering crews responsible for equipment operation and maintenance.