The attendance of US President Barack Obama at the opening of Hannover Messe yesterday has focussed attention on global industry.

“As President I have worked to make sure that we are sustaining the spirit of innovation in the United States,” Mr Obama said at the launch event, representing the USA, which is the “Partner Country” for Hannover Messe 2016. Over 5,000 businesses, including AuCom, are exhibiting their products and services at Hannover.

As pioneers and market leading innovators in soft start, AuCom are continually striving to be at the cutting edge of motor control technology. From their beginnings in 1978, to today, with expert teams located around the globe, the soft start specialists have maintained an unwavering passion for delivering the absolute best fixed speed motor control solutions.

The global market for soft starters is tipped to experience strong growth from 2015-2020, according to a report published by global research firm Markets and Markets.

Amidst soft global economic growth, the soft starter market will grow at a compound annual growth rate of 6.7%, from $US1.2 billion in 2015 to $US1.7 billion by 2020, concludes the Markets and Markets study “Motor Soft Starter Market”, available online for purchase here.

Markets and Markets point to an increase in development projects in sectors like oil & gas, water & wastewater, mining industries and power infrastructure. “Increasing acceptance of motor control and protection across (these) industries has driven the demand for motor soft starters around the world,” says the report.

CAPIEL have released their new position paper which details the importance of a system approach to energy saving: Ecodesign Requirements for Electric Motors - Towards a System-Approach

The brochure discusses the value of matching the motor and control method to the actual application needs, and provides some interesting statistics regarding energy usage and the application of electric motors.

Notably, CAPIEL point out that 80% of electric motor applications are in reality fixed speed applications, and assert that “motor starters are the most energy-efficient solution for fixed-speed applications”.  Mistakenly using VSD control with fixed speed applications will increase energy usage. In fact, a “VSD if incorrectly fitted can result in an energy efficiency loss equivalent to twice the potential gain from IE2 to IE3”.