Dec 2 2015
Six innovative Scottish technology companies have established a new industry alliance focused on providing condition monitoring products and related services to the UK and international utilities sector.
The companies offer a range of specialist services – from hardware development to analytics and visualisation tools that assist the UK’s Transmission and Distribution Network Operators and international utilities to deliver on asset management strategies that minimiseoperations and maintenance (O&M) costs.
The Scottish Condition Monitoring Alliance (SCMA) has been formed by Elimpus Ltd, an established provider of a range of radio frequency partial discharge monitoring products and services that allow utilities to better manage operational and safety risks associated with high-voltage plant and equipment.
Elimpus clients include the National Grid, ScottishPower and SSE. George McBride, managing director at Elimpus, said that the new Alliance would highlight the strengths of a cluster of innovative condition monitoring suppliers based in Scotland and reflected the fact that several were already working in partnership to deliver a number of R&D and business as usual projects for clients.
The other founding members of the Alliance, announced at the industry’s Low Carbon Networks & Innovation Conference in Liverpool (Nov 24-26), include:
A high tech software company and University of Strathclyde spin-out whose Lumen® platform helps utilities employ cutting-edge tools to rapidly interpret operational data and take cost-saving decisions faster.
Established by the internationally-recognised partial discharge expert and former University of Strathclyde academic, Professor Martin Judd, the company provides a range of technical services and training focused on high voltage condition monitoring technologies, partial discharge measurement and diagnostics, and electromagnetic phenomena.
A data analytics company providing new insight to distribution networks for utility companies. Losstek helps operators improve efficiency and gain added value from the vast amounts of data in monitored network assets.
A provider of transformer consultancy and technical support services which was recently awarded a three-year contract by Iberdrola (ScottishPower Energy Networks).
A University of Strathclyde spin-out developing new technologies involving an innovative application of optical fibre sensors to allowing direct measurement of electrical current and voltage using existing fibreoptic infrastructure installed in the power networks.
The Alliance will focus on developing new partnering and business development opportunities among its members, enabling each company to offer a wider range of innovative products and services to utility and OEM clients.
Collaboration efforts will also involve the continued cooperation on DNO-funded R&D projects delivering new condition monitoring technologies to UK utilities.
The Scottish Condition Monitoring Alliance will help build on the spirit of collaboration and cooperation already demonstrated by its founding members.
While Elimpus has been providing innovative products and services to utilities for almost a decade, we are excited to work with the new players in the condition monitoring space.
The opportunities to work with our utility customers to help them address challenging asset management and condition monitoring issues are significant and growing each year.
Working with other dynamic SMEs in this space will help address these opportunities and enable us to offer customers access to the right expertise from technical services to analytics at the right time.
George McBride - Elimpus