October 2023 www.drivesncontrols.com 8 n NEWS THE UK DC DRIVES manufacturer Sprint Electric is expanding into the AC drives market with the launch of a range of regenerative AC drives at the SPS 2023 exhibition in Germany in November. The company describes its new Generis drive as the next generation of AC drive technology, delivering cost-effective and reliable AC motor control combined with energy regeneration and low input current harmonics. The drive uses a “unique” patented switching technology with no DC link. It gives full fourquadrant control as standard, as well as unity power factor and minimal input current distortion. Four-quadrant control avoids the need for active front-end drives or braking resistors, simplifying the control of AC motors in complex applications. Removing the DC link “massively” reduces harmonic distortion to the mains supply as well as improving drive efficiency. The drive will control all types of AC motor in open- or closed-loop configurations, maximising its range of potential applications. Sprint has been developing the new drive over the past five years in partnership with Nottingham University as part of a Knowledge Transfer Partnership – the part grant-funded scheme that helps UK businesses to innovate using expertise from UK universities. The company has attracted £2.5m of funding, with £2m of this coming from trusts managed by the Foresight Group private equity business, and £500,000 from the Midlands Engine Investment Fund (MEIF), which is supported by the European Union via its European Regional Development Fund. The Generis drives will be available from February 2024 in ratings up to 22kW. More sizes will be introduced over the coming three years, eventually spanning ratings up to 200kW. Sprint has yet to decide whether to build the drives in-house or to sub-contract their manufacture, but says that they will be built in the UK. “This release has been a long time in the making, and the team has worked exceptionally hard to produce this leap in drive technology,” says Sprint’s managing director, Gary Keen. “Generis represents a new level for AC drive technology.” The drive, he adds, “boasts simplified mechanics and does not use electrolytic capacitors, so it has no life-limiting components which degrade with time and temperature. This results in exceptionally high levels of reliability as well as minimising total cost of ownership. “Constant-torque and variable-torque profiles are easily selected, so offering full energy efficiency with short payback periods,” Keen continues. “Generis also includes extended frequency output – a feature often sought in constant-power applications.” The new drive has been designed to simplify control without compromising performance. It is aimed at industries such as converting, metals, print and packaging, and applications such as presses and test rigs. An easy set-up procedure means that Generis can be up-andrunning within minutes. Sprint remains committed to DC drives but Keen points out that the AC regen market is about 40 times the size of the DC market that Sprint currently addresses. Sprint reckons that regen drives account for around 7.5% of the £16bn global AC drives market. There will be a series of presentations on the new drive at the SPS show next month. Founded in 1987, Sprint Electric designs and manufactures digital motor controls up to 1MW for single-phase, three-phase, regenerative and non-regenerative applications. It employs around 20 people and is expanding. It had sales worth £3m in 2022. More than 80% of its production is exported to more than 75 countries. Keen expects that most of the initial sales of the new regen drives will be in the UK. But he thinks that export sales will eventually come to dominate. In the longer term, Sprint’s AC and DC drives ranges will probably share technologies. www.sprint-electric.com Sprint Electric expands into AC market with regenerative drives Sprint Electric directors Gary Keen (left) and Mark Gardiner with one of their new regenerative AC drives EVENTS Advanced Engineering UK 1-2 November, 2023 NEC, Birmingham The organisers of “the UK’s largest exhibition for engineering and manufacturing professionals”say that more than 90% of the exhibition space has already been sold, and the show has been expanded to make space for new exhibitors. The zones present at previous shows are being removed to emphasise cross-industry working and to avoid segregation. www.advancedengineeringuk.com The Manufacturer Live 14-15 November The Exhibition Centre, Liverpool, UK The annual gathering of the manufacturing industry will include the MX Awards, The Manufacturer Director’s Forum, and the Manufacturing Leaders’ Summit – a two-day conference during which experts and influential discussion leaders will share ideas, innovations and real-world experiences. https://info.themanufacturer.com/ the-manufacturer-live SPS 2023 14-16 November, 2023 Nuremberg, Germany The organisers of the Smart Production Solutions show are adding two new halls to this year’s show, taking the total to 16. They are expecting around 1,300 exhibitors at the Nuremberg venue, compared to the 999 for the 2022 event, which attracted 43,813 visitors. https://sps.mesago.com/nuernberg/en Southern Manufacturing & Electronics 2024 6-8 February, 2024 Farnborough The annual regional event is aimed at people involved in design, engineering production and procurement. They can see the latest in production hardware, components, consumables and other technologies. www.industrysouth.co.uk Drives & Controls 4-6 June, 2024 NEC, Birmingham Now part of Manufacturing+Engineering Week, the Drives & Controls show will run alongside other events including Air-Tech, Fluid Power & Systems, Maintec, Smart Factory Expo and Design+Engineering Expo. It will cover areas including industrial automation, energy efficiency, machine safety, drives, motion controls, power transmission and robotics. www.mandeweek.co.uk/ drives-controls-expo-home Manufacturing + Engineering Week 5-6 June, 2024 NEC, Birmingham The event will include Maintec, Smart Factory Expo and Design+Engineering Expo, and will run alongside Drives & Controls, Air-Tech and Fluid Power & Systems. The organisers say that the “Festival of Industrial Innovation” represents the future of manufacturing and engineering in the UK. www.mandeweek.co.uk
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