n NEWS June 2025 www.drivesncontrols.com 10 THE WELSH DRIVES-MAKER Invertek Drives has been awarded a 2025 King's Award for International Trade, in recognition of its continuous growth in overseas sales. Exports account for 95% of the company’s sales and grew by 149% over a six-year period, despite challenges such as Covid, Brexit and electronics supply chain disruptions. Invertek, owned since 2019 by Sumitomo Heavy Industries, has doubled the workforce at its Welshpool, Powys headquarters to 420 since 2018. Invertek CEO Adrian Ellam says that the King’s Award “validates our international business strategy and commitment to creating innovative, energy-efficient solutions for global markets. Our VFDs play a crucial role in helping industries worldwide to reduce energy consumption, optimise processes, and minimise environmental impact – all increasingly important as businesses focus on sustainability and operational efficiency.” Other winners of 2025 King’s Awards for International Trade include: n Createc, a Cumbrian R&D business working on sensor technologies, robotics and AI; n Datum Electronics, a manufacturer of sustainable torque and shaft power sensors, based on the Isle of Wight; n FB Chain, located in Hertfordshire, which supplies leaf and conveyor chains; n Antrim-based InspecVision, which manufactures 2D and 3D measurement systems for inspecting components; n Lund Halsey Console Systems; which manufactures control room systems; n Worcestershire-based Seada Technology, which also supplies advanced control room technologies; and n Somerset-based Wittenstein High Integrity Solutions, which provides RTOS (real-time operating system) and related services, and specialises in safety-certified software. King’s Awards for Sustainable Development have gone to the Yorkshirebased seals manufacturer AES Engineering, and the Leicestershire producer of LV switchgear and control panels, Michael Smith Switchgear, which halved its emissions in five years, while achieving a 64% growth in revenues. Inductosense, A Bristol-based business that develops battery-free wireless sensors for non-invasive monitoring of corrosion in industrial equipment, has received a 2025 King’s Award for Innovation. Invertek Drives wins 2025 King’s Award for trade with a 149% spurt SCHNEIDER ELECTRIC has developed an industrial Copilot with Microsoft with the aim of boosting productivity and enhancing efficiency. The generative AIpowered assistant will simplify application development, speed coding, help users to collaborate, improve efficiency and cut time-to-market. The Copilot integrates Microsoft’s Azure AI Foundry with Schneider’s industrial automation portfolio. It builds on Schneider’s expertise in open, software-defined automation. The Copilot will be available as part of Schneider’s EcoStruxure Automation Expert Platform. This integrates hardware and software, enhancing collaboration between Copilots, operators and engineers by providing access to realtime data which it uses to generate accurate recommendations, predictive maintenance and troubleshooting. “We are at a pivotal moment where industry must achieve unprecedented levels of flexibility and efficiency with generative AI,” says Aurelien LeSant, Schneider’s chief technology officer for industrial automation. “Our Copilot, developed in collaboration with Microsoft and leveraging our deep domain expertise, is designed to improve industrial competitiveness by boosting worker confidence, simplifying processes and bridging skills gaps.” It “proactively assists engineers in adding complex functionalities, such as new production lines, with simple steps by pre-generating code, checking for errors, and improving the re-use of existing libraries,” LeSant adds. “It allows engineers and operators to leverage Schneider Electric's industrial datasets to bring systems online faster and optimise them for long-term success.” Invertek CEO Adrian Ellam: the Award validates our international strategy Schneider and Microsoft develop gen AI Copilot to lift productivity SEW-Eurodrive has promoted Andy Turner to UK operations director after 17 years with the company. Turner joined the company in 2008 as an area sales manager before becoming sales and marketing manager in 2021, and sales and operations manager the following year. In his new role, Turner will oversee the sales and production teams at the company’s Normanton HQ, working with MD, John Pickup, to drive the company forward. Apex Dynamics UK has appointed Andrew Parsons as general manager, promoting him from national sales manager after six years at the gearbox specialist. In his new role, Parsons takes on a broader role, overseeing Apex’s daily operations and its growth plans. His appointment comes at a pivotal moment, following Apex’s 20% growth in 2024, and its recent move to larger premises to meet growing demand for its portfolio of more than 50,000 gear products.
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