Swiss measurement engineering specialist invests 40 million dollars in new plants for flow, level and pressure engineering. Endress+Hauser is set to serve its customers in North and South America with more US-made products. The Swiss specialist for measurement engineering and process automation has invested over 40 million dollars in expanding its plants for flow, level and pressure measurement engineering in Greenwood, Indiana.

Producing, assembling and calibrating at sites all over the world is one of Endress+Hauser's central business strategies. "We want to move our production as close as possible to our customers," said Klaus Endress, CEO of the Endress+Hauser Group, during the inauguration ceremony for two new buildings in Greenwood, Indiana. "Being close allows us to respond quickly to the special needs and requirements of individual markets and customers."

One important factor for this concept to work is globally uniform quality standards. "Here in the US we manufacture at the highest level," stressed Hans-Peter Blaser, Managing Director of the flow engineering plant in Greenwood. An extension to the new building occupied only five years ago has created nearly 8,800 square meters of additional space. "This gives us the chance to increase capacity and to produce additional lines of instruments locally." The systems for calibrating flowmeters, unique on the continent, have now grown to include the latest technology for gas calibration.

The plant for level and pressure engineering moves into a new building with over 9,800 square meters of floorspace directly next door. "After years of strong growth, this will make us fit for the future," explained Managing Director John Schnake. The additional production areas will increase the scope of production and will allow more products to be delivered directly from the Greenwood plant. The vacated facilities space will allow for a new visitor and training center for the US sales organization.

Over the past years Endress+Hauser has strongly grown its market share in the United States. Todd Lucey, Managing Director of the US sales center, believes that one of the key drivers of their success is this expanded local manufacturing capability. "Over 80 percent of the measurement instruments we deliver in the USA today are now made in the USA. And we will continue to grow this share into the future," he said, adding: "We are a proud American company – with strong Swiss roots."

Endress+Hauser has had its own sales center in the United States since 1970; for over two decades, the company has also manufactured there – for the US market, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Chile and Argentina. Flow, pressure and temperature measurement devices are produced in Greenwood, Indiana where the US sales center also is headquartered. Endress+Hauser manufactures sensors for liquid analysis in Anaheim, California while the subsidiary SpectraSensors in Houston, Texas, specializing in gas analysis, operates a plant in Rancho Cucamonga, California. Over 700 people work for Endress+Hauser in the United States – a tight network of representatives with another 350 sales engineers and service technicians supporting customers nationwide.

Foster Wheeler AG (Nasdaq:FWLT) announced today that a subsidiary of its Global Engineering and Construction Group has been awarded an engineering, procurement and construction management (EPCm) contract by Sasol Petroleum International (SPI) for the low pressure compression project at Sasol’s Central Processing Facility (CPF) in Temane, Mozambique.

The Foster Wheeler contract value was not disclosed and was included in the company’s second-quarter 2013 bookings. Foster Wheeler’s scope of work includes provision/procurement of gas turbine-driven low pressure compressors plus auxiliary equipment, including inlet gas scrubbing equipment and discharge air coolers, a new substation, including high voltage switchgear and transformers, modifications to an existing substation, additional instrument air and nitrogen facilities, and the expansion of the distributed control system to accommodate the new facilities. The objective of the project is to enable the Temane CPF to maintain the design throughput and pressure as the gas field declines. The new facilities are scheduled to be ready for commissioning during the fourth quarter of 2014.

“We first worked with SPI in Mozambique in 2000, when we developed the basic design and engineering package for the original Temane Field Development, the first major upstream development in Mozambique,” said Umberto della Sala, President and Chief Operating Officer of Foster Wheeler AG. “We were subsequently awarded the EPCm contract for this project, which project we safely and successfully completed in 2004, with significant development and use of local labour, subcontractors and suppliers. We have gone on to work with SPI on the further development of its gas assets and look forward to adding this latest award to our list of project delivery successes in Africa.”

Premier Oil has awarded Emerson Process Management, a global business of Emerson (NYSE: EMR), a $17 million contract to automate a new offshore production platform in the Solan oil field on the U.K. Continental Shelf. Emerson’s technologies and services will enable Premier to safely and efficiently manage the platform 100 miles west of Scotland from an onshore operations center in Aberdeen.

Designed for unmanned operations, the platform could serve as a model for future developments in marginal fields, where such operations can help increase profits as well as worker safety. The Solan field is expected to produce approximately 40 million barrels of oil, with an estimated initial production rate of 24,000 barrels a day by the end of 2014.

As the project’s main automation and electrical contractor, Emerson will provide full project services including project management, detailed design, configuration, acceptance testing, commissioning, and startup support, all as part of a complete solution.

“We are delighted that Premier recognizes the value of our complete automation solutions for offshore operations,” said Steve Sonnenberg, president of Emerson Process Management. “Our industry specialists look forward to helping Premier turn their vision of a remotely operated platform into a safe, efficient, and profitable reality.”

The integrated solution will use Emerson’s PlantWeb™ digital plant architecture, including its DeltaV™ digital automation system, DeltaV SIS™ process safety system,CSI 6500 Machinery Health™ Monitor, and AMS Suite predictive maintenance software. Other elements will include Emerson’s Rosemount® pressure, temperature, radar level, and vortex flow transmitters; Micro Motion® Coriolis flowmeters; and Roxar™ sand monitors and multiphase flowmeters.

Emerson will also provide electrical switchgear, uninterruptible power supplies, and satellite telecommunication equipment, as well as an operator training solution that simulates real-world situations to prepare operations personnel for incident management.

Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME), a South Korean shipbuilder established in 1973 in South Korea, has awarded a $6.7 million+ order to Rockwell Automation. Rockwell Automation will deliver fully integrated safety solutions for Transocean, a leading international provider of offshore contract drilling services for energy companies, and an important DSME customer. Rockwell Automation will employ its large-project delivery management expertise to provide its PlantPAx Integrated Control Power and Safety Solution with the AADvance process safety system.

The contract covers deliveries to four new Transocean drill ships, with options for six more ships. It follows a $6 million+ order from DSME to Rockwell Automation for four new offshore drill ships in 2011.

According to DSME, Rockwell Automation offers a complete portfolio of offshore solutions and a proven, robust system for DSME to improve its system availability and enhance the safety systems for offshore applications, including drill ships and rigs.

“We’re confident that Rockwell Automation will deliver and commission integrated information, control, power and safety systems needed to complete this important project for Transocean, based on their expertise to design, develop and deliver automation systems for the offshore industry,” said a DSME spokesperson.

“This win is significant because it demonstrates our outstanding ability to deliver control and safety solutions for offshore vessels and drilling rigs,” said Terry Gebert, vice president and general manager Rockwell Automation Global Solutions. “Our experience and domain expertise in the oil and gas industry, as well as our global engineering resources, will help DSME and Transocean develop and maintain productive, safe and sustainable operations.”

Deliveries are scheduled for early 2014. All key solutions are scheduled for completion by June 2014 for the first vessel and by October 2015 for an additional three vessels.