At AP Sensing we recognize the importance of social responsibility. As a successful mid-sized company we are proud to make a contribution when it can make a difference and help others in need.

This is made possible through the efforts of our employees and our business partners. Due to our worldwide presence we often see firsthand how difficult life can be for people living in poverty or for victims of natural disasters.

We also want to recognize the hard work and dedication of organizations that improve conditions for the poor and needy.

How our donation was used

Many children were left as orphans after the devastating earthquake from January 2010 -- so this was a rare opportunity to receive professional dental care.

Pwojè mon contre was able to:

• purchase a portable dental device that could handle the cleaning, drilling, and extraction jobs
• organize two German dentists who were willing to travel to Haiti and work long days under extreme conditions for two weeks

The long trip begins...

The two dentists flew to Haiti with members of pwojè mon contre. After the 17-hour flight and an entire day's auto trip (for 160 kilometers!), the group arrived in Beaumont, where they were greeted "like rock stars," with a choir and a celebration.

There were electrical problems involving the portable device and a diesel generator, but these were solved with typical Haitian ingenuity. The equipment ran without fail during the two weeks. 

A real dentist's chair was the next challenge. That's no problem when your creativity knows no borders: Just take a wooden chair, cut the legs to the right length, and fasten an automobile seat on top -- problem solved!

         

After initial evaluations, it was clear that the condition of the children's teeth was worse than expected, and so it wouldn't be possible to treat all 300 children during this visit. All of the orphans and all children with toothaches were treated; a second trip will be organized to finish the examinations.

... and the long trip comes to an end

After two exhausting but very rewarding weeks of treatments (with a break in the middle for some sightseeing and back massages) it was time to clean and pack the equipment and start the long trip back to Europe. Several hundred smiling faces, with clean and healthy teeth, is the lasting reward and memory until the next visit.

         

 Join AP Sensing on Facebook!

The expansion of the GPS Chemoil facility in Fujaireh to 24 tanks was accomplished with one 8 km DTS system, with a second DTS system used to monitor the pump house.

The tank farm now enjoys all the advantages of a fiber optic DTS system:

• A passive sensor cable that is impervious to dirt, smog, extreme temperatures, and EMI
• ATEX certification down to Zone 0 (safe to use in potentially explosive environments, thanks to AP Sensing's low-power laser)

The sensor cable is mounted around the tension ring at the top of the tank and also secured to the side wall. The cable can withstand temperatures beyond 750 °C for over 2 hours. This gives the client the ability to not only detect a fire, but to monitor its effect on the tank by looking at the tank wall temperature from base to roof. This vital information gives emergency responders the benefit of knowing if the tank wall is nearing failure temperature or if the tank deluge systems are cooling the walls as they should.

AP Sensing's SmartVision software suite gives the client real-time information on the temperatures around each and every tank. The software maps the temperature information to the tank layout. In addition, the Modbus interface gives the site control system the same information for process control solutions in the event of a fire.

Conclusion

Oil terminal monitoring and tank fire detection has come a long way from simple stand-alone pneumatic designs. AP Sensing strives to meet customer demands, giving tank farm operators more vital information that protects their assets and can save lives.

Meet our product experts and experience first-hand the latest developments of our Linear Power Series:

• Monitor MV and HV transmission and distribution networks
• Identify hotspots and bottlenecks
• AP Sensing's intelligent software suite SmartVision for data storage and analysis, and asset visualization

The RTTR (Real Time Thermal Rating) engine removes any uncertainties with regard to tolerable loads. Calculating real-time cable temperatures allows operators to safely adjust loads to permissible limits, ensuring peak performance and asset protection.

AP Sensing is your trusted DTS partner with a 25 year heritage in optical test leadership and hundreds of satisfied customers worldwide. Get the quality and reliability you need with the experienced service and support you want, from project definition to post-sales training.

See you soon in Dubai!

• RTTR (Real Time Thermal Rating): The DTS (Distributed Temperature Sensing) device continuously measures the temperature at the jacket of the cable. Combining this data with the cable's load, the RTTR engine provides valuable thermal analysis data:
  
  - Conductor temperature: Continuous temperature monitoring lets operators compare the current load with the maximum permissible load. Comparing the ampacity calculation made during the planning stage to the RTTR results, the operator can adjust his steady-state load table by +14%. Additionally it shows him that the load can be increased by 32% if a temperature of 90° C is tolerated for 24 hours. During peak load or emergency situations, if 105° C is tolerated for 24 hours, a 48% capacity increase can be realized.
  
  - When overloads need to be applied RTTR predicts the cable temperature when the peak period is over. This is valuable information when planning maintenance and controlling peak load cases.
• AP Sensing's intuitive software suite, SmartVision, provides a data server with analysis and statistics, colored temperature mapping, and its remarkable asset viewer that shows color-coded routes along the sensor cable route.
• Interface to the SCADA and load dispatch center with DNP3 protocol, easily integrated into his existing network topology. 

Conclusion: The Linear Power Series enabled the customer to increase utilization by 32% and in peak-load or emergency situations by 48%, without risk to his valuable assets.

• The mass movement toward renewable energy sources: what are the challenges and opportunities for grid operators?
• Cable technologies in distribution networks
• Diagnosis and maintenance of medium- and high-voltage cable installations
• How to save costs during installation and commissioning
• ...and much more!

Dr. Henrik Hoff from AP Sensing will present on Thursday, Feb. 28th at 9 am. His talk will demonstrate the advantages of using a DTS (Distributed Temperature Sensing) solution to monitor just such networks. Because our solution includes an RTTR (Real Time Thermal Rating, or Dynamic Cable Rating) engine, operators can gain maximum efficiency from their network, as well as increase system utilization during peak times or emergency conditions.

AP Sensing would like to offer you a €200 discount on the price of your registration (valid only if you are not yet registered). To access the registration form and to see the entire agenda, click here. Follow the instructions on the form to receive your discount.

The ETP conference and its presentations are held in German. We look forward to seeing you in Düsseldorf!

Join us in London and experience the industry's most reliable and completely-certified DTS solution, including:

- ATEX certification down to Zone 0
- Safety Integrity Level 2 (SIL 2) assessment
- Plus laser safety, EMI, ISO-9001, UL, and many more

Be our guest! Click here to access your free ticket to Gastech (exhibition only), including a complimentary drink, courtesy of AP Sensing.

To register online for the Gastech technical conferences, click here.

AP Sensing is your trusted DTS partner with a 25 year heritage in optical test leadership and hundreds of satisfied customers worldwide. Get the quality and reliability you need with the experienced service and support you want, from project definition to post-sales training.

See you soon in London!

Date: 27th – 31st August 2012
Booth Location: Level 2, Booth # 291
Location: Palais des Congrès de Paris, France

Meet our product experts and discuss the latest developments of our Linear Power Series:

• Improved spatial and temperature resolution
• SDCard slot to store thousands of measurements without a PC
• A new "hibernation mode": save up to 80% of energy and disk space
• A new portfolio of enclosures to cover -40°C to +60°C, ATEX, portables
• New trace and visualization software

We listened to your feedback and made your experience even better with the new Multi Sensor Board:

• Log and view load data for the power cable while auto-calibrating the sensor fiber and monitoring its changes (e.g., soil moisture)
• Sensor data is integrated into the AP Sensing Power Management Suite and the RTTR (Real Time Thermal Rating) module
• Get the complete overview of all your sensor data (e.g., current, voltage, intrusion logging, limit value switch, humidity and soil moisture)
• Use our pre-assembled accessories (PT100 temperature sensors) for maximum automation and efficiency gains

AP Sensing is your trusted DTS partner with a 25-year heritage in optical testing and hundreds of satisfied customers worldwide. Get the quality and reliability you need with the experienced service and support you want, from project definition to post-sales training.

 

Join us in Paris and learn about the advantages of our patented code-correlation OTDR technology and low-power laser sources. With the industry’s lowest failure rate and best application fit, we offer global service and support, and professional training. AP Sensing: your strategic business partner for success.

To register online for CIGRÉ, go to www.cigre2012.com

See you in Paris!

A family-owned glass-making company is proud of their 400-year tradition. Among their many satisfied customers are all of the leading perfume companies, who value the high quality and attention to individual design details for the flacons that are produced in southern Germany.

During the glass-making process, when glass is melted, the temperature can reach 1500°C. Thanks to the AP Sensing solution’s ability to divide the length of the sensor cable (in this case, 600 meters) into the required number of pre-defined zones, with the appropriate alarm criteria defined for each zone, the installation is perfectly adapted to the customer’s requirements.

Working together with our regional partner Tyco, this flexible alarm concept was used to define 5 alarm criteria within each zone in order to take the higher temperatures in the melting areas into account, as well as the seasonal temperature fluctuations near the roof.

In addition, a specialized high-temperature sensor cable was deployed that is designed to operate at continuous temperatures of up to 150°C. The system is connected to the central fire panel (the Zettler control panel from Tyco).

       Sensor fiber installed along the production line

With the AP Sensing solution, valuable assets remain protected with all the advantages of a rugged, modern DTS system: no area is left unmonitored and the sensor cable is not affected by dirt, smoke, or EMI. The customer is already well into the planning stages for a 2nd DTS installation.

It contains the tallest hotel, the tallest clock tower, and the largest clock face in the world. In addition to the construction challenges and intricate workings of the huge clock, the tower is illuminated with 21,000 white and green lights, and two million LED lights.

To ensure the most modern and rugged system of heat detection and monitoring available, AP Sensing’s Linear Heat Series was selected. Four DTS devices were installed as explained below, to ensure continuous, fully-redundant monitoring in real-time.

AP Sensing design concept

Planning together with local partners, it was decided to divide the tower areas into four sections, to ensure an efficient installation and the highest performance. This architecture results in complete system redundancy, even in the unlikely event of a fiber break or a system fault.

The four sensor cables can be divided into 256 zones, each zone with its own alarm criteria, which was ideal for covering the media panels, platforms and cable trays in each of the 4 sections.

Project challenges and the DTS solution

Media walls: There are enormous media walls on each side of the tower below the clock. Two of these measure 70m x 10m, and two 40m x 10m, and together they contain the 2 million LEDs. The 16km sensor cable is connected to the heat sink for the LEDs and is then routed throughout the walls in a tight pattern with 50cm spacing.

This ensures that all four walls (which generate 1.8MW) can be effectively monitored, despite direct sunshine, cool temperatures at night or in the shade, and thermal effects from wind.

Conclusion

Thanks to the combined efforts of a cross-functional team, the Linear Heat Series is optimally installed, providing a safe and effective DTS deployment. AP Sensing’s unique code-correlated OTDR technology, combined with asset visualization software, precisely locates hot spots and alarm conditions in real time – extremely valuable assets remain securely protected.