Temperature Controls, the biggest manufacturer of thermocouples on the African continent, celebrates 50 years of service to industry this year. Although the name of the company has remained, it is today somewhat of a misnomer as customers over the years have looked to the company to provide a more complete solution to the process control industry.
In fact it was the company's own product range and their representation of RKC (since 1974) that have made them synonymous with temperature measurement and control, although RTK's indicators and controls are equally suitable for many other control applications. Today Temperature Controls represents some 30 leading international companies that supply a wide range of cutting-edge products suitable for use in the process control industry.
Temperature Controls was founded in 1952 by John Royce, the intention being to manufacture ceramic heating elements and simple thermocouple devices as well as representing leading international companies. In 1971 Ken Brown joined the company and just a year later he took over the running of Temperature Controls along with the present MD Les Friend, following the sudden death of Royce. The Brown tradition continues to this day with Andy Brown being brought on board in 1972 as sales director, a position he still holds today. Philip Brown joined the company in 1977 and became financial director in 1990. Now he runs his own company in the USA but he acts as the agent for Temperature Controls in that country. At Temperature Controls the rest of the management team includes Sean Madden (technical manager), Sam Anderson (production manager), Tony Steyn (branch manager, KwaZulu-Natal) and Tony Bartell (buyer). All members of this team have worked their way up through the ranks within the company.
With the extension of the scope of the principals represented, Temperature Controls is now able to provide complete measurement and control solutions in areas as diverse as temperature, level, flow, pH, Redox, conductivity, dissolved oxygen and vibration.
As currently structured the company operates four divisions, these being Temperature, Baumer Electric, Process and Environmental.
Process division
This division evolved out of the relationship that Temperature Controls has had with LTH Electronics that dates back to 1972. As more instrument suppliers offering new measurement capabilities came on board it was established as an independent division.
There are three main areas of expertise existing in the Process division, the first of these being in the measurement of pH, conductivity and dissolved oxygen. The main supplier here remains LTH.
The second area of activity is level control, the major company represented being Nohken of Japan. Temperature Controls has focussed its activities on point level detection rather than continuous monitoring and the local company now also carries out assembly of some of the float level switches.
The final area of expertise is pressure transmitters. Ellison Sensors, a UK-based company, provides a full range of the standard two-wire 4-20 mA transmitters. Products from another UK company, Pioden Controls, complement this range. They specialise in transducers for the plastics industry as well as low-pressure strain gauge devices. One of their more unique products is a 2,15 MPa (45 000 psi) high-pressure transmitter. Pressure switches and gauges manufactured by Teddington Controls in the UK are also available.
Baumer Electric division
The continued growth of sales of sensors from Baumer Electric resulted in the establishment of this division. Baumer are renowned for the range of sensors they offer for automation applications, including rotary encoders. This includes a full range of proximity sensors including photoelectric, optoelectronic and inductive. Baumer have long been recognised as leaders in their field with special focus on the miniaturisation of their devices. Baumer also offer a range of capacitative high temperature sensors that can handle high temperatures and aggressive environments. Also included in this company's product portfolio are all types of motion detectors, including encoders and resolvers.
Environmental division
With the extensive range of products available from their principals, Temperature Controls recently decided to address the specialist heating, ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC) market through the establishment of this new division at the beginning of this year. Target industries include food & beverage and the pharmaceutical sector. Particular success has been achieved in the latter with environmental data-loggers having been supplied to monitor autoclaves and drug storage areas. A major coup for the new division has been the sale of 100 E+E Elektronic transmitters to the SA Weather Bureau. These systems will be used at weather stations countrywide. E+E Elektronic focuses on the manufacture of relative humidity and temperature sensors and transmitters for use in both the process control and HVAC industries.
Temperature division
With the strong manufacturing activity this still remains the core business of the company. RKC has also been represented since 1974. Although this company began in the temperature field they have been steadily establishing themselves as a manufacturer of industrial control equipment in general. RKC today have a staff of some 430 people and their turnover was $80 million (2001). A recent release from RKC is their FAREX mini DCS system with Specview software. With features that include remote operation via a PC, the FAREX series has proved to be extremely successful in Europe. Note should be made of the fact that all RKC products that offer a communication function are compatible with all the normal protocols. These include Profibus, Modbus, DeviceNet and the SX bus (PLCs from Fuji Electric).
In order to provide a total solution in the temperature measurement and control field, Temperature Controls represents a host of other principals supplying complementary products. These include Optex (noncontact temperature measurement), Hollingsworth (thermocouple connectors), Fenwal (thermostats), DeltaTRAK (recorders) and Haldenwanger (ceramic components).
In these days, when local companies complain about their ability to carry out local manufacture cost-effectively, Temperature Controls is an exception as it has been continually growing its manufacturing side (output has increased by 30% over the last two years) which contributes 40% of turnover, most of this being in hard currency. Out of a total staff complement of 85, some 40 located in both Cape Town and Johannesburg are involved in local manufacture (and assembly under licence). The export market includes the whole of Africa, the Middle East (Jordan, Syria and Egypt for example) and the Far East (mainly Singapore and Australia). With a recent distributor appointed in the Netherlands and a competitively placed Rand, the company hopes to further penetrate the European market. Obviously, if the objectives of Nepad become reality, the future opportunities for the company in Africa are huge.
In terms of quality, Temperature Controls has been certified to ISO 9001 since 1997 and all its own sensors are tested using precision temperature baths regularly calibrated by SANAS accredited laboratories. ISO 9001 allows the company to compete on a par with its strong competition in the global marketplace.
New product releases
Temperature Controls regularly releases new products into the South African marketplace and details can be found on the company website or in their regular newsletter 'Feedback'.
One of the recent releases is the Monitran Defender, which is a compact sensor provided with an LCD display that displays the level of vibration. This can be used for preventative maintenance or troubleshooting.
Another novel device is the heater break alarm (HBA). The HBA can be used to alarm when a heater fails or where a relay contact becomes welded. Early detection of such faults can minimise costly damage to machinery.
There is even the Fenwal AlarmLine linear heat detector that provides early detection of fire (or overheating) in localised areas over its entire length. The only two components are the small diameter sensor cable and the interface module. The AlarmLine is compatible with all central control panels and is adjustable for different temperatures.
Temperature Controls is now looking forward to its next half-century as a family business that really believes that people are its greatest asset.
| Tel: | +27 11 791 6000 |
| Email: | [email protected] |
| www: | www.tempcon.co.za |
| Articles: | More information and articles about Temperature Controls |
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