Free software developed to help with ATEX and DSEAR design and verification
A range of free software has been developed by ExVeritas to assist people involved in the design or verification of ATEX and IEC products or sites with explosive atmospheres. The software runs ‘on line’ or can be downloaded as a desktop application under Windows. The software will also run as an iPhone/iTouch Web Application. Currently the software includes: FlamCal ATEX and IEC Flammable Properties Application: This application allows the user to select from several hundred common flammable substances to determine the physical properties that may be required for ATEX or IEC equipment selection or area classification. You would need 30+ A2 ATEX Posters to hold this much information! IntrinsiCal ATEX and IEC...

Humberside chemical explosion injures four
Four people have been taken to hospital suffering from chemical burns after a cloud of toxic gas escaped following an explosion in a chemical vessel at approximately 12.30am on the 5th March at a factory on the river Humber near Grimsby....

Attack on Nigeria oil flow station
Planted explosives damaged a Royal Dutch Shell PLC oil flow station in the Niger Delta but the station was not in use and was unmanned at the time of the explosion, so there were no injuries. The incident in the troubled Niger Delta marks the latest attack in a region supposedly brought under control by a government amnesty programme. This attack is believed to signal the resumption of fresh and final hostilities in the Niger Delta and beyond....

Selecting the Right Temperature Sensor
Plant and maintenance engineers use infrared temperature measurement devices, both handheld and fixed/online versions, as non-contact, relatively low cost, preventive maintenance tools. These devices accurately monitor, control and manage process temperatures and help to locate ‘hot spots’ on critical process plant, machinery and electrical connections – without having to interrupt production.

LEDs replace lighting at Copenhagen’s Airport
Using a simple analysis persuaded the BTS (Building Technical Service) at Denmark’s airports to switch to Werma 280 series LED obstruction beacons in order to save cost, reduce carbon imprint and reduce down time.

Data recording without ranges or limits
Brüel & Kjær's stand-alone recorder, based on the PULSE LAN-XI analyser hardware, makes high-quality data recording supremely easy, even in situations where no PC could survive.

Why common sense must prevail
If common sense was truly universal, we’d all have it. But from recent findings in the US, this is clearly this is not the case. Would an industrial operator deliberately purge a process line with a flammable gas into an enclosed area containing hot spots and electrical ignition sources? Common sense would suggest not but this operation is surprisingly a standard practice in certain sectors. Last month's accident at Kleen Energy has proved to be a fatal example of this high risk practice.