Electrical Equipment Manufacturing Research Articles

Forecasting Copper Prices Using Deep Learning: Implications for Energy Sector Economies

Energy is a foundational element of the modern industrial economy. Prices of metals play a crucial role in energy sectors’ revenue evaluations, making them the cornerstone of effective payment management employed by resource policymakers. Copper is one of the most important industrial metals, and plays a vital role in various aspects of today’s economies. Copper is strongly associated with many industries, such as electrical wiring, construction, and equipment manufacturing; therefore, the price of copper has become a significant impact factor on the performance of related energy companies and economies. The accurate prediction of copper prices holds particular significance for market participants and policymakers. This study carried out research to address the gap in copper price forecasting using a one-dimensional convolutional neural network (1D-CNN). The proposed method was implemented and tested using extensive data spanning from November 1991 to May 2023. To assess the performance of the CNN model, standard evaluation metrics, such as the R-value, mean squared error (MSE), root mean squared error (RMSE), and mean absolute error (MAE), were employed. For the prediction of global copper prices, the proposed artificial intelligence algorithm demonstrated high accuracy. Lastly, future global copper prices were predicted up to 2027 by the CNN and compared with forecasts published by the International Monetary Fund and the International Society of Automation. The results show the exceptional performance of the CNN, establishing it as a reliable tool for monitoring copper prices and predicting global copper price volatilities near reality, and as carrying significant implications for policymakers and governments in shaping energy policies and ensuring equitable implementation of energy strategies.

The design of a linear voltage divider based on metal oxide arresters.

In recent years, linearization technology for nonlinear devices has become a hot topic in many fields. In this study, a linear voltage divider based on metal oxide arresters was designed by combining linearization technology and electrical measurement technology to solve the objective problems of online voltage monitoring. These problems include high difficulty in equipment installation, low measurement accuracy, and poor economic benefits. Based on a summary of linearization theory, the sufficient and necessary conditions for the linearization of the voltage divider were deduced in detail. The relevant circuit simulations were conducted, along with voltage divider experiments under power frequency AC voltage, operating overvoltage, and lightning overvoltage. The results revealed that the voltage divider was able to realize linearized measurements and meet the relevant standards of online voltage monitoring. The measurement errors were concentrated in the transition region between the pre-breakdown region (small current region) and the breakdown region (nonlinear region) in the volt-ampere characteristic curve. The main influencing factor of errors was the consistency of the nonlinear characteristics of the high- and low-voltage arms of the voltage divider. The voltage divider designed in this study can be applied in many scenarios, such as power plants, substations, high-voltage electrical equipment manufacturing plants, and high-voltage laboratories.

High-temperature properties of dry air used as arc quenching medium and its mixture with vaporized C2F4 : reaction products and critical reduced electric field strength at 300–3000 K

Recently, electric power equipment manufacturers released a joint statement with the aim of developing high-voltage electrical equipment completely free of fluorinated gases such as fluoroketones and fluoronitriles, which are considered as alternatives to SF6 and artificially produced compounds of F. This paper considers air as a typical gas present naturally in the environment to investigate its high-temperature properties, including an air mixture with C2F4 vapor injected from a polytetrafluoroethylene nozzle, for application as an arc-quenching medium in a high-voltage circuit breaker equipped with a nozzle. Chemical composition results for the reaction products at 300–3000 K show that the admixture of C2F4 vapor causes a decrease in the molar number of O2 contained in the air, owing to the production of O-containing compounds such as CO2 and CO . Additionally, the results reveal that the admixture of C2F4 vapor lead to the production of CF4 as the predominant F-containing compound. Furthermore, the boundary condition for O2 production in terms of O2 molar number XO2 and C2F4 molar number XC2F4 is formulated. Such evaluation of the mixture composition enables the determination of a reduced effective collision ionization coefficient αˉ/N and a critical reduced electric field strength Ecr/N , resulting in αˉ/N = 0. The strength Ecr/N for the mixture with 30%–100% C2F4 molar fraction rises to approximately 150 Td (1 Td = 1 ×10−21 V m2) over 300–3000 K, which is 20–50 Td higher than that for high-temperature air unmixed with C2F4 vapor. The variation in Ecr/N is discussed in terms of predominant electron impact processes and the electron energy distribution function in the mixture.

Integrated assessment of the pollution and risk of heavy metals in soils near chemical industry parks along the middle Yangtze River

Industrialization in riparian areas of critical rivers has caused significant environmental and health impacts. Taking eight industrial parks along the middle Yangtze River as examples, this study proposes a multiple-criteria approach to investigate soil heavy metal pollution and associated ecological and health risks posed by industrial activities. Aiming at seven heavy metals, the results show that nickel (Ni), cadmium (Cd), and copper (Cu) exhibited the most significant accumulation above background levels. The comprehensive findings from Pearson correlation analysis, cluster analysis, principal component analysis, and industrial investigation uncover the primary sources of Cd, arsenic (As), mercury (Hg), and lead (Pb) to be chemical processing, while Ni and chromium (Cr) are predominantly derived from mechanical and electrical equipment manufacturing. In contrast, Cu exhibits a broad range of origins across various industrial processes. Soil heavy metals can cause serious ecological and carcinogenic health risks, of which Cd and Hg contribute to >70 % of the total ecological risk, and As contributes over 80 % of the total health risk. This study highlights the importance of employing multiple mathematical and statistical models in determining and evaluating environmental hazards, and may aid in planning the environmental remediation engineering and optimizing the industry standards.

Extrinsic shocks and corporate accounting behaviour: The case of the Great Kanto Earthquake in 1923

This study examines how the Great Kanto Earthquake of 1923 influenced the depreciation disclosure practice adopted by Japanese companies in the years that followed. Prior to World War II, corporate accounting behaviour varied widely in Japan, as there were few substantive rules regulating the contents of financial statements. Assessing how a large-scale extrinsic shock such as a major earthquake affects and shapes corporate accounting practices in an unregulated disclosure environment such as this would seem important to understand the intrinsic impact of exogenous shocks. By statistically analysing the contents of 547 financial statements issued by 51 machinery, electrical and transportation equipment manufacturers during the six years from 1921 to 1926, this study shows that the substantial damage inflicted by the Great Kanto Earthquake discouraged companies from disclosing depreciation expenses by reducing or failing to recognise them at all and rendering them less important in their financial statements.

Aspects Regarding the Certification of Electrical Equipment Used in Potentially Explosive Environments in Accordance with EU Directive 2014/34

EU Directive 2014/34 establishes the standards for the certification of electrical equipment used in potentially explosive atmosphere. The EU has established standards for the certification of electrical equipment used in potentially explosive atmosphere. EU Directive 2014/34 sets out the requirements for certification and compliance. The directive applies to all electrical equipment to be used in potentially explosive atmosphere. The directive applies to manufacturers of electrical equipment and their authorized representatives. The directive sets out the safety requirements that electrical equipment must meet before it can be certified for use in potentially explosive atmosphere. The directive classifies potentially explosive atmosphere into three categories: Zone 0, Zone 1 and Zone 2. The directive also sets out requirements for marking electrical equipment that has been certified for use in potentially explosive atmosphere. Certification of electrical equipment involves testing the equipment to ensure that it meets safety requirements. Testing is performed by certified testing laboratories. Testing laboratories are accredited by the relevant national accreditation bodies. The testing laboratories follow the procedures laid down in the directive for testing electrical equipment. Testing includes testing the equipment for electrical safety, mechanical safety and thermal safety. The testing also includes testing the equipment for its ability to prevent ignition of potentially explosive atmospheres.

Leveraging graph theory approach for managing design principles for sustainable manufacturing of industry 4.0: A case study of electrical equipment manufacturing industry

Analyzing design principles and supply chain sustainability are critical for organizational success in today's competitive marketplace. The process of evaluating an organization's supply chain design principles and manufacturing sustainability entails incorporating various sources of information, which are typically uncertain, incomplete, and subjective in nature. Particularly when various organizations are confronted with significant principles such as a lack of interoperability, decentralization, virtualization, real-time and capabilities, service orientation, and so on. Using graph theory and a matrix approach (GTMA), this article attempts to analyze the interaction between design principles-related factors with a focus on operational excellence, growth and sustainability in supply chains by considering the business of Industry 4.0. We have considered electrical equipment manufacturing Industry 4.0 as test ground. Based on a literature review and expert opinions, we identified several key principles, and then explored the most significant one using graph theory and a matrix approach. The findings indicate that autonomy has been evaluated as the most significant challenge to manage design principles most effectively for sustainable manufacturing in the Industry 4.0 context. Therefore, organizations must enhance autonomous systems capable of operating and making decisions alone, without relying on external instructions or support, in order to achieve sustainability. This and the other identified principles to achieving corporate supply chain sustainability are ranked in this paper. These findings will be useful for managers and policymakers managing the interaction between people and processes, as well as corporate sustainability management in Industry 4.0-based supply chain organizations. The unique contributions of this paper can aid in the improvement of design principles and the sustainability of emerging economies' Industry 4.0 perspectives.

Environmental strategic performance of SMEs in developing countries: perspectives of environmental strategic capabilities, environmental strategic assessment, and stakeholder engagement.

The purpose of this study is to empirically evaluate the model that explains the methods involved in the transformation of environmental strategic capabilities (ESC) into environmental strategic performance (ESP) of manufacturing SMEs in developing economies such as Pakistan. This study also analyzes the role of environmental strategic assessment (ESA) as a mediator as well as the contingent impacts of stakeholder engagement (SE). To evaluate the conceptual model, a cross-sectional design was employed in this study. Data from 489 owners, production managers, finance managers, and CEOs of 133 production units dealing in agriculture equipment (31 units), auto parts (18 units), electrical equipment (25 units), gas appliances (23 units), pharmaceutical instruments (15 units), and plastic products manufacturing (21 units) was gathered to validate the moderated mediation framework. The outcomes of the study support the notion that ESC and ESP are positively correlated. Furthermore, results also support the mediation role of ESA in the association between ESC and ESP. Additionally, the moderation of SE is validated, and this construct is portrayed as a catalyst in interaction of ESC and ESP. The current study contributes to strategic management literature by concentrating on intangible assets such as ESC and its key aspects. As a result, it introduces a new framework as well as a roadmap that will support the accomplishment of ESP. Through focusing on the mediating mechanism in which ESC may well be transformed to ESP of manufacturing SMEs by ESA, the study findings significantly contributed to the understanding of environmental dynamism in contemporary management era. The findings of the study also assist in clarifying the moderating impact of SE and how its interactions with ESC and ESP strengthen the influence that enterprises have on ESA.

An application of the UNI/TS 11820:2022 on the measurement of circularity in an electrical equipment manufacturing organization in Italy

Data acquisition to measure circularity in processes and organizations represents a challenge, due to non-homogeneous quantification methods and different definitions related to resources consumption and waste generation. Furthermore, data interpretation has long been irreconcilable due to the absence of harmonized indicators for the measurement of circularity of processes and organizations. The UNI/TS 11820:2022 has developed (and standardized) for the first time a set of 71 indicators for the circular economy, which allows the assessment of the circularity levels in a replicable and comparable manner. The present research, after an in-depth analysis of the novel technical specification UNI/TS 11820:2022 on “Measurement of Circularity – Methods and Indicators for Measuring Circular Processes in Organizations”, measures the level of circularity in an electrical equipment manufacturing organization in Southern Italy. The purpose is to test the handiness of the UNI/TS 11820:2022, improve the knowledge about the technical standard and highlight its strengths and weaknesses from the managerial, theoretical and public authorities’ perspective. The UNI/TS 11820:2022 represents an essential tool to verify the effectiveness of circularity strategies at the micro (single organization) level, but it appears still complex to be applied among organizations, which do not rely on environmental and material accounting systems. Several efforts are required by academia and companies to increase the application of the standard in various NACE sectors. Moreover, although the standard aims at bridging theoretical and practical gaps towards a harmonized set of measurement tools, still some indicators seem to miss, and public authorities and universities should promote basic and advanced education in the field of circular economy measurement.

Closed-loop supply network of electrical and electronic equipment under carbon tax policy.

Waste electrical and electronic equipment is one of the essential pollutants with significant negative impacts on the environment and human health. In this study, a multi-period mixed-integer linear programming model is developed to design a closed loop supply network for the management of electrical and electronic equipment by explicitly considering the economic and environmental sustainability with a budget constraint. Different recycling options like refurbishing, disassembling, remanufacturing, and disposal centers are considered in the design of the network. The model minimizes the total costs of the network and the total carbon emission tax. The literature review shows that the introduced model is more comprehensive than the other existing models because it simultaneously determines the location of facilities, the capacity of facilities, type of manufacturing technologies, variety of vehicles, and the allocation and transportation of materials and products. The model was applied to a real-life case study in Iran and could provide a profit of IRR 245,509,165M during the planning periods. The carbon tax policy with different echelons is applied to control the environmental impacts in which the carbon tax increases as carbon emissions increase. The results show a nearly linear relationship between the total costs of the network and the carbon tax. The carbon tax of equal to or more than 10,800 IRR/t CO2 can be a deterrent factor for the electrical and electronic equipment manufacturer in Iran to diminish emissions through investment in green technologies.

Review of the Digital Twin Technology Applications for Electrical Equipment Lifecycle Management

Digital twin is one of the emerging technologies for the digital transformation of the power industry. Many existing studies claim that the widespread application of digital twins will shift the industry to a principally new level of development. This article provides an extensive overview of the industrial application experience of digital twin technologies for solving the problems of modern power systems with a particular focus on the task of high-voltage power equipment lifecycle management. The latter task contours one of the most promising areas for the application of the digital twins in the power industry since it requires deep analysis of the technological processes dynamics and the development of physical, mathematical and computer models that cover all the potential benefits of the digital twin technology. At the moment, there is a lack of reliable data on the problems of assessing and predicting the technical state of high-voltage power equipment. The use of digital twin technology in modern power systems will allow for aggregating data from a variety of real objects and will allow the automatization of collecting and processing of big data by implementing artificial intelligence methods, which will ultimately make it possible to manage the life cycle of the power equipment. The article puts to scrutiny the industrial experience of digital twins creation, considering the technical solutions suggested by the largest manufacturers of electrical equipment. A classification of digital twins, examples and main features of their application in the power industry, including the problem of managing the life cycle of high-voltage electrical equipment, are considered and discussed.

Price Conspiracy in the Electrical Industry [History

In late November 1960, U.S. Attorney Robert Bicks filed charges in U.S. District Court in Philadelphia, PA, USA, against the big three electrical equipment manufacturers along with 26 smaller companies and 44 of their executives. The parties were charged with conspiracy to fix prices, a violation of the Sherman Antitrust Act, of 1890, and the Clayton Antitrust Act, of 1914. Within four months, all 44 executives pleaded guilty or nolo contendere (no contest), and seven were sentenced to 30 days in prison.

A Study on the Economic Effects of U.S. Export Controls on Semiconductors to China

Purpose – This study addresses the development of China’s semiconductor industry in the context of the U.S.-China trade conflict, and analyzes the impact on other industries. Design/Methodology/Approach – Based on the multi-regional input-output table industry splitting method, the electrical and electronic equipment manufacturing industry in the Asian Development Bank’s multi-regional input-output table (ADB-MRIO, 2019) is split into semiconductor and non-semiconductor industries, and the impact of U.S. export controls on China’s semiconductor exports on domestic and foreign economies is simulated and analyzed using the hypothesis extraction and hypothesis expansion methods. Findings – The United States has suffered more than China from US export controls on semiconductors to China, and the impact of U.S. export controls on U.S. GDP decreasing by at most 0.0124‰, and China’s GDP decreasing by at most 0.00089‰. Since Japan, Korea, and European countries have become China’s semiconductor import substitutes, they all benefit from U.S. export controls on China. Second, the most affected industries in China are the chemical products, metal products, wholesale, financial, and non-semiconductor industries in the electrical and electronic equipment manufacturing industry. Research Implications – China should adopt coping strategies such as deepening international exchanges, enhancing communication between China and the U.S., and strengthening its scientific and technological strength.

Directions of Development of Diagnostic Methods of Vacuum Medium-Voltage Switchgear

The development of power grid infrastructure and increasingly stringent environmental regulations have intensified work, carried out by researchers and electrical equipment manufacturers, to develop innovative gas-insulated, environmentally neutral devices. The emergence of new designs of circuit breakers and disconnectors, in which the resulting electric arc is extinguished in a vacuum environment, requires the development of appropriate techniques for diagnosing the chambers responsible for the dielectric parameters of the device. The following article presents an overview of the directions of development of diagnostic methods for medium-voltage vacuum switching equipment, which can potentially be used to develop a real-time pressure monitoring system that can be applied to vacuum switching equipment used in electrical infrastructure.

Promote or Crowd Out? The Impact of Environmental Information Disclosure Methods on Enterprise Value

Environmental information disclosure is a concrete practice for enterprises to actively implement the concept of green and sustainable development, which has great significance for enterprises to gain long-term competitive advantages. The academic world has widely discussed the relationship between environmental information disclosure and the economic performance of enterprises, but how the heterogeneity of environmental information disclosure methods affects the enterprise value has not been explored. This paper aims to answer two questions: (1) what is the impact of Ecomark and ESG on enterprise value? and (2) how does the interaction between Ecomark and ESG influence enterprise value? Utilizing the listed Japanese electrical equipment manufacturing enterprises dataset from 2008 to 2021, we employed the fixed panel linear regression model to confirm the relationship between Ecomark and ESG in enterprise value, and further used a moderating effect model to verify the existence of the crowd-out effect of ESG performance on Ecomark through enterprise value. In addition, a robustness check scheme was designed and performed to test the model settings, outliers and endogeneity issues. The main findings show that the obtaining of Ecomark certification and good ESG performance can help to improve enterprise value, but they may be altered regarding the heterogeneity of environmental information disclosure methods, further causing differences in enterprises’ time and economic cost burdens. Such differences increase the attractiveness of ESGs to investors, thereby crowding out the impact of Ecomark on enterprise value. Our conclusion reveals the mechanism of the heterogeneity of environmental information disclosure methods towards enterprise value, which offers a valuable reference for investors to evaluate enterprise value and paves the way for enterprise decision-makers and authorities to optimize their environmental information disclosure.

Servitization of SMEs: Focused on the Electrical Equipment and Metal Parts Manufacturers in South Korea

Servitization is becoming an essential strategy for manufacturers to gain competitive advantage, and several successful cases have already been reported. However, these success stories are mainly studied for large enterprises such as GE, IBM, Xerox, and Rolls-Royce. Therefore, it is difficult to apply the cases to the servitization of SMEs, thus in this study, the status of SMEs’ servitization was examined and the applicability was studied. Among those SMEs, manufacturing of electrical equipment and basic metal parts were selected because they are related to all manufacturing industries. As a research method, companies in the relevant industry were randomly selected and CEOs, managers, and employees were interviewed. Through in-depth interviews, the company’s current servitization status in the perception of different employment levels and new servitization opportunities are analyzed. As a result of the interview, the level of servitization in the industry seems to be very low, and it seems that there are very few new servitization opportunities due to the characteristics of general SMEs, such as lack of capital and human resources. Nevertheless, companies were aware that servitization was necessary for sustainability, and they could confirm their will to take on a challenge if there was an opportunity in the future.

Simulation Model for Passive Harmonic Filters Using Matlab/Simulink: A Case Study

Electrical grid power quality is a global issue. The grid must supply electricity at sinusoidal voltages and currents without frequency or amplitude fluctuations. Harmonics from non-linear loads change the stable reference point voltage waveform and cause other problems. Harmonic reduction is essential for grid health. Electrical and electronic equipment users, manufacturers, and suppliers all contribute. This article presents a case analysis of the plastic processing industry, which has historically struggled with a difficulty related to the fifth harmonic. Unwanted harmonics are reduced by using a single-tuned passive filter, a double-tuned passive filter, and a second-order damped filter. The total harmonic distortion is almost identical, but the second-order damped filter provides the best harmonic mitigation, meeting the requirements of the IEE 519-1992 Standard.

CONTROL OF ASYNCHRONOUS AC ELECTRIC MOTOR ACCORDING TO THE PRINCIPLE OF CONSTANT V/F AND CONVENTIONAL PWM CONTROL

The principle of operation of any automatic control system is to detect deviations of regulated values from set values and to form influences on the control process to eliminate these deviations. Often, a variable value whose value must be maintained constantly or changed according to the desired law is called a controlled value (coordinate). It is customary to call the required value of the regulated value (coordinate) set, and the actual value - current. The difference between the setpoint and the actual value is a deviation or error signal. A set of devices that affect the object of control, maintaining the current value of the controlled quantity (coordinate) equal to the given one, is called an automatic regulator or a dynamic system. The influence of the regulator on the object with the aim of bringing the current value of the controlled value closer to the set value (or adding the desired properties to the closed system) is called the control influence, and the set of devices and physical environments through which the control influence acts on the controlled value is called the control channel. The control process carried out by the regulator manifests itself in a change in the set value of the regulated quantity or a deviation of at least one of the unregulated quantities that affect the regulated one through feedback circuits. A change in the set value of an adjustable quantity is called a controlling or internal setting influence, and a change in unregulated quantities is called an external disturbance. The principle of deviation control is to compare the set value of the regulated value (setting) with its current value. In this case, the error signal Δ is used to create such a regulatory influence on the control object that this error, regardless of the reasons that caused it, does not go beyond the permissible values. In order to protect the environment and reduce the effect of greenhouse gas emissions, regulations are being introduced all over the world that require manufacturers of household electrical equipment and industrial enterprises to produce products that use electricity more economically. Most often, this can be achieved by effectively controlling the speed of the electric motor. This is the reason why consumer appliance developers and semiconductor suppliers are now interested in developing low-cost and economical adjustable actuators.

Assessment of the Potential and Prospects for the Development of High-Technology and Medium-High-Technology Types of Industrial Activities in Ukraine

The main ideas about modern technological innovations, the Fourth Industrial Revolution, global value chains, and the role of high-technology and medium-high-technology types of industrial activities in the process of technological transformation of the world economy are highlighted. An assessment of the potential and prospects for development of high-technology and medium-high-technology types of industrial activities in Ukraine are completed from the standpoint of the relationship between investment activity and the level of production as a prerequisite for increasing the technological level of the national economy and its integration into global value chains on a more profitable basis in modern and post-war conditions. Based on the analysis of the level of expenses that enterprises invest in the modernization and acquisition of tangible and intangible assets, it is concluded that the production and technological potential of high- and medium-high-tech branches of the industry in the pre-war period was increased, and it was found that their priority is capital investment in machines and equipment, and capital investments into intangible assets are financed according to the residual principle. It is determined that the manufacturers of pharmaceutical products and preparations, motor vehicles, trailers and semi-trailers, and other vehicles have the highest production productivity, which indicates the competitiveness of the products manufactured by them and their importance for the national industrial sector. According to the results of the correlation and regression analysis, a strong dependence between the volumes of sold products and capital investments in the pharmaceutical industry and the electrical equipment manufacturing industry and a weak dependence in the chemical industry have been proven, which requires further scientific research t

Optimal circular economy index policy in a production system with carbon emissions

To proper use of the limited natural resources, circular economy is an efficacious and alternative approach to many production systems aimed at protecting the natural environment. This work proposes a profit maximizing production system where all the products are produced with a variable circularity level. As the consumers are increasingly social responsible about their consumption practices at present, both the clients’ demand and per unit gross profit are directly influenced by the products’ circularity level and these consequences are investigated by several linear and nonlinear forms. Moreover, the manufacturer’s several activities in the production system like setup operations, warehouse operations and production mechanism are sources of carbon emissions. The utmost aim of this work is to achieve the manufacturer’s joint optimal circularity and production levels with the ambition of environment protection by reducing carbon emissions with the help of proper operational amendments. The global maximum profit for the production manager is determined by exploiting the optimal policies analytically. Nine examples are solved not only to explore the applicability of the derived analytical results but also to investigate how the optimal policies under all considered cases help the manufacturer to increase profit and reduce the carbon emissions significantly. Finally, an analysis is conducted to provide guidelines for the industry manager examining the parameters’ behavioral patterns on the optimal strategies by altering values of the system parameters. This study helps electrical equipment manufacturers especially (for example, mobile manufacturers) to obtain the optimum circular index for the produced items so that they can earn maximum profits and also protect the environment.