IDEAL Orange County Chopper Makes One Lucky Electrician Very Happy
DEAL INDUSTRIES, INC. announced the winner of its Born to be Wired Sweepstakes for an authentic Orange County Chopper at Electric West in Anaheim, California. Five finalists were awarded an IDEAL leather jacket and a free trip to California to participate in the grand prize drawing at the IDEAL booth on February 9 th. Each finalist was given a key and a chance to start the bike. Daniel Mesa randomly selected the winning key, started the bike and pumped his fist as the engine roared and the crowd cheered him on.
Mesa, an electrician at M&M Electric in Las Vegas, Nevada, was one of thousands of electricians nationwide who entered the Born to be Wired Sweepstakes by purchasing specially marked packages of IDEAL wire connectors. The grand prize – a custom IDEAL Chopper built by Orange County Chopper from Discovery Channel’s “American Chopper the Series,” features a RevTech 100 cu. in. engine, a custom paint job and lots of chrome. The IDEAL logo is prominently displayed on the bike’s gas tank, fenders and embroidered into the seat. Even the valve stem covers, uniquely machined to look like Twister ® Wire Connectors, reflect the IDEAL image.
For more information, call 1-877-201-9005, or visit www.idealindustries.com.
Legrand to Acquire On-Q Technologies, Inc. - Becomes Leading Supplier of Solutions for the Networked Home
Legrand recently announced that it will acquire On-Q Technologies, Inc., known as On-Q Home, Harrisburg, PA. On-Q Home and Legrand’s Greyfox business unit will be brought together to form On-Q/Legrand. On-Q/Legrand becomes the fifth business group of Legrand in North America.
“On-Q/Legrand, which will be headquartered in Harrisburg, PA, brings together On-Q Home and Greyfox to deliver unmatched systems solutions, dynamic marketing and product innovations ,” said John Selldorff, president and CEO, Legrand North America. “We believe On-Q/Legrand’s breadth of innovative solutions and products and depth of sales and marketing experience is second-to-none in this market. ”
“We will expand consumers’ perception of the possibilities for comfort, entertainment and communication solutions offered by the connected lifestyle,” said Doug Fikse, former president of On-Q Home, and the newly-appointed president of On-Q/Legrand. “Our vision is to make our distributors, dealers and builders the most successful in this market by offering innovative solutions, sales and marketing tools, training and support.”
The On-Q Technologies acquisition by Legrand furthers the company’s goal to bring residential home systems to customers around the globe. The acquisition follows the successful launches of My Home in Italy, as well as, In One by Legrand in France. These home automation offerings are being extended to other parts of Europe, Latin America and Asia.
Legrand, Limoges, France is the world’s specialist in products and systems for electrical installations and data networks in residential, commercial and industrial buildings. Its catalogs feature more than 130,000 products, and it operates in more than 60 countries with sales of €2.9 billion.
MGE UPS SYSTEMS Receives Latest Honor from EE Times for its Leadership in the Electronics Industry
MGE UPS SYSTEMS INC. recently announced that it s Pul sar EX RT Fuel-Cell Powered On-Line Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS) wa s selected a s a finali st in the power category for the EE Time s ACE Award s Ultimate Product s of the Year. The EE Time s ACE (Annual Creativity in Electronic s) Award s honor the people, companie s and product s that demon strate leader ship in the electronic s indu stry.
The editor s of eeProductCenter.com, a member of the EE Time s network, identify each month the be st new product introduction s in seven categorie s. The se product s are then pre sented to a voting panel of more than 1,000 engineer s who rate the product s on u sability, application of technology and likelihood of u se. The high mark s garnered by the Pul sar EX RT Fuel-Cell Powered On-Line UPS made it one of the top power product s and a finali st for the EE Time sUltimate Product of the Year.
MGE ’s fuel cell powered Pulsar EX RT UPS provides virtually unlimited backup time to critical network systems as long as hydrogen fuel is supplied. The hydrogen, which is contained in replaceable cylinders, is piped directly to the fuel cell module. Like a battery, the fuel cell module produces DC voltage that is then bussed to the UPS. The rack systems, which are based on MGE’s proven double-conversion online technology, offer power protection optimized for maximum reliability and long backup times for high-density IT applications and servers. Scaleable fuel cell modules are ideally suited to meet the needs of the UPS and telecommunications markets, where the limitations of batteries including inadequate run times, excess weight and floor space requirements have long presented difficulties for applications requiring backup in excess of one hour.
“This fir st fuel-cell powered on-line UPS offer s the mo st robu st backup power solution on the market today,” said MGE’ s Vice Pre sident of Sale s, Single Pha se Product s, Jeff Wood. “We’re plea sed to be recognized for our product leader ship by the editor s of EE Time sa s well a s the engineering community.”
The winner s of the EE Time s ACE Award s will be announced at an award s ceremony March 9, 2005 at the Embedded Sy stem s Conference in San Francisco.
With North American headquarter s in Co sta Me sa, Calif., MGE i s able to deliver the late st in innovative solution s around the globe. To learn more about MGE' s power protection, conver sion and di stribution solution s, vi sit MGE' s Web site at: www.mgeups.com.
New Website Provides Instant On-Line Access to Leviton Integrated Networks’ Comprehensive Structured Cabling Offering
With the explosive growth in the structured cabling market and the expansion of its industry-leading line of structured cabling products, Leviton has developed a fully-dedicated website to support the growing interest in this market and provide quick, convenient access to information about Leviton Integrated Networks’ line of products, programs and services.
Located at www.leviton-lin.com, the new Leviton Integrated Networks website features an easy-to-navigate user interface that provides installers, builders, distributors and other professionals with instant on-line access to product information, news, events, installation tips, on-line training, as well as catalogs, brochures, spec sheets and literature, all of which are downloadable for convenient printing or viewing.
Prominently displayed tabs at the top of the website’s homepage make it easy to navigate from product and literature pages, to educational and technical information pages. These tabs offer streamlined access to: products; news and literature; an on-line learning center that provides design, installation and technical tips; information on programs for builders and installers; a support center for technical notes and specification and design tools; as well as an “about the company” section.
The website is accessible directly at www.leviton-lin.com and can also be accessed from the Leviton website at www.leviton.com. For more information visit www.leviton.com
FAA Awards Critical Power Contract to Schneider Electric
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has awarded a multi-year contract to the Schneider Electric North American Operating Division for critical power solutions at air traffic control centers, administrative offices and terminal radar approach control centers.
The two-year contract includes an option for three additional two-year agreements. It has a total potential value of $50 million for Schneider Electric, best know in North America by its flagship Square D brand of electrical distribution and industrial control products, systems and services.
The company has had best value, sole-source contracts with FAA to supply Square D power monitoring and critical power solutions and programmable logic controllers (PLCs) since 1998, according to James Sandelin, vice president of strategic accounts.
“We’re very excited about this new contract and the opportunities it creates for us to build an even closer partnership with the FAA,” said Sandelin. “This contract reflects the good work that’s been done over the past seven years. Like all strategic account customers, the FAA knows we can deliver an exceptional combination of service and solutions.”
Ted Klee, the company’s vice president of power management, said that new and dedicated resources in critical power also played an important role in securing the FAA contract. Based in Nashville, Tenn., the company’s Critical Power Competency Center (CPCC) merges expertise in power management operations, product design, development and distribution, program management, engineering and power consulting.
A critical power user is one whose power demand and mission require a back-up system that’s independent of the electrical power grid itself, and they require uninterruptible power of the highest quality, said Klee. Schneider Electric provides customers with customized and repeatable power system platforms that are packaged for orderly procurement process across multiple sites. This creates efficiencies for an organization such as the FAA, which operates hundreds of facilities.
“There are few environments where ensuring reliable power would be more critical than in air traffic control tower,” said Klee. “We’re proud to have the opportunity to provide the expanded scope of solutions required by the FAA to meet its needs in the towers and throughout its critical power distribution system.”
Extensive training and support services also were a key factor in FAA decision. Schneider Electric training specialists will immediately begin working with FAA to certify personnel responsible for critical power systems for the FAA. Schneider Electric also is providing 24/7 emergency support for FAA facilities across the United States.
