New Soft Start Company Hits The Ground Running
02 October 2005
A new soft start company has been set up to serve the UK and Eire, offering motor starting and protection technologies manufactured by Israeli company Solcon Industries Ltd. Softstart UK offers one of the most comprehensive packages of soft starts available, with ratings from 8A to 1800A and in voltages spanning 200, 400, 575, 690 and 1000VAC in the low voltage ratings and 1500-15800VAC in high voltage ratings.
Low voltage starters are available as standard modules to be mounted in a standard enclosure, with options for IP54 and IP66 enclosures. High voltage starters are available as OEM kits or stand alone High Voltage Systems. The UK company is also promoting Solcon's ranges of DC injection brakes, digital motor relays and control and supervision equipment.
Solcon ha, since its founding in1977, been at the forefront of design, development and manufacturing of industrial electronic systems, primarily intended for installation in AC motor switchgear. Managing Director Ami Shahaf explains: "We focus all our design work to providing long-term reliability and we have developed a corporate protocol based on continuous field research. This allows us to provide future-focused innovative solutions as a fast response to our customers' needs.
"Softstart UK will act as an autonomous business unit, serving the UK and Ireland, and we will back it up with our experience based on over 50,000 installations. Our particular strengths lay in the Industrial, Marine, Offshore, Oil and Gas sectors, all of which are well represented in the UK."
The UK market for soft starts is generally quoted at £5m-£10m, but Softstart UK believe that it is considerably larger than this because the number of large units installed is consistently underestimated.
High voltage soft starts are often classified as 'systems' and mistakenly considered to be variable speed drive system. As many of these large systems are bespoke to the particular application, the considerable engineering input encourages an ongoing loyalty between user and supplier. Solcon says that many of its customers have been using its equipment for 20 years or more.
"Our product reliability makes it easy for existing customers to come back to use again and again, and is a very effective barrier against insurgent competitors," says Shahaf. "Israel has always had strong commercial ties with the UK, and many of our customers have a strong British connection.
"This means we have been able to set up Softstart UK with an existing customer base that is naturally predisposed to our equipment and service."
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