ABB reinforces R&D cooperation with Chinese universities

Beijing, May 28, 2007—ABB, the leading power and automation technology group, initiates further R&D cooperation in power and automation fields with Chinese Universities. ABB Corporate Research China and Tianjin University entered into an agreement for two-year project cooperation of jointly conducting the research on adaptive auto-reclosing scheme.

Kurt Kaltenegger, Head of ABB Corporate Research China, said: "This is the latest in a series of cooperation projects between ABB and the prestigious educational and research institutions in China. For ABB as a technology-based company, the innovation is the key to maintain our competition cutting edge and sustainable development. The collaboration can not only solidify ABB's technology leadership in power system protection, but also allow academic experts to convert scientific research achievements into competitive products so as to meet the market demand for grid reliability. "

Kurt added that ABB invests around 5 percent of its revenues on R&D each year. ABB Corporate Research China was established in 2005. Supported with sufficient R&D funds, ABB set up several cooperation projects with Tianjin University and other universities on national key construction subjects and cultivate local talents at the same time.

Tianjin University is a top university in China. The program of "Power System & Its Automation" is awarded as the state key subject by the Ministry of Education to the lab of "Power System Simulation and Control". The university enjoys good reputations in the areas of UHV protection and adaptive auto-reclosing. In 2005, ABB Corporate Research China successfully cooperated with Tianjin University in special phenomena and requirements of relay protection in the alternating current transmission system with ultra high voltage and conducted the overall research in performances of ABB relay in the transmission system with ultra high voltage.

This project is a further cooperation between both parties in the area of protection relay. The auto-reclosing is widely applied for UHV (Ultra High Voltage) and HV transmission lines. It can put the line into normal operation shortly after the transient fault is eliminated. However, if the fault is permanent, the blind reclosing will result in more severe damages to the system stability and power equipments than the occurrence of short circuit in the normal operating condition. The adaptive auto-reclosing, through identification of the fault nature, can avoid the blind reclosing after the permanent fault occurs so as to minimize the economic losses of the power system, and it can provide solutions for reliability and safety for huge-power transmission in the narrow transmission right of way in China.

ABB is the market leader in providing reliable power supply and helping clients improve power efficiency with its relay products. With more than two decades of experience in power system protection and control area in China. ABB has seen its relay products widely deployed in key power supply and transmission projects across the country.

ABB Corporate Research China has established many cooperation projects with famous Chinese universities, including cooperation research in high voltage electrical equipment and system control with Tsinghua University, cooperation research in high voltage technology and dynamic characteristics of the electric power system with North China Electric Power University, the successful cooperation research in relay protection in the power system with Tianjin University and cooperation project of high voltage electrical equipment with Chongqing University. Besides, ABB also donated books and awarded scholarships to students of Xiamen University of Technology to cultivate electrical and mechanical engineering students. ABB donated nine sets of MNS low tension switch with internationally advanced technology to the School of Electrical Engineering of Xi’an Jiaotong University for demonstration and teaching and has signed the training and recruitment cooperation agreement consecutively.

ABB (www.abb.com) is a leader in power and automation technologies that enable utility and industry customers to improve performance while lowering environmental impact. The ABB Group of companies operates in around 100 countries and employs about 108,000 people worldwide. ABB has a full range of business activities in China, including R&D, manufacturing, sales and service, with 11,000 employees, 25 joint ventures and wholly owned companies, and an extensive sales and service network across 38 cities. To know more about ABB, visit www.abb.com.cn.