ABB showcases sustainability alongside ‘silent enabler’ switchgear

‘Cradle to gate’ approach sees sustainability factored into every aspect of switchgear manufacturing at Brno plant in Czechia

The electricity distribution system is “the silent enabler of the energy transition” according to Paolo Perani of ABB.

Perani is Sustainability Manager for ABB’s Distribution Solutions Division and he was speaking at an event that saw the company open the doors of its switchgear hub in Brnu, Czechia, to its customers.

And I got to join too for an exclusive insight into how the facility operates and ABB’s ambitions for the future.

There’s been a factory on the site in Brno since 1887 and the first medium voltage switchgears were manufactured in 1953.

F-gases move closer to phase out in Europe

ABB Distribution Solutions business line (ELDS) was introduced in 2019, and now the company is looking to a net zero future which has its equipment at the heart of technological developments, both onshore and offshore.

Sustainable switchgear

For Perani, sustainability has a multi-pronged approach: making ABB’s technologies sustainable, which involves initiatives such as zero waste to landfill and targets to be carbon neutral, and ensuring that its workforce – and their skillsets – are sustainable and diverse.

This includes an ambition for 25% of senior management roles being held by women, as well as engaging the next generation of workers.

Read now: ABB highlights women role models to promote diversity in industry

“There’s a scarcity of people in love with electricity,” said Perani, a man who is clearly deeply in love with electricity and determined to pass on that passion by engaging with universities to promote opportunities in the energy sector.

He also stresses that the drive to make ABB as sustainable as possible is not just an internal decision: its customers are increasingly looking for proof of performance data measuring the sustainability of ABB’s processes.

“Sustainability is becoming a decision-maker for investment,” said Perani.

This means ABB is taking a “cradle to gate” approach to sustainability: it can guarantee the ‘green’ credentials of its equipment up to the point it leaves the factory gates. After that, its customer becomes the custodian of sustainability.

ABB’s global digital lead, Sherif El-Meshad, took the sustainability theme from the factory floor to the grid edge and then to the cloud, by highlighting how digitalisation is playing its part in greening not just the company, but also the wider industry.

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He said an understanding and use of industrial IoT enables companies to hit sustainability targets, improve operational efficiencies, and – most critically, in his opinion – manage the increasing complexities of the energy system.
Look out for an exclusive interview coming soon with Sherif El-Meshad.

During a tour of the Brno factory, which has a footprint of around 13,000 square metres, visitors saw a climatic test chamber, purpose-built by ABB to test indoor MV switchgear panels to ensure they are able to maintain continuous power in the harshest of operating environments.

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