Schneider Electric opens new process control lab at the University of Sydney

Schneider Electric has announced the opening of the Schneider Electric Process Control Laboratory at the University of Sydney that will provide students with experiential learning and training in process engineering, dynamics and control.

Officially opened by Emeritus Professor Rolf Prince of the University of Sydney and Lionel Finidori, Managing Director Pacific Zone of Schneider Electric, the laboratory is the culmination of years of close collaboration between the University and Schneider Electric.

The focus of the partnership is on building the skills and competencies of graduates by providing students practical process control implementation experience and extending the chemical engineering theory.

Lab work will cover instrumentation, process control and operations as well as the wider issues of optimisation and energy management, operability, quality, reliability, safety and viability of processes in the plant.

The lab will also address the needs of process control professionals already in the workforce through professional development courses to be run by the Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering Foundation of the University, in collaboration with Schneider Electric.

“Schneider Electric and the University of Sydney have combined our efforts to upgrade training resources which bring together over $1.5 million in dedicated process laboratories and didactic training equipment complete with instrumentation and process controls," said Lyle van der Veer, Schneider Electric’s General Manager of Training. “The most sought-after automation professionals are those who make it their business to stay on top of current issues, expand their knowledge base, and keep their skills honed.

“These 'real world' laboratories are both operational pilot plants and functional labs, and allow students to talk with process and product experts and experience new technologies and solutions.

“Thanks to Schneider Electric, the lab equipment, such as valves, pipes and processing equipment, is now state of the art and students can experience process control systems that are leading edge in the industry,” said Skender Bregu, Executive Officer, Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering Foundation, Faculty of Engineering and Information Technologies, University of Sydney.

“The company not only provided the equipment, but also the know-how, and became truly participants in the life of the School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering by involving chemical engineering students to design, install and test the process control system, under the supervision of the company technical experts.”

The Schneider Electric EcoStruxure learning centre team can provide expert advice to identify the best learning path for professionals undertaking the short development courses.

To date, the partnership between Schneider Electric and Sydney University has already fostered:

• Industry aligned short courses in:
  • Process control
  • Energy
  • Environmental
  • Safety
• Mentoring programs where third-year students are given the opportunity to co-design and project manage the implementation of a dedicated process laboratory rig or execution of a site improvement project
• Graduate development project(s) aligned to the university’s Major Industrial Project Placement Scholarship (MIPPS) scheme.