December 4, 2009 – Watertown, MA, USA
Doble Engineering Company announces that its Partial Discharge solution division LDIC Group, with operations in Kesselsdorf, Germany (LDIC GmbH) and Rheinfelden, Switzerland (LDIC AG) has been renamed Doble Lemke GmbH and Doble Lemke AG respectively. The rebranding marks the group’s pride and association with its namesake and founder Prof. Dr. Eberhard Lemke. It also acknowledges its position as technology leader in the industry and within the Doble family of companies.
Doble Lemke specializes in dielectric testing, diagnostics and monitoring systems and instruments for electrical power systems and apparatus. The company was originally named “Lemke Diagnostics” and was founded in 1990 by Prof. Lemke who is still a consultant to Doble Lemke. In later years, the company name was changed to LDIC Group. In July 2008, the company was acquired by ESCO Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:ESE), the parent of Doble Engineering Company, and is now a member of the Doble family of companies.
Vegard Larsen, President of Doble’s European operations explained: “Frank Doble was an early pioneer in diagnostic testing of electric power apparatus. His unique model of working in partnership with utilities is still the foundation of Doble Engineering Company’s business today. Prof. Lemke is also an industry pioneer. The company Lemke created is a leading edge technology group that has supported fundamental research on dielectric behavior of insulating materials. They are considered the foremost experts in this field. The new company name of Doble Lemke more accurately portrays this legacy and the partnership of these two great teams.”
Alan Wilson has been appointed as Managing Director and General Manager of Doble Lemke GmbH. Dr. Wilson previously held the position of Knowledge Services Manager for Doble. He has been a research worker and technology manager for UK utilities, CEGB and NationalGrid prior to joining Doble in 1999. He has a strong link to the company technologies, with over 50 publications in the partial discharge technology and transformer life management areas.
“The Doble Lemke group is a key asset to our company and will play an integral role in our growth plans,” said Dave Zabetakis, President of Doble worldwide. “Their technology excellence will play an important role as Doble continues to evolve our product offerings to meet client needs.”
For more information on Doble Lemke’s PD products, email [email protected] or visit www.doble.com or www.doble-lemke.eu
Additional background information
Professor Lemke remains one of few long established and internationally recognised experts in partial discharge technology. He is author/co-author of various books and numerous technical publications as well as holder of several patents in this topic. His expertise and enthusiasm continues to inspire the current Doble Lemke team. He received Dip.-Ing., Ph.D. and Dr.sc.techn. degrees from the Technical University of Dresden, Germany where he taught for many years. In November 2009 he was awarded an honorary doctorate from the Technical University of Graz, Austria in recognition of his scientific contribution. He is a member of IEEE, CIGRE and VDE where he is active in various Working Groups. He became chairman of the Task Force “Electrical Partial Discharge Measurement – C57.113” of IEEE/PES Transformers Committee in 2004. He was active in the preparation of the international Standards IEC 60270 (High-voltage test technique, partial discharge measurements) and IEC 885-3 (Test methods for partial discharge measurements on lengths of extruded power cables).
Doble Lemke’s instruments are designed for permanent and periodic diagnostic testing of high voltage transformers, switchgear, cables and large generators, and are widely used by manufacturers of such equipment and by electric utilities and the high voltage research community. Use of this test equipment can aid in preventing costly and catastrophic failures and improve the in-service life of high voltage power equipment.
The company’s first product, the Differential Lemke Probe, which was developed in the 1970’s, is still a popular and often used partial discharge tool in the lab as well as on-site. The Doble product line also includes complementary hand-held PD detection devices such as the PDS100 and DFA100. Current products include the TransformerGuard, TerminationGuard and MachineGuard systems for on-line PD monitoring of transformers, cable terminations, generators and motors. All are an integral part of the tools necessary for condition based maintenance of high voltage apparatus and conform to international standards from ANSI/IEEE, IEC and CIGRE.
About Doble Engineering Company
Now in 110 countries, Doble Engineering Company has been helping clients in the electric power industry improve operations and optimize system performance for nearly a century. Doble offers diagnostic instruments, services, and the world’s premier library of statistically significant apparatus test results for the benefit of energy generation, transmission, delivery companies and industrial power users worldwide. Doble is part of the Utility Solutions Group of ESCO Technologies Inc. (NYSE: ESE), St. Louis. For more information, visit: www.doble.com
