Answered by: Charles Tahara, Marketing Director, Industrial Control Division, Eaton
Pumps & Systems is celebrating our 30th anniversary in 2023. What do you think has made the biggest impact on the industry in the last 30 years? What do you think needs to happen to push the industry forward in the next 30?
I think the biggest impact in the last 30 years has been the wide adoption of variable frequency drives for pumping applications and the plethora of technological benefits it brings to the industry, including communication protocols, motor and pump protections, and making us all more energy conscious.
What are your thoughts regarding Build America, Buy America? How has that impacted your company?
The investments in infrastructure present a great opportunity for manufacturers like us, and we’re working through stressors on our supply chain to position ourselves to take advantage of the opportunities.
What needs to happen in regard to industry improvements in the short term?
On the hardware side, I think a very transparent approach to system energy efficiency ratings (inclusive of electrical control + motor + pump losses) will help the industry move forward. On the digital side, there needs to be a bit more stability and maturity in cloud or hosted solutions for pump users, as well as better interplay between cloud solutions and on-premise solutions like SCADA.
What issues have you seen with any material shortages or supply chain issues?
Availability and pricing in the electronics commodities have had the biggest impact, by far. It has settled in some aspects, but I anticipate that continuing to have an impact in our segments through 2023.
What industry trends are you seeing as we go into 2023?
Digitalization of customer sites is becoming a broader topic, from managing time cards and training, to operationalizing pumps, equipment and even standby power. There are a lot of exciting opportunities here to make ourselves more resilient in our pumping applications, especially with trained personnel leaving the workforce at a faster rate.