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ABB Standard Drives Reaches Two-Million Mark

The two millionth ACS550 drive rolled off the production line in April, making it the first for an ABB drive series to reach the two million unit production mark.

NEW BERLIN, WI  -- Since its introduction in 2003, the ABB standard drive, ACS550, has continued to grow in popularity with customers across industries because of its proven performance, flexibility, and wide range of built-in features. Now, the two millionth unit in this standard drive series has been delivered.

“Reaching this milestone really highlights how versatile this drive is for our customers. They appreciate its reliability and flexibility. Especially now, when increasing energy savings is a huge priority, our customers have found that this drive is a great solution.” says Pekka Tiitinen, Group Vice President and head of the low voltage drives business unit.

The drive is distinguished via many built-in features that make it easy to integrate in a wide range of processes and applications. Its control panel simplifies commissioning, maintenance and accessing drive data. The patented swinging choke reduces harmonics. Multiple motor control modes and connectivity to all major automation systems make it easy to integrate into many different processes.

The drive series has a variant for HVAC applications, the ACH550 -- with integral Building Automation connectivity. Demand for the ACH550-associated E-Clipse Bypass has contributed significantly to the milestone.

Referencing HVAC, Rex Mustain, President of Associated Air Products, Kansas City, Missouri, USA, notes that, “this product line took ABB and sales partners into a different category. It gave us flexibility to compete with less capable products, positioning us into the market with features and benefits that competitors cannot offer.” The satisfaction with the drives’ performance also is extremely high, and fuels further sales, he said.

Another factor to reaching this milestone is the easy availability of the drives. With five factories around the world manufacturing the products, customers can get quick delivery regardless of where they are located.
Regarding the future, Pekka Tiitinen said “It took us five years to reach the one million mark, and then three years to hit two million. We’ll keep listening to our customers, innovating, and providing the reliable products they need to make sure that we keep these exciting milestones coming.”

ABB is a leader in power and automation technologies that enable utility and industry customers to improve their performance while lowering environmental impact. The ABB Group of companies operates in around 100 countries and employs about 124,000 people.

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