Survey says most Australians want 100% renewable energy

In a recent survey conducted a clear majority of Australians want the nation to move towards 100 per cent renewable energy. Renewable energy campaigners spent three months door-knocking and meeting locals at shopping centres to clock up 14,000 face-to-face responses.

They found that 86 per cent want Australia to be powered entirely by renewable energy somewhere down the track, and 91 per cent want the government to drive the movement.

More than two-thirds said the government wasn't doing enough, although 75 per cent were happy about it putting a price on carbon. A common response was that of Jake, from Albany in Western Australia, who said: "We have the technology. It's not that hard. Get on with it."

Connor in Townsville, Queensland said: "I want to vote for renewable energy policy makers."

Deputy Australian Greens leader Christine Milne, who accepted the survey on behalf of the multi-party climate change committee, said the results were a resounding "yes" to renewable energy. "They're sending a very strong signal to those of us who are in the negotiations to get on with it, get a carbon price," she told reporters in Canberra on Wednesday. "But it has to be carbon price, plus support for renewables. "The technology certainly exists for us to move very rapidly to renewables, but the problem is that it needs more than the carbon price that is currently under discussion. "It needs more than the renewable energy target."

The only large-scale projects in Australia so far have been in wind, but more needs to be done to bring on solar and thermal projects, Senator Milne said. The details of the carbon price are expected to be unveiled early in July, but Labor and the Greens have started to war over compensation for trade-exposed industries. Resources Minister Martin Ferguson and Labor left faction convener Stephen Jones have both said the negotiations could fall over if compensation isn't good enough. Senator Milne said the Greens were committed to achieving a bottom line - that the price be environmentally effective, economically efficient and be a platform for further action. "All the other issues, every issue we deal with, is dealt with in that context," she said.

Source AAP June 15, 2011

Setec CEO Exceeds Expectations

2011 Setec CEO Exceeds Expectations

On Thursday the 10th of March 2011, on the deck at Oakstone consulting overlooking the Melbourne skyline, friends and family of David Bayliss CEO of Setec and Darren Frlan CEO of Oakstone consulting, paid $50 each to watch the two men ceremoniously have their heads shaven. The occasion was for the World’s Greatest Shave and all the proceeds went to the Leukemia Foundation. The night was a success and the following days proved fruitful, as David’s target was exceeded by 5 times the original amount to $2,500.

I t all started when a few friends were out at dinner and one of them said that he was going to shave his head for Leukaemia. After hearing this David started to think. What if we all did this? As the night went on the idea started to gain legs and by the end of the night they were all going to do it. Like all good ideas formulated over a few drinks, the cooling off period often changes minds. Thus by the end of the week there were only two members still willing to go through with the shave.

Now the idea of the shave is to have as many people as you can sponsor you by making pledges to the Leukaemia Foundation. To increase the chances of making his targeted amount of $500, David decided to make a night of it and have a gathering with food and drinks. After all if this is how the idea was formulated, it only seemed fitting to lose his hair in such an environment.

In response to the campaign, David said, “I am so please with the response that I received. I f we all just give a little bit then it all adds up. When asked if he would he do it again next year, David looked at his reflection and said “Why not, it’s for a good cause”.

Setec and Codan designs on-the-go RF solution.

HF radios continue to provide dependable and cost effective medium for long- and short-range communications in critical and emergency applications.

In the absence of satellite links or terrestrial digitisation networks — or when these fail — high-frequency (HF) radios are what the military and government agencies still rely on to stay in touch. Manoeuvre units are among those reverting to HF communication because of its improved data-transmission and networking capabilities.

Codan’s 2110 Manpack is used by many government agencies throughout the world and is one of the lightest, feature-rich HF radios available today. It weighs only 5.2 kg with a 12 V 13 Ah NiMH battery creating the perfect solution for teams on the go. Lightweight yet powerful its battery has a 50-hour operating life with a 10 per cent voice duty cycle. The 2110M’s frequency range is 1.6–30 MHz (250 kHz–30 MHz receive) and it has selectable 25 W and 5 W outputs.

Its operating modes include an integral intelligent battery management system that provides readouts of the battery capacity and its condition via the front-panel display and also protects the battery from overcharging when it is being re-charged through a socket in the front panel. This battery management system is provided by Setec, a Melbourne based manufacturer, who worked closely with Codan to design the most appropriate and efficient design.

The 17 Ah Lithium Iron Phosphate (LiFePO4) rechargeable battery is lighter than a standard 13 Ah NiMH battery, provides 30% more capacity, and maintains the charge 5 times longer when in storage. With the 2110M's smart battery interface, the user can view critical data including battery life expectancy based on the normal field operational scenario of 1:9 Tx:Rx.

The 2110 manpack provides press-button Easitalk DSP noise-reduction system to reduce the effect of interference and channel noise in harsh conditions. Its GPS receiver option enables users to monitor their own position and the distance and bearing from other users in a network, while a base station operator using Codan GPS and tracking software is able to track manpack users on a single map. The 2110M can also be fitted with a programmable one-touch emergency call button whose transmission automatically includes GPS position information. 

Setec have been designing and manufacturing power products for over 40 years are experts in power management earning a reputation of high quality products throughout the world.

Why it is important to monitor your battery

Most caravans and motor homes have a battery power source of some sort. There may come a time, especially in some remote locations, when reliance on battery power will be the only option. I t is important therefore to look after the battery for these times.

The best way to look after your battery and ensure that it has a long and productive life is to keep your eye on how it is charged, and to what level it is discharged. Discharging a battery beyond 30% is dangerous as beyond this point the cycle life (lifetime) of the battery dramatically reduces.

So how can you know your battery’s charge levels? Using a voltage meter will tell you the voltage. However, as this method is only dealing with the electrical voltage of the battery, it won’t determine the charge level. I t will also mean that you would have to constantly check the voltage, which will become time consuming, not to mention annoying. The best way of determining the state of charge is to use a battery monitor.

The Setec BMS-001 is a battery monitor that works like a “fuel gauge” with a display screen of real time information about the health and charge of your battery. I t will estimate the remaining discharge time so as to avoid it going beyond the dangerous 30% level, thus protecting your battery from damage and increasing its life.

I t also shows information such as volts, amps, cycles, remaining life and charge/discharge, through a clear visual display screen.

A battery monitor will cost around the $400 mark, but pays for itself through increasing the life of your battery and saving the expense of buying new batteries.

Battery Monitoring System

Setec have released their Battery Monitoring System BMS-001. The BMS-001 is a high quality battery monitor that continuously monitors 12V lead acid batteries, acting as a “fuel gauge”, to estimate the state of charge and time remaining to discharge.

Fully designed and manufactured in Australia, this monitor is perfect for use with caravan batteries, marine batteries, solar energy systems, radio communications, farming and many other applications.

Clear visual management is achieved through a large LCD screen, with a backlight for night viewing, which displays a range of information including volts, amps, state of charge as a percentage, total charge/discharge cycles, and remaining battery life.   

The BMS-001 gives real time information about the health of your battery by monitoring the total charge/discharge and will even warn you when the battery voltage is low. This allows you to manage the state of your battery life versus your appliance use and the need to charge.

The BMS-001 is vital to making an accurate estimate of the state of charge, and allows you to determine when a battery should be replaced or recharged.

Setec are experts in power management and have been designing and manufacturing power supplies since 1968, thus earning a reputation for creating world-class products and providing custom-designed power supply solutions.

The BMS-001 Battery Monitoring system is due for release in March 2011.

Setec Awarded the SAI Global 20 year Quality Certificate

In a time of Global Economic uncertainty good news is becoming rare. That’s why it is so good to hear about Australian company who is being acknowledged for its commitment to high quality home grown manufacture. 

Setec a Melbourne based Manufacturing company has been awarded the “SAI Global 20 years of Management Systems” certification. This acknowledgement is a significant milestone as it recognises that Setec has shown such a long-term commitment to quality standards for over 20 years. 

CEO, David Bayliss and Quality Manager, Gary Gan represented Setec at the ceremony on the 18th of November 2010, where David received the award and certificate.

Setec has been manufacturing power supplies for over 40 years and have been distributing them throughout the world. Its Australian Headquarters boasts over 2,500 square metres (27,000 square feet) of modern factory and stores floor space. They have Antistatic, ElectroStatic Discharge (ESD) proof flooring, covering 1500 square metres. This in-house manufacturing operation provides SETEC with a strategic high quality standard, as it enables streamlining of SETEC’s time-to-market process. To meet the needs of its customers, SETEC has been RoHS and WEEE compliant since June 2006.

Setec’s Quality Manager Gary Gan has over 20 years of international process engineering and manufacturing experience within companies such as Hewlett Packard, Iomega and Agilent. With over 15 years in quality management he has earned much experience and qualifications and currently holds the Six Sigma Champion certification.

“Quality is not created by accident,” says Gary Gan “It is the business management and teamwork as well as good customer feedback. It is the process of planning and continually improving on everything you do.”

Gary started with Setec as their quality manager two years ago and has been constantly impressed with their commitment to quality. “Setec’s quality systems meet international standards and are comparable to the multi-national companies that I had worked with,” he says when explaining his first thoughts of joining the company. “With customers from all over the world and especially those within the Medical and Defence industries a very high standard is needed.

“It’s great to be acknowledged this way, but it so important to continually improve on what you do,” says CEO David Bayliss, “That’s why Setec are currently in the process of obtaining a LEAN manufacturing standard which will allow us to always be striving for a more efficient and cost effective way of manufacturing”.

The SAI Global, “Management Systems Awards” have always been highly regarded as the benchmark for many manufacturing organisations throughout the world. This award given to Setec is particularly exceptional as it been initiated by SAI Global, as apposed to Setec being an applicant, and is recognition of 20 years of quality Australian manufacturing.