DNV KEMA and SINAEES/SENAI, the Brazilian association of electrical and electronic industry and the national service for industry, will co-operate in the design and development of an advanced new high-voltage and high-power laboratory complex. The project was launched on August 13 at a ceremony in Belo Horizonte, the capital of the Minas Gerais province, where SENAI and provincial government officials signed an agreement to support the laboratory project. The laboratories are expected to be operational in 2015 and will be located in the city of Itajubá, Minas Gerais.
The escalating demand for electricity to serve the country’s rapid economic growth necessitates modern facilities that can test and certify electrical apparatus destined for regional power grids. DNV KEMA has been selected as an advisor because of its 75 years of experience in testing power equipment and designing high-power and high-voltage laboratories.
DNV KEMA’s work will include design, construction oversight, tendering assistance, and final review and calibration of the high-voltage and high-power laboratories. The new laboratories are expected to have a significant role in furthering Brazil’s power industry to serve as a catalyst for growth in domestic power equipment manufacturing.
“We are very pleased to support SINAEES/SENAI with the development of these laboratories in one of the world’s most dynamic markets,” said Paul Leufkens, general manager of KEMA-Powertest, LLC in the United States. Our experience in T&D testing and consulting services and our commitment to investments in state-of-the art laboratories will help SINAEES/SENAI to realise dedicated testing facilities for the industry.”