History
Automatica in Bucharest received its name in 1960, but works in the former assembly hall of Ford cars, the only one in Eastern Europe, in use since 1932; the book assumes that part of the staff of S.A.R. Ford, which became Autoindependența after nationalisation, moved to Automatica [1]. Its founding decision (HCM 147 of 18 February 1960) gave it the design of automation for technological processes, machines and units in all industries, with the related studies and experimental research, the supply of complete automation equipment, the manufacture of panels, desks and control tables in its own workshops, installation and commissioning, and the training of operating staff [1]. The section on the automation institute IPA says that IPA grew out of the firm „Automatica” set up in 1960, and that the production unit named Automatica was the former Termotehnica firm, absorbed in 1961 [2].
Products
In the 1970s and 1980s it had its first complex equipment approved: programmable controllers, industrial robots, MCC-M14 withdrawable 0.4 kV distribution systems, MiniMod control desks, SESAM fire alarm and extinguishing centres and dosing and weighing equipment [1]. It made the SDC-2050 distributed control system designed by IPA [2]. In 1981 it introduced the first quality assurance programme aligned with the Canadian standard CSA Z299.3, for nuclear products, and in 1985–2004 it made electrical distribution, control and automation equipment for the ROMAG heavy water plant at Drobeta and the Cernavodă nuclear power plant [1]. In 1987–1992 it designed and built the first complex SCADA system in Romania, for the pellet plant of the Krivoi Rog mining combine (then in the USSR, now in Ukraine) [1]. In 1996 it became the first Romanian maker of electrical and automation equipment with a quality system certified by an accredited external body (TÜV-CERT, Germany) [1]. In 2014 it designed and had approved an arc-resistant 12/24 kV medium-voltage switchgear cell, with short-circuit currents up to 50 kA (12 kV) and 25 kA (24 kV), ready for SCADA and smart-grid integration; in 2018 the business passed to the CEMS group [1]. Its range now includes medium-voltage switchgear, low-voltage distribution boards made under Siemens 8PT and S8 licences, control and SCADA panels, belt weighers of 10–9000 t/h, belt dosers of 0.25–1000 t/h, batching and bagging plants, force-measuring systems of 100 N–4000 kN and robotic welding cells [1].