Ganz – Transformed for a Sustainable Future BFM 109

GANZ TRANSFORMED FOR A SUSTAINABLE FUTURE

USING ITS HUNDREDS OF YEARS OF EXPERIENCE, HUNGARIAN COMPANY GANZ, AN ICONIC TRANSFORMER BRAND, HAS INCREASED ITS FOCUS ON THE RENEWABLES MARKET.

TRANSFORMED FOR A SUSTAINABLE FUTURE

PROJECT MANAGED BY: LIAM PYWELL

Ganz Transformers and Electric Rotating Machines Ltd. enjoys a sound position in the transformer sector – the company achieved excellent performance in 2022, improving its market position and achieving considerable growth. Important projects were completed in export markets, and major new contracts were won for a number of years to come. The customer base includes companies located in Europe but also further afield, in North Africa, and in the Middle East region.

In parallel with increased production capacity and international expansion, the Hungarian manufacturer has also extended its product portfolio with intelligent solutions specifically designed to meet new market needs, bringing the benefits of digitisation to the widest possible target group within the industry. This success is impressive given that the company reestablished its former leading position only two years ago, after a change in ownership and a subsequent business turnaround.

“We have returned to the energy market as a brand with a significant history but also as an important market player at the forefront of the renewal and green revolutions,” says Jan Prins, Managing Director of Ganz Transformers and Electric Rotating Machines Ltd. “Combining our historical experience and a focus on innovative solutions, we will build on these fundamentals, striving to take Ganz’s unique products to more customers and more markets.”

Jan Prins, Managing Director of Ganz Transformers and Electric Rotating Machines Ltd.

ZA plus is the product for transformer cooling

Ziehl-Abegg transformer fans guarantees safety, so the cooperation between GANZ and Ziehl-Abegg is a very long one. As globally important connection points to ensure a reliable electricity supply, power transformers play a key role in the society and its infrastructure. Therefore, the cooperation with Ganz is a very important one in order to master the future new challenges together. Together we are working on new more efficient solutions to improve the cooling of the transformers.

ZIEHL-ABEGG fans produce an optimized, uniform air movement within the system, which is crucial to ensure a long transformer service life. This ensures long-term compliance with worldwide regulations for efficiency, noise emissions and safety issues.

During operation, heat losses occur. These are concentrated in what are known as hot spots and significantly inhibit the service life of the transformer. In future transformers must handle increased peak loads by renewable energy or e-mobility. Reliable cooling must be guaranteed, so the reliability of the fans used is of huge importance.

With its innovative developments based on over 50 years of experience in transformer cooling. ZIEHL-ABEGG has developed biometric impeller design with ZAplus casing with provides premium quality state of the art technology.

The high-quality motor technology and unique blade design is the result of decades of experience at ZEIHL-ABEGG.

The fans from ZIEHL-ABEGG demonstrate their quality and ability. Their solid components and robust design and technology are able to withstand even the greatest stresses. Maintenance-free are extraordinarily performant, fans from ZIEHL-ABEGG are a safe and rewarding investment.

The Royal League in ventilation, control and drive technology

ICONIC BRAND

The company that today employs some 350 people in its production facility located 80 km from the Hungarian capital, is building on a solid foundation, continuing the legacy of the group of companies founded in Budapest by Ábrahám Ganz in 1844. The group boasted several world-first inventions introduced in the late 19th century, including the first high-efficiency, closed-core shunt connection transformer launched in 1884. After 2000, the company operated under various owners until 2020, when Ganz returned to Hungarian hands. “Ganz is an iconic brand in its sector, and our company is now 100% domestically owned,” says Jan Prins. “We are proud of our history spanning two centuries and the fact that the equipment manufactured in our plant can be found in almost every country of the world. Drawing down on this impressive experience, we are today offering innovative technological solutions suited to the individual customer’s needs.”

Production of transformers accounts for about 70% of Ganz’s business. The portfolio includes substation transformers, generation transformers, auxiliary transformers, mobile transformers and traction transformers from 20 to 600 MVA (1000 MVA for autotransformers) from 52 to 800 kV. Ganz is also a market leader in the biodegradable fluid applications segment and was one of the first companies to build a transformer that uses biodegradable fluid. In addition to its core business, the company makes motors and generators and through its Service division, as a sole provider in the power transmission and distribution (T&D) market, also offers on-site installation and maintenance.

INTELLIGENT TRANSFORMERS

“Ganz is definitely a market leader within its industry. Our strengths include maximum customer orientation as well as engineering support; we are able to offer customers alternative solutions that are best suited to their specific application.”

“We are not a catalogue selling company, our solutions are customised and tailor-made, based on the specific needs of our customers. This is also one of the reasons why we are successful in the renewables market, a booming industry today, where we can use our expertise to point customers to the latest technologies that may, for example, significantly reduce maintenance cost.”

Since the business turnaround, a process in which Mr Prins was actively involved, the company’s reputation has reached new highs. New solutions have been developed to meet upcoming market needs.

In September 2022, Ganz launched its latest smart technology, Ganz Intelligent Solutions. Developed in partnership with the German

“GANZ IS DEFINITELY A MARKET LEADER WITHIN ITS INDUSTRY. OUR STRENGTHS INCLUDE MAXIMUM CUSTOMER ORIENTATION AS WELL AS ENGINEERING SUPPORT.”

company Maschinenfabrik Reinhausen, the intelligent transformer units aim to help the industry achieve its sustainability ambitions, combining decades-old technology with digital solutions and increasing system security in the electricity market. The units enable condition-based maintenance, extending the lifetime of transformers; the customizable solution package offers benefits in terms of functionality and sustainability.

“With the launch of Ganz Intelligent Solutions, a new digital and intelligent era of transformers is about to begin, and we are proud that Ganz’s pioneering role is once again being demonstrated in the 21st century by developing digital solutions that will benefit the entire industry,” says Mr Prins.

“Building on our legacy of the transformer inventor, the innovative digital solution is a bridge to Ganz’s future. Ganz Intelligent Solutions will not only contribute to the green turn of the industry but will support our growth plans and further strengthen our international position as well.”

AMBITIOUS TARGETS

2022 was a milestone year for Ganz in terms of financial performance, and 2023 is set to be another year of increased

sales: the company expects to deliver 100 power transformers and rotating machines, and has already received orders for 18 transformers equipped with the digital monitoring system.

Mr Prins, who has been working in the transformer industry for over 20 years, has a clear view of the business’s development and acknowledges that the plan is to achieve a 60% year-on-year growth in 2023 – an ambitious, yet achievable target, he says.

“Our focus on the renewables market remains, and that is fully in line with how we want to see the company developing. Using the latest trends such as digitisation, we will aim to offer innovative products with low maintenance and low installation costs.”

“We want to support the carbon-neutral challenges that the EU is facing. We want to lead by example, therefore, we need to address sustainability also internally, as well as within our supply chain. Our customers are now putting more focus on the soft part of the business, and we are doing the same,” he says.

Mr Prins affirms that the company is ready to face increasing demand, not only for transformers but also for its second product group, motors, that are supplied to industrial and hydro applications in international markets.

“It has been a great pleasure and an honour to work for this iconic brand, to help turn the company into a modern, innovative business, a successor to a long tradition, and to lead Ganz into a sustainable future,” he concludes.

“GANZ INTELLIGENT SOLUTIONS WILL NOT ONLY CONTRIBUTE TO THE GREEN TURN OF THE INDUSTRY BUT WILL SUPPORT OUR GROWTH PLANS AND FURTHER STRENGTHEN OUR INTERNATIONAL POSITION AS WELL.”