CIE Components in Electronics
It is not always easy to know just how much is left in the tank, especially if that tank is irregularly shaped or difficult to access. OLE develops and manufactures specialist gauges for the downstream fuel industry and water industry to provide just such information. The global market for these gauges is dominated by an established European manufacturer but OLE felt there was the opportunity to develop a lower cost, higher accuracy digital tank gauge that would provide the market with an alternative but equally effective solution. It was at the design stage that OLE, based on a recommendation, turned to Newbury Innovation, not just for the electronics element but for full product design.
Nick Lambourn, founder and owner of OLE, explains: “A colleague recommended Newbury Innovation and once we had met them and seen their facilities I was confident that they were the right people to partner with on this new product. The team at OLE prepared a highly-detailed specification which encompassed the challenges of the project. Newbury Innovation were able to meet these with their designs which included taking on the development of both soft and firmware in addition to the PCBs.”
“This is exactly the type of product and project that inspires the team,” commented Jon Hawkins, director of Newbury Innovation. “We were able to draw on our expertise in both design and electronics, combined with an understanding of manufacturing processes, to deliver a gauge that actually exceeded the initial requirements, especially in terms of performance and display capabilities.”
OLE then turned to Newbury Innovation’s parent company, Newbury Electronics, for the first full scale production run of a product that has since gone on to be sold around the world.
“We are now back talking to Jon about developing some modular, blue-tooth circuitry that we hope to incorporate into another range of gauges in the not too distant future,” said Nick Lambourn.
