APC 2011 Annual Report Download - page 25

232011 REGISTRATION DOCUMENT SCHNEIDER ELECTRIC
DESCRIPTION OFTHEGROUP, ANDITSSTRATEGY, MARKETS ANDBUSINESSES
1
LEADER IN AN INDUSTRY OF THE FUTURE
2.3 Unrivalled leadership in our five businesses
Schneider Electric is leveraging its broad and consistent portfolio
of innovative products, integrated and intelligent solutions and its
competitive services to meet the requirements of its customers.
Since 2011, the Group’s activities have been organised into fi ve
businesses that meet the specifi c needs of their customers:
• Power, which covers all low voltage equipment (electrical panels,
circuit breakers…) as well as installation and control systems
(LifeSpace), renewable energies integration, residential market
offering and electric vehicles charging infrastructure;
•Infrastructure (previously called Energy), which specialises
in medium voltage applications, especially for infrastructure and
electrical utilities: disconnectors , circuit breakers, transformers,
medium voltage cells and SCADA (SupervisionControl And Data
Acquisition) management systems, software for the integrated
management of mission critical infrastructure;
•Industry, which provides comprehensive solutions for industrial
automation and control: advanced HMI (human-machine
interface) terminals, power supply, push buttons and indicator
lights, optimum temperature control, customised sensors;
•IT, which specialises in critical power for data centres: monophase
and three-phase UPS, server cabinets, network power control,
InRow Cooling Systems;
•Building , which facilitates energy effi ciency in industrial or
commercial buildings through automation and security systems:
programmable regulators, centralised building management
systems, camera sensors, security monitoring equipment.
All these businesses have signifi cant levers for growth, linked to
the growth in energy requirements, to the necessity of developing
energy effi ciency, to the evolution of electricity grids and of cities
throughout the world and particularly in new economies.
The Power business
Number1 worldwide in low voltage
The Power business is at the heart of the Group’s activities and
helps meet the world’s energy challenges: increase of needs,
growing environmental concerns, evolution in regulations, pressure
on investment and operating costs, development of renewable
sources of energy and, in the near future, of electric vehicles,
emergence of smart grids and sustainable cities.
This business represents the backbone of all the Group’s activities:
its energy management offering is found in almost all the integrated
solutions provided by the Group’s other businesses to their
customers, especially in the residential and non-residential buildings
sectors.
In particular:
•f or industrial and offi ce buildings, the Power business offers
a very wide range of electrical equipment, circuit breakers,
transformers, meters as well as monitoring and control systems.
• f or the residential market, Power offers electrical distribution
equipment and L ifeS pace control systems for energy, heating,
lighting, shutters, access control, fi re alarms,etc.
•the Group ensures i ntegration of renewable energy sources in the
electricity grid thanks to our expertise in low- and medium-voltage
electrical di stribution, conversion and energy management.
•P ower also offers a complete range of electric vehicles charging
infrastructures, that are both safe (for users, cars, buildings and
the grid) and smart thanks to energy management systems that
allow in particular to optimis e charging time, as well as supporting
information and payment services.
The Infrastructure business
Number1 worldwide in medium voltage and
automation
In June2010, the acquisition of Areva T&D’s electrical distribution
business completed Schneider Electric’s medium voltage portfolio
and in particular, strengthened its position in medium voltage
network automation for electro-intensive customers and electrical
utilities.
The agreement signed in October 2010 for the acquisition of
50% of Electroshield-TM Samara further strengthened Schneider
Electric’s offering and position in the medium voltage market, as
well as signifi cantly extending its presence in Russia.
Finally, the acquisition of Telvent in 2011, a specialist in integrated
management software for electrical, urban and industrial
infrastructures, positions the Group on the whole value chain by
completing its range of high added value integrated services and
solutions and strengthening its presence in many geographies
(USA, Brazil…).
These acquisitions have brought Schneider Electric global leadership
in medium voltage, allowing the Group to fully leverage the growth
opportunities stemming from the emergence of the smart grid
as well as from the extension or modernisation of electrical and
industrial infrastructures throughout the world.
The Industry business
Number2 worldwide in automation and industrial
control
Thanks to an active policy of partnerships and acquisitions,
Schneider Electric has continually strengthened its presence in
automation and industrial control.
For its industrial customers and OEMs, Schneider Electric offers
programmable logic controllers and automation platforms,
specialised confi guration, programming, operating assistance and
supervision software, as well as a wide range of industrial control
products, such as contactors, overload relays and motor circuit
breakers, speed drives, motion controllers, sensors, control units
and operator terminals.
Lastly, the customised sensors that were previously provided by the
CST business (Custom Sensors &Technologies) became part of the
Industry business at the start of 2011, bringing with it the biggest
range of sensors on the market, and global leadership positions in