Cis Amrein : leader in instrumentation and installation

The company AMREIN AG was incorporated in Switzerland (Regensdorf, near Zürich) in 1949.

Founded by Dr Werner AMREIN, it developed and manufactured test equipment to measure torque and accuracy of watches.

Soon Dr. AMREIN developed anemometers for turbulence precision measurements on profiles in a wind tunnel.

In a partnership with nearby BBC Switzerland, it developed from 1954 the first vibration and expansion transducers (with the associated monitoring electronics) for the BBC turbines, pumps, etc (large rotating machines) and became the reference supplier of such for BBC.

From 1956, it developed also a range of paper recorders (line and multi-dots types) for the control rooms of the Power Plants.

BBC was supplying such to various countries (95% exported turbogenerators).

These equipment were also implemented by the French subsidiary of BBC (CEM).

The French company C.I.S. (Contrôle Industriel et Scientifique) was established in 1962 by Mr Pierre BLOT, engineer, who became the partner of AMREIN in France and supplied the same family of equipment (transducers, associated electronics and control room heavy duty paper recorders) to the other French turbine manufacturers (ALSTHOM, etc.).

In the early 80's, the sensor range was extended with the development of eddy current based proximity probes and accelerometers.

The quality and reliability of the AMREIN equipment allowed them to become the reference of EDF who implemented them into all the power plants.

When EDF and FRAMATOME started the development of Nuclear Power plants, they associated CIS and AMREIN for the Seismic qualified (K3) recorders of the Control Rooms, the vibration and expansion monitoring of the turbogenerators (TGA), Feed Water Pumps (FWP) and Reactor Primary Coolant Pumps (PCP).

CIS and AMREIN supplied all these equipment for all the Programs of EDF (CP0, CP1, CP2, P4, P’4, N4) and all the exported complete power plants (KOEBERG – S. Africa, ULCHIN – S. Korea, GUANGDONG, LINGAO,-PR China, RINGHALS / FORSMARK / BARSEBAECK / OSKARSHAMN – Sweden, DOEL/TIHANGE – Belgium, Switzerland, 20 NPP in the USA, etc.).

CIS and AMREIN became also the qualified supplier of vibration/expansions monitoring systems for all the French NAVY vessels equipped with turbines and nuclear reactors [SSNB x8, SSN x6, SSNB/NG x4, NAC x1].

Simultaneously, CIS developed its associated services (installation, repair, maintenance, calibration); mid of the 80’s, CIS was commercializing over 70% of AMREIN’s production.

After the death of Dr AMREIN at the end of the 80’s, CIS took over AMREIN AG company, which became “CIS-AMREIN AG”; the manufacturing of paper recorders was transferred to France.

At the end of the 90’s, when the elder son of Pierre BLOT, Patrice BLOT (SUPELEC engineer and MBA HEC) took over the activities of Contrôle Industriel et Scientifique, a new company “CIS- AMREIN SA” was registered, took over all C.I.S. activities and the company C.I.S. was dissolved.

Under the new management, a complete range of new transducers, monitoring systems and dedicated calibration systems were developed, new direct Customers were marketed (BZD Beijing Chinese turbine manufacturer, KOZLODUY Bulgaria Nuclear Power plant...).

CIS-AMREIN has supplied to AREVA all the PCP vibration/expansion/speed monitoring systems for more than 20 reactors type CPR1000 implemented in China.

At the end of 2010’s, the children of Patrice BLOT, Alexandra et Edward BLOT (High Business School) took over the activities of CIS AMREI being the third generation.

CIS-AMREIN was chosen by AREVA to equip the PCP of the new FLAMANVILLE 3 EPR.

Since 60 years, over 1 100 Power Generation units (including over 130 nuclear Power plants – 25% of the world market) representing a capacity of 280 000 MW were equipped with more than 23 000 measurement systems and 12 000 heavy duty recorders into more than 70 counties.