Some of the early electrical generation plants used cogeneration. Industries that generated their own power used exhaust steam for process heating before central stations provided electricity. Large office and apartment complexes, hotels, and retail establishments frequently produced their own power and heated their structures with waste steam. These combined heat power activities persisted for many years after grid electricity became available because the early purchased power was so expensive.
Typically, high-pressure steam is fed into steam turbines in thermal power plants. This steam then exits the turbine at a condenser that operates at a temperature and pressure just a few millimetres above the surrounding air. Before it condenses, this steam essentially has very little useful energy. With the un-extracted steam continuing through the turbine to a condenser, steam turbines for cogeneration are intended for the extraction of some steam at lower pressures after it has gone through a number of turbine stages. In this instance, the steam extraction results in a mechanical power loss in the turbine’s later stages.
The most effective usage of combined heat and power is when heat is available on-site or relatively nearby. Longer heat transfer distances result in a reduction in overall efficiency. While electricity can be delivered through a relatively simple wire and over much greater distances for the same energy loss, it requires expensive, inefficient, poorly insulated pipelines. A Stirling engine or a reciprocating engine may be used in smaller cogeneration units. The radiator and exhaust are used to remove heat. Because small gas and diesel engines are less expensive than small gas or oil-fired steam-electric plants, the systems are popular in modest capacities. Some cogeneration facilities use biomass, as well as commercial and municipal solid waste, as fuel. Waste gas is sometimes used in combined heat and power plants to generate both heat and electricity. Waste gases include sewage gas, landfill gas, gas from coal mines, gas from animal waste, and gas from flammable industrial waste. For added technical and environmental performance, some cogeneration plants combine gas and solar photovoltaic generation. These hybrid systems can be scaled down to the level of a building or even a single residence.
The theoretical efficiency restrictions of the Carnot cycle or subset Rankine cycle for steam turbine power plants or the Brayton cycle for gas turbine plus steam turbine plants apply to every heat engine. When a turbine exhausts its low temperature and pressure steam to a condenser, the latent heat of steam vaporization that is lost is primarily responsible for the efficiency loss in the steam power production process.
Cogeneration is a more effective use of fuel or heat because it makes use of otherwise wasted heat from the production of electricity. Combined heat and electricity plants recover thermal energy for heating that would otherwise be squandered. District heating using combined heat and power is another name for this. One example of decentralized energy is small combined heat power plants. Absorption refrigerators can also utilize by-product heat that is at moderate temperatures (100–180 °C) to provide cooling.
Cogeneration plants are frequently used in the industry for thermal production processes for process water, cooling, steam production, or CO2 fertilization. They are also frequently found in district heating systems of cities and central heating systems of larger buildings such as hospitals, hotels etc.
Compared to utilities, industrial cogeneration units typically operate at much lower boiler pressures. Condensate that is recycled to cogeneration plants may be contaminated. Industries typically need to treat proportionately more boiler make up water since boiler feed water from cogeneration units has significantly lower return rates than 100% condensing power plants. The feed water for boilers must be totally de-mineralized and oxygen-free, and the higher the pressure, the more important it is that the feed water be as pure as possible.n

Pakistan HVACR Society Karachi Chapter organised an Industrial visit of Al-khair Technical Center, New Karachi, Karachi at Coolmax International with the support of Mr. Inam Nabi, Chairman Coolmax International and Mr. Muslim from the Society.

A dialogue on the recent flood disaster in the country due to Global Climate Change (Causes, Consequences & Way Forward) was jointly organized by Mehran University of Engineering & Technology, Shaheed Z.A Bhutto Campus, Khairpur Mir’s and Khairpur Medical College, Khairpur with the financial support of Government of Sindh at the main auditorium of MUET, SZAB Campus Khairpur last month.
The inaugural session of dialogue was chaired by Syed Asad Ali Shah. Professor Dr. Rukhsar Ali Shahani, Principal of Khairpur Medical College, welcomed the session chair, distinguished guests, dignitaries, invited Speakers and panelists, Directors and Faculty members of MUET SZAB Campus Khairpur and Khairpur Medical College, Managing and Organizing Committee members of this dialogue and students. Prof. Dr. Abdul Sami Qureshi, Pro-Vice Chancellor, MUET, SZAB Campus Khairpur Mir’s while presenting objectives of dialogue shared that Torrential monsoon rains triggered the most severe flooding in Pakistan’s recent history. In addition to causing a humanitarian crisis, Pakistan’s floods in the summer of 2022 also brought up governance and environmental challenges. At the start of the monsoon season in mid-June, Pakistan experienced flooding due to strong rains. Estimates of the rainfall range from two to many times higher than usual during the monsoon. By the end of August, flooding had reportedly affected more than 33 million people, injured about 13,000 people, and killed more than 1,700 people. It had reached historic and catastrophic levels.
According to reports, at its worst, more than one-third of the nation was under water, severely harming the nation’s infrastructure, way of life, and agriculture. Millions of people are in need of immediate, lifesaving support, and are at increased risk of waterborne diseases, drowning, and malnutrition. Hundreds of thousands of homes have been damaged or destroyed, while many public health facilities, water systems, and schools have been destroyed or damaged. As the floodwaters have receded, the crisis has become an acute survival crisis. Frail, and hungry, people are fighting a losing battle against severe acute malnutrition, diarrhea, malaria, dengue fever, typhoid, acute respiratory infections, and painful skin conditions. As well as physical ailments, the longer the crisis continues, the greater the risk to mental health. Sindh has been the biggest victim of this disaster; it is expected that out of 33 million people affected, over 70% are in Sindh. A major difference in Sindh compared to other provinces is the fact that surplus water from all provinces & regions ultimately comes to Sindh, which is effectively the drain of the entire country. Further, owing to its altitude at sea level, water does not flow easily. An inadequate drainage system has further escalated the disaster, as a result, most of Sindh remains submerged. Given the impact of climate change, with the largest number of glaciers in Pakistan outside Polar Regions that are melting together with the risk of unusual heaving rains in the future, the people of Sindh are exposed to the massive risk of existential crisis. The purpose of this dialogue is to examine & discuss the implications of the current disaster, and the role of different agencies in terms of;
Impact of the current disaster in terms of loss of lives, property, livelihoods, health, education, and other consequences.
Disaster planning, response, and management & overall governance
Learnings from current disaster.
What needs to be done to enhance preparedness to face climate change-related disasters in the future to mitigate the risk?
The dialogue has been arranged to gather all the experts/stakeholders from relevant fields (Irrigation, National Highway Authority (NHA), Researchers, NGOs, Media Persons, Social Activists Climate change experts, etc.) under one roof to discuss the causes, consequences, and way forward to the sustainable solution.
In the technical session, scholars and experts from diverse backgrounds presented their papers on the topic. The presenters included;
Mr. Naseer Memon, Activist and Renowned Development Professional presented his paper on “Flood Disaster 2022: Lessons and Way Forward”. Prof. Dr. Mohsin Hafeez, Country Representative, International Water Management Institute, Pakistan presented a paper on “Holistic Systematic Approaches to Mitigate Water Risk in the Indus Basin in a Changing Climate”. Mr. Ali Asghar Arbab, Climate Change/Environmental Journalist, News Editor, PTV Center, Karachi presented a paper on “Impact of Flood disaster on Livelihood and The Importance of Revival of Natural Water Ways”. Dr. Asif Khan, Associate Professor & Chairman, Department of Civil Engineering, Jalozai Campus, UET Peshawar’s Topic of the presentation was “Impact of climate change on floods in Pakistan”. Dr. Safdar Bashir, Chairperson, Associate Professor, Department of Soil & Environmental Sciences, Ghazi University Dera Ghazi Khan presented a paper on the topic of “Climate Change & Current Disasters in South Punjab: Impact on Agriculture & Livelihood”. Dr. Muhammad Zia ur Rahman Hashmi, Section Head Water Resources and Glaciology, Global Change Impact Study Centre Islamabad presented his paper on “Future of Pakistan’s Water under Climate Change: Issues & Solutions”. In the panel discussion, Dr. Habib ur Rehman Ursani, Director of Hydrology & Research Sindh, Irrigation Department presented his talk on “Flood Disaster in Sindh/Pakistan Due to Global Climate Change”. Engr. Manzoor Ahmed Shaikh, Investigative Journalist & Member of various committees of PEC talked on “Rebuilding of Sindh after flood disaster due to climate change”. Dr. Mehboob Ali Shaikh, Chairman, of The Sindh Vision, An Educationist, a Social Reformer, Prolific writer also joined as a panelist and shared his views.
After the technical session and panel discussion, the chair of the technical session Syed Ali Shah presented recommendations of dialogue and shared that from this dialogue we have acquired substantial information from learned guests, their valuable suggestions and insights regarding flood impact, its disaster, and consequences on our economic growth of our province in particular and our country in General. From this session and the dialogue between distinguished guests, we have concluded a few recommendations that can be carried forward to our government in order to prevent such calamities in the future.
Following are the recommendations which were concluded at the end of the presentation sessions as well as during the panel discussion.
Personnel/staff of the repair and maintenance division of the department of irrigation and drainage should be re-trained and their performance is monitored through field visits and digital technology applications.
Before the next monsoon (2023), the rehabilitation and reconstruction of strategic drainage works should be undertaken to minimize flood losses.
Whole irrigation and drainage system be reviewed by experts and a new strategic plan should be developed to prevent floods.
A disaster research center should be established to intensively do research on disasters including floods.
Public and private universities and research centers working in Sindh should coordinate to do meaningful research on the prevention of disasters.
Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) should be updated and implemented with zero deviation for irrigation and drainage works.
Like, the left bank study of SIDA, a study should be undertaken for drainage and flood protection for the right bank.
comprehensive research should be done for providing drainage for cities and towns of Sindh.
All storm waterways be cleared off and steps should be taken to prevent encroachment upon them.
Advanced information technology should be used to forecast floods and take appropriate measures before the heavy rains.
The irrigation and drainage department should appoint very competent staff at strategic levels.
Project planning in the irrigation and drainage sector should align with its top priorities; for example, a huge amount of money is being spent on the lining of canals and sub-canals, which are at the low priority level.
As academia (Doctors and Engineers specifically) it is our responsibility to provide awareness as an individual and add our contribution to the rehabilitation of our province and country.
Syed Qaim Ali Shah Jillani, former Chief Minister Sindh while chairing the concluding ceremony of the event, presented appreciation shields to speakers, organizers, and collaborators. Speaking on the occasion chief guest appreciated the efforts of organizers for putting their efforts to address the burning issue of Sindh. He apprised to compile the recommendations of dialogue and to share them with concerned authorities.
In the end, Dr. Rafiq Ahmed Memon, secretary of dialogue thanked the speakers and guests for joining the dialogue.n

Student Conference on Engineering, Sciences, and Technology (SCONEST) 2022 at Sukkur IBA University emerged to be an ideal forum for dwelling upon the role of universities to cope with the adverse effects of climate change wherein the academicians and experts came up with ideas as to how the authorities should rebuild the areas devastated by flooding created by monsoon rains in Pakistan this year.
The moot had a panel discussion titled ‘Role of Universities to cope with Adverse Effects of Climate Change and the panelists suggested short-term as well as long-term strategies and plans to rehabilitate flood affectees in the flood-hit areas.
Student Conference on Engineering, Sciences and Technology (SCONEST) 2014 is the most vital series of Research paper competitions from the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) International, to introduce new scientists and engineers in the field of purposeful and scientific research. It is held on a regular basis in different universities from across Pakistan as it is a national-level event.
This year’s SCONEST was held in November at Sukkur IBA University under the banner of IEEE International, IEEE Karachi Section, IEEE Sukkur Sub-section. It was organized by the Department of Electrical Engineering and IEEE Student Branch, Sukkur IBA University.
Around 150 students attended the conference. A number of 104 research abstracts were submitted in undergraduate and postgraduate categories on the themes: Communication and Signal Processing, Robotics and Artificial intelligence, Renewable Energy Systems, Power Systems, Software Engineering, Image Processing, Cyber Security, Internet of things, Mobile Application and Development, and Biomedical Engineering. Out of these, 48 research papers were shortlisted for presentations at SCONEST.
More than 20 universities all over Pakistan participated in the conference.
Vice Chancellor Sukkur IBA University, Prof. Dr. Mir Muhamamd Shah welcomed all distinguished guests and participants.
The other main highlight of the conference was the inauguration of IEEE sub-section Sukkur, Which has now been officially registered and announced by IEEE International.
The inauguration ceremony was followed by a tribute to Late Prof. Nisar Ahmed Siddiqui in a beautiful folk tune composed by Prof. Dr. Bhawany Shankar Chowdhry and the Panel Discussion.
The Panel Discussion was moderated by Engr. Manzoor Shaikh, a renowned journalist and Editor, Engineering review. The panellists included the Vice Chancellor, Sukkur IBA University, Prof. Dr. Syed Mir Muhammad Shah, Chair IEEE Karachi Section Engr. Prof. Dr. Bhawany Shankar Chowdhry, Head of Campus Szabist Larkan Dr. Zahida Abro, Chair IEEE Sukkur Sub-section Engr. Prof. Dr. Zahid Hussain Khand and, Professor, Sukkur IBA University Engr. Prof. Dr. Madad Ali Shah.
The panellists shared their views on the “Role of Universities to cope with Adverse Effects of Climate Change”.
The Panel discussion was followed by the eight (08) parallel sessions for oral presentation on the prescribed themes where the authors from different participating universities presented their research work. The authors put all-out efforts to apprise the listeners of the new trends in technological advancement. The presenters were also facilitated with participation certificates awarded by the respective session chairs.
In the closing ceremony, the Head of the Department, Electrical Engineering, Dr. Faheem A. Chachar shared a note of thanks to all the participating universities and students.
He also appreciated the efforts of the Conference Organizing committee, especially Dr. Kashif Hussain Memon, Branch Counsellor, IEEE Student Branch Sukkur IBA University for the successful execution.
The organizers and session chairs were given appreciation certificates for their services to the conference.
The top three paper presenters from each undergraduate and postgraduate category were awarded cash prizes. The top selected abstracts were then invited for full paper submission in the Sukkur IBA Journal of Emerging Technologies (SJET)

You opted for sales after obtaining a degree in engineering, what are the reasons to do it, and are you satisfied with your decision?
SK: Since there is no concept of R&D in Pakistan, engineers have limited areas to choose from like project side, testing, sales, quality, etc. In fact, I am fond of jobs connected with mobility. Therefore when I did my BE, I did not want to do anything static or dormant. I don’t like routine jobs and I believe it has never been challenging. Thank God, I opted sales side as every day appears to be challenging. Each and every day brought new things and new systems and of course, meeting new people. I was so motivated that I set my mind to moving ahead in this field.
ER: What are your job responsibilities and what products do you sell?
SK: IMS is a big group dealing in power turbines and machines etc. we are partners with BMS and then acquired Schneider, we have electric switch gears. We clubbed some products from the engineering side and connected them with switchgear.
ER: Engineering exhibitions are a permanent feature in Pakistan, what new products you have planned to exhibit in the next exhibition in the country?
SK: On the HVACR side, behind all airflows, we have motor-controlled systems. They are efficient and we offer them to the customers. We offer all motor center systems to our clients. The positive side of this system is that we have integrated our BMS system with the motor center system. In our system, all CCTV, firefighting systems are integrated with the BMS systems. The HVAC system is also its part. You can monitor it through the interface. This is something new that we are offering.
ER: The sales effort is aimed at targeting many stakeholders at a time in a company, which specific stakeholder do you target to sell your product?
SK: In the corporate world, the custodian is the most important person as he/she handles and operates that product. For instance, if we try to sell the electrical system, we need to persuade the people who operate, maintain and remain custodians of the systems in their industry. Of course, we do remain in touch with finance guys and also with the owners of the industry too. We always need to talk to the people at multiple levels right from custodians to the commercial side guys. After all the most significant are those who operate it and be with the system.
ER: Competitiveness is a major challenge as there are many companies that offer similar systems in the market and many are good ones. How do you {as a big company} compete in the market and what challenges do you face?
SK: In the industry, customers as well as suppliers are generally categorized and classified as a whole. Likewise, products are also classified as per their standards such as Tier 1, Tier 2, and Tier 3. They all vary from one to another in terms of quality. It’s up to the customers which tier they choose. Since the market in Pakistan is so diversified, each and every kind of supplier does take its share in the market.
ER: While looking for a less expensive product is a norm in Pakistan, what makes you distinct that the buyer gets interested to buy your product?
SK: There are a few factors for sure. The factory that we own at the moment used to export switchgears. These switchgears are installed at many places in Oman, Bahrain, UAE, Qatar, etc even at their airports. We claim we have the best quality product. The added point is that all the products from the supply chain are the same that Schneider uses in its factories. We are its licensed partners. The copper that we use in the product is as same as Schneider uses. Thus, all the ingredients that we talk about are the same.
Then our after-sales services effort is efficient that we provide for the last two decades. They are well aware of our products and they know what kind of problems could hit and where. Over 90 percent of the problems are resolved online or through telephonic communications.
ER: There are many issues with our economy and they affect everything including supply chain. How do you assure your customer of the availability of the product that you commit?
SK: In our country, everyone knows what’s going on on these fronts. If any issues appear for example as regards LC or other matters and resultantly the delivery turns late, it’s not specific to one company only. We see people failing to fulfill on their commitments. But we are trained in a way that we always make commitments that we are sure to fulfill them. We share the details with the customer to maintain our credibility. We do not want a black spot on the company.
ER: You talked about your after-sales effort, would you like to share with us that you offer to the customer as regards after-sales?
SK: We have a 50-year journey of a credible and efficient company. Nearly 80 percent of our teams has transformed to be experts. We are serious about employee retention, they are our assets and thus, our teams, trained on new standards continue to grow. The experience of the team from Areeba to Schneider continues to be transferred, then IMS inherited that system that benefits ours after sales.n