Cypress Envirosystems

06/15/2025

Thank you Benjamin REGENER (Nuclear Power Plant Leibstadt AG) and Ed Bradley (International Atomic Energy Agency) for organizing the amazing workshop on AI, Drones and Robotics this week in Switzerland. Over 100 participants from 26 countries pushed the imagination on how nuclear power plants can take advantage of innovative technologies to become safer and more efficient.

It was an unforgettable few days of brainstorming new innovation, sharing operational experience and making good friends. I had the honor to share our paper "Non-Invasive Digitization of Nuclear Plants", co-authored with Hank Strahley of Southern Nuclear company - copy available here:

https://www.cypressenvirosystems.com/files/ISOP/ISOP%20-%20Non-Invasive%20Digitization%20of%20Nuclear%20Power%20Plants%20v2.pdf

04/26/2025

2025 𝐖𝐢𝐫𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐆𝐚𝐮𝐠𝐞 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐔𝐬𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐆𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐩 𝐌𝐞𝐞𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠

Invitation to all nuclear professionals working in operating nuclear power plants: Please join us for the next WGR Users Group meeting where we will discuss "Non-Invasive Digitization of Nuclear Plants" on May 13th, 2025 (virtual meeting).

WGR's are installed in 34 plants world-wide. Existing users will share Operations Experience and compelling ROI and best practices for recent projects, with applications in Operations, Engineering, Maintenance, Radiation Protection, Chemistry.

We will also share the most recent products and planned feature releases as requested by the user community. We will also cover updates in cybersecurity and network architecture, AI and machine learning.

At our last Users Group meeting, 14 utilities joined us: Southern Nuclear, Duke Energy, Xcel Energy, Constellation Energy, Bruce Power, NextEra, Vistra, PSEG, Ameren, AEP, Entergy, South Texas, Cooper, Luminant.

Please contact Harry Sim if you would like to participate.

02/07/2025

09/24/2024

𝐂𝐲𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐄𝐧𝐯𝐢𝐫𝐨𝐬𝐲𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐦𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐒𝐨𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐧 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐚𝐧𝐲 𝐰𝐢𝐧 𝐟𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐔𝐍 𝐢𝐧𝐧𝐨𝐯𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐚𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐝 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐧𝐮𝐜𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐫 𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐬

Five years ago, nuclear power was on the road to extinction – plants were closing every year. Many hoped that solar, wind and other renewable sources would be sufficient to power a net-zero future. But we were mistaken.

Today, with AI data centers devouring huge amounts of energy while the impact of climate change is more evident than ever, existing nuclear plants represent a carbon-free and reliable form of energy that we cannot ignore. Last year, the United Nations COP 28 report formally recognized the key role that nuclear energy plays in the fight against climate change. Rather than shutting down old nuclear plants, we must now make them more safe, efficient and cost effective to last for decades in the future.

It is within this context that the UN International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) created the first ever Innovation Award to improve existing nuclear plants. 39 candidates from 9 countries competed for four awards. On September 17th, the IAEA declared Cypress Envirosystems and Southern Company a winner. Hank Strahley, Operations Support Supervisor from Southern Nuclear, and Harry Sim, CEO of Cypress Envirosystems, received the award at the UN Headquarters in Vienna. The IAEA recognized the proven benefits resulting from the deployment of 300 Wireless Gauge Readers at Plant Hatch, leveraging IoT, Machine Vision and AI technologies.

At Cypress, we are honored for the opportunity to support the global nuclear industry, and we are especially fortunate to work with an innovative and forward-looking utility like Southern.

See the award winning submission here:
https://www.cypressenvirosystems.com/files/ReleasedDocuments/Industrial/Case%20Studies/Nuclear/United%20Nations%20Innovation%20Award%20-%20International%20Atomic%20Energy%20Agency.pdf

Learn more about the IAEA General Session in Vienna here:
https://www.facebook.com/reel/536386122097959
https://lnkd.in/ehwbUrf6

03/09/2024

PSEG is the largest electric and gas utility in New Jersey, established in 1903. It operates three nuclear reactors providing electricity to more than 2.4 million people.

Cypress Envirosystems is honored to be selected by PSEG to participate in their 2nd annual Nuclear Innovation Showcase. Participation was limited to only a short list of PSEG’s most impactful partners, including Idaho National Labs, Apple Computer, SMC, Industrial Control Distributors among others.

Our Cypress team was able to meet with various leaders (from Operations, Engineering, Maintenance, Chemistry, Radiation Protection, Safety etc.) to understand their needs and how we may be able to help support their mission. It was a rare and valuable opportunity to have such a broad perspective and feedback from the whole organization.

The other participant companies were also top notch in their areas of innovation, and we have found numerous possibilities to collaborate and combine solutions for even more impact. Thank you PSEG for a fantastic showcase!

10/27/2023

𝗖𝘆𝗽𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗡𝘂𝗰𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿 𝗜𝗻𝗱𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗿𝘆 𝗨𝘀𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗚𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗽 𝗠𝗲𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 – 𝗵𝗼𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗯𝘆 𝗫𝗰𝗲𝗹 𝗘𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗴𝘆

This week, we held the 3rd Cypress Nuclear Industry Users Group Meeting, hosted by Xcel Energy at their headquarters in Minneapolis. The meeting’s objective is to share cases studies, return on investment and best practices for using non-invasive digitization technologies to modernize nuclear plants. Participants included representatives from Operations, Engineering, I.T. and Innovation from both new and existing Cypress users: Xcel Energy, Southern Company, Constellation Energy, Duke Energy, NextEra, PSEG, South Texas, Nebraska Public Service, Bruce Power, OPG and EPRI. The group also visited the impressive new Xcel Energy Innovation Center in Minneapolis.

The next Users Group meeting is scheduled in March 2024. If you would like to attend, please contact [email protected]. You must be a professional working in the nuclear industry to attend. There is no fee for participation.

07/10/2023

𝐂𝐲𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐄𝐧𝐯𝐢𝐫𝐨𝐬𝐲𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐦𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐩𝐚𝐩𝐞𝐫 𝐚𝐭 𝐍𝐈𝐓𝐒𝐋 𝐩𝐥𝐞𝐧𝐚𝐫𝐲 𝐬𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧

Cypress Envirosystems’ CEO Harry Sim will present a paper on “Non-Invasive Digitization of Nuclear Plants” at the annual NITSL (Nuclear Information Technology Strategic Leadership) conference this week in Scottsdale, AZ. The paper will be co-presented by Josh Patrick, IT Manager from Southern Company’s Vogtle 3 nuclear plant.

The NITSL conference is attended by representatives from all nuclear utilities, operating 59 nuclear generation plants in North America. In today’s volatile energy markets, nuclear power is considered a key pillar for energy supply and security. The paper’s topic will address how to upgrade existing plants with minimal disruption and cost to reduce operating cost and improve safety, particularly leveraging Cypress Envirosystems’ patented non-invasive technology.

04/13/2023

𝐍𝐨𝐧-𝐈𝐧𝐯𝐚𝐬𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐃𝐢𝐠𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐳𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐌𝐨𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐳𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐄𝐱𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐍𝐮𝐜𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐫 𝐏𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫 𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐬

The next bi-annual Users Group meeting will be held on Tuesday April 18th. This session will be attended by nine utilities representing 26 nuclear power plants in North America, plus EPRI.

The purpose of the Users Group is to share operational experience among existing and prospective users of non-invasive digitization solutions pioneered by Cypress Envirosystems. The focus for the upcoming session will be:

a) Use Cases and Return on Investment for deploying non-invasive digitization technologies to existing nuclear plants - 19 use cases from seven utilities.

b) Best practices and shared resources for deployment – specifications, engineering change packages, evaluations, training, etc.

c) Ensuring continuous value – Historian interface and data analytics to maximize return on investment, system health check, recommended maintenance services.

Participation is limited to professionals working in the nuclear industry. This meeting is virtual via Teams - there is no fee for participation.

05/11/2022

𝑱𝒐𝒉𝒏𝒔𝒐𝒏 𝑪𝒐𝒏𝒕𝒓𝒐𝒍𝒔 𝑰𝒏𝒕𝒓𝒐𝒅𝒖𝒄𝒆𝒔 𝑾𝑻𝑳-𝑺𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒆𝒔 𝑾𝒊𝒓𝒆𝒍𝒆𝒔𝒔 𝑷𝒏𝒆𝒖𝒎𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒄 𝑻𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒎𝒐𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒕

𝘊𝘰𝘯𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘵𝘴 𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘶𝘢𝘭 𝘱𝘯𝘦𝘶𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘤 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘰𝘭 𝘵𝘰 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘮𝘶𝘯𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘥𝘪𝘨𝘪𝘵𝘢𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘮𝘰𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘵 𝘢𝘵 𝘢 𝘧𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘤𝘰𝘴𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘷𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭 “𝘋𝘋𝘊” 𝘳𝘦𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘤𝘦𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵.

In 1883, Warren Johnson invented the first pneumatic thermostat. It used compressed air to automatically regulate the heating in large buildings. It is astonishing to think that this technology was deployed before electricity was even available in cities.

Today, 130 years later, the company founded by Johnson – Johnson Controls – is a world leader in building controls with $24 billion in annual revenue. Incredibly, there are still tens of millions of pneumatic thermostats still working in existing buildings. However, compared to modern digital programmable and communicating thermostats, these legacy units are incapable of executing basic energy savings strategies, and cannot report occupant discomfort or mechanical faults. Retrofitting these thermostats to modern “DDC” thermostats is labor intensive and disruptive to occupants, and is very costly.

With the introduction of the WTL, this retrofit can be completed in only 10 minutes, at a fraction of the cost, with virtually no occupant disruption. Using the WTL, “no building will be left behind” - even older buildings can be easily upgraded to save energy and improve occupant comfort.

04/29/2022

𝘾𝙮𝙥𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙨 𝙀𝙣𝙫𝙞𝙧𝙤𝙨𝙮𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙢𝙨 𝙈𝙤𝙙𝙚𝙧𝙣𝙞𝙯𝙚𝙨 𝙉𝘼𝙎𝘼 𝙅𝙋𝙇 𝙁𝙖𝙘𝙞𝙡𝙞𝙩𝙮

For more than 60 years, NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) has the front row seat of the exploration of our solar system - sending probes to Venus, Jupiter, Saturn, Europa, Titan, and deploying robotic rovers and helicopters on Mars. The twin Voyager spacecraft have even ventured beyond our solar system, to be the first interstellar travelers from Earth.

In 1989, JPL established the Microdevices Laboratory to develop cutting edge semiconductors and sensors specially suited to the extreme demands of space exploration. The lab's inventions help make possible the planetary missions that JPL is famous for.

This month, the Microdevices Laboratory asked Cypress Envirosystems to help modernize their existing facility. Using our Wireless Gauge Reader family of products, we digitized many critical facility systems at MDL to reduce labor and enable fault detection and condition based maintenance: process gases, cooling loops, air compressors, chillers etc.

Thanks to the non-invasive nature of Cypress' technology, we performed the upgrade at a fraction of the cost and time required for conventional upgrades. There was no disruption to the lab's operations - no downtime, no running wires, no cutting pipes, no leak checks, no lengthy engineering design and review. The whole upgrade was completed in three days.

How does the WGR work? Watch video here:
https://youtu.be/eY9S4CSb8lU

08/14/2021

𝘿𝙪𝙠𝙚 𝙀𝙣𝙚𝙧𝙜𝙮 𝙥𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙨 𝙖𝙩 𝘼𝙢𝙚𝙧𝙞𝙘𝙖𝙣 𝙉𝙪𝙘𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙧 𝙎𝙤𝙘𝙞𝙚𝙩𝙮 𝙘𝙤𝙣𝙛𝙚𝙧𝙚𝙣𝙘𝙚: 𝙍𝙖𝙥𝙞𝙙 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙘𝙤𝙨𝙩-𝙚𝙛𝙛𝙚𝙘𝙩𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙙𝙞𝙜𝙞𝙩𝙞𝙯𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙤𝙛 𝙚𝙭𝙞𝙨𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙥𝙡𝙖𝙣𝙩𝙨 𝙪𝙨𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙣𝙤𝙣-𝙞𝙣𝙫𝙖𝙨𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙘𝙡𝙖𝙢𝙥-𝙤𝙣 𝙨𝙚𝙣𝙨𝙤𝙧𝙨

Steve Putnam, Innovation Manager at Duke Energy Nuclear, is presenting this week at the American Nuclear Society conference in Marco Island FL.

Duke Energy has deployed the Cypress IoT Wireless Gauge Reader (WGR) to all six of their nuclear power plants, and is sharing the significant operational experience they have gained over the past three years. View presentation here:

http://www.cypressenvirosystems.com/files/pdf/UWC%20Presentation%20-%202021.pdf

Background on Wireless Gauge Reader:
The WGR is an non-invasive clamp-on optical device which allows plants to digitize existing mechanical gauges and indicators in minutes with virtually no operational disruption.

https://fb.watch/7k8pynaQ2Z/

03/15/2021

𝘾𝙖𝙡𝙞𝙛𝙤𝙧𝙣𝙞𝙖 𝙀𝙣𝙚𝙧𝙜𝙮 𝘾𝙤𝙢𝙢𝙞𝙨𝙨𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙁𝙪𝙣𝙙𝙨 𝙐𝙥𝙜𝙧𝙖𝙙𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝙎𝙖𝙣 𝘿𝙞𝙚𝙜𝙤 𝘾𝙞𝙩𝙮 𝙃𝙖𝙡𝙡 𝙪𝙨𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝘾𝙮𝙥𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙨 𝙀𝙣𝙫𝙞𝙧𝙤𝙨𝙮𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙢𝙨’ 𝙄𝙤𝙏 𝙏𝙚𝙘𝙝𝙣𝙤𝙡𝙤𝙜𝙮.

San Diego is known as the “birthplace of California” where the first Europeans visited and settled on the West Coast of the North American continent almost five hundred years ago. Today, the city of San Diego is the second largest city in California after Los Angeles.

This week, Cypress Envirosystems completed an IoT thermostat upgrade for two buildings at the San Diego City Hall and Civic Center at the direction of the San Diego Sustainability Team. The project is funded by the California Energy Commission, with a goal to improve energy efficiency of the 56 year-old buildings. The unique Wireless Pneumatic Thermostat from Cypress Envirosystems was selected as the only technology which can achieve the upgrade without significant disruption and cost to city operations.