Celebrating 50 Years of ABB Low Voltage Drives

This year marks an incredible milestone for ABB: 50 years of innovation, reliability, and performance in Low Voltage Drives. As a proud ABB Value Provider, Beta Power Engineering was delighted to join in the celebrations and reflect on how far the technology and our partnership have come. 

To mark ABB’s 50th anniversary for Low Voltage Drives, we recently hosted a celebration at Beta Power’s head office. It was a fantastic opportunity to look back at how far the technology has come and to look ahead at what’s next.

A special thank you goes to Mick Smith and the ABB team for joining us (and for the cake!) as we raised a glass to half a century of engineering excellence. It was also a proud moment for our own team, who have spent years helping customers across the UK find the right drive solutions for their specific applications.

Reflecting on ABB’s journey, we recognise how deeply these drives have influenced the world around us. The innovation of ABB’s Low Voltage Drives has supported electric public transport, enabled low-carbon industries, and powered progress across generations.

And while the technology has changed beyond recognition over the years, the purpose behind it all, to make everyday operations better, is something truly worth celebrating.

At Beta Power, we’ve worked alongside ABB for decades, supplying and supporting ABB drives for countless UK businesses. The evolution from early analogue systems to today’s advanced, energy-efficient technology has been remarkable to see firsthand.

When ABB launched its very first frequency converter, the SAMI A, in 1975, it marked the beginning of a revolution. Installed in Finland’s Loviisa nuclear power plant and the Karihaara sawmill, it demonstrated how precision motor control could impact both safety and efficiency. That pioneering spirit still drives ABB’s engineering today – and continues to shape the way we help our customers optimise performance and reduce energy use.

From the first SAMI A converter to today’s advanced LV drive systems, ABB’s legacy is one of continuous improvement, ingenuity, and impact. Beta Power is honoured to have played our part in that story – and we’re excited to continue powering the next chapter.

To ABB, congratulations on 50 remarkable years of Low Voltage Drives. And to our customers, thank you for trusting Beta Power to deliver the performance and support your operations deserve. Here’s to the next 50 years of powering performance together.

In the early years, setting up and tuning a drive required deep technical expertise. Today, the process is as simple as answering a few setup questions, after which the system configures itself automatically. Drives now integrate advanced diagnostics, predictive maintenance, and cloud connectivity, giving users transformative insights into performance and energy use.

Energy efficiency and sustainability are now at the heart of every innovation. With rising energy costs and increasing pressure to cut emissions, ABB drives help customers reduce energy waste, lower lifecycle costs, and extend equipment lifespan. This innovative, future-ready approach to engineering aligns perfectly with Beta Power’s mission to deliver lasting performance and value for our customers.

As ABB celebrates 50 years of Low Voltage Drives, the focus is on the exciting road ahead. The next generation of drives is already taking shape, with smart tools like ABB Ability™ and Crealizer, which allow customers to fine-tune control systems and monitor real-time data.

At Beta Power, we’re proud to be part of this journey. Our team combines ABB’s world-leading technology with our own technical expertise and customer-first approach, so that every system we deliver performs efficiently and reliably. Whether it’s specifying a single drive or supporting a complete system upgrade, we help businesses make the most of ABB’s innovation.

Over the past five decades, ABB’s Low Voltage Drives have set new benchmarks in motor control, with a defining moment in 1995, when ABB introduced Direct Torque Control technology in its ACS600 drives. This innovation made it possible to achieve precise motor control without relying on encoder feedback — a breakthrough that significantly boosted performance, responsiveness, and energy efficiency across a wide range of applications.
Since then, ABB has continuously refined both hardware and software, making drives more compact and easier to install. Modern drives now feature intuitive setup interfaces, built-in safety functions and advanced connectivity via fieldbuses, allowing data to be transferred with higher-level systems.
For many industries, these advances have been transformative. Variable speed drives have helped manufacturers reduce energy consumption, improve product quality, and make their processes more flexible and sustainable. ABB drives have become indispensable in industries such as food and beverage, HVAC, wastewater management, and machine building.