MicroPower

What MicroPower does

MicroPower (legally Micropower Modulek (Pty)Ltd) is a South African manufacturer, distributor, and systems integrator of industrial instrumentation and control components, founded in 1985 and headquartered in Kya North Park, Randburg, Gauteng. The company designs and manufactures HVAC controllers and networked thermostats and distributes Red Lion Controls products across South Africa, including CR1000, CR3000, and Graphite series HMIs, PAX, CUB, C48, and PM-50 panel meters, and N-Tron/Sixnet managed and unmanaged industrial Ethernet switches. It is also the sole South African distributor of Elmeasure power and water metering products and supplies electromagnetic and electro-mechanical vibratory feeder controllers (1-2000 tons per hour capacity) for industrial solids handling.

The company operates a sales-led go-to-market combining direct sales from Randburg with a network of regional distributors covering Witbank, Secunda, Port Elizabeth, East London, Cape Town, and KwaZulu-Natal, with ancillary export activity to the USA, Australia, and North Africa. Revenue is generated through hardware distribution (Red Lion and Elmeasure products), installation and commissioning services for access control, building management, and energy management systems, and managed building services. Its primary customer segment is commercial building owners and facilities managers seeking to modernize legacy building controls into energy-efficient, networked systems, with secondary segments in industrial manufacturing and major energy consumers. MicroPower integrates these offerings using Tridium's Niagara N4 open platform to communicate with legacy devices and consolidate HVAC, energy, water, security, and access-control data.

Business model is hardware-led distribution supplemented by professional services and building systems integration; pricing is not publicly disclosed and customers are directed to enquire. The company is privately held under director Divesh Nair (and managing director Sagaran Nair per leadership disclosure), with no institutional investors, funding rounds, or parent company disclosed. Marketing relies on the company website (micropowersa.co.za) and downloadable product brochures, with no active social media presence documented.

Name

MicroPower

Legal name

Micropower Modulek (Pty)Ltd

Website

https://micropowersa.co.za

Company type

Private

Founded year

1985

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

MicroPower is a South African industrial automation distributor and systems integrator, founded in 1985, that supplies HVAC controllers, panel meters, HMIs, industrial Ethernet switches, and building management solutions to commercial building owners, facilities managers, and industrial manufacturers across South Africa and select export markets.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Gauteng

HQ country

South Africa

HQ region

Africa

Offices7 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Industrial Control Products Distribution: Distribution of industrial electronics components including HVAC controllers, panel meters, HMIs, industrial Ethernet switches, vibratory feeders and controllers, and solar/UPS systems from represented manufacturers like Red Lion Controls.
2. Installation and Commissioning Services: Installation and commissioning of access control systems, building management systems, and energy management systems.
3. Building Services Integration: Full service building systems including climate control, energy and water management, solar power and UPS installation and maintenance.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels2 records

Core offering

MicroPower designs, manufactures, and distributes industrial instrumentation and control components including HVAC controllers, vibratory feeder controllers, panel meters, HMIs, and industrial Ethernet switches. The company is the sole South African distributor of Red Lion Controls industrial automation hardware and Elmeasure power/water metering products, and delivers integrated building services combining HVAC control, Building Management Systems (on the Tridium Niagara N4 platform), energy and water management, solar power, UPS, and access control. Products and services are supplied direct and through a regional distributor network, with installations and commissioning completed by MicroPower's own technical staff.

Product overview

MicroPower is a distributor and systems integrator of industrial instrumentation and control products, founded in 1985 and based in Kya North Park, Randburg, South Africa. Its portfolio is built around Red Lion Controls products — HMI operator panels (CR1000, CR3000, and Graphite series), panel meters (PAX, CUB, C48, PM-50 series), and industrial Ethernet switches (managed and unmanaged from N-Tron and Sixnet brands) — complemented by HVAC controllers, vibratory feeders and controllers, and solar and UPS power solutions. These individual products are combined through building services that integrate HVAC, energy monitoring, access control, and solar power using the Niagara N4 platform from Tridium, enabling MicroPower to deliver turnkey building management and industrial automation solutions.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• HVAC Controllers Proprietary HVAC controllers (setpoint controllers and networked thermostats) for commercial climate control, designed and manufactured by MicroPower. Over 5,000 controllers installed across 100+ buildings (50+ premier sites) with field-proven reliability of 15+ years; retrofittable designs and integrates with building management systems.
• Vibratory Feeders and Controllers Half-wave and mixed-current electromagnetic controllers plus electro-mechanical controllers and complete vibratory feeders handling bulk solids from 1 to 2000 tons per hour for manufacturing plants across industries from food packaging to heavy mineral processing.
• Red Lion CR1000 HMI Operator Panel Red Lion CR1000 automation HMI operator panel distributed by MicroPower, offering widescreen displays up to 10.4 inches with 16M colors, up to 2 serial ports, 1 Ethernet port, USB device connectivity, Crimson software configuration, and 300+ industrial protocol drivers.
• Red Lion CR3000 HMI Operator Panel Red Lion CR3000 HMI distributed in South Africa by MicroPower, with up to 4 serial ports, 2 Ethernet ports, 2 USB host ports, USB device, web server, data logging, and SQL query automation for downloading data from Microsoft SQL Server.
• Red Lion Graphite HMI Series Red Lion Graphite rugged all-aluminum HMI operator panels (7 to 15 inch touchscreens) distributed by MicroPower, supporting up to 20 simultaneous industrial protocol conversions from 300+ drivers and plug-in modules for PID control, digital I/O, analog I/O, thermocouple, RTD, and strain gauge. Certified UL Class 1 Division 2, ABS, ATEX, and IECEx for harsh environments.
• Red Lion PAX Panel Meter Series Red Lion PAX panel meter series (PAX Lite, PAX, PAX2) distributed by MicroPower for count, rate, time, and process measurement with field-installable option cards and Crimson software configuration.
• Red Lion CUB Panel Meter Series Red Lion CUB5 (user-programmable with setpoint/communication options), CUB4 (large display for basic applications), and CUB7 (dedicated eight-digit) panel meters distributed by MicroPower in South Africa.
• Red Lion C48 Counter/Timer Panel Meter Red Lion C48 standard and batch counter/timer panel meter distributed by MicroPower, offering single or dual presets, main process counter/timer with dual presets, and secondary counter functioning as batch or total counter.
• Red Lion PM-50 Graphical Panel Meter Next-generation Red Lion PM-50 graphical panel meter (PM-50A and PM-50D) with Wi-Fi connectivity for smart plant-floor data harvesting, distributed by MicroPower in South Africa.
• Red Lion / N-Tron / Sixnet Managed Industrial Ethernet Switches Red Lion managed industrial Ethernet switches (N-Tron and Sixnet series) distributed by MicroPower, including SLX-5MS, 7506GX2, 508FXE2, SLX-8MG, SLX-8MS, and 708FX2 series, with configurable port settings, LAN monitoring, -40C to 85C operating temperatures, and fiber support up to 80km.
• Red Lion / N-Tron / Sixnet Unmanaged Industrial Ethernet Switches Red Lion unmanaged plug-and-play industrial Ethernet switches (N-Tron and Sixnet series) distributed by MicroPower for industrial data acquisition, control, and Ethernet I/O applications. Models include 104TX, 304TX, and media converters with fiber distances up to 80km.
• Solar and UPS Systems Imported solar power systems and uninterruptible power supply (UPS) solutions for commercial and residential applications, including supply and installation, launched as a dedicated division in March 2020.
• Building Services Integration Full-service building systems integration covering HVAC control, Building Management Systems on the Niagara N4 platform (Tridium), energy and water management, solar power and UPS installation, and access control systems. Installed at 100+ South African locations with exports to USA and Australia.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 5000 controllers installed in over 100 locations, at least 50 premier locations
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• ElmeasurecoreTechnology or IntegrationMicropower is the sole distributor in South Africa of a range of power and water metering products from Elmeasure in India. This partnership enables Micropower to offer comprehensive energy and water management solutions to commercial establishments.
• Red Lion ControlscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorMicropower distributes Red Lion's HMI operator panels (CR1000, CR3000, Graphite series), panel meters (PAX, CUB, C48, PM-50), and industrial Ethernet switches (N-Tron and Sixnet series managed and unmanaged switches) in South Africa.
• TridiumcoreTechnology or IntegrationMicropower frequently uses the Niagara N4 platform from Tridium for building management system installations. This open platform enables communication with legacy devices and unified data storage.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Siemens: Partner supplier of meters and a major BMS player (Desigo). Competes for large commercial and industrial automation projects in South Africa and across Africa.
• Trane Technologies: Global HVAC controls and building solutions manufacturer. Directly competes in the HVAC controls segment where MicroPower's proprietary controllers operate.
• Schneider Electric: Partner supplier of meters to MicroPower and a major BMS player (EcoStruxure). Competes with MicroPower in commercial building energy management and industrial automation.
• Rockwell Automation: Global industrial automation incumbent (Allen-Bradley PLCs). Competes with MicroPower's vibratory feeder controllers and broader industrial control portfolio in manufacturing environments.
• Johnson Controls: Global building automation incumbent (OpenBlue platform) serving commercial buildings worldwide. Directly competes in the BMS segment where MicroPower installs Niagara-based systems.
• Honeywell Building Technologies: Global BMS and HVAC controls incumbent with a broad product portfolio. Competes for large commercial building automation projects across South Africa and globally.
• ABB: Partner supplier of meters and broad industrial controls incumbent. Overlaps with MicroPower's industrial control and building services offerings.

Others

• Tridium: Provider of the Niagara N4 open BMS platform that MicroPower uses as a core technology for its building management installations. An enabling ecosystem partner rather than a direct competitor.

Direct peers

• Elmeasure: Indian manufacturer of power and water meters. MicroPower is its sole South African distributor; comparable product offering in the metering segment and a direct upstream relationship.
• Red Lion Controls: US-based manufacturer of HMI operator panels, panel meters, and industrial Ethernet switches — the same product lines MicroPower distributes in South Africa. Direct product overlap in industrial control instrumentation.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/micropowersa

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about MicroPower