Hamilton Sensors Unlock North America's Hazardous Industrial Markets

BONADUZ, Switzerland – April 09, 2026 – Hamilton Company has secured critical North American safety approval for its advanced dissolved oxygen sensors, a strategic move that unlocks access to high-stakes industrial markets across the United States and Canada. The company announced that its VisiFerm mA and VisiTrace mA sensors now carry Ex approval for use in hazardous and potentially explosive environments, a certification that validates their safety and reliability for sectors where precision and compliance are non-negotiable.

This approval, granted by the CSA Group, confirms the sensors meet the stringent requirements for intrinsically safe equipment. It encompasses certification against CSA, UL, and FM standards, creating a trifecta of compliance that covers all major North American regulatory frameworks for hazardous-area instrumentation.

Enhanced Safety in High-Risk Environments

The new certification allows Hamilton's proven dissolved oxygen sensing technology to be deployed in facilities where the presence of flammable gases, combustible dust, or ignitable fibers poses a constant threat. Such conditions are common in chemical manufacturing, energy production, pharmaceuticals, and other industrial processes that form the backbone of the North American economy.

The approved VisiFerm mA and VisiTrace mA sensors are loop-powered devices that operate on a standard 4–20 mA HART interface, a common protocol in process automation. The "intrinsically safe" designation is a critical distinction. Unlike "explosion-proof" methods that contain an explosion within a heavy enclosure, intrinsically safe design limits the electrical and thermal energy of the device to a level below what is required to ignite a specific hazardous atmospheric mixture. This approach is widely considered a superior safety method, particularly for instrumentation that requires routine access or maintenance.

"This approval represents an important step in expanding the reach of our dissolved oxygen sensing portfolio," said Emanuel Souto, Global Product Manager at Hamilton, in the company's official announcement. "By achieving hazardous-area certification for North America, we are enabling customers in highly regulated industrial environments to benefit from Hamilton's proven sensor technology while meeting strict safety requirements."

Navigating a Complex Regulatory Maze

Achieving this comprehensive North American certification is a significant technical and regulatory milestone. The landscape for hazardous location equipment in the U.S. and Canada is governed by rigorous standards outlined in the National Electrical Code (NEC) and Canadian Electrical Code (CEC). These codes classify hazardous areas based on the type of flammable substance present (Class I for gas, Class II for dust) and the likelihood of its presence (Division 1 for normal conditions, Division 2 for abnormal conditions).

By securing approval from CSA Group, Underwriters Laboratories (UL), and FM Global, Hamilton has covered the key authorities that asset owners, insurers, and regulators rely on. Industry experts note that while CSA and UL certifications are often interchangeable, FM approval—backed by an industrial property insurer—is frequently seen as the "gold standard" for high-liability environments, often mandated in the oil and gas and chemical sectors.

This certification ensures the sensors comply with internationally recognized standards for intrinsic safety, aligning with broader safety mandates such as the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) Process Safety Management (PSM) standard. PSM requires facilities to implement comprehensive management programs to prevent the catastrophic release of hazardous chemicals, making certified and reliable instrumentation a cornerstone of compliance.

Tapping a Lucrative and Growing Market

Hamilton's entry into the North American hazardous location market is well-timed. The global market for dissolved oxygen sensors is projected to grow from an estimated USD 1.42 billion in 2024 to over USD 2.6 billion by 2033, with North America representing a market of approximately USD 420 million. This growth is fueled by increasingly stringent environmental regulations, a push for greater operational efficiency, and the widespread adoption of Process Analytical Technology (PAT) to monitor and control manufacturing in real-time.

Dissolved oxygen monitoring is a critical parameter in numerous industrial applications:
* In chemical manufacturing, it helps control oxidation reactions, prevent corrosion, and optimize product yield.
* In biotechnology and pharmaceuticals, it is essential for managing cell culture and fermentation processes, where precise oxygen levels directly impact product quality and consistency.
* In energy production, it is used to monitor water quality in boilers and cooling towers to prevent corrosion and maintain efficiency.

Until now, operators in these hazardous North American environments had to rely on a limited pool of specialized, certified instrumentation. With this approval, they can now integrate Hamilton's optical-based sensors, which are known for their stability, rapid response times, and reduced maintenance requirements compared to traditional electrochemical sensors.

A Global Standard for Multinational Operations

This latest certification is the final piece in a global compliance puzzle for Hamilton. The VisiFerm mA and VisiTrace mA sensors have already held certifications for hazardous environments under European (ATEX), international (IECEx), British (UKEx), and Eurasian (EAC) standards since 2019. The addition of North American Ex approval creates a unified global standard for multinational corporations.

For companies operating facilities across different continents, the ability to standardize on a single sensor technology offers significant advantages. It simplifies procurement, reduces inventory complexity, streamlines employee training, and ensures a consistent level of safety and performance regardless of geographic location. This harmonization is a powerful value proposition for global engineering, procurement, and construction firms, as well as for end-users in the chemical, pharmaceutical, and energy industries.

By achieving this full suite of global certifications, Hamilton positions itself not just as a component supplier but as a strategic partner for companies looking to optimize their worldwide process analytics and safety programs. This move places the company in direct competition with established leaders in the process instrumentation market, such as Endress+Hauser and Mettler Toledo, but with the distinct advantage of its globally recognized and now fully harmonized sensor platform for hazardous locations.