Merry-making made easy for Santa

How our equipment can help Santa Claus improve his efficiency

Delivering presents to billions of people in a single night is a daunting task, which is why Santa thanks his lucky stars that Christmas comes but once a year.  

With sustainability very much top of the agenda, Santa has been keen to minimize the environmental impact of his operations in the production and delivery of the millions of presents needed to keep kids happy.  

Here’s how our range of instruments, analyzers and digital service technologies can help Santa find new ways to improve his performance, reduce his carbon footprint, and ensure he and his reindeer are back home with their feet up before the sun rises.


Before his journey starts

Santa goes digital: With ever more Christmas lists sent by email, the North Pole now has its own data center managing all that incoming and outgoing traffic. The servers can get pretty warm, calling for Ethernet-enabled flowmeters to help control cooling water flows. The RVG200 paperless recorder with its energy calculation feature can also help pinpoint potential areas for energy savings.

Load cells: Santa’s sleigh has a heavy load. According to estimates, the weight of the presents on the sleigh tips the scale to a whopping 60,000 tonnes/60,000,000 kg. For a heavy load, you need a heavy-duty load sensor – providing reliable and accurate performance under extreme conditions, our load cells are the perfect solution for Santa’s sleigh. 

Ultrasonic level: Would you know how much water a reindeer would need to fly around the world? Santa does because he relies on the new ultrasonic level transmitters to measure the amount of water that goes in and out of the troughs, ensuring each reindeer is fully hydrated before their journey begins.

Hydrogen fuel: Santa is making the switch to renewables but needs a reliable back up power supply in the form of green hydrogen to see him through the short days of winter. This has prompted an unprecedented spree on the latest instruments and analyzers to ensure he has the best tools for the job.

On his way

Pitot tube flowmeters: To get all the deliveries completed, it is estimated that Santa would need to travel at 650 miles/1,000km per second! Widely used to measure the speed of aircraft, our pitot tube flowmeters are perfect for helping Santa make sure he’s travelling at the right pace.

Wireless pressure transmitters: Make it easy for Santa to monitor air pressure and see how much magic the reindeers need to propel themselves at 650 miles/second, and with a 10-year battery life, he can set it and forget it. Think of how happy the elves would be if their toys had that kind of battery life!  

Temperature sensors: Our sensors measure a full range of temperatures, from freezing cold to boiling hot, ideal for handling the trip across snowy forests, scorching deserts and everything in between. Now with NINVA, our non-invasive temperature sensor, there is no need for a thermowell, which means Santa does not even have to stop on his journey to get the accurate measurement, saving him time and cost and increasing his sleigh’s safety. 

Laser level: If you’re going to jump down someone’s chimney, then it’s always good to know how far it will be to the bottom! Highly accurate over both short and long ranges, our laser level transmitters are on the job to help Santa prepare before he takes the plunge.

For peace of mind

My Measurement Assistant: Is there anyone more in need of an assistant than Santa? Self-service and remote support is important for someone who is travelling the world, which is why he relies on web apps like My Measurement Assistant so he can access guided tutorials from his mobile device to make sure that the instruments on his sleigh are working properly.

Remote services: Travelling around the world in under 24 hours takes its toll on even the most reliable instruments and analyzers. In the unlikely event of a problem, ABB Ability™ remote service technologies such as our Remote Insights augmented reality solution offer the reassurance of over the shoulder support to the elves to help get Santa back up and flying in no time.

Input/output (I/O) modules: Just like other industries, Santa is increasingly making the switch to digital, making reliable connectivity key to the success of his operation. With multiple remote toy-making sites fulfilling the growing wish lists of children worldwide, I/O modules help him stay connected to those processes and monitor their production.

pH sensors: Santa’s favourite part of his trip is to enjoy the milk and cookies left by the children. With ABB’s pH sensors widely used by dairies to maintain milk at the optimum pH level, Santa can be sure he’s getting the freshest refreshment to keep him going. 

CEMcaptain: Environmental sustainability has been a big topic this year. With even Santa needing to sometimes have gifts shipped to him, it’s therefore good to know that the transportation emissions were within regulatory limits. Our CEMcaptain emissions analyzer is used by cargo ships worldwide to help make air quality emissions monitoring easy.  

Electric actuators: Santa and his elves may be used to living in the North Pole, but they still like to keep themselves toasty warm. Meeting the 24/7/365 heating requirements of Santa’s operation means a reliable boiler is therefore absolutely essential. Luckily, Santa is a long-time user of our tried and tested electric actuators. Widely used throughout industry to control air flows to boilers to ensure perfect combustion conditions, they are exactly right for helping to maintain efficient temperature control in the workshops.  

Coriolis flowmeters Santa loves a Christmas tipple by the fire after the big night. Coriolis flowmeters used in the production of whisky help keep spirits bright by ensuring every dram hits the right level of quality.

For the environment

Did you know that our gas analysis equipment is used on many of the satellites orbiting the Earth to gather data on atmospheric gases? Fitting this same equipment to Santa’s sleigh would help him to gather valuable data that could be used to help tackle climate change.  

With Santa's toy manufacturing all year around, it is important for him to stay on top of his emission monitoring to reduce any harmful impact to the environment and remain compliant. That is why he relies on ABB's Continuous Emission Monitoring Systems (CEMS), combined with our digital solutions such as ABB Ability™ Genix Datalyzer  and ABB Ability™ Condition Monitoring for measurement devices, he can minimize his impact on the environment while keeping a close eye on the health status of his equipment. 

Closer to the ground, as he makes stops in urban and suburban areas, Santa can help to protect the environment and improve air quality with ABB’s latest mobile gas leak detection technology. ABB Ability™ Gas leak detection is our world-class laser analyzers, Santa uses this solution to measure methane emissions wherever he finds them, whether they’re from the gas pipelines that crisscross the globe or his own reindeer.  

It can be handheld, vehicle mounted, or even sleigh-mounted to detect natural gas leaks at speeds of up to 55mph/88km/h. Equipped with this technology, Santa can check that emissions from every chimney on his journey are within regulations.  


For Santa’s reindeer team, working flat out all night can work up a serious thirst. Santa therefore needs to know that he can count on a ready supply of water wherever and whenever he needs it. Luckily, when it comes to water measurement, our AquaMaster4 flowmeters provide the highest levels of accuracy, enabling Santa to get up to the minute data on water availability. 

With the global ABB service network, there is support all over the world that is ready with spare parts, training, commissioning, upgrades or retrofits to help Santa and the elves perform the maintenance required. With a range of service contract options available, Santa can also rest assured that expert help and assistance with spare parts will always be on hand, no matter where he is on his journey.   

Making his list and checking it twice has never been easier for Santa now that he is running his operation as efficiently as possible. His fully connected enterprise can now rely on accurate, up-to-the-minute measurements of a range of parameters, with the added benefits of advanced data analysis to help him spot any areas for improvements.  

Merry-making, made easy.


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