Have you ever experienced instruments giving readings from variable-speed drives that are clearly inaccurate or sporadic? The problem may lie, not with your drives, but with the way their cabling is installed, as ABB's Martin Richardson explains.
Improving installation techniques for variable speed drives can dramatically reduce the likelihood of equipment failure and increase system reliability. Here, ABB's Martin Richardson considers the importance of earthing.
VSD-controlled pump installations sometimes experience spurious tripping or erratic process measurements. As ABB’s Martin Richardson reveals, such problems are increasingly being attributed to incorrect choice or installation of cabling.
From July 2021, a new Ecodesign regulation will come into force for low-voltage induction electric motors rated up to 1kV AC and, for the first time, for variable-speed drives. ABB UK sales manager Rich Gee explains the new requirements.
In his second column on the new G5/5 harmonic recommendation, ABB’s Martin Richardson reports that while there are many changes that may result in different methods of assessment, there are no fundamental changes in the mitigation methods and technologies used to keep harmonics in check.
The next few years will be make-or-break for how global leaders respond to climate change. But businesses have a big part to play and should capitalise on their energy-saving initiatives and investments, argues ABB’s UK managing director, David Hughes.
The UK electricity has issued a new edition of its G5 harmonics recommendations. ABB’s Martin Richardson outlines the main changes between G5/4-1 and G5/5. In a future column, he will examine the impact of the recommendations on variable-speed drive installations.
Using a VSD to control submersible pump systems raises several important issues. ABB’s Martin Richardson examines them.
Variable-speed drives (VSDs) are intelligent devices, acting like virtual sensors by continuously measuring and calculating parameters that can affect an application. ABB’s Martin Richardson suggests that, if used correctly, this could shift industry from a “fix it when it breaks” mentality to “fix it before it breaks”.
Cavitation is usually bad news for any pumping system and, if left unchecked, it can wreak havoc with impellers and other components. However, modern VSDs offer an easy, low-cost method to detect and prevent it, as ABB’s Andrew Bould explains.
HVAC contractors and consultants sometimes specify IP ratings of IP65 or higher for variable-speed drives used outdoors, but a high IP rating is not the same as “weatherproof”, as ABB’s Carl Turbitt explains.
ABB’s Liam Blackshaw offers advice on how to dimension a variable-speed drive correctly to suit the application.
ABB’s Steve Hughes discovers that the energy-saving benefits of variable-speed drives are still not widely understood.
Fieldbuses give variable-speed drives the ability to control processes rapidly and accurately, while accessing data to determine how applications are performing. ABB’s Liam Blackshaw offers some insights into fieldbus developments for VSDs.
With the first deadline approaching for SECR (Streamlined Energy and Carbon Reporting), ABB’s Stuart Melling takes a look at what companies need to do to prepare for the new regulations.
