New-Tech Europe | December 2016 | Digital Edition

interruptions and repetitive damage leading eventually to failure. Causes can be external events such as lightning or grid switching or internally located motor and relay switching. Surges rise to dangerous voltage levels very quickly, often within nanoseconds. Fuses and circuit breakers cannot react quickly enough to prevent damage. Alternative approaches are therefore necessary to add surge protection to any overcurrent measures already in place. The most widely- used components are spark gaps and varistors. Spark gaps, which have a long lifetime and can absorb high amounts of energy, typically require some level of activation energy, whereas varistors are very fast without the need for energy to

power systems where responsibility for protection is shared among components according to their position in the overall layout. It therefore makes sense to source all these elements from a single, preferably global, partner that can guarantee their efficacy in working together, and can advise on building a balanced solution. Machine builders can bring a real competitive advantage to their offering if they can find a circuit protection component partner with sufficient breadth and depth of stock, matched by equally comprehensive global technical and logistics support. The issue of circuit protection can become a sales advantage instead of a design problem.

trigger. It is recommended to install at least one Surge Protection device (SPD) per distribution cabinet, one per sensitive device and one per sensor line that leaves a building. The cost of SPDs is usually a tiny fraction compared to the damage it helps to prevent. Conclusion It is clear to see that there are many different types of fault conditions and suitable circuit protection methods. The ultimate success of any circuit protection strategy to increase uptime and improve operator safety depends very much on choosing the right partner. Circuit breakers, fuses and other devices rarely work best as standalone items. They are usually designed into hierarchical

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