January 21, 2008

Wastewater Treatment Facility Chooses System VI™ Switchgear Instead of Metal-Clad Gear.

A large wastewater treatment facility in the Southern U.S. required new 15-kV switchgear for a major renovation and expansion project. Conventional metal-clad switchgear was initially proposed for the application since the consulting engineer was familiar with this type of gear and had previously specified it for water and wastewater projects. A single integrated switchgear assembly was desired, comprised of two entrance bays and twenty feeder bays to serve the loads.

But a very large power house would be necessary to enclose the metal-clad switchgear assembly, and the necessary real estate was not available. An alternative to metal-clad switchgear was clearly in order.

S&C’s System VI™ Switchgear was selected for the application. It provides the same switching and protection functionality as metal-clad switchgear but has a considerably smaller footprint. System VI Switchgear is considerably less costly than metal-clad gear, both up front, and over time since there is essentially zero maintenance.

The modular System VI Switchgear line-up includes:

• A walk-in entrance section containing 2000-ampere source circuit breakers, along with power monitoring and metering equipment.
• Six transition sections of S&C Custom Metal-Enclosed Switchgear.
• Four feeder sections of five-way S&C Vista® Underground Distribution Switchgear.

The flexible System VI Switchgear design allowed the lineup to be installed outdoors, configured in a U-shaped arrangement fitting the available space.

Each section of the System VI Switchgear was furnished with a Type 304 stainless-steel enclosure for added corrosion resistance in the extremely harsh treatment plant environment. And the Vista Underground Distribution Switchgear feeder sections were similarly furnished with stainless-steel tanks for heightened protection from corrosion.

The System VI Switchgear was successfully installed. The Vista Underground Distribution Switchgear feeder sections provide enhanced safety features for operating personnel. All routine operating procedures, such as isolation of a downstream cable for repair, can be performed without exposure to medium voltage.