Most of us have a basic idea of what power surge means. We know it is something that affects the electrical power we receive and that it has the power to seriously damage or destroy industrial equipment, computers, and sensitive electronics.
As technology increases, consumers demand that the electrical items we use get smaller, which means the components inside are also smaller. The reduction in the size of these components over the years now makes electronic equipment more sensitive to over-voltage. Over a while, this equipment slowly degrades, which gradually shortens the lifespan of the equipment. This phenomenon affects everything that is plugged into power, from industrial machinery to computers. The consequential damages suffered during events like lightning strikes or electrical surge due to lightning strike can be very high.
Simply put a power surge is fluctuation of the voltage coming from a source or a power panel which can drastically increase the voltage received, causing a temporary overcurrent of the electric supply.
Industrial surge protection devices protect against transient overvoltages, spikes, and impulses. In industrial settings, these types of surges cause equipment damage, lockup, and malfunction which will translate into expensive downtime, repair, and replacement costs.
Types of surge protection:
Type 1:
Permanently connected surge protection devices. These protect against external and internal surges. May be installed outside or inside a facility.
Type 2:
Permanently connected SPDs installed in or next to the main panel. They protect against internal and external surges.
Type 3
Point of use surge protection devices. Provides limited protection to devices directly plugged into the SPD.
The type 1 + 2 + 3 combined lightning and surge device must be installed if the facility is fed with over headlines or it has an external lightning protection system. This combined surge protection devices are usually fitted in a separate enclosure and mounted next to the mainboard.
Surge protection devices protect against:
- Equipment damage
- Equipment downtime
- Lost revenue
- Productivity loss
The major design goal is to divert as much of the transient energy away from the load as possible by providing a lower impedance path and then to address the effects of the surge with components of the SPD. Various types of SPDs are available with LEC to provide this low impedance pathway, depending on the application of the facility.
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