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Voltage Optimisation
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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) Version 01-Mar--2008 top
Below are some of the
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) arrange in various categories: 1 - Introducing powerPerfector Q1.1 - What is a powerPerfector? What are its main functions? Q1.2 - Why optimise voltage? Q1.3 - Why don’t electricity suppliers just reduce voltage? Q1.4 - Does the powerPerfector require any maintenance? Q1.5 - Where is the powerPerfector installed? Q1.6 - Is the powerPerfector a system made up of several components? Q2.1 - Where was powerPerfector developed? How old is the technology? Q2.2 - How many powerPerfectors have been installed? Q2.3 - What is the guarantee period for a powerPerfector Q2.4 - Have any units been uninstalled or failed? Q2.5 - How many claims have been made against the powerPerfector as a result of operational problems? Q2.6 - Which customers have already installed a powerPerfector? 3 - powerPerfector vs conventional solutions Q3.1 - Why don’t I just tap down my transformer to achieve a voltage reduction? Q3.2 - What are the differences between the powerPerfector and a conventional variac/autotransformer? 4 - Site suitability and equipment compatibility Q4.2 - For what types of electrical equipment will powerPerfector not provide savings? Q4.3 - What size of building is the powerPerfector suitable for? Q4.5 - Is the powerPerfector suitable for single-phase supply sites? Q4.6 - How long does the voltage logging take? Is there a charge? Q4.10 - Do the harmonics of my site need to be analysed before I install a powerPerfector? Q4.11 - What is the effect of over-voltage on AC motors? Q4.12 - What is the effect of the powerPerfector on an AC motor? Q4.13 - For savings energy on motors, how does the powerPerfector compare to a Variable Speed Drive (VSD)? Q4.14 - What is the effect of the powerPerfector on motors with inverter drives or variable speed drives? Q4.15 - What is the effect of the powerPerfector on systems that are protected by a UPS (Uninterruptible Power Supply)? Q4.16 - With regards to lighting, what is a ballast? Q4.17 - How does the powerPerfector affect different types of lighting? Q4.18 - Does the powerPerfector cause lights to dim? Q4.19 - Is there any conflict with backup generators? Q4.20 - IEE guidelines specify that volt-drop across a site should be no more than 4%. Does this have any bearing on the powerPerfector ? Q5.1 - What are the environmental benefits of the powerPerfector? Q5.2 - What are the energy savings from a powerPerfector? Q5.4 - What is return on investment (ROI)? Q5.5 - What is the average return on investment from a powerPerfector? Q5.6 - What effect will rising energy prices have on the ROI? Q5.7 - Do you follow up the installation to ensure the savings are being made? Q5.9 - Are there any loans available within the private sector which can contribute towards the cost of a powerPerfector? 6 -Electricity consumption and metering Q6.1 - How can I determine my annual kWh consumption and maximum demand? Q6.2 - Why doesn’t my site have half-hourly metering? Can you size a unit without this data? Q6.3 - What happens if I have more than one incoming power supply? Q6.4 - What is the optimisation range of the powerPerfector? Q6.5 - Why do you need the cost of my electricity supply? Q6.6 - What is the Climate Change Levy? Q6.7 - Do you need to know my available supply capacity? Q6.8 - Do you take account for power factor in the consumption savings? 7 -Installation and unit reliability Q7.2 - Is it necessary to arrange a shutdown in order to install the powerPerfector? Q7.3 - How long will it take to install the powerPerfector? Q7.4 - Does structural analysis of buildings need to be undertaken? Q7.6 - Is it necessary to incorporate a bypass into the installation? Q7.7 - What protection is provided by the powerPerfector enclosure? Q7.8 - Where does the powerPerfector get connected into my electrical system? Q7.9 - Will there need to be any change made to the air circuit breaker (ACB) after the installation? Q7.10 - How much space does a unit take up? Q7.11 - How long will it take to deliver and install the unit once we have made a payment? Q7.12 - What happens if the unit fails? Q7.13 - If the equipment was installed and subsequent failures were to occur due to the lower voltage level would powerPerfector accept liability and pay for losses and expenses? Q7.14. Are there any 'hidden' maintenance requirements or operating cost implications associated with the powerPerfector? 8 - Accreditation and compliance to standards Q8.2 - Can powerPerfector arrange installation through their nominated installers? Q8.3 - Have any official independent studies and reports been carried out on the equipment? Q8.4 - What approval listings does the powerPerfector have? 9 - Technical Q9.1 - What are three phase voltages? Q9.2 - What are harmonics? Q9.3 - What can cause harmonics in a power supply? Q9.4 - What problems are associated with harmonics? Q9.5 - What effect does the powerPerfector have on harmonics and my power supply? Q9.6 - What additional impedance would the powerPerfector add to the existing supply? Q9.7 - What is Reactive Power and why should I be concerned about it? Q9.8 - What is Power Factor Correction? Q9.9 - What is Phase Voltage Imbalance and why should I be concerned about it? Q9.10 - How does the powerPerfector improve phase voltage balancing? What is the relevance of the unreferenced star point? Q9.11 - Is the powerPerfector device a dry transformer? Q9.12 - Does the output voltage fluctuate proportionally to the input voltage? Q9.13 - I didn’t hear anything about surges and transients ten years ago. Why are they causing problems now? Q9.14 - We get very little lightning in my area. Do we still need transient suppression equipment? Q9.15 - Is it possible for transients to affect my equipment unnoticed? Please contact us if you have a question we haven't completely addressed
FAQs DETAILS
1 - Introducing powerPerfector Q1.1 - What is a powerPerfector? What are its main functions?
A.
powerPerfector
is the world’s only Voltage Power
Optimiser, giving energy, cost and carbon savings by efficiently
optimising a site’s supply voltage. By optimising the voltage, electrical equipment runs more
efficiently and consumes less energy. There are a number of added
benefits with the powerPerfector which also help to improve power
quality. A. In the UK, the
statutory supply band for electricity is 230V +10% to -6% (i.e. 216V
to 253V), following European harmonisation in 1995. However, the
average voltage supplied from the national grid is 242V, whereas the
average European voltage is 220V. From 2008, to further align the UK
system with the rest of Europe, the statutory minimum voltage will
reduce further to 207V. Q1.3 - Why don’t electricity suppliers just reduce voltage?
A. An
Extract from the "Electricians Guide - To the 16th Edition of the
Wiring Regulations BS7671" reads, "Since the present supply
voltages in the UK lie within the acceptable spread of values,
supply companies are not intending to reduce their voltages in the
near future. This is hardly surprising, because such action would
immediately reduce the energy used by consumers (and the income of
the Companies) by more than 8%.” Q1.4 - Does the powerPerfector require any maintenance? A. No. Each unit is handmade in Japan and has no moving parts and therefore does not require maintenance. The unit is guaranteed for ten years, and has an expected lifetime of 30-50 years. Q1.5 - Where is the powerPerfector installed? A. The powerPerfector is a device that is installed in series with the main breaker in a facility’s electrical room between the meter and distribution panel. It is available in a range of sizes to match a facility’s electrical peak demand. The installation of the units can be carried out in a few hours. Q1.6 - Is the powerPerfector a system made up of several components? A. The powerPerfector is a single unit that addresses various power quality improvements and extends the life of electrical equipment in a facility. . 2 - History Q2.1 - Where was powerPerfector developed? How old is the technology? A. The technology
was developed in Japan in 1993 to combat rising energy costs due to
increasing demand and a lack of natural energy resources. The
Japanese grid network is supplied with 100V and the Japanese
powerPerfector
allows for
optimisation levels of 2, 4 or 6%. In some respects the technology
is better suited to the UK market because there is a greater
opportunity for voltage optimisation, and therefore savings, due to
higher variability in the supply voltage level. Q2.2 - How many powerPerfectors have been installed? A. Japan has over 300,000 units installed and there are over 250 in the UK. There are also units installed in North America, Denmark and the Republic of Ireland Q2.3 - What is the guarantee period for a powerPerfector? A. The unit itself is guaranteed for 10 years, with an expected lifetime of 30-50 years. The first unit that a client installs has an 80% of the "estimated return on investment as quoted in the final cost/value page" performance guarantee. Q2.4 - Have any units been uninstalled or failed? A. There have not been any interruptions to power supply from a powerPerfector and no units have failed or been uninstalled. A. No claims have been made from any installations completed in Asia, North America or the UK. powerPerfector Plc carries £10m public liability insurance. Q2.6 - Which customers have already installed a powerPerfector? A. We have case
studies for many of our clients on our website - www.powerperfector.com.
Our clients include:
3 - powerPerfector vs conventional solutions Please refer also to the information sheets on: ‘powerPerfector and the HV transformer’, and ‘powerPerfector and security of supply’. Q3.1 - Why don’t I just tap down my transformer to achieve a voltage reduction? A. The savings achieved from a transformer tap will be a fraction of those achieved through a powerPerfector . In addition there will be no benefit to power quality or any protection of your electrical infrastructure. The savings and benefits of a powerPerfector installation will quickly outweigh a transformer tap. In practice several major clients have discarded the transformer tap as a serious means to save energy and adopted powerPerfector technology. A. The two devices
have fundamental differences. A “variac” autotransformer is a
mechanical device designed to control voltage by adjusting the tap
setting of a transformer coil in response to changes in incoming
voltage. Heating due to inefficiencies, and abrasion of moving
parts means that these devices need regular maintenance and have
short lifetimes.
4 - Site suitability and equipment compatibility Q4.1 - For what types of electrical equipment will the powerPerfector provide savings? Is it particularly effective for certain types of equipment? A. The greatest savings are achieved on facilities with large lighting and office equipment loads, including motors, refrigeration and air-conditioning. Longer operating hours (high ‘load factor’) will maximise the savings made. Q4.2 - For what types of electrical equipment will powerPerfector not provide savings? A. A resistive device designed to produce constant power will result in a lower level of savings. Although the voltage supply is reduced, the device will draw more current to provide constant power. For example, a 1kW rated heater will always provide 1kW, and will draw more current to do so if necessary. The powerPerfector saves energy primarily on devices that are not rated in this way, by eliminating the over-voltage that causes inefficient operation. A normal site will contain a mixture of electrical load types, and by optimising at source savings are aggregated across all this equipment. Q4.3 - What size of building is the powerPerfector suitable for? A. The powerPerfector is an energy saving device for commercial and industrial 3-phase sites, with units up to around 5,000 Amps. The actual model size will depend on the facility’s electrical load profile, the size of the main breaker and electrical room configuration. A. The size of the powerPerfector we install at your site depends on your highest maximum demand (in kVA) over the past 12 months. We would normally select a unit rated around 20% higher than your maximum demand. If you are planning to expand and anticipate that your electrical demand will increase we will allow more headroom by installing a larger unit. Q4.5 - Is the powerPerfector suitable for single-phase supply sites? A. No, we only provide a powerPerfector suitable for three-phase supply. Q4.6 - How long does the voltage logging take? Is there a charge? A. To draw up a voltage profile at a site the voltage logger needs to be plugged in for five days at the closest point to supply, followed by two days at the furthest point of supply. This will ensure any volt drop occurring over the site is accounted for. We then determine the optimisation level for the site and update the financial details to this confirmed level. There is no charge for our voltage analysis which can also be a useful tool for highlighting any unnecessary power consumption which may be occurring over the site (e.g. appliances left on overnight). A. When logging the voltage of larger sites we suggest the standard logging for five days at the site’s incoming supply and then moving the logger to the furthest point from the supply for a day or two to ensure that we cater for voltage drop when recommending the optimisation setting. We have occasionally surprised our clients by showing them voltages of under 210V at the furthest points at their sites. This shows that equipment can and does run at these lower voltages, but we would not choose to install a powerPerfector where voltage was lower than the statutory minimum of 216V. A. This is possible; however it is worth noting that installation costs may be quite high thus the overall cost is likely to increase. Where possible it is more cost effective to install a single powerPerfector unit at the main incomer, which also allows savings to be aggregated across all the equipment on the site A. None. The features of the powerPerfector only serve to improve the existing power distributed from the national grid and does not in any way affect their operations. Q4.10 - Do the harmonics of my site need to be analysed before I install a powerPerfector? A. No the harmonics do not need to be analysed. The powerPerfector is very effective at suppressing your harmonics, and preventing the generation of triplen harmonics. Unlike harmonic filters however, it does not require tuning. Q4.11 - What is the effect of over-voltage on AC motors? A.
Supplying voltage over the design voltage of a motor will not
increase motor torque or performance. European manufactured 3-phase
motors are designed for 380V whereas the UK is supplying around
415V. The various problems associated with over voltage are as
follows: Q4.12 - What is the effect of the powerPerfector on an AC motor? A.
Motors will provide especially good savings when a
powerPerfector
is installed, they can be found inside refrigeration equipment and
air conditioning as well as their more obvious applications.
A. Installing
a
powerPerfector
to optimise
the power supply to motors, chillers etc will deliver better energy
savings than a typical VSD installation: as well as optimising the
voltage it will act to balance the three phase voltage (which
dramatically improves efficiency), reduce reactive power and improve
power factor. If a VSD is installed as well as a
powerPerfector,
the lifetime of the VSD will be extended and energy will be saved,
but the savings will not be as high as optimising an AC motor
without a VSD. A. As with AC motors, the powerPerfector will reduce the stress on VSDs or inverter drives by delivering an optimised voltage. There will be no effect on speed or torque of the motor as it is buffered by the inverter. The life span of these types of drive will be shortened considerably if the supply voltage is too high, and many sites report the need to replace such drives frequently. By correcting this, the powerPerfector will reduce replacement costs. VSDs and inverter drives are also notorious for generating harmonics, which can damage sensitive equipment. As the powerPerfector is able to filter harmonics, the damaging effect of these drives can be limited. A. Rotary UPS systems will benefit significantly from the phase voltage balancing effect of the powerPerfector, which will allow them to work more efficiently. As many UPS devices act to correct over-voltage themselves, supplying them with the correct voltage through a powerPerfector will mean that they will not have to operate in this mode routinely, allowing more efficient day-to-day operation. The powerPerfector replicates other functions of some UPS systems, by protecting against transients up to 25kV, filtering harmonics and balancing phase voltages. This may mean that a UPS is not required for a particular application, or a less expensive UPS can be specified. Q4.16 - With regards to lighting, what is a ballast? A. The lighting
ballast is a device that regulates the starting and operation of
lamps by acting as a positive resistance to the current. Lamps
often have a negative resistance, so without the ballast they would
continue to draw current until the power supply failed. There are
many types of ballast; the type used depends on the type of
lighting. Q4.17 - How does the powerPerfector affect different types of lighting? A. Lighting loads
tend to be switched on for a large proportion of the time, so
savings on lighting equipment are very valuable. Incandescent
lighting is particularly susceptible to losses at high voltages, and
by bringing the voltage to the correct level savings can be
delivered with no discernible drop in light levels. The lifetime of
bulbs can also be extended markedly: “A 230V bulb used at 240V
will achieve only 55% of its rated life.” (IEE Electricians
Guide) Q4.18 - Does the powerPerfector cause lights to dim? A. Optimising the voltage will not cause lights to dim; lighting levels will be maintained within their original design specification. The function of the powerPerfector will help maintain high lumen output over the extended service life of the lamp and ballast. Q4.19 Is there any conflict with backup generators? A. The powerPerfector will optimise the mains supply to a building, so will be installed upstream of the LV distribution. It should not therefore affect or be affected by any backup generators that may be installed, as these will only come on stream if the incoming power supply fails. The only real consideration is the threshold at which the backup generators come on. They are often triggered by a drop in the supply voltage, so it is possible that if their control panels are not adjusted they will try to come on once the site is re-energised after the powerPerfector installation, as they will interpret the new lower supply voltage as a sign of an imminent failure. This can be avoided very simply by adjusting the nominal voltage level on the generators' panels to 220V before re-energising the site. Our engineering team will advise the electrical installation contractors of these considerations in advance of the installation. Q4.20 - IEE guidelines specify that volt-drop across a site should be no more than 4%. Does this have any bearing on the powerPerfector? A. There is nothing to worry about here. The optimisation setting on the powerPerfector will be specified according to the voltage at the most distant electrical point from the incoming supply, so that we can take volt-drop across the site into account. Minimum site voltages will be around the statutory minimum level of 216V with powerPerfector is installed, but mostly higher than this. The IEE 17th Edition says that voltage must be 230+/-10%, and your voltage will always be well within this range. powerPerfector is adjusting the supply voltage, so does not affect the volt drop across the site itself, so if volt drop is currently 4% (which is very rare: most sites have much lower volt-drop than this) of 242V, it will simply become 4% of the new (lower) voltage.
5 -Savings and returns Q5.1 - What are the environmental benefits of the powerPerfector? A. Under the Kyoto Protocol, by 2012 the UK is committed to cutting its carbon emissions by 12.5% below 1990 levels. Recently, the government’s Climate Change Bill has drawn up legally binding targets for the post-Kyoto era, calling for cuts of 60% by 2050. As a result, businesses in the UK can expect to come under increasing pressure to reduce their own carbon footprint, which will involve addressing inefficiencies in their processes and equipment. Over-voltage is an under-publicised cause of these inefficiencies, and by rectifying it, the powerPerfector can lead to emissions reductions of up to 20%. Given that we estimate that up to 90% of UK businesses suffer from over-voltage and would save energy by installing a powerPerfector, the contribution towards the UK’s carbon-cutting effort over the coming decades will be substantial. By adopting the technology, you can be confident that your business has taken a significant step towards meeting its environmental obligations. In addition, a powerPerfector prolongs the operating life of electrical equipment, reducing non-recyclable waste. Q5.2 - What are the energy savings from a powerPerfector? A. Based on the national average voltage (242V), the average optimisation level of a powerPerfector is 8%, this typically produces power consumption (kWh) savings of 13%. However, as the supply voltage does vary slightly across the country and each site will have a different power consumption, savings can be seen between 10 - 20% on around 90% of UK sites. A. Yes, but in this case the savings will be towards the lower end of the possible range. The savings that you will be achieving through a transformer tap down will be approximately 40% to 50% of tap down percentage i.e. 2% - 2.5% for a 5% tap down. If the 5% tap had been taken through a powerPerfector the saving would have been approximately 8% as compared to less than 2.5%. As a result, some of our clients are now stepping up their transformers in order to benefit from the increased savings offered by a powerPerfector. Q5.4 - What is return on investment (ROI)? A. ROI is the ratio of the money saved per annum to the total cost of the installation Q5.5 - What is the average return on investment from a powerPerfector? A. The return on
investment is typically 25 – 100% based purely on energy savings.
This will depend on the optimisation setting of the
powerPerfector
, site load
factor and energy unit cost. Q5.6 - What effect will rising energy prices have on the ROI? A. The ROI will be influenced by the unit cost (p/kWh) of electricity; rising energy costs will increase the ROI. This is why many people are installing the powerPerfector at this time of high energy prices as a way to reduce their energy costs while also having a positive effect on the environment. Q5.7 - Do you follow up the installation to ensure the savings are being made? A. Yes. We will produce a report to demonstrate the savings being made using pre and post installation half-hourly consumption data from your energy supplier. This is the best form of data to work with as is it is impartial and it is the basis for the bills you receive. Our report is typically written two months after installation. We have total confidence in the technology and as such offer a full money back guarantee in the first 3 months if the unit does not deliver the predicted Return on Investment. A. Yes. The
technology is supported through the Salix Finance scheme. The fund
offers to match funding to support green technologies providing the
following criteria are met: A. Yes. The
technology is supported by the Carbon Trust which offers an
interest-free 4 year loan to SMEs and businesses looking to install
energy efficient technologies. For SME’s in England and Scotland,
loans are available from £5,000 to £100,000. The same loans are
available to any business in Wales. In Northern Ireland any business
can apply and the limit is £200,000. In order to qualify, the carbon
savings must be no less than 0.7T Carbon/annum per £1,000 loaned
(note this is Carbon not Carbon Dioxide).
6 - Electricity consumption and metering Q6.1 - How can I determine my annual kWh consumption and maximum demand? A. You should be able to determine your annual consumption, unit cost and highest maximum demand (kW or kVA) from monthly bills provided by your electricity supplier. In order to produce a savings report (after the powerPerfector has been installed) we need the consumption data in half hourly metered format. The electricity suppliers should be able to provide you with data in this format, however if you do not have this information available we can contact your supplier on your behalf. Q6.2 - Why doesn’t my site have half-hourly metering? Can you size a unit without this data? A. Sites which have an available supply capacity below 100kW will not have half hourly metering installed as standard. The unit can still be sized with data from an electricity bill but it may not be possible to analyse the savings in depth unless sub-metering is installed. powerPerfector are able to install suitable half-hourly metering on this type of site if required, ensuring there is sufficient pre and post consumption data for comparison. Q6.3 - What happens if I have more than one incoming power supply? A. If there are
multiple supplies to the site, we would need to determine the
voltage from each supply. Following analysis of the voltage, we
would normally install one
powerPerfector
per incoming
supply. If you have an HV ring surrounding the site with several HV/LV
transformers, each transformer’s supply would need to be analysed.
The largest savings will be seen if the transformers are already
tapped up to their highest settings before the
powerPerfector
optimisation. Q6.4 - What is the optimisation range of the powerPerfector? A. The voltage at a site will fluctuate over 24 hours depending on the load being drawn. Assuming a voltage of 242V (average UK supply) a powerPerfector will typically optimise by 8% which will take the voltage down to between 220-225V, keeping it well above the statutory minimum voltage (216V). If the voltage is near the higher end of the statutory supply band (253V) there is scope to optimise by as much as 10%, this will typically produce savings of 16%. Q6.5 - Why do you need the cost of my electricity supply? A. Knowing your existing unit cost for electricity enables us to make a financial projection of the savings and ROI you can expect from a powerPerfector installation. We need to know the average unit cost (p/kWh) including CCL for the last years supply. It is also useful to know the unit cost for the following year’s supply from which we can project the future savings. Q6.6 - What is the Climate Change Levy? A. The Climate Change Levy is a tax on energy use from fossil fuel origin in industry, commerce and the public sector. The levy was introduced by the government in 2001 to encourage green sources of energy to be used which are exempt from the tax and to reduce energy consumption where possible. In turn this helps to reduce greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere and mitigate climate change. The money raised from the levy has been used to help fund the government energy efficiency and renewables initiatives. In 2001, the levy was 0.43p/kWh and is currently at 0.441p/kWh. Following on from the Kyoto target of a 12.5% reduction in emissions by 2012, the governments Climate Change Bill has set CO2 emission reduction targets of 60% by 2050. The CCL should continue to act as an incentive for people to “go green” and reduce energy consumption. Q6.7 - Do you need to know my available supply capacity? A. It is useful to know the available supply capacity (ASC) along with the maximum demand as this indicates the existing headroom available for expansion (though the ASC can be increased, sometimes at considerable expense.) We will always discuss the potential for future expansion with each customer to ensure this is accounted for when selecting the unit size. Increases in power consumption could be a result of installing new electrical equipment or extending the operating hours of a facility. Q6.8 - Do you take account for power factor in the consumption savings? A. The added benefits of the powerPerfector will act to reduce reactive power and therefore improve the power factor. If half-hourly reactive power data is available for a site, in addition to kWh readings, we will report on the improvement in power factor attributable to the powerPerfector when we report on your energy savings after installation. The extent to which the power factor will improve will depend on the improvement in harmonics and phase balancing, and on the optimisation setting on the powerPerfector . If necessary, Power Factor Correction equipment (PFC) can work in tandem with the powerPerfector , as the two are entirely compatible.
7 - Installation and unit reliability Q7.1 - Can powerPerfector arrange installation through their nominated installers? Are they registered with the NICEIC? A. We have an extensive network of approved contractors, with whom we arrange the majority of our installations. Not all of them are NICEIC registered, but if this is a requirement for a particular site we will use a contractor that is registered. We recommend to clients that they use their own preferred contractor if possible, with whom we will arrange the installation. Q7.2 - Is it necessary to arrange a shutdown in order to install the powerPerfector? A. Installation will require a shutdown, but the outage time will be kept to a minimum by carrying out as much pre-work as possible beforehand. Mobile generation can be provided for critical sites if necessary, although this is not necessary in the majority of cases. Installation can be completed at any time that is convenient, for instance our installations at Tesco were performed in the early hours of Monday morning, but generally take place over a weekend or overnight. Q7.3 - How long will it take to install the powerPerfector? A. Downtime is estimated at about 4-6 hours. Very large units may take longer than this, while small units can be much quicker. Every site is different, but by carrying out pre-works as far as possible prior to the installation date, our contractors will keep the shutdown period to a minimum. Q7.4 - Does structural analysis of buildings need to be undertaken? A. Most installations take place on the ground floor or in the basement of a site, meaning this is not an issue. However, the need for structural analysis will be established during the site survey on a case by case basis. A. Ordinarily no additional signage is needed, but if any signs are required they will be fitted as necessary. The powerPerfector unit itself displays the current rating of the unit, and a standard LV warning label. Q7.6 - Is it necessary to incorporate a bypass into the installation? A. No, a bypass is not necessary as the powerPerfector is extremely reliable, and will be a stronger link in your supply system than the main transformer. Q7.7 - What protection is provided by the powerPerfector enclosure? A. The IP (Ingress
Protection) number of the standard
powerPerfector
enclosure is
rated at 21, which is suitable for indoor use. Q7.8 - Where does the powerPerfector get connected into my electrical system? A. The powerPerfector is connected in series with the electrical supply, typically immediately after the main breaker, feeding into the distribution panels in the facility’s electrical room. An optional installation location is on a distribution branch within the electrical room, in order to address specific sub-systems.
A. The ACB may need to be de-rated to the specification (in amps) of the powerPerfector. This will ensure fuse continuity is maintained along the circuit. If this is not possible, a replacement breaker will be specified in order to ensure that the unit has matched protection. Q7.10 - How much space does a unit take up? A.
Q7.11 - How long will it take to deliver and install the unit once we have made a payment? A. It will take around 1-2 weeks to build a unit enclosure and deliver the unit if we have the unit in stock. Bespoke orders may take up to ten weeks to install as they need to be hand built in Japan and shipped. Q7.12 - What happens if the unit fails? A. In over 300,000 installations no failures have occurred. While the powerPerfector is designed to take up to 50% overload for 8 hours without damage, its fuse or circuit breaker protection will have triggered before this point is reached. In the unheard-of event that it did fail the supply can be quickly bypassed as the incoming cables are easily accessible. A. The analysis process will ensure that voltage on the site does not drop below the statutory minimum once the powerPerfector is installed, so any equipment operating must work, as voltage could theoretically be supplied at this level from the grid. There should therefore be no equipment failures. If there are, it is the responsibility of the manufacturer of the equipment to ensure that they work at the new voltage, but powerPerfector will provide as much assistance as possible to ensure a smooth transition. A. The powerPerfector has no electronic components and therefore requires no maintenance. No additional cooling or heat extraction is required as the unit does not run hot. It is guaranteed for ten years with an expected lifetime of over 30 years. The technology has been around for 10 years and in over 300,000 installations in Japan and other parts of the world as well as over 250 in the UK there have been no failed units or interruptions to supply from a powerPerfector failure. There are no hidden maintenance requirements.
8 - Accreditation and compliance to standards
Q8.1 - After installation of a powerPerfector unit, will the overall electrical installation comply with BS 7671:2001 (including amendments)? A. All installations are in accordance with the latest 16th edition I.E.E. Wiring Regulations / BS7671:2001. A Certificate of Inspection, Testing and Completion will be issued following completion. The installation will be performed by a suitably qualified electrician. Q8.2 - Can powerPerfector arrange installation through their nominated installers? Are they registered with the NICEIC? A. We have an extensive network of approved contractors, with whom we arrange the majority of our installations. Not all of them are NICEIC registered, but if this is a requirement for a particular site we will use a contractor that is registered. We recommend to clients that they use their own preferred contractor if possible, with whom we will arrange the installation. Q8.3 - Have any official independent studies and reports been carried out on the equipment? A. Independent performance studies have been conducted by EA Technology and Nottingham University, both of whom have confirmed the savings achieved. |
