Replacement Petbow AP800 Generator Control Panel
The Project
The Generator Company were asked to design, manufacture, install and commission a replacement Petbow AP800 Generator Control Panel.
Controls specification
The control system was designed to operate with the 2 existing 1750kVA Generators which operate at 415Volts AC, 50 Hz, 3 phase and neutral.
The Generator Company was able to keep one generator on line for the duration of this project so that the site always had a back-up power supply. This offered project cost savings as rental generators were not required.
The new generator control system needed to incorporate all of the original Petbow AP800 generator control panel requirements, including a manual means of synchronising that was achieved by utilising a Programmable Logic Controller.
The new generator synchronising panel also incorporated load management, therefore when the Bank was running on generators and the load dropped below a predetermined point, one of the generators would shut down to save fuel and further maintenance costs
on the generators.
The new control system consisted of a 2mm sheet steel welded enclosure rated at IP52. The enclosure provided front access to all of the sections and top cable entry. The control panel is painted in a textured paint finish to BS4800 16E53 – Aquamarine. The new enclosure was custom built and designed specifically for the requirements of the project.
The common section of the control panel was fitted with an engraved mimic label indicating a single line diagram of the electrical scheme to indicate the status of each of the following:
- Local Generator Breakers
- 2 x Generator Paralleling Circuit Breakers
The control system incorporated a Mitsubishi FX series programmable logic controller (PLC). The system was designed to start each of the generators automatically if a Utility power failure is detected via a Remote Start Signal provided by the sites 7 x Automatic Transfer Switches located in various parts of the building.
