As most electrical engineers know, working with switchgear carries with it potential hazards. Improvements in design and better working practices, however, have contrived to make it much safer than it used to be.

If it were an animal, switchgear would be a champion racehorse; highly-strung, unpredictable – and with a powerful bite. But as every champion jockey will tell you: it’s all in the training. If you know what you’re doing and have thorough and appropriate training, you should be able to handle switchgear, no problem. If you are a novice, however, take every precaution and wear all the safety gear you can.

An accident associated with switchgear has been arc flash. These can occur when a large electrical current passes through ionised air and can be triggered when a circuit-breaker fails or when insulation has been seriously compromised. Although rare, these accidents have had serious consequences in the past. When an arc flash occurs, the temperature surrounding it can rise to around 20,000 degrees centigrade, which vaporises conductors leading to an explosion and the release of globules of molten metal. Anyone nearby could be in danger of serious injury or death.

Arc flash can also cause fire, the production of dangerous gasses and the leakage of burning oil in older designs such as oil insulated switchgear.

The good news is that modern designs of switchgear have moulded insulation, which allows good control over electric fields thereby reducing the susceptibility of the insulation to break down. It significantly reduces the chances of arc-related faults. It won’t entirely negate such incidents, or the chances there of, so it is important still to observe appropriate safety information and practices.

Not quite so hazardous but potentially more disruptive is the problem of partial discharge in insulation, which is a common cause of unreliability in MV switchgear. Here, small currents in the form of sparks can leak through the insulation at points where it has deteriorated. In hazardous environments, this could cause ignition of flammable materials but at best it could lead to breakdown of equipment and expensive repair. Needless to say, the best remedy for this is regular testing and inspection of switchgear, including all cabling and connectors.

When you choose Riello UPS for switchgear supply, you can be sure of our expertise. We always design switchgear into the system from the start and our name appears on the panel so you can rest assured we make sure that the quality of our work is consistent with the rest of your UPS and standby power installation.

The National Grid is buckling under the pressure of increasing demand for electricity – and modernisation is not happening fast enough. In densely populated areas like large towns and cities, it is a real problem exacerbated by the fact that more and more renewable energy sources, such as wind turbines and solar installations are being connected into the grid. These facts are introducing even greater instability into an already precarious system.

The primary purpose of a UPS (uninterruptible power supply) and generator is to provide an immediate source of back up power in the event of a mains failure. A secondary, but increasingly important, purpose for a UPS is to condition the voltage that is delivered to connected loads, but this can only happen if UPS and generator are properly synchronised to work together.

Power Problems

Power problems associated with raw mains energy are defined as any variation in electrical power resulting in a malfunction or equipment failure. Power problems include: sags, surges, brownouts, electrical noise, spikes, transients and harmonics, alongside frequency variations and complete blackouts.

It’s not only problems brought about by external mains power, however, that can cause problems for connected loads. Certain types of power load that are connected internally to the site electricity distribution system – such as motor loads (lifts, mechanical machinery), certain types of lighting (Tungsten) and air-conditioning can cause problems for equipment upstream without the correct filtering and power conditioning.

A generator must be able to accept the load of the UPS and the UPS rectifier and static bypass supplies must be able to operate with (and synchronise to) the output of the generator. There are several elements that enable this to be achieved: correct generator sizing. In UPS installations, generators are typically larger than the installed UPS so that they can deal with the harmonics the UPS generates and any overload conditions that may occur during operation.

For load acceptance to occur, a UPS must be able to synchronise to the voltage waveform supplied by the generator. UPS normally have a wide input voltage window, which will more than accommodate most generator output but the frequency can vary and this potential problem can be simply overcome by widening the UPS operating parameters to accept wider frequency ranges.

There is a whole chapter on generators in The Power Protection Guide – the design, installation and operation of uninterruptible power supplies, which offers more information. Visit the Riello website for details of the power protection products and services we supply.

Friends of the Earth lawsuit against UK Government over its latest FiTs Decision

More on the latest Government announcement of cuts to the FiTs tariff: I read on energylivenews.com in November that Friends of the Earth issued the UK Government with an ultimatum: amend their latest Feed-in Tariff decision or face legal action.

The charity wrote to Climate Change Minister, Greg Barker, and gave him until Friday 11^th November to make changes or face the consequences.

The Government has slashed financial support for solar under its FiTs scheme to over half what it was a year ago, from 43.3p/kWh to just 21p/kWh. This is for schemes 4kW or less and will come into force as of 12^th December 2011. Friends of the Earth claims that this date, which is two weeks before the consultation process the government brought into force earlier this year ends, makes their move unlawful.

The eco campaigning group carried out its threat and issued legal proceedings because they didn’t get a satisfactory response from the government by the appointed deadline. Friends of the Earth is calling for the Government to maintain existing tariff payments to all qualifying solar schemes completed by April 1^st 2012 and to extend the consultation period to Friday February 17^th 2012 at the earliest.

In a letter from the Treasury Solicitor to Friends of the Earth, the Government said: “The Secretary of State retains an open mind in respect of this proposal. Indeed, that is the reason why the proposal is out for consultation”.

It will be interesting to see what happens next.

We offer solar inverters that provide maximum energy, efficiency and safety. They come with advanced communications, easy installation and maintenance, plus conformance to international standards. More information is available on our website or contact us if you have any questions.

The UK government has merely loosened the head collar but it hasn’t yet killed the beast.

There is plenty of life left in Solar but the industry needs to build business models centred on delivering real value and market the many benefits of Solar installations rather than simply relying in subsidies from the FiTs scheme.

There was serious industry backlash against the UK government’s latest announcement of a massive cut in feed in tariff for Solar energy on schemes up to 4kW in size, from 43.3p per kWh down to 21p/kWh, earlier this month.

Chief Executive of the Renewable Energy Association, Gaynor Hartnell, was reported in the Guardian as saying that she did not believe the department for energy and climate change was winning its argument with the Treasury on the benefits to the economy of renewables. She is also quoted as stating that the government chopping and changing its mind like this and not honouring its commitments (this is the second major cut this year) was undermining confidence in the industry as a whole.

Other industry experts quoted in press articles within hours of the announcement were stating that thousands of contracts had already been cancelled and some Solar companies had started laying people off and making redundancies.

I’m in two minds about this. Firstly, cuts to payments under the FiTs scheme will make some people think twice about Solar installations, but unfortunately much of the subsidy has already been diverted to large commercial energy companies rather than individual home owners or public sector projects as it was initially intended. In my mind the Government should have acted sooner and made a much clearer distinction between the different market sectors. Spending controls are unfortunately now a necessity.

Every fledgling industry needs a helping hand but there comes a time when it should be able to stand on its own two feet. Perhaps that time for the solar industry is now.

There are many benefits and reasons why residential or commercial customers should invest in solar technology. FiTs is just one of them. Alongside the many ‘green’ issues, an other benefit is security of supply and having more control over your energy supply and usage; solar customers can at least rest assured that they can generate energy for their own needs at times when mains electricity may be unavailable. And with talk of possible energy rationing at some point in the future and political unrest globally, that benefit is looking increasingly attractive. Once payback has been achieved, Solar energy is always going to be less costly than many other sources – or even free in certain circumstances.

We offer solar inverters that provide maximum energy, efficiency and safety. They come with advanced communications, easy installation and maintenance, plus conformance to international standards. More information is available on our website or contact us.

Electricity generated from renewable energy sources in the UK has increased 50% in the past year, according to statistics released by DECC (Department for Energy and Climate Change) in October 2011.

Electricity from renewables comprised 6.3% of the UK’s total energy consumption when the figures were announced in April 2010 and that figure rose to 9.6% this year, a healthy 50% increase.

Supplies from hydro and wind rose by 74.7% and 120% respectively but renewables still only supply around 10% of the UK’s total energy needs and that has got to change if we are to meet our carbon reduction targets alongside our growing energy needs.

However, the wind industry is making a tremendous contribution to the nations energy supply and is now providing enough power to supply nearly 3.25 million homes in the UK.

Electricity sourced from nuclear generation accounted for 21.3% of total according to DECC. So, despite the massive rises in low carbon energy and encouraging growth in the renewables industries, we are still relying on fossil fuels for two thirds of our energy needs.

As you know, here at Riello we are big fans of renewable energy and have developed our range of UPS and ancillary products to support renewable energy installations such as Solar (with our AROS solar inverters). We are continuing to bring products and solutions to market that support the drive towards renewables.

Some high-profile players in the data centre world have received column inches of late not least because of their ‘green’ credentials. Facebook, Google and Yahoo are all using innovative and environmentally-friendly cooling systems, building on brownfield sites and investing in renewable energy.

Colocation players have the same desire to be green but are somewhat constrained by the needs and demands of the customer.

Bourne out of the realisation that computer equipment can withstand hotter temperatures, a recent initiative by collocation data centres is to run warm in an attempt to lessen the need for cooling and use less electricity. Ambient temperatures of around 21 degrees Celsius (70 Fahrenheit) – often as high as 30 Celsius (86 Fahrenheit) are now acceptable. The lower the temperature, the more cooling is required to maintain it, thus more energy is being consumed and the whole system is less efficient. However, there are two major problems with running data centres at higher temperatures.

Firstly, customer comfort: colocation customers need to visit their servers and do so regularly. They are used to data centres being a certain temperature and comfortable. However, what’s comfortable for machines is not always pleasant for humans.

The second problem with running data centres or server rooms at higher temperatures is how it affects UPS batteries. The batteries will continue to work effectively but the higher temperatures (above 20/21 Celsius) will compromise their design life and they will need to be replaced more often. This necessity will significantly increase the lifetime costs of the facility and UPS system.

Flywheel UPS is ideal for this type of application as it is not temperature sensitive like batteries. It will quite happily operate at 10 Celsius as it will at 40 Celsius. It can also offer high efficiency, low running and maintenance costs, the lowest possible PUE ratios and highest operational resilience. Riello’s Master MHF VDC 100-500kVA Flywheel UPS has been designed specifically for critical environments such as data centres, hospitals and large industrial installations. It is a scaleable system, incorporating a VDC or VDC-XE flywheel, which requires 50% less floor space than a similarly rated, traditional UPS and batteries. Flywheels have a much longer design life (20 years) than traditional UPS batteries and a far lower total cost of ownership (TCO). It also offers an instantaneous recharge time. To find out more, visit our website.

The importance of power conditioning within a power system cannot be underestimated and it is a little-known but very important feature of a UPS system.

At its source, mains power is ‘unclean’ and generally badly behaved and this can cause all sorts of problems within an internal power distribution system and for any equipment attached to it. It can ultimately lead to costly and disruptive breakdown or system crashes.

Power Problems

Alongside total blackouts and power failures, power problems manifest in several different ways:

• sags – short duration voltage reductions in mains power supply, which can cause computer equipment to malfunction and lead to data loss.
• Brownouts – longer duration reduction in mains power supply voltage, which can also result in equipment failure.
• Surges – these are short duration voltage increases, which can lead to system crashes from activated automatic cut-out protection within the equipment. Surges can also cause wear and tear and general equipment degradation over time.
• Spikes and transients – are fast-moving, high energy bursts (in excess of 6kVA in some instances). They last only a few milliseconds but can cause widespread and costly damage to equipment and motherboards.
• Electrical Noise – electrical noise exists in all electrical systems and if not filtered out can disrupt the operation of circuits and equipment and cause damage.
• Harmonics – harmonic pollution is a problem associated with proliferation of SMPS (Switch Mode Power Supplies) being connected to electrical distribution networks. Harmonics can cause distortion of the mains power supply voltage, overheating of building wiring circuits and nuisance tripping of breakers.

Power conditioners within a UPS system are designed to attenuate spikes, transients and electrical noise. But in environments where these problems are most severe, such as in industrial settings, for example, other types of power conditioner and/or filter may also be employed. Constant Voltage Transformers (CVTs) can be used to stabilise voltage over a wide input voltage window. This is a type of Ferro resonant design.

Other types of protection include AVS (automatic voltage stabilisers), which can protect from sags, brownouts and surges. TVSS (transient voltage surge suppressors) can be employed to guard against transient voltages and high-energy spikes. Some also have filters that protect from spikes, transients and electrical noise. Standard filters and filter strips may be employed in some installations to protect against spikes, transients and electrical noise but rather than attenuating performance, they ‘clamp’ peak voltages to predefined, acceptable levels.

A power quality review, prior to embarking on a power protection project, upgrade or change to your power protection plans, is recommended as it will reveal essential information pertinent to the design and configuration of your new system. For more information, visit our website.

I read with interest a couple of articles this month in Marketing Week, entitled Studies Show it Pays to be Ethical and The Only Way is Ethics (nice pun).

Basically, recent studies carried out among consumers have established a link between business’s ethical credentials and the preferences of affluent, ethical consumers to buy their products. One study found that 91% of consumers take ethics into account when purchasing products.

A couple of other interesting pointers that grabbed my attention are that perception is just as important (or perhaps more so) than actual environmental performance. Top brands that scored higher on ethical perception than performance did rather better in consumers minds than other brands that are actually more ethical in their actions but not as vociferous.

Wealthy consumers of FMCG are happy to pay premium prices for goods and services they perceive to be ethical but I suspect it’s a little different in the business world. In business, cost is still king. Companies need to be seen to be ethical and environmentally sensitive but it cannot come at a cost. Products have to be ‘green’, ethical and cost less. The bottom line is as sacred as ever, especially in a struggling economy.

As a UPS manufacturer, we invest £thousands into researching how to make UPS more eco-friendly and in developing new products accordingly so that our customers genuinely use less energy and can be kinder to the environment at the same time. More details are available on our website.

Interesting research from big six energy provider npower has highlighted that the issue of energy is the most important matter facing businesses today.

The npower Business Energy Index 2011 showed major energy users (MEUs) indentifying energy and legislation as the biggest risks their businesses face and yet 86% admitted that energy is not a board level issue. 50% have no idea where they are using energy and cannot allocate costs by usage.

This is music to my ears!

For years Riello has been encouraging and guiding customers through our consultancy and surveys to understand more about energy management and get a clearer picture of their current energy use. Only by doing this can they begin to make reforms, install the latest energy efficient equipment (including UPS), streamline their business practices, implement energy saving initiatives and reduce costs overall.

Also, securing a clean, stable and continuous supply of electricity should come first for businesses because without it, most would not be able to operate – our reliance on electricity has become so ingrained.

On that note, I was interested to read a story on Energy Live News about Dixons Retail. Apparently, the company has cut its electricity use by a third in just 12 months. Latest figures show the retail group, which includes Currys and PC World, has netted £1.9 million in savings since May 2010.

The retailer’s energy saving initiatives included:

• Talking to staff.
• Running energy surveys.
• Analysing energy data.
• Implementing specific and individual store-based solutions to change lighting, heating, ventilation, store displays.
• Energy monitoring.

This goes to show that it can be done and need not cost the earth or consume valuable resources. If you’re interested in reducing your energy consumption, understanding more about your energy usage, or wanting to implement energy management and energy savings plans, talk to one of our energy consultants about how you can ensure reliable power protection while reducing energy bills.

The Confederation of British Industry worries the proposed Carbon Price Floor will drive big business out of the UK

On 12^th July, Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change Chris Huhne delivered his much-anticipated white paper on Electricity Market Reform (EMR). Setting out coalition measures to keep the lights on, consumer bills down and shift the economy away from a high-risk, high-carbon future.

Here at Riello, we feel it’s our duty to comment on energy market issues.

Key elements of the reform package, as we understand it, include:

• The introduction of a Carbon Price Floor (essentially a regulatory/taxation policy demanding polluters pay a minimum amount of money to pollute). The aim is to reduce investor uncertainty, put a fair price on carbon and provide a stronger incentive to invest in low-carbon generation.

• The introduction of new long-term contracts to provide stable, financial incentives to invest in all forms of low-carbon electricity generation.

• Introduction of an emissions performance standard (EPS) set at 450g CO2/kWh to reinforce the requirement that no new coal-fired power stations are built and to ensure the necessary investment in gas.

• Development of a capacity mechanism, which will safeguard future security of energy supply.

The Government intends to legislate for the key elements of the EMR in 2012 and for it to reach the statue book by spring 2013.

Since the reforms were announced, there has been a backlash of criticism (unsurprisingly) from the Labour party but also from the UK business sector. Research by the Federation of Small Businesses highlights that 81% of small firms are worried about the rising cost of energy and are concerned that electricity generators will pass on to them the extra costs associated with EMR.

Small businesses consume similar amounts of energy as do domestic energy users but they do not receive the same regulatory safeguards and are unable to negotiate contracts the way larger companies can.

Any investment in new technology in electricity generation and distribution infrastructure is bound to result in price increases, especially as electricity is such a necessary commodity. Some of this is unfair i.e: generators hiking up prices to capitalise on market demand, but some is necessary: we desperately need new investment in what is essentially an outdated national grid. So, in my view, businesses large and small need to put their focus on using less energy rather than hoping for prices to fall in the fulness of time.

Meanwhile, the Confederation of British Industry, which represents 240,000 businesses, is worried that the Carbon Floor Price (which puts £16 per tonne of carbon dioxide emitted on to large businesses) will drive manufacturing, engineering and industry out of the UK.

There is still a lot to be decided before the new reforms start to bite but one thing is clear; energy costs will continue to rise, which is why many companies are now taking measures to reduce energy consumption and install new energy efficient technologies. Today’s UPS are highly efficient. Check out our energy efficiency figures.