13 March 2008
Moeller’s SmartWire is a panel wiring system that puts fieldbus-like connectivity inside the control panel. The company’s MFD-Titan operator terminal was also installed, claimed, by Greencold, to offer a highly intuitive user interface.The project involved a three-zone commercial refrigeration system. In the past, Greencold would have used a separate control panel for each zone to house the motor starters associated with that zone. Pushbuttons and indicator lamps, on each of the panels, would have provided the operator interface.Simon Andrew, managing director of Greencold, commented on his thoughts when he first saw the SmartWire system, saying: ‘we quickly realised it would enable us to put all of the equipment in one panel, without having to worry about the complexity of the wiring.‘That would give us an immediate substantial cost saving, as one slightly larger enclosure costs far less than three small ones. And there was another big bonus – since SmartWire means that the starters connect directly to the PLC or similar control device rather than via conventional I/O, we no longer needed a PLC with large I/O capacity, and we were able to use Moeller easy intelligent relays instead.’In the final design, a control panel measuring 1600 x 1000 x 400mm was fitted with 17 direct-on-line starters, with rating up to 15kW, from Moeller’s xStart range. All of the starters were equipped with SmartWire interface units that clip into place in the same way as an auxiliary contact block. The panel also contained easy800 and easy618 intelligent relays used to provide overall control.‘I’ve now analysed the timesheets for the job,’ said Andrew. ‘The time saved was 25 per cent on wiring and 10 less pages of drawings, making about a 33 per cent time saving in total.’
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