After hearing about the new electric ride-through (ERT) solution being offered by Seven States Power Corporation and technology partner RK Energy (RKE), Blue Ridge Mountain EMC’s Erik Brinke knew an ideal site for testing out the new technology which helps industrial customers protect against critical downtime events.

A wire extrusion manufacturer with multiple facilities producing a variety of cables from small security cables to large primary feed electrical conductors with a long history of numerous power fluctuations each year offered an ideal location for demonstrating the ability of RKE’s electric ride-through solution.

In late 2020, our team brought RKE and their mobile test unit to the manufacturing site in Georgia. The on-site demonstration illustrated how ERT can help protect the company’s manufacturing process against voltage sags and single-phase events that disrupt power and cause shut-down faults on the variable speed drives (VSD) that control motors in the wire extrusion process.

RKE’s mobile test unit provided the appropriate equipment to connect to a VSD controlling a 100hp extruder motor selected by the industrial customer. A series of three tests were performed, using the AC input panel breaker to disrupt power, simulating a full three-phase power loss. A logging meter and time-stamped video captured the entire process, showing the power disruptions and the time durations required to ride through a reclosure event and for backup generators to come online.

The demonstration showed the ability of the ERT solution to maintain normal VSD operation during both short and prolonged disruptions. By maintaining a stable power source to VSDs on their manufacturing lines, the test facility would gain the ability to reduce costly scrap and downtime caused by routine power fluctuations that affect their bottom line.

To learn more about ERT solutions and how they can help industrial customers in your service area reduce downtime and lower their power consumption, contact Seven States Power’s Vice President of Engineering & Energy Innovations, Clint Wilson.