Schneider Electric WWCC At WEFTEC 2010

Water and wastewater treatment facilities require reliable distribution and control of electrical power to maintain process integrity. These systems typically work reliably and do not demand much attention from the operator or maintenance person. However, oversights or lack of awareness of electrical system needs can have a substantial impact on facility reliability and personnel safety. Two critical areas are unsafe counterfeit components and arc flash.

These issues will be the subject of two presentations the Schneider Electric Water Wastewater Competency Center will make at WEFTEC®, the Water Environment Federation's Annual Technical Exhibition and Conference, held Sunday, October 2 through Wednesday, October 6, at the New Orleans Morial Convention Center. Both presentations will be made by Grant Van Hemert, P.E., an applications engineer for the Schneider Electric Water Wastewater Competency Center, located in booth 5553 at the show.

Quality components are critical to uninterrupted operation of water and wastewater facilities and the municipalities they serve. As trade barriers decrease, there are greater opportunities for counterfeiters to distribute substandard devices. "Counterfeit Electrical Components can Destroy Equipment, and Kill" a poster presentation to be held from 1:30 to 5:00 p.m. Monday, October 3, outside of Room 245, will examine these quality issues. This presentation will outline the scale of the problem, the dangers to a facility, how it is being addressed and steps that can be taken to increase protection.

Counterfeit electrical and automation and control products can be broken into three categories:

• Counterfeiting, or manufacturing a product intended to be sold as another manufacturer's product
• Cloning, or manufacturing a product intended to mimic another manufacturer's product
• Reconditioning, or repair of a manufacturer's product and reintroduction to the marketplace

Another danger to both process integrity and maintenance staff is an electrical fault event such as an arc flash, which poses a greater risk of injury than electrocution. Arc flash can severely damage equipment and thus compromise a facility's ability to operate. "Electrical Safety and Arc Flash Mitigation Techniques for Water and Wastewater," to be presented from 2:30 to 3:00 p.m. Wednesday, October 5, in Room 357, will examine basic safety practices a water or wastewater facility should implement to minimize incident potential. It will cover the following interrelated areas:

• Determining a facility's legal roles and responsibilities with regard to personnel protection
• Determining which facility personnel need to be aware of the dangers
• How to protect workers from arc flash hazards
• How to minimize the total energy released during an arc flash event
• Selecting new equipment to help mitigate arc flash

For more information, visit http://www.weftec.org/.

SOURCE: Schneider Electric