ANSWERING YOUR QUESTIONS ABOUT SINETAMER®

Do I need a Sinetamer® unit on every panel?

Yes, if the salesperson wants to make more commission. In actuality, no. Why? Many panels contain only non-electronic equipment for example and if a unit is installed on the main, then it will get some protection. It is important to note that you can never go wrong with protecting every panel. Transients have a negative impact on all electrical/electronic equipment, and so it will always be abenefit, albeit long term in some instances.

Is a cascade system always necessary?

Not always. In a residential or small office scenario it might not even be feasible or possible to do so. Also, there are situations where you are just running a proof of concept to see a problem solved and it may not be necessary. Example – CNC equipment. You should be able to install one unit on the main and witness performance improvement. Or possibly a situation where client is experiencing a PLC failure or reset. Just by protecting that PLC you should see a change. Then you can come back and recommend the cascade system for complete long term protection.

Can’t I just install one unit on the mains and be done?

No. Doing that only gives you lightning or external protection, which is only 20% of the issues occurring in any facility. Doing this is not tremendously beneficial in providing true power quality improvement. Other than a residence, it’s just not a good idea to stop at the mains.

How do I prove the unit is working?

Are the LED’s lit? The unit is working. How can I say that? Life cycle testing performed years ago and actual field testing of a unit that had been installed on a VFD for ten years. Retested in our lab and LTV numbers were essentially same as the data sheet. Our heatsink resin will dramatically retard component degradation, insuring long term performance.

What do I with the existing SPDS like Dehn / Phoenix Contact?

Keep them in place, they will provide added surge/lightning protection.

Why must I put a Sinetamer® on each critical machine and not just a Sinetamer® on the mains?

Primarily because each critical machine is an island unto itself. Each with its own critical and sensitive VFD’s, PLC’s and HMI’s. Each are impacted by the low-level transient events and false zero crossings caused by the VFD’s.

Do electric motors create surges, and can we protect against them?

Inside any facility, inductive components such as motors, as well as transformer can and do generate transient voltages in electrical systems. When current flow is disrupted in these devices, the magnetic field collapses resulting in voltage impulses or transients. While we can tend to think of this scenario as micro-cuts of power or total power loss, even the simple powering down of a direct start motor or any inductive load can generate multiple oscillating transients. It is true that these events are typically low voltage in nature, less than 2x the operating voltage. It is not true that these events are not troublesome therefore can be ignored. The appropriately sized Sinetamer®  unit should be applied at the main breaker/disconnect of the motor. If there are multiple motors (no VFD’s) fed from a single panel, then a single SPD is that is typically required.

Is Sinetamer® recommended for motor soft starters?

Yes! Especially if they are electronic and not mechanical. The electronic one typicallyutilize SCR’s to control the voltage. The risk is for back fed transients from the SCR’s to enter the electrical distribution system and create havoc for other nearby equipment. In addition to that is the monetary investment in the soft starter that should be protected to attain maximum value on CAPEX investments. It is important to never install a Sinetamer® frequency attenuation unit on load side of an electronic soft starter.

What issues can occur with a VFD receiving transients and surges?

A variety of things can occur. The severity of which can vary depending on the age of theVFD. Our clients and partners have reported everything from random upsets and lockups to complete drive board failures. With every next iteration of technology, the benefits obtained will increase, but along with that the sensitivity to power quality also increases. Due to market pricing constraints, the typical VFD manufacturer will continue to install only base level surge protection, which will only mitigate the long term impact of catastrophic damage, but do little to eradicate the low level – false zero crossing – events that cause the cumulative and most persistent downtime events in the industrialautomation arena.

Is it possible to use a standard Sinetamer® unit on the main disconnect of a Power Factor correction system?

The best answer is that it depends. There are a variety of factors that are important. Primarily is the fact that we will introduce 3 mF of capacitance onto the network. If the PFC is auto adjusting, that should not be a challenge. However, to avoid having to deal with the remote possibility of resonance, we have found it best to either utilize our -V option (removes the attenuation) or move the Sinetamer® unit one level upstream of the PFC.

Is Sinetamer® a harmonic filter?

This is a common question often asked of us from around the world. No, it is not a harmonic filter. While our circuitry will induce some capacitance onto the network to address low level ringing transients, it is NOT designed to reduces voltage or current harmonics. Anything to the contrary is coincidental and simply an added benefit.

Is Sinetamer® designed to address or protect against sustained or temporary under or overvoltage’s?

Absolutely not. The surge components within our AC/DC voltage units have been engineered to only address the typical 8/20 surge impulses as specified within various IEC/IEEE standards for surge protective devices. In no case will Sinetamer® ® address any low voltage condition in an electrical network. There are no “buck/boost” components or transformers within the devices. Now, while there may be instances of Sinetamer® not “failing” during a sustained overvoltage event, they are not designed to have any protection against sustained overvoltage occurrences.

Does the Sinetamer® act/work only once and then must be replaced?

No! The Sinetamer® units are not a “once and done” type of device. Our units are a combination of lightning/surge and transient elimination devices. It is important to note that over the course of 35 years and hundreds of thousands of units deployed in many of the harshest lightning environments, lightning strikes are NOT the biggest issue today and our warranty replacement rate is possibly less than 2%. Of this amount, engineering reports to us that only a very small percentage was possibly caused by lightning. Mor typically these failures have been caused by utility company issues or transformer failures of some type. The necessity of a device designed around a 10/350 waveform to protect against lightning is a myth.

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ABOUT US 

Staro Process Control (Pty) Ltd. is a brand name in Automation and established in the Mining and heavy Industrial sectors. Started operations in 1996 and has grown into the role of holding company for the group of Staro (Pty) Ltd entities. Together, we form a focused and dynamic Organisation.

The group’s strength manifests in our dynamic team goal: the same destiny with sound business principles driven independently with a focus on core businesses’. The trading entities, each with its own Directors, focus on Supply chain, Engineering & Design, Manufacturing and Construction services.