electro-mechanical

1075 Old Airport Rd.

Bristol, VA 24201

276.466.8200

GridConnex logo Medium Voltage Grid-Tie Switchgear

Medium-Voltage Grid-Tie Solutions

GridConnex® is an excellent alternative to traditional pole-mounted, medium-voltage service equipment for the solar, battery storage, or wind energy provider.

All Your Medium-Voltage Equipment in a Pad-Mounted Solution

GridConnex® Grid-Tie Advantages for your Renewable Project

GridConnex Less Expense

COST EFFECTIVE

Required components including gang-operated air brake switches, reclosers, control power transformers, metering clusters and fuse cutouts can be replaced with our medium-voltage grid-tie solution. The field labor savings are substantial.
GridConnex Aesthetically Pleasing

AESTHETICALLY PLEASING

A single GridConnex® product is capable of replacing 4 to 5 poles in your renewable project. Our medium-voltage power distribution equipment is housed in a sturdy, environmentally controlled, 11-gauge steel, pad-mounted enclosure.
GridConnex Reduced Installation Time

QUICKER INSTALLATION TIME

GridConnex® is constructed and tested in the factory which greatly improves installation time compared to traditional pole-mounted equipment. No poles needed for installation and our grid-tie solutions are customizable.

EASY TO SERVICE

Since GridConnex® is a pad-mounted product, so no bucket trucks are needed for service. Just open the door! Even better, components are not vulnerable to vandalism, vermin, lightning or other storm damage.

GridConnex® Construction & Components

Customize for your Renewable Project Specifications

GridConnex® Grid-Tie Switchgear Exterior Features

GridConnex Padmount

Features

  • 11-Gauge Steel Doors
  • Hazard-Alerting Warning Signs on Exterior
  • One-Piece, Cross-Kinked 11-Gauge Steel Roof
  • Insulating No-Drip Compound on Underside of Roof
  • Silk-Screened, Aluminum Stamped Nameplate
  • 11-Gauge Steel Welded Enclosure
  • Control Compartment Sealed to Enclosure
  • Drip-Shield over Control Compartments
  • Galvanized-Steel Lifting Brackets
  • Closed-Cell Cushions Isolate Enclosure from Lifting Bracket
  • Stainless-Steel Handles on Control Compartment
  • Closed-Cell Gasket at Bottom Isolates Enclosure from Mounting Surface

Customer Connection – Transformer Compartment

Features

  • 11-Gauge Steel Doors with 3 point Latching System
  • Three Stainless Steel Hinges and Hinge Pins Per
    Enclosure Door
  • Bumper Gasket Cushions Door Interface, Prevents
    Metal to Metal Contact
  • Stainless Steel Wind brace
  • Stainless Steel Parking Stand for each Bushing
  • Formed Steel Equipment Mounting Panels Isolate
    Medium-Voltage Components from Termination
    Compartment.
  • 600 Amp Cycloaliphatic Epoxy Bushings with
    All-Copper Conductor on Stainless Steel Clamping
    Bracket (optional 200A Bushing Wells)
  • Removable Silver Plated All-Copper Stud on all
    Bushing with Red Protective Dust Covers.
  • Phase Identification Labels
  • Relay Current Transformers (when present)
  • Revenue Grade Current Transformers (when present)
  • Wide View Clear Polycarbonate Window for Volting Transformer Fuse Access. (when present)

Bushings and Bushing Wells

Federal Pacific cycloaliphatic bushings
Insulators of cycloaliphatic epoxy (CAE) polymers have been used in the power industry for over fifty years and have proven field experience globally in both indoor and outdoor applications.

These polymers are light-weight, homogeneous, and readily molded by automatic pressure gelation (APG) process in both simple and complex contours.

The formulation is balanced for high voltage, high strength, non-tracking, self-scouring, non-weathering applications in extremes of high temperature and sub-zero cold.

Federal Pacific’s bushings and bushing wells are of cycloaliphatic epoxy and meet all the criteria set forth in ANSI/IEEE 386, which establishes ratings and design interface to accommodate industry-standard insulated separable elbow connectors.

All bushings and bushing wells feature high conductivity copper rod contacts and include removable silver-plated copper studs.

In addition, bushings and bushing wells all carry an engraved serial number for quality audit if the need should ever arise and are traceable to the particular switchgear assembly.

Circuit Protection Device

Circuit GridConnex Protection Device by Tavrida
The Tavrida Circuit Breaker Modules contain the most advanced design elements of any MV breaker on the market. All components are assembled along a single axis, with three mono-stable magnetic actuators (one per pole).

The actuators are mounted in a steel frame and are mechanically linked by a synchronizing shaft. The actuators drive a pulling insulator that, in turn, connects to the advanced Tavrida vacuum interrupters at the top of the breaker.

This simple design results in the highest reliability available today. Tavrida delivers a maintenance-free breaker with a life expectancy of up to 150,000 close-open operations.

The CM_16 Control Module serves as the interface between the Circuit Breaker Module and the Schweitzer SEL-751 relay. Meets or exceeds IEEE C34.04, C37.06, C37.09, C37.09a and IEC 62271-100ETL Recognized

Auto-Jet® Switch

Federal Pacific Auto-Jet Switch
All Federal Pacific Auto-Jet switches have a heavy-gauge steel frame, which assures proper contact alignment and eliminates any problem of switch-to-enclosure alignment. An optional stainless-steel switch is available (current-carrying parts are not stainless-steel).

A quick-make, quick-break stored-energy mechanism with heavy-duty, long-life die springs provides high-speed opening and closing independent of the operating handle speed. This high-speed mechanism assures the duty-cycle fault-closing capability and load interruption with the patented Federal Pacific interrupter.

The switch blades are made of high conductivity copper. Current transfer from the switch-blade through the hinge to the load terminals is accomplished by a unique current transfer means, consisting of a beryllium-copper louvered contact band encircling a copper pin at the hinge point.

Magnetic forces, due to a higher than normal current flow, tend to rotate the louvers on the contact band toward a vertical position, providing a higher contact pressure for fault-current duty.

Current and Voltage Sensing

GridConnex Current-Voltage Sensing
Relay Class Current Transformers provide overcurrent sensing Standard relay class of C50. Manufactured to meet the requirements of IEEE C57.13 UL and CSA Recognized.

Metering Class Extended range high accuracy current transformers for revenue grade metering. IEEE 0.15 accuracy class from 1% of rated current though rating factor. Manufactured to meet the requirements of IEEE C57.13 UL and CSA Recognized.

Revenue grade voltage transformers for voltage sensing and metering. Accuracy class – 0.3% WXMY at 100% rated voltage Manufactured to meet the requirements of IEEE C57.13 UL and CSA Recognized.

Low-Voltage Control Compartment

GridConnex Low Voltage Control Compartment

Features

  • Individual Phase Trip Pushbuttons for Commissioning
  • Stainless Steel Hinges and Hinge Pins
  • Stainless Steel Wind brace
  • Breaker Open / Close Indication LED’s
  • Breaker Control Switch
  • Local / Remote Control Switch
  • SEL-751 Feeder Protection Relay (optional)
  • FT Style Test Switch (when present)
  • SEL-735 Power Quality and Revenue Meter (optional)
  • FT Style Test Switch (when present)
  • Swing-Out Control Panel
  • Fully Gasketed Door Opening on Low Voltage Control Compartment

Low-Voltage Control Compartment, Interior

low-voltage control compartment GridConnex

Features

  • Swing-Out Control Panel (Door in Door Construction)
  • UPS for Continuous Control Power (optional)
  • Heater for Compartment Interior
  • Humidistat / Thermostat
  • Individual Phase Trip Pushbuttons for Commissioning
  • Breaker Open / Close Indication LED’s
  • Breaker Control Switch
  • Local / Remote Control Switch
  • SEL-751 Feeder Protection Relay (optional)
  • FT Style Test Switch (when present)
  • SEL-735 Power Quality and Revenue Meter (optional)
  • FT Style Test Switch (optional)
  • Breaker Control Module

Optional Accessories

Relays and Metering

low-voltage control compartment GridConnex
SEL-735 Relay for GridConnex

SEL-751

If you renewable energy project requires feeder protection, an optional accessory for GridConnex® is the Schweitzer SEL-751 relay. This provides comprehensive protection capabilities, including time overcurrent, directional overcurrent, auto-reclosing, over/undervoltage, frequency, cable/line thermal, and more.

 

Standard offering includes:
  • Directional Power detection
  • 2×16 LCD with 4 Push Buttons
  • Ethernet and EIA-485 communications with optional Multi-Mode Fiber ST
  • Current Inputs (Optional Voltage Inputs)
  • LEA Vsync / Vbat (300Vdc / 4 Arc-Flash Detection Inputs
    (Optional)
  • Meets IEC 60255-26:203, IEC 60255-27:2013, UL 508, CSA C22.2 No. 14-05
  • UL Listed to U.S. and Canadian Safety Standards

SEL-735

GridConnex® can be upgraded to include revenue grade metering with metering class CTs and VTs through the addition of the Schweitzer SEL-735 meter. The SEL-735 ensures high-accuracy measurements with a ±0.06 percent watt-hour (Wh) guarantee at unitypower factor and a ±0.02 percent typical rating.

 

Standard offering includes:
  • Basic PQ and recording 128MB, 16 Channels of LDP, 1 kHz
    waveform, 270 VSSI summary events, and up to 15th-order
    harmonics
  • Form 9 (Four-Wire Wye, 3Ps 3 CTs Meter Form
  • Ethernet and EIA 485 Communications
  • Current and voltage inputs optimized for low-end accuracy
  • Various supported communication protocols including Standard SEL ASCII, SEL LMD, SEL FastMeter, SEL Compressed ASCII, MV-90 Transition, Modbus RTU/TCP, Mirrored Bits Communications, Telnet, DNP3 Level 2 Outstation and LAN/WAN, and Syncrophasors
  • Meets ANSI C12.1-2014, IEC 62052-11:2013
  • UL Listed to U.S. and Canadian Safety Standards

Additional Accessories

Uninterruptible Power Supply

The supplied UPS provides adequate battery backup for the SEL-751 relay, SEL-735 meter, and vacuum circuit breakers when control power has been lost regardless of cause.

The UPS ensures that the equipment is always capable of performing its intended function whether or not the normal control-power source, the voltage transformers, is available. The UPS also includes a battery charger and associated alarm circuits (1) in the event AC input to the battery charger is diminished or lost and (b) output from the battery is diminished below acceptable levels or lost.

Lightning Arrestors

Distribution class surge arrestors are used to limit the voltage due to lightning strikes and/or switching transients.Arrestors can be located at the Utility connection point, DG connection point, or at both locations.

Low-Energy Analog Voltage Sensors (LEAs)

Sensor is used in conjunction with VTs and the SEL-751 relay to coordinate voltage sync between the Utility and Solar Farm / Battery Energy Storage Systems / Other DGs.

Quote Link and Product Literature

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