Surge suppression devices are the single best method of protecting equipment from electrical surges and overvoltage events. Anyone with a computer or television understands the damaging effects of power surges on any equipment which contains circuitry, as a power surge to the home has the ability to easily knock equipment offline and destroy internal components that are only able to handle a limited amount of electrical current. The exact same premise applies to industrial applications and sites, the only real difference is that the stakes are exponentially higher with far greater potentials for both damage and losses in industrial environments. An electrical surge to a private residence can cause thousands of dollars in lost data and equipment failure, and an electrical surge to an industrial site can cause millions, let alone the risk of fire and other dangers. The number one rule with regard to electrical surges is to avoid them if possible, and suppress them if necessary. Raycap is a world leading manufacturer of surge suppression devices and systems designed to protect industrial sites from electrical surges and overvoltage.
The electrical protection product lines from Raycap are designed to protect against electrical surge currents caused by a number of factors ranging from switching errors and minor, ongoing degradation of circuits due to on/off switching, to major power surges produced by lightning strikes. The National Electrical Code suggests deploying a tiered approach to AC surge protection and the most effective in-building electrical protection systems will involve combinations of different types of devices installed at variable positions in order to leverage efficiency and the diminished current over distance. This design places the highest capacity surge suppression devices near service entrances, and additional surge suppressors are installed on branch panels and farther “downstream” of the original surge source. Even after the function of surge suppression devices having been triggered, the residual surge voltage traveling through electrical lines can still be quite damaging. This is why Raycap recommends the redundant installation of additional devices in order to provide the highest level of electrical protection to the equipment at all times.
Lightning is the most potentially damaging type of electrical surge, due to the high intensity of electrical current produced by a strike. A direct strike to equipment can render that equipment useless. The appropriate industrial lightning protection to prevent direct strikes involves overhead shields that do not allow the lightning to strike the equipment in the first place. However, even strikes in proximity to power lines connecting to equipment or to the structure housing the equipment can cause power surges far exceeding the electrical threshold of that equipment. A strike to the structure can couple into power lines, creating a surge condition even when there is no immediate current flow. A lightning strike can generate transient overvoltage on an overhead line by a direct strike, a direct strike which then flashes to the phase conductor or a strike several hundred miles away from the power line (indirect strike) which causes overvoltage on the power line. Raycap’s Strikesorb technology is considered by many to be the most superior lightning surge protection equipment available on the market and is trusted by many to electrically protect industrial sites worldwide. Contact us for information.
