Press Release

Market Demand for Intelligence

[picture of Mike Laycock] Mike Laycock, sales director for Moeller Electric, talks to Louise Frampton about the company's plans to grow its power distribution business in the UK, trends in the market and how it aims to meet the demands of the installer.

"Moeller is primarily known in the UK as an industrial control gear company. Worldwide, the business is split roughly 40/60 between power distribution and industrial control but in the UK the split is 20/80.

Although we may not be recognised, here, as a major supplier in the power distribution sector, we have the breadth of product range to be seen as a serious player in this market. We are the third largest circuit breaker manufacturer in the world and can supply everything from consumer units to bespoke switchboards.

However, there is a challenge ahead of us to raise awareness of our capabilities in this area, so that people realise that we are more than just an industrial control gear supplier.

There is a trend in the power distribution market to remove cost but we have made a firm decision not to compromise on quality – by maintaining the strength of the metal work for example. We also have products that fit gaps in the market place, which is an attraction for installers. This is particularly evident in the area between the standard TP&N distribution board and the moulded case panel board. When the installer needs a miniature circuit breaker greater than 63 Amps, they would normally have to over specify by using moulded case circuit breakers. This inevitably builds in bigger size and cost implications. We offer a solution that sits in the middle in the form of miniature circuit breakers up to 125 Amps - eliminating the need for that big jump in size and cost.

We also have products in our range of moulded case circuit breakers that have a diagnostic capability. There is a chip built in to the circuit breaker that allows the installer to plug in a PC to see why they are experiencing nuisance tripping, to view the load per phase and generally interrogate the breaker.

Real-time current information is a basic necessity as is, in the event of a trip, a clear indication of the trip type – over current, short circuit, earth fault, etc. Additionally, historical information is invaluable and should include a time- and date-stamped log of events such as trips and trip warnings. Details of the way in which the currents in the circuit changed in the run up to a trip are a vital diagnostic aid. But users also need to be alerted to impending trip conditions, so that action can be taken to prevent an interruption to electrical supply. (This is particularly important in the case of hospitals, where such interruptions could prove potentially life threatening.)

Some of our competitors offer intelligence with their breakers as an optional, factory-fitted extra, but we build this feature into the breaker as standard.

The software, which is purchased separately, allows the breaker to be interfaced with a PC, HMI or building management system. As there is a move towards monitoring energy usage, we expect installers to increasingly ask for this facility. There is also going to be increased demand for metering. As the need to monitor the energy consumption of buildings increases, diagnostics will become more important – particularly in the wake of building regulations such as Part L. In the future, functions such as monitoring, measurement, intelligence and linking into building management systems will be essential requirements.

It may seem obvious, but one of the biggest issues in relation to panel boards is attaching them to the wall, because of their weight. We have addressed this with a removable pan assembly, which means it is now a one man job. Speed and ease of installation is very important to our customers. We want to make that part of their job as easy as possible.

At the end of the day, a distribution board is a distribution board. It is what you put in it that is important. The biggest developments will be in the intelligence of the circuit breaker. That is where our focus is."

This page last updated: 28 July 2006