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CASE STUDY 1:

Electric Reelers and Patented Solutions

Project Specification

HCS offers considerable experience building variable frequency driven reelers. However, our historical projects pre-dating this have been at lower power levels.

This project was unique because the umbilical specification in this project brief dictated a drive capacity of 37kW.

Inverter drives used in Zone 1 hazardous areas, were successfully installed within certified enclosures for ambient temperatures up to 50°C. These drives had a limited capacity of 11kW due to cooling issues. This limitation presented a challenge to our engineering team and one which we would strive to overcome.

Electric reeler replacement

Our Delivery

The proposed solution was to design and certify a cooling system using commercially available components, which would enable a larger drive to be utilised.

HCS worked in conjunction with SIRA to design and develop a cooling system that fully met the brief’s specifications. The manufactured system was fully certified by appropriate auditing bodies, and HCS later patented the design.

Electric Reelers and Patented Solutions

The Result

The ATEX and IECEx approved Reelers fully met the client specification and expectations.

Key elements from the project specification included:

  • Zone 1 hazardous area.
  • Ambient temperature range from -20°C to 50°C.
  • Variable speed.
  • PLC for machine control, data logging.
  • Safety relay circuit.
  • Closed-loop tension control capability via a sheave load cell.