S&C Unveils New Lateral-Protection Innovation at DistribuTECH 2019

The VacuFuse™ Self-Resetting Interrupter eliminates nuisance fuse operations at the grid’s edge, improves customer satisfaction, and saves O&M expenses.

CHICAGO, February 5, 2019 – S&C Electric Company, a smart grid leader improving power reliability and delivery worldwide, announces its newest innovation, the VacuFuse™ Self-Resetting Interrupter, the latest development in lateral protection, at DistribuTECH 2019.

S&C’s new VacuFuse Self-Resetting Interrupter eliminates nuisance fuse operations at the grid’s edge and drastically reduces unnecessary maintenance expenses. Industry data show that up to 70% of overhead distribution transformer fuse operations are classified as nuisance outages, where no other repair work is needed aside from fuse replacement. These instances are typically caused by a temporary fault. S&C’s VacuFuse Self-Resetting Interrupter tests whether faults are temporary and automatically restores power so utility crews do not need to roll a truck to do so.

“These nuisance outages often occur at the edge of the grid and in the hardest-to-reach places, where crews are driving long distances or climbing through customers’ backyards. This can make a relatively straightforward fuse replacement take, on average, three times longer than necessary, causing the cost of these truck rolls to rise,” says Mike Edmonds, S&C’s Chief Commercial Officer. “The VacuFuse Self-Resetting Interrupter helps utilities avoid these nuisance outages altogether, lowering their maintenance costs and freeing up crews to work on more proactive projects to greater enhancing a utility’s lateral protection strategy.”

With innovations like the new transformer protector, S&C is tackling reliability at the most problematic and uncharted areas of the grid—from the vulnerability of laterals to the protection challenges of hybrid circuits, combinations of both overhead and underground circuits. As a result, in 2018, S&C devices worked to save more than 2.7 billion customer outage minutes, saving utilities over $85 million in maintenance expenses.

S&C will also showcase a variety of other solutions at DistribuTECH 2019 that can help utilities worldwide improve reliability while keeping operation and maintenance expenses down, including:

• The unveiling of the Gang-Operation Capability via Gateway Communications for the TripSaver® II Cutout-Mounted Recloser that allows three single-phase reclosers to work together on three-phase lateral lines. When a permanent fault is detected, all three devices will drop out. This coordinated lock-out feature can stop potentially damaging ferroresonance that occurs as a result of a single-phase loss on three-phase laterals. With the addition of the new 200-A rating for the TripSaver II recloser, these features will allow a wider range of applications across the grid, preventing unnecessary truck rolls and increasing response times.
  
  
• A display of the IntelliRupter® PulseCloser® Fault Interrupter, highlighting the benefits PulseClosing® Technology can bring to hybrid systems. PulseClosing Technology tests for faults using 95% less energy than traditional reclosing, making it safe even for underground and hybrid circuits and significantly improving reliability.
  
  
• A new enhancement to the IntelliTeam® SG Automatic Restoration System that allows the system to better support and manage distributed generation (DG) in anti-islanding applications on the distribution system. Now utilities can better support bi-directional loads without needing to implement costly Direct Transfer Trip (DTT) schemes. The IntelliTeam SG system will facilitate the continued deployment of DG without compromising power reliability.
  
  
• S&C’s Microgrid Experience table, a three-dimensional demonstration that shows how an S&C microgrid brings together distributed generation, energy storage, and intelligence to keep the lights on for customers. Visitors will learn how microgrids operate in a variety of situations and how microgrid controls ensure a cyber-secure system.
  
  
• A live demonstration of S&C’s TripSaver II Cutout-Mounted Recloser communicating via Tantalus TUNet radios. The live system in both S&C’s and Tantalus’ booths shows visitors how existing Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) communications used for grid optimization can also work with S&C’s reliability solutions on lateral lines.
  
  
• DistribuTECH 2019 is being held February 5-7 at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center in New Orleans. S&C Electric Company will be located at booth #6015.

DistribuTECH 2019 is being held February 5-7 at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center in New Orleans. S&C Electric Company will be located at booth #6015.