The siting of enclosures for electrical installations in protected outdoor areas alone does not mean that the equipment is sufficiently ready to cope with external influences. Even under roofing designed to protect against solar radiation or precipitation, it is still exposed to the elements. Temperature fluctuations, frost, dust and dirt, chemical loads, as well as possible interference by unauthorised persons, dictate that enclosures with a high protection class must be used. Processes caused by the weather such as condensation must also be prevented with appropriate product solutions and accessories.
Industrial enclosures from Spelsberg fully meet the requirements for protected outdoor areas. Characteristics include high degrees of protection of up to IP 69 with impressive resistance to the weather and external mechanical forces. Features such as break-out openings and accessories like the BEL Air venting system also effectively prevent build-up of condensation within the enclosure. For special applications, such as agricultural operations or shipbuilding, enclosures with DLG and DNV-GL certificates are available to choose from. The Spelsberg range also includes numerous optional components. These include lockable door systems, door-stays and enclosure lighting for optimum safety and convenience.
Solar energy is essential in the context of renewable energies. The demand for photovoltaic systems is continuously increasing in both the private and commercial sectors. To ensure that they are safe to use, generator junction boxes (GAKs) are used to protect system components such as PV modules and inverters from the effects of lightning strikes and surges. The Lippe-based company Phoenix Contact has such junction boxes in its portfolio - ready to install and immediately connectable. To reliably protect the sensitive components inside the boxes from external influences, the manufacturer relies on robust industrial TC enclosures from Spelsberg.
Phoenix Contact offers components and systems in the fields of electrification, networking and automation. Since 1923, the family-owned company with headquarters in Blomberg has been manufacturing products that connect, distribute or control power and data flows. These are used wherever processes are automated: not only in the field of renewable energies, but also in industrial production facilities, in infrastructure or for complex device connections. The company, which currently employs over 20,000 people, has also expanded internationally in recent decades.
The generator junction boxes from Phoenix Contact are installed in a PV system in the DC circuit between the inverter and the PV modules. In order to meet all customer requirements, the manufacturer has products for all applications and offers various connection technology options. To connect the PV strings, the GAKs are equipped either with so-called SUNCLIX wall bushings or with cable glands with connection to push-in terminals. The product range also includes a variant that combines the fire department emergency shutdown or load-break switch and overvoltage protection in one device.
The GAKs from Phoenix Contact are installed both in small rooftop systems for single-family homes and in large open-air systems such as solar parks. In both cases, the manufacturer was faced with the task of reliably protecting the components inside the GAKs from external influences. The company was looking for an enclosure specialist who could develop a customer-specific solution that would meet the requirements for integrating the SUNCLIX connectors in particular. The enclosures also had to have a high degree of protection in order to be protected against dust and water jets and comply with DIN EN 61439 as a standard-compliant switchgear combination.
Spelsberg impressed with its expertise in electrical installation and enclosure technology and a customized solution that met all the requirements. Initially, Phoenix Contact used enclosures from the AK-Small distribution board series, but ultimately opted for the empty enclosures from the TK series due to their compact design. With regard to the partnership-based cooperation, Phoenix Contact particularly emphasizes Spelsberg's flexibility, which makes it possible to reliably implement customer-specific solutions at short notice at any time. “We also value the extensive enclosure portfolio for various ready-to-install and immediately connectable generator connection boxes,” says Thomas Boldt, product manager responsible for this portfolio at Phoenix Contact. “The successful partnership holds further potential and both partners would like to expand the cooperation further. The megatrends in the electrical industry offer good opportunities for this.”
Thanks to their product characteristics, industrial and outdoor enclosures from Spelsberg are as versatile as their applications. A prime example of this is provided by Schurr Gerätebau GmbH of Uttenweiler, in Baden-Württemberg. This family-run business, established in 1992, manufactures automatic 2-brush systems for milking cows, pigs, calves and goats, along with other solutions for agricultural operations worldwide.
The brushes can be used both in animal stalls and outdoors and are therefore exposed to continuous mechanical and chemical influences as well as dust and dirt. For this reason, a reliable enclosure is needed to protect the sensitive electrical equipment. That is why, from as far back as 2012, the manufacturer has placed its trust in industrial enclosures from Spelsberg and has always valued the successful cooperation and expert advice on individual configurations from the experts in electrical installations and enclosure technology.
In 2020 Spelsberg presented to its customers the GEOS enclosure, which even under difficult conditions is able to withstand the effects of weather, temperature, chemicals or force. As DLG-certified products, they are ideally suited for the high demands of agricultural working environments. Apart from the highest level of resistance, the wealth of models and numerous customisation options are impressive. Consequently, since then Schurr Gerätebau GmbH has also relied on GEOS series enclosures.
These are modified and fitted in a device for people with disabilities with a customised configuration. In the area of animal welfare, the enclosures guarantee long-lasting operation of brush systems for animal cleaning and massaging. "Industrial and outdoor enclosures from Spelsberg fully meet our requirements in terms of a high degree of protection, robustness, modification possibilities, and a suitable shape. Not for nothing have we been working for many years with this manufacturer and we look forward to many more years of successful cooperation", says Philipp Schurr, CEO of Schurr Gerätebau GmbH.
Tailor-made enclosure solutions with maximum resistance are specific features of the iQ series of products from Spelsberg. The manufacturer has developed this series, bearing the iQ (industrial quality) mark, especially for the high demands of harsh industrial environments and outdoor areas, but also for agriculture. Apart from dust and humidity, ammonia loads in agriculture place particular demands on enclosures that protect electrical components. The iQ solutions, some of which are DLG-certified, reliably withstand these influences.
These characteristics have also been of benefit to the Patrick Siedl electrical engineering company of Babenhausen, Bavaria, which was tasked by Melktechnik Illertal GmbH with producing milk pump controllers. The enclosures needed here had to replace an obsolete version but match the previous construction. Thanks to the wide range offered by the experts in electrical installations and enclosure technology, a suitable design was quickly found with the TG PC 2015-9-to empty enclosure. It also met the criteria set by the masters of electrical engineering, Patrick Siedl, being made of polycarbonate and having sufficient water-resistant properties.
Siedl made a product enquiry via the Spelsberg website specifying the dimensions and configurations it needed. These included individual milling operations for the integration of buttons. In response, the Spelsberg team produced a customised drawing and developed the desired end product in collaboration with the electrical installation company. Patrick Siedl was highly satisfied with both the product and the collaboration: "I am very happy with the enclosure chosen. It has the required dimensions and can therefore perfectly accommodate the necessary components inside. In the long-term, printing of enclosures for our purposes is also conceivable and in Spelsberg we have the perfect partner by our side for such a future project."
Insulation and temperature management of pipelines for industrial processing and for commercial buildings is important the whole year round. As the nights draw in and temperatures plummet, the thoughts of the facility manager will turn to the particular danger of frozen pipes. Lagwell Insulation is a specialist in thermal insulation with many customers in industry, commerce and the public sector throughout Europe. In many of its frost protection systems it relies on Spelsberg thermostats for performance and value.
Lagwell Insulation designs and installs trace heating systems for new buildings and offers retrofit solutions for older facilities. The company's expertise covers sites of all sizes and with the most varied degree of complexity.
Apart from chemical processing and production plants, commercial and public buildings such as hospitals, schools and airports, are also regular users. Lagwell puts its trust in Spelsberg thermostats in many of its frost protection systems due to the quality of the product and customer service reliability.
The HT thermostats are turnkey units, housed in Spelsberg's IP66-certified TK polycarbonate enclosures. The HT series can be fitted with a range of different thermostats. Operating temperatures of -10-90°C, 0-40°C, 30-120°C, 35-210°C and 50-320°C are possible. These temperature ranges make them suitable not only for frost protection but also for a wide variety of other tasks.
The enclosures, certified for installation in agricultural applications with a high-concentration of ammonia, have been provided with CNC-milled entry points and customer-specific mounting plates to speed up the manufacturing process.
EasiDoser™ is a series of automated dosing and dilution systems, delivering and dosing exact quantities of fluid for cleaning or disinfecting purposes. The device itself has an LCD display and a keypad on the front for ease of setup and is fully configurable, making the enclosure ready for use in the most diverse applications. The system is based on a combination of Ambics' tried and tested range of small- and large-volume peristaltic RFE pumps with a new microprocessor control system developed in-house.
The customised entrance solution and the tailor-made mounting plate make installation simple and help maximise the reliability of the finished product.
Spelsberg knows the particular requirements of agriculture and the agro-industry, and that is why most enclosures are certified to DLG (Deutsche Landwirtschafts-Gesellschaft - German Agricultural Society) standards.
The installation of trace heating can save a company potential downtimes and costly repair bills, and in an emergency even save lives, if installed in a sprinkler system or other safety-critical applications.
Thermocable has developed a series of monitored trace heating systems allowing 24/7 monitoring and additional protection in the event of a breakdown or a period of extreme low temperatures.
Depending on your requirements, ProMinder Standard or Advance offer continuous monitoring of pipelines, allowing companies to accurately maintain temperatures that are critical for their specific industrial process.
ProMinder Standard can be retrofitted in any existing trace heating system, where the security of regular monitoring is required. ProMinder Advance is available with specially-developed cables, offering a backup heating system and a turbo heat function for extremely cold temperatures.
Spelsberg is well-known for its adaptive capabilities, including an in-house CNC machining and assembly service. The enclosures are resilient and offer protection from environmental influences. Its customised service also simplifies installation.
The TK series is available as standard in hundreds of different sizes and configurations. Its resilient polycarbonate construction makes it resistant to impacts and also offers protection from UV and corrosion. Injection-moulded polyurethane seals are available offering reliable and durable protection from ingress of dust and moisture.
