155. Idea - VFD Integration: Things to Consider

For those that never had to convert an across the line starter to a Variable Frequency Drive this is the episode for you!  Mike Rathbun is an expert in this area and he unpacks items to consider before making this conversion.  There are many reasons why an application would benefit from a VFD and the most prominent are when a variable speed requirement could improve operations.  There are also end users that want to focus on energy efficiency and this could yield great results.  Mike gets tactical and covers some of the potential headwind areas when doing these conversions.  Items such as heat dissipation and harmonics are areas that can not be ignored in these projects.  There also exists a phenomenon called fluting that users should be aware of.  We are not talking about the instrument in every high school band either.  Fluting can create serious havoc on electric motors and understanding how to mitigate this can have a significant impact on future reliability of the electric motors in service. Additional componentry such as reactors and breaking resistors are explained as these are items that can increase efficiency and improve the overall circuit performance when engineered correctly.  Mike gives outstanding practical guidance on how to take a VFD conversion and he ended the conversation by reiterating the importance of establishing great partnerships with those you trust to make projects like these a success! Guest: Mike Rathbun - Power & Control Solution Architecture Manager @ EECOHost: Chris GraingerExecutive Producer: Adam SheetsPodcast Editor: Andi Thrower