ABB grows wind turbine market in U.S. with high-capacity lightening and surge protection

WICHITA FALLS, TX, January 19th 2007 . . . The North American renewable energy, power-production industry is a fast-growing market segment that represents a huge potential for a number of custom panel shops and control component manufacturers. This includes the wind turbine market where, over the past five years, ABB USA has become a recognized supplier for this market.

Due to their height, exposure of wind turbines to lightning is especially high. Generation towers powered via wind need high-capacity and reliable lightning and surge protection. Via close cooperation with manufacturers’ engineers, ABB has built an understanding of these needs -- and is responding with needed component and panel solutions.

Growth Opportunity in High-discharge Capacity for Turbines

In 2006, ABB Soule (TVSS Division) began developing a new product range for wind generation applications that provides a much higher lightning discharge capacity than previous designs. These new units will allow ABB to obtain market share in an application formerly dominated by the competition. ABB is marketing and using these new TVSS designs for all systems manufactured for the wind industry.

This design development program included the cooperative efforts of several ABB factories. In less than six months, the new design was completed. This design provides equivalent or better protection than the major competitors'. Plus its' compact, yet safer molded package, eliminates an expensive, customer-supplied, protective enclosure.

Design Objectives of the Design Engineers

• Equivalent or better performance to competitive units
• New and safer technology that allows:
  1. The elimination of the enclosure required for safe operation of the competitors' products;
  2. Space savings from a package one-half the size of the competitors'. Size reduction lowers installed cost, due to smaller panels and reduced wiring;
  3. Compatibility with other ABB products used in control panels and distribution equipment; and
  4. Decreasing the overall cost of their TVSS protection in distribution panels.
• Elimination of the protective enclosure (whch can save up to $25 per unit)
• Compact design:
  1. Decreasing the wiring (labor saves up to $15 per unit); and
  2. Decreasing the back panel plate size by 50% (saves $12 per unit).

According to TVSS product manager Nazim Matmati, "This new product reduces the installed cost of the TVSS components by 21 percent. ABB now is able to offer a complete solution to our customers in the wind market."

Both ABB USA and ABB Soule worked closely with the wind generation customers to produce a new design that addresses market needs and provides a superior solution. As a result, ABB now is the preferred supplier for TVSS units & systems because of superior electrical characteristics, smaller unit size, ease of maintenance and lower competitive cost.

ABB expects a total annual savings of $130,000 for their North America customer base.