Power Quality Monitoring

Power Quality Monitoring

Stable and dependable electrical power quality is essential for any company that operates computerized equipment, including companies with in-house servers or a data center. The point-of-sale (POS) terminal and credit card reader on the sales counter, the cable modem, the facility secuirty system, and the enterprise servers are just a few examples of IT equipment that are common to a vast majority of companies. 

 

Most companies are therefore dependent upon the electrical power quality from the local electrical utility company. Electrical power quality is characterized by the number of occurences and the duration of each occurrence of several types of electrical power events that affect electrical power consumers. Events such as brownouts, electrical transients, over-voltages, and service interruptions can result from many things, such as lightning, downed power lines, or electrical utility equipment switching or failure. Any number of these events can cause the IT equipment to reboot, or worse, resulting in delays in operations, lost data, and even in lost revenue.

 

A Power Quality Monitoring System can be an important tool to provide useful information, minimize down time, and aid in troubleshooting by continuously monitoring the utility power "state of health". The data from such a system could include monitoring of:

  • Voltages and currents
  • Real and apparent powers
  • Power factor
  • Harmonics
  • Temperature and humidity

The Power Quality Monitoring System can also provide:

  • Waveform streaming
  • Data Logging
  • Reporting of power system events
  • Server shutdown and rebooting

What are the key benefits of implementing a Power Quality Monitoring System?

  • Lower utility costs can be achieved by a control scheme that executes power system adjustments based upon monitoring and reporting of critical parameters such as Power Factor and Harmonics. A lower Power Factor will increase the cost of energy. High Harmonics can cause overheating of key components and increase energy cost. 
  • The ability to track data and identify problematic values, such as increased temperature, lowered Power Factor, or increased Harmonics due to equipment aging, and to identify which equipment is at fault can provide early warnings so that corrective actions can be taken.
  • The ability to track and log the power quality provided by the local utility company and to potentially obtain financial re-imbursements resulting from poor power quality

Why choose Tecnova?

Tecnova is a member of the Analog Devices Design Partner Network, and Analog Devices metering ICs are a core element of a custom Power Quality Monitoring solution. Tecnova has extensive experience with Analog Devices metering ICs, including designing systems that:

  • Use a variety of voltage and current sensors
  • Single-phase or three-phase applications
  • Energy metering and Power Quality Monitoring
  • Designed to meet the regulatory criteria, including UL, National Electrical Code, and CE.

Most importantly, in addition to designing a custom solution to meet your exact needs, Tecnova can manufacture your system in-house at a lower cost than an off-the-shelf product, which may provide features (and cost) that you don't need or that may lack key features you want.

 

In addition to Tecnova's experience developing custom Power Quality Monitoring solutions, Tecnova engineers have decades of experience and are named in multiple patents in the design, deployment, and support of electrical power distribution switching, protection, and monitoring equipment. Tecnova engineers have designed electrical power switchgear next to a nearby shopping mall, and at the top of an electrical power utility pole near you.