Adaptability of SMISSLINE TP convinces ARBURG
I learned a lot about plastics and molding when I recently spoke to ARBURG, a leading manufacturer of high quality machines for plastic processing.
Every day, millions of people use injection molded articles that depend on ARBURG’s technology. During production, the company relies on flexible electrical distribution boards using ABB’s touchproof pluggable system – SMISSLINE TP.
ARBURG is a German manufacturer of high quality machines used in plastic processing with headquarters in Loßburg, an idyllic town in the southwest corner of Germany. The company has 32 locations in 24 countries and trading partners in more than 50 countries. They have been dealing with injection molding technologies for over six decades. The success of the company is reflected in its continuous expansion of production and business management. I recently talked with Wolfgang Mast at ARBURG about the upcoming extension of the assembly hall and their energy distribution challenges.
Could you please explain why you used SMISSLINE TP at ARBURG?
New buildings and a change in usage of some parts of our buildings demand a high level of flexibility from us, as well as from our distribution boards. We relied on SMISSLINE by ABB for our building technologies since 1998. Two criteria have been crucial: the system remains adaptable throughout its entire life cycle and it allows us to make changes quickly and flexibly. This way, we can easily integrate new requirements. With our continuous development in mind, we were convinced.
How are you personally involved with using SMISSLINE TP and what are your tasks?
I’m the department manager for building services engineering at ARBURG. We face the challenge to meet the latest demands to expand the 146,000 m² office and production capacity here in Loßburg. We are planning to expand to 165,000 m² by building a new assembly hall.
What is the biggest benefit of SMISSLINE TP?
SMISSLINE offers us the flexibility of the energy distribution that ARBURG wants to have in its buildings and office environments as well as our supply units. Often, we need a residual current circuit breaker tomorrow, while today we still have an ordinary miniature circuit breaker (MCB) in place.
For me, one of the important benefits of using ABB’s system, is the significant time saving. My electrician can start working on SMISSLINE TP immediately and does not have to clarify boundary conditions beforehand. They simply plug in the protection devices without having to worry about long, time consuming rewiring and reconnections. The mounting of the disconnected and load-free devices also ensures a high level of availability of the entire energy distribution as well as improved personal safety.
What excites you about SMISSLINE TP?
In our distribution cabinets, SMISSLINE TP is basically installed vertically to achieve better cable routing (cable entry from above and below). This allows us to wire directly to the MCBs without crossing other cables or having to bundle them.
In addition to having a better layout, we also save material, need less space and are able to implement extensions rapidly. The system is clearly structured. My electrician Markus Birk appreciates the simple wiring. With conventional systems, he has a neutral and a protective conductor bar to which he must reconnect all wires.
With SMISSLINE, the N and PE terminals are directly assigned to the devices, which makes everything easier with a clear structure.
What can you tell us about ARBURG that we don’t already know?
Products that are manufactured using plastic injection molding are an indispensable part of our lives. Examples range from a toothbrush to a margarine container to lids of cosmetic containers all the way to the light switch.
I always say: the products are part of our lives from morning until late at night. The value of these products often extends beyond the mere function. Nowadays these items include value-added features such as an attractive design and more individualization.
Around the world, millions of people use every day items that could not be produced without our technology.
What do you like most about working with SMISSLINE TP?
We stock the distributions cabinets only with products that we need and space is reserved only for subsequent adjustments. With the old system, which had a comb rail, there was considerably more effort involved both in the planning phase and later in the project execution. This effort is no longer needed with SMISSLINE!