An industrial UPS supplies critical AC loads of a substation or plant without interruption: SCADA, communications, process control and instrumentation. Brands include Gutor, part of Schneider Electric since 2007 (PxW line with single-phase PEW and three-phase PDW), Chloride, an industrial brand of Vertiv, and AEG Power Solutions with the Protect 8 family (Plus, S10 and S14). They differ from commercial UPS units in their robustness, galvanic isolation and service life.
What it is and where it is used
An industrial UPS (uninterruptible power supply) delivers stable AC power to loads that cannot be left without power: the SCADA and communications of a substation, the control systems of a process plant, instrumentation and safety systems. Unlike a commercial UPS, it is designed for harsh environments, long autonomies with stationary battery banks, galvanic isolation and long service lives. Brands include Gutor (Schneider Electric), Chloride (Vertiv) and AEG Power Solutions with the Protect 8 family.
They are found in oil and gas, generation, mining, chemicals, substations and station service of industrial plants. They belong to the AC station service supply.
Variants: Gutor PxW, Chloride and AEG Protect 8
| Equipment | Application | Main difference |
|---|---|---|
| Gutor PxW – PEW | Single-phase UPS | 5 to 200 kVA, according to Schneider Electric |
| Gutor PxW – PDW | Three-phase UPS | 10 to 220 kVA; larger ratings to order |
| Chloride (Vertiv) | Industrial UPS and chargers | Vertiv industrial brand for process applications |
| AEG Protect 8 Plus | Industrial UPS, 10 to 120 kVA | Bidirectional IGBT rectifier; improves the power factor and allows battery capacity tests |
| AEG Protect 8 S14 | Compact UPS | Single block, thyristor rectifier, output isolation, up to IP43 |
| AEG Protect 8 S10 | Heavy industry | Modular, input and output isolation, highly customizable |
| AEG Protect 5C | Double-conversion UPS | 10 to 200 kVA, flexible configuration |
Main features
- Double conversion: rectifier, battery bank and inverter; the load is always fed from the inverter.
- Static transfer and manual bypass for maintenance without cutting the load.
- Galvanic isolation with input or output transformers, usual in the industrial range.
- Batteries of lead-acid or nickel-cadmium sized for the required autonomy (lead-acid and nickel-cadmium batteries).
- Redundancy in parallel or with two independent systems for critical loads.
- Alarm signaling by contacts and by communication protocols to the SCADA or the DCS.
In substations, the UPS coexists with the DC system: control and protection are fed from DC (125 V DC is a common value), and the UPS covers the AC loads. See DC/DC converters and inverters and substation DC system.
What the manufacturers publish about their lines
- Gutor PxW (Schneider Electric). A brochure for the line (5 to 220 kVA) gives ratings of 5 to 200 kVA for the PEW (single-phase) and 10 to 220 kVA for the PDW (three-phase), with larger ratings on request. The rectifier is fed three-phase 3 x 380/400/415 V with a tolerance of 10%, and the bypass line is single-phase 220/230/240 V in the PEW or three-phase 380/400/415 V in the PDW. The input frequency is 50/60 Hz with a tolerance of 6%. The front panel has a display with keypad and alarm LEDs, and records an event history with date and time. Configurable operations include boost charging, automatic start and a battery capacity test from the unit itself. As options it offers a battery meter and an estimate of the remaining autonomy time.
- AEG Protect 8. A catalog describes it as a double-conversion UPS with a modular design. A distributor’s references list the Protect 8 S10 from 10 to 120 kVA three-phase (and up to 160 kVA single-phase) with 380/400/415 V input, and the Protect 8 S14 from 10 to 120 kVA. The S10 is offered modular and with galvanic isolation at input and output; the S14 is single-block with a thyristor rectifier and isolated output.
- Chloride (Vertiv). Vertiv keeps the brand for industrial applications. As the units are built to order, the data of an installed unit is that of its nameplate and the project manual.
Efficiency, permissible overload and distortion of the Gutor and Protect 8 lines are requested from the manufacturer with the complete unit reference.
How a UPS is classified: IEC 62040-3
IEC 62040-3 classifies UPS performance with a three-part code. The first describes the dependence of the output on the input: VFD (voltage and frequency dependent, off-line type), VI (voltage independent, line-interactive) and VFI (voltage and frequency independent, double conversion). The second indicates the output waveform with linear and nonlinear load (for example S for sinusoidal), and the third the dynamic behavior under load steps and transfers (classes 1, 2 or 3, where 1 is the most demanding). An industrial double-conversion UPS usually declares VFI with class 1; the value is verified in the manufacturer’s sheet, not assumed. IEC 62040-1 covers safety and IEC 62040-2 electromagnetic compatibility.
Why the bypass matters for selectivity
The inverter of a UPS limits its output current, generally to a small multiple of the rated current, for a short duration. That is why, with a short circuit downstream, the inverter cannot trip the breaker of the faulted circuit; the static transfer to the bypass is what delivers the fault current from the grid or the plant. If the bypass is not available (out of synchronism, under maintenance or with a weak supply), a short circuit can collapse the output and leave all the critical loads without power. Selectivity studies for a UPS consider both sources: grid and bypass for the fault, and inverter for normal operation. The bypass input is fed from an independent source when the load is critical, and not from the same feeder as the rectifier.
Rectifier, harmonics and battery
A six-pulse thyristor rectifier returns significant harmonic currents to the grid; the solutions are a harmonic filter, a twelve-pulse rectifier or an IGBT rectifier. The latter hardly distorts and keeps an input power factor close to 1. AEG presents the bidirectional IGBT rectifier of the Protect 8 Plus as the way to improve the power factor and to perform battery tests. If the system feeds a plant with a generator, the compatibility between rectifier and generator is a design point: a thyristor rectifier with a low power factor can make the generator unstable (emergency diesel generator).
The float voltage and the ripple of the charging current influence the life of sealed batteries; the batteries of the UPS and of the substation charger are different technologies and are sized with different cycles (substation batteries).
Autonomy and sizing
Autonomy is calculated with the real load in kW (not only in kVA), the load power factor, the inverter efficiency, the final discharge voltage of the battery and the expected ageing. An industrial substation UPS is usually sized for the minutes it takes a generator to start or the grid to return, or for hours if there is no backup; the calculation is defined with the client. A common engineering rule is to leave power margin for load growth and not to load the UPS beyond a certain percentage of its rated power. In any case, the battery capacity test is what confirms the real autonomy (battery capacity test).
Tests and alarms that are integrated into SCADA
At commissioning, without going into the procedure, the following are verified: the start-up sequence and the transfer between inverter and bypass in both directions. Also verified are the behavior on loss and return of the input, synchronization with the grid and the operation of the battery bank under load. Finally, the real alarms to the SCADA or the DCS are verified (rectifier failure, load on bypass, battery discharging, end of autonomy, overtemperature). An alarm that does not reach the operator is one of the most common faults in these systems, because the contact exists in the unit but was never wired or configured in the controller.
Communications and integration
Industrial UPS units report states and alarms through dry contacts and, depending on the model, through Modbus or network protocols to the SCADA, the DCS or the manufacturer’s monitoring system. What matters is defining which alarms reach the operator (rectifier failure, load on bypass, battery discharging, end of autonomy) and testing them at commissioning. See Modbus RTU and TCP.
Frequently asked technical questions
- Chloride UPS manuals: ask for the manual with model and serial number; the industrial range is built to order and changes by project.
- Chloride Desk Power 500: it corresponds to low-power UPS units, not to the brand’s industrial range.
- Gutor UPS support: Gutor units are served through Schneider Electric channels; for spare parts and support, start from the complete reference of the unit.
- The UPS goes to bypass with no clear cause: check the unit’s event log, the overload, the temperature and the inverter status before restoring it.
- Autonomy lower than expected: it is almost always the battery. A capacity test confirms how much it really delivers. See battery capacity test.
How we help
At Tiza Group we test and commission the station service of substations and industrial plants: UPS units, chargers and battery banks, with their alarms integrated into SCADA, in Colombia or elsewhere on request. See testing and commissioning. If the backup system has to be expanded or renewed, we do the engineering in engineering design and studies. Write to us through contact.
Related guides
- DC/DC converters and inverters
- Substation DC system
- Battery charger-rectifier
- Battery capacity test
- Automatic source transfer
- Emergency diesel generator
- Benning, AEG, Chloride, Hindle and SENS battery chargers
- Saft, EnerSys and Hoppecke substation batteries
References
- IEC 62040-3, uninterruptible power systems: performance and test requirements.
- IEC 62040-1, safety requirements for UPS.
- Schneider Electric, Gutor PxW line brochure (5 to 220 kVA).
- IEC 62040-2, electromagnetic compatibility of UPS.
- AEG Power Solutions, AC power products page (Protect 8 Plus, S10, S14 and Protect 5C).
Frequently asked questions
What is a Gutor UPS?
Gutor is the industrial UPS and power systems brand of Schneider Electric, which integrated it in 2007. Its PxW line of AC UPS units is offered in a single-phase version (PEW, 5 to 200 kVA) and a three-phase version (PDW, 10 to 220 kVA), intended for industrial applications.
What is the difference between the AEG Protect 8 S10 and the Protect 8 S14?
According to AEG Power Solutions, the Protect 8 S14 is a compact single-block design with a thyristor rectifier, galvanic isolation at the output and protection up to IP43. The Protect 8 S10 is a modular design for heavy industry, with galvanic isolation at the input and output and wide customization options.
Where do I get the manual for a Chloride UPS?
Vertiv provides the documentation for its Chloride equipment by model and serial number through its support. Industrial units are often built to order, so the useful manual is the project one, with its drawings and battery configuration.