Re: [CAD_CAM_EDM_DRO] Re: VFD superceeds Motor Starter?

scyvt wrote:

> Jon
>
> So, does this suggest that electromechanical motor starters are on the
> way out? Even if variable speed were not required, there is getting to
> be little if any first-cost penalty for going solid-state - except
> perhaps the necessity of providing an enclosure - and at a minimum you
> get lower power consumption as a long-term benefit.
>

Real motor starters with the heaters and the reset button on the front
are quite dated.
If you really don't want to ever vary the speed, then they are still
used. But, nowadays, a VFD costs less than a motor, and there is energy
savings to be had with slowing motors down. Where I work (a university)
I RARELY see a 3-phase motor without a VFD anymore. They have giant
panelboards in the mechanical rooms that have rows and rows of VFDs in
all sizes for every pump, blower, etc. It is all hooked into a grid of
energy management systems that spans the campus, coordinating motor
starts and motor speeds to keep the peak demand as low as they can.
They save millions of $ a year doing this.

Jon