Latvian Boiler Company Cuts Costs with Commander SK Drives

The Challenge

SIA GRANDEG was seeking expansion and to do so needed to develop its range of boilers. The biggest growth potential for the company was the domestic sector in northern Europe, Russia and other (CIS) countries, where a sophisticated product is required. To meet customers’ demands, SIA GRANDEG wanted to supply a boiler with much better performance and greater reliability.

The Solution

Working with Control Techniques, a new control system for the screw feeders to improve performance and reduce energy and maintenance costs was developed. Commander 0.25 kW and 0.5 kW AC drives were used to provide smooth and accurate control of the screw-feed motors giving a steady supply of wood pellets. The Control Techniques system replaced a logiccontroller, contactor and thermal relay so that as the boiler demands more fuel, the drive is accelerated up to the required speed, and ramped down as demand falls. Commander is simple to fit and can be programmed for most tasks in a matter of minutes, meeting customer need for ease-of-use and versatility. Copying parameters from one unit to another is extremely easy with the SK’s SmartStick plug-in option.

The Benefits

As well as better performance and greater reliability, “It is also much quieter in operation,” said Mr. Andris Lubins, owner of GRANDEG. “The relay was proving to be too noisy for a domestic setting and now the whole system starts, and runs, almost silently.” He added, “Because of the reduced stresses on the bearings and other components, the general reliability and lifetime costs are much reduced. What’s more, because the drive has comprehensive diagnostics on its screen, most often problems can be resolved with a telephone call, eliminating the costs and resources required for a call-out.” The introduction of the Commander has also reduced the size of the control cabinet by some 30% and panel building costs have been lowered too.