The manufacturer's Masterfitâ„¢ multiple-HP replacement motors have been expanded to include six condenser fan models and four direct-drive fan/blower models. The company's aftermarket display also included the 4-in-1 motor, which was designed to operate efficiently and effectively at multiple horsepowers.

The company displayed its newest addition to its line of replacement motors for oil burner applications. This high-efficiency, low-maintenance motor (designed specifically for Beckett) offers a five-year warranty.

GE Industrial Systems (www.geindustrial.com) introduced its 58 Series fan/motor system. The system's design enhancements offer ultra-high efficiency, programmability, constant speed, low audible noise, moisture-resistant design, and easy installation and service, said the company. Applications include vending equipment, walk-in coolers, display cases, medical equipment, and ice machines,.

The new GE ECMâ„¢ 84 Series motor is designed for air-moving applications up to 90 W. The company said the new motor can "improve system performance and differentiate products such as heat-recovery ventilators, small fans, and commercial refrigeration." The benefits include a wide speed range, high efficiency (up to 73 percent), and programmability, said the manufacturer.

According to GE, the 84 Series' most important programmable feature is a patented, sensorless, constant-airflow technology. It allows the motor to maintain a programmed level of airflow over a wide range of external static pressure in the air-distribution system, the company said. "It even holds airflow constant under less-than-optimum duct configurations and other conditions that produce varying static pressure" by automatically adjusting its speed and torque, said the company.

During installation, "There is no need to go to the motor for setup," the company said. "In fact, there are no dip switches or adjustment terminals." It is built with an external rotor for direct insertion into the customer's fan-wheel hub, and is available with an integral- or remote-control configuration. There is a single-shaft version, as well as a double-shaft design for dual-wheel blowers.

Wagner Motors, a division of Diversitech (www.wagner-motors.com), introduced a line of replacement fractional-hp electric motors for use as replacements in outdoor condensing units and indoor air-handling units.

The products are targeted to single-phase residential applications as replacement electric motors for 208-230-V condensing units, and as 115-, 208-230-V, direct-drive furnace blowers. They are available in ratings ranging from 1/6 to 1 hp.

The company said the motors have been tested and certified to meet or exceed quality levels of the industry's leading brands. The manufacturer also stated, "Clear, concise, colorful packaging is designed to protect the motors from damage due to shipping and handling."

Pumped

Armstrong Pumps' (www.armstrongpumps.com) Integrated Pumping System (IPS) automatically ensures delivery of required pumping capacity to match key building loads, while maintaining pumping energy costs at a minimum, said the company.

With the use of system load detectors at one or more remote load locations, the IPS automatically and continuously provides just the required flow for the current needs, the company said. It can control as many as six pumps in parallel, with up to 18 remote system load sensors.

Bell & Gossett (www.bellgossett.com) introduced an addition to its family of wet rotor circulators. The SSF-12F/LW is a flange-connection, stainless steel, wet rotor circulator that features a low-watt motor for reduced energy consumption.

Available with a 115/1/60 motor, the SSF-12F/LW consumes 55 W of power, resulting in low electricity cost, said the company. The stainless steel pump body casting of these circulators makes them ideal for domestic hot water recirculation systems in residential and light commercial applications, the company said.

The company also announced the availability of Version 3.1 of its ESP-Plus® pump-selection software, which features a new Life Cycle Cost Estimator for factors such as payback and depreciation; a Glycol Wizard tool that takes the engineer through a step-by-step process to determine the effects of the addition of ethylene or propylene glycol to water-based systems; and an Optimized Motor Selection option, which uses a set of rules to select the optimum motor for a pump.

Driven To Succeed

Mike Olson, HVAC sales manager - Western Region, ABB Automation Technologies, Drives (www.abb-drives.com) said, "The amazing thing about the new ACH550 [variable-speed motor drive] for HVAC applications is that it employs our ‘Swinging Choke' technology to reduce harmonics at partial load, making an essentially efficiency-driven solution that much more efficient - at zero added cost to the user. What's more, ACH550 makes precise motor control easier than ever before."

Conventional chokes bring down harmonics levels at full load to meet existing standards, but do nothing to reduce them at partial load, the company explained. Since devices operating with a variable-speed drive operate at partial load most of the time, reducing harmonics at partial loads can lead to savings in transformer heat losses, the company went on to explain. ABB's patent-pending Swinging Choke design enables the ACH550 to reduce harmonics at both full and partial loads, the company said.

Danfoss (www.danfoss.com) had several new drive product announcements. The company's AKD variable-frequency drives are part of the second generation of Adap-Kool® controls. The company said the new drives are easier to configure than earlier drives, and can automatically to the motor with which they are working. Danfoss is offering its DrivePro services in support of the products.

In addition, the company introduced its MCT 31 computer-based calculation tool, which can be used to determine if harmonic distortion is a problem. The program is downloadable at the company's Web site.

"Both the harmonic distortion of Danfoss frequency converters, as well as non-Danfoss frequency converters, with different additional harmonic reduction measures [such as Danfoss AHF filters and 12-18-pulse rectifiers] can be calculated," the company explained.

The company also announced a strategic aftermarket partnership with Johnstone Supply, as well as a joint venture with Japanese manufacturer Sagimoniya, for the distribution of Sagimoniya's products, which include cartridge controls, condenser fan speed controls, pressure sensors, and four-way valves for heat pumps.

Fenner Drives (www.fennerindustrial.com) displayed its PowerTwist Plus V-belts, which the company said "can outperform conventional rubber endless V-belts." The company said the belts offer ease of installation; superior oil, chemical and temperature resistance; and reduced transmitted vibration.

WEG Electric Motors' (www.wegelectric.com) new CFW-08 Plus Series is a redesign of the company's MicroLine VFDs. "Engineering improvements have produced one of the most compact and full-featured microdrives in the marketplace," the company said.

Applications include pumps, fans/blowers, conveyors, rollout tables, agitators, and mixers. Standard features include V/Hz and sensorless vector control, a NEMA 1 enclosure, single- and three-phase input voltage, 200-240-V or 380-480-V input voltage, 150-percent current overload capacity, pulse width modulation output, and 2.5/5/10/15-kHz adjustable switching frequency.

Protective features include overcurrent, motor overload, drive overtemperature, output phase-to-phase and phase-to-ground short circuit, DC bus overvoltage and undervoltage, and external fault.

Yaskawa's (www.drives.com) new E7 is an AC drive dedicated to building automation system (BAS) applications. It designed specifically for HVAC applications, including air handlers, cooling towers, and pumps.

The new drive features built-in network communications for Johnson Controls Metasys N2 and Siemens Apogee P1, with optional interfaces for other common HVAC protocols. Extensive parameter selection allows BAS applications to be managed for energy efficiency and closed-loop control, without consuming BAS points.

"The E7 drive is so advanced that set up is simple," the company said, "using the built-in program storage and copying features."

The drive features low EMI/RFI emission and low total harmonic distortion contribution. A sleep function allows motor operation to be stopped for a set period when demand is low; the motor is reactivated automatically when demand increases.

Publication date: 03/08/2004