Federal Pacific Switchgear Breakers - Arc Flash Study

[sanders11]

Hey everyone. I am doing an arc flash study for a client in Canada. They have a lot of 480VAC Federal Pacific Switchgear circuit breakers and molded case circuit breakers installed in their plant. Does anyone know of any resources that may be able to help me find out any information about these breakers? I have searched the web extensively and haven't been able to find any data sheets or manuals or basically anything about most of these breakers. One in particular is the main switchgear breaker for the whole plant, so it is very important that I find something out about it. It is model FP20SSB3. I was able to collect some information from SKM regarding some of the molded case breakers, but there are still quite a few that they didn't have any info. on. Any help or suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks.

 

[mxslick]

FPE has a very bad rep around here..and things like this don't make it any better:

Perhaps a better study would be to look into replacing that junk.

 

[iMuse97]

That sign seems to say that the arcs may flash at any time, for any reason, or for no reason, and hurt or kill any body. Maybe there's a reason little data is available on these FPE products.

 

[BAHTAH]

FPE Breakers

FPE Breakers

Hey everyone. I am doing an arc flash study for a client in Canada. They have a lot of 480VAC Federal Pacific Switchgear circuit breakers and molded case circuit breakers installed in their plant. Does anyone know of any resources that may be able to help me find out any information about these breakers? I have searched the web extensively and haven't been able to find any data sheets or manuals or basically anything about most of these breakers. One in particular is the main switchgear breaker for the whole plant, so it is very important that I find something out about it. It is model FP20SSB3. I was able to collect some information from SKM regarding some of the molded case breakers, but there are still quite a few that they didn't have any info. on. Any help or suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks.

Our company spent almost a year replacing nothing but FPE breakers in Northern Nevada when they lost their UL Listing. I would check and see if that my apply to their Canadan Listings. We were shipped GE breakers by FPE and then packaged the old FPE breakers and sent them back to FPE. All of this was paid for by FPE and not the customers. This was many years ago so I don't know how it would apply today. Hope that helps..

 

[zog]

Hey everyone. I am doing an arc flash study for a client in Canada. They have a lot of 480VAC Federal Pacific Switchgear circuit breakers and molded case circuit breakers installed in their plant. Does anyone know of any resources that may be able to help me find out any information about these breakers? I have searched the web extensively and haven't been able to find any data sheets or manuals or basically anything about most of these breakers. One in particular is the main switchgear breaker for the whole plant, so it is very important that I find something out about it. It is model FP20SSB3. I was able to collect some information from SKM regarding some of the molded case breakers, but there are still quite a few that they didn't have any info. on. Any help or suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks.

I should have anything you need for the drawout breakers for your switchgear, but the number you are looking for is invalid. We rebuild and retrofit about 200 FP breakers per year so I have all the tech info on them but will need the right info, pictures help.

 

[sanders11]

Data Collection

Data Collection

I should have anything you need for the drawout breakers for your switchgear, but the number you are looking for is invalid. We rebuild and retrofit about 200 FP breakers per year so I have all the tech info on them but will need the right info, pictures help.

I appreciate your response. I am just posting the data collection information that I was given. Unfortunately, I did not do the data collection myself, so I can only go off of what I was given. The main breaker model # FP20SSB3 is what I was given. If it is incorrect (which wouldn't suprise me at all), I can only have someone go take another look and see if they can find any other model #. I am also looking for the following FP (Horizon Breakers) CF3250EF, C33100B & TED015. If these model #'s don't seem to be correct, please let me know. Again, I can only work with the data that I have been given. I very much wish that I was the one that collected this data, so that I could speak a little more intelligent about it. Any info. or direction that you can lead me in, would be very much appreciated. Thanks again.

 

[sanders11]

Plug Model #

Plug Model #

I also meant to include in my last post the plug model number to see if it makes any sense. I was given a plug model number of PS20R2000. I don't know if that might help or not, but I am looking for any information at this point. Thanks again.

 

[jmellc]

Contact Shepherd Electric Supply, Goldsboro, NC. They were a FPE distributor and may possibly have some info from back when. Also, since they were UL listed, I would think UL should have some lit on them. (A prime reason why UL is a joke in my book, they listed FPE)

 

[zog]

Contact Shepherd Electric Supply, Goldsboro, NC. They were a FPE distributor and may possibly have some info from back when. Also, since they were UL listed, I would think UL should have some lit on them. (A prime reason why UL is a joke in my book, they listed FPE)

There are apples and oranges being discussed here, the small little MCCB's that had issues and were recalled have nothing to do with the switchgear breakers being discussed. No UL was ever "pulled" for these and a small distributor want carry any switchgear like the OP is asking about. I have tested hundreds of FP power breakers and they have no worse failure rates than other OEM's. In fact I have one client that had thier FP switchgear removed (120 breakers, 6 substaions worth) and replaced with a current production switchgear line from another OEM, that had some issues and recalls and many failure at the plant. They ended up pulling all the ne retrofill breakers and getting thier old FP breakers remanufactured, retrofitted, and put back in thier plant.

 

[zog]

I appreciate your response. I am just posting the data collection information that I was given. Unfortunately, I did not do the data collection myself, so I can only go off of what I was given. The main breaker model # FP20SSB3 is what I was given. If it is incorrect (which wouldn't suprise me at all), I can only have someone go take another look and see if they can find any other model #. I am also looking for the following FP (Horizon Breakers) CF3250EF, C33100B & TED015. If these model #'s don't seem to be correct, please let me know. Again, I can only work with the data that I have been given. I very much wish that I was the one that collected this data, so that I could speak a little more intelligent about it. Any info. or direction that you can lead me in, would be very much appreciated. Thanks again.

Sounds like you need better data collection people and procedures. This stuff should all be on your standard forms for collection. Get pictures of the swtchgear. It sounds like you have an aftermarket retrofit kit on your breakers and the wrong info for the breakers you do have. Look for something like 25H-2 or 65 H-3, or it could actually be federal pioneer, very common power breaker in Canada and confused with the american federal pacific gear, look for something like an FPS5-75

Get pictures!!!!

 

[zog]

I am also looking for the following FP (Horizon Breakers) CF3250EF, C33100B & TED015. If these model #'s don't seem to be correct, please let me know. .

Again dosent seem right for 2 reasons, the TED series is a GE breaker, but even there you #'s are not complete. Small MCCB's like these should have nothing to do at all with an arc flash analysis.

 

[sanders11]

ZOG... Thanks for your help.

ZOG... Thanks for your help.

Again, the data collection was done by the plant personnell, as they wouldn't agree to let an outside firm perform this work. Again, I am only as good as the information that I was given. If I am given any new info., I will post it to see if you can help me out with any of the other model #'s.