Engineering Internship Insights
Engineering Internship Insights
ECE/0569/09
1.0 DECLARATION
I hereby declare that this report is my original work done during my attachment and has not been
presented anywhere else. It is a compilation of the activities carried out at James Finlay Kenya
limited and the practical knowledge and experience gained during my attachment period at the
company.
Signature
Name
Date
2.0 DEDICATION
This work is dedicated to my Industrial supervisor, Mr. George Morara and Julius Rugut, all the staff
that helped me during that period, my family members, and fellow attaches.
3.0 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
I appreciate the human resource manager and the administration of James Finlay Kenya
limited for giving me the opportunity to be attached to that company. I also acknowledge Masinde
Muliro University lecturers, without forgetting Mr. Okanya (Chairman of department) for the
knowledge they have given me which helped me during the attachment. I also acknowledge my
supervisors at James Finlay Kenya limited who we worked together closely during my attachment. I
cant forget to thank the entire staff for their cooperation and support during that period. My
appreciation also goes to my colleagues who we were attached together in the company for the
encouragement and advice during that period. Thanks to all who contributed towards the success
of my attachment.
4.0 ABSTRACT
This report gives a description of activities and responsibilities I was involved in at James
Finlays Kenya limited. It contains the duties and responsibilities carried out, the problems
experienced and a possible solution to each have also been highlighted. A clear relationship
between the practical skills gained and the theoretical knowledge acquired in class has been shown.
Table of Contents
1.0 DECLARATION ...................................................................................................................... 1
2.0 DEDICATION ......................................................................................................................... 2
3.0 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT .......................................................................................................... 4
4.0 ABSTRACT ............................................................................................................................. 6
5.0 INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................................... 8
6.0 CHAPTER ONE ...................................................................................................................... 9
6.1 TELEPHONE EXCHANGE SWITCH (PABX) .......................................................................... 9
6.2 Pre-digital automatic exchanges ...................................................................................... 9
6.3 Manual service exchanges ............................................................................................. 10
6.4 Main distribution frame ................................................................................................. 10
6.5 Maintenance tasks ......................................................................................................... 10
6.6 VOIP (voice over internet protocol) ............................................................................... 10
6.7 Contents in the control panel ........................................................................................ 11
6.8 Cisco phone network architecture ................................................................................. 11
6.9 Description of components ............................................................................................ 11
7.0 CHAPTER TWO ................................................................................................................... 14
7.1 Fiber optic transponder.................................................................................................. 14
7.1.0 Block diagram of a transponder (optical) ................................................................ 14
8.0 CHAPTER THREE: ELECTRICAL INSTALLATIONS .................................................................. 14
8.1.CPW and CCW machines installation at Chomogonday factory ................................ 14
8.1.1 Other installation and general maintenance .......................................................... 15
8.1.2 Causes of electrical faults ........................................................................................ 15
8.2 WIRING CIRCUITS ........................................................................................................... 16
8.2.1 Lighting circuits ........................................................................................................ 16
8.2.2 Socket outlet circuits: .............................................................................................. 16
8.3 LIGHTNING ARRESTORS: ................................................................................................ 16
8.4 SMOKE DETECTORS: ....................................................................................................... 17
8.5 INTRODUCTION TO MOTORS ......................................................................................... 17
8.5.3 Torque and Horsepower .......................................................................................... 17
8.5.4 Motor troubleshooting techniques ......................................................................... 17
8.6 ADJUSTABLE SPEED DRIVE SYSTEMS .............................................................................. 18
9.0 CHAPTER THREE: MOTOR REWINDING: ............................................................................ 19
9.1Introduction .................................................................................................................... 19
9.2Parts of a motor .............................................................................................................. 19
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5.0 INTRODUCTION
Finlays group of companies was founded in the year 1750 by the late James Finlays.
As a wholly owned subsidiary of the Swire Group, the company has extensive tea and
horticultural interests in Kenya, South Africa, Sri Lanka and China, complemented by global
trading, packaging and extraction activities. Its primary markets are in the UK, USA, Asia and
increasingly continental Europe.
Finlays is a well-respected global brand, with a 250+ year old heritage. It has
operations in many countries and in diversified markets and is well known across the tea
and horticulture industries. Over the years Finlays has played important roles in the
development of the tea industry in India, has pioneered instant tea research, development
and production. Recent expansion into flowers, fresh produce and rubber is in keeping with
its 250 years old tradition to continually expand by seeking opportunities which will benefit
shareholders, employees and stakeholders.
At Kericho, which is 2,000m above sea level, they produce 23 million Kgs of made tea
every year. It benefits from the deep rich loam soils which are high in organic content.
Combined with the ideal climate, it has the perfect environment for high yields of good
quality tea.
There are approximately 1,500 different varieties of tea in the world, all
offering interesting and varied styles, taste and color. The character of tea, like wine, is
influenced by the elevation of the garden, the soil, wind conditions and temperature and, of
course, the quality of the plucking. It is also self-sufficient in sustainable timber and power
(85% hydro-electric) and it employs nearly 12,000 people who live on the companys estates
where it provides for them, and their families, with housing, schooling and medical services.
This amounts to more than 11,000 houses, one 106 bed hospital, 25 medical dispensaries,
14 primary schools, 17 nursery schools and one secondary school.
Blending and packing tea and coffee is also an important element of their overall
offering. They take pride in achieving the highest service standards for their retail partners
in the United Kingdom out of their facility in South Elmsall, as well as the broader range of
international customers they serve out of their packaging plant in Colombo.
flowing through the off-hook telephone flows through a relay coil actuating a buzzer and
lamp on the operator's switchboard. The buzzer and lamp would tell an operator the
subscriber was off-hook.
6.4 Main distribution frame
This is a signal distribution frame used to connect telephones to cables and subscriber
carrier equipment. It is a termination point within the private branch exchange equipment
and termination of companys loops are connected.
All cable pairs supplying services through the users telephone lines are terminated at the
MDF to equipment within local exchange e.g. repeaters and DSLAM. The MDF provides
flexibility in assigning facilities and has a higher capacity.
The kind of MDF is a large steel rack accessible from both sides. On one side termination
blocks are arranged horizontally at the front of rack shelves. Jumpers lie on the shelves and
go through an insulated steel hoop to run vertically to other termination blocks that are
arranged vertically.
6.5 Maintenance tasks
The daily routine tasks included fault trouble shooting and diagnosing of communication
line.
Checking and renewing of telephone joints. This was usually done on the drop
wires that shorted each other or shorted to stay wires.
Replacing of broken u sleeves.
Replacing of shorted communication fuses i.e. gas discharge fuses. This was
because of high lightning intensities that induced much current that burned the
wires.
Installing new extensions and configuring them on the central command lines.
Replacing new cards for radio signal generators. These are high power amplifiers
for radio communication with several service providers. They were damaged due
to un proper cooling scheme and wearing out.
Re-joining broken fiber optic cables. Some fiber optic cables that were not
properly suspended on the road were damaged by vehicles and thus needed
much attention because fiber optic is the major back bone of communication at
James Finlays.
Replacing new support timber poles.
6.6 VOIP (voice over internet protocol)
VoIP is the routing of voice conversation over the internet or any IP based network. It also
involves diffusion of voice traffic over internet-based networks. It also delivers services that
are cumbersome or costly to implement when using traditional PSTN.
The advantages of VoIP are;
More than one phone call can be transmitted on the same broad band phone line.
Hence facilitates addition of telephone lines to the company.
Features that are charged extra by telecommunication companies are simple with
VoIP technology.
This is a modern generation PABX system which integrates internet and wireless functions.
It also provides many interfaces to connect analog phone sets, digital telephone sets,
multichannel recording devices etc. it also provides VoIP services for internet equipment.
6.7 Contents in the control panel
Master processor control card - It is the main control unit with a CPU, SDRAM
and flash memory to store system programs and databases. It also provides a
pulse code modulation clock, PCM switching network and PCM conference
interface to all 64 Kpbs voice channels of all interface cards. It is also used to
generate tones.
Slave processor card-it is a slave control unit used when MPC is completely
occupied or when it detects a fault in it.
Analogue line cards- the ALC contains codec in coding and decoding ADC and
DAC and its I/O ports offer controlling access to DSP and loop relays, message
led, caller id and read on/off hook state.
Central office trunk interface card- controls the input/output mapping,
processing sequence and interface with MPC. Also decode and code ADC &
DAC.
Primary rate interface - transceiving u-law/a-law conversion.
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communication used within the company and hence there was no need to faze it out
completely and also the high expenses of installing cisco communication system. In the
PABX control panel a PRI card is used to establish connection/communication interface to
the cisco network.
The GSM gateway (router) and the switch communicate or can be linked together by a fiber
optic cable or an Ethernet data cable.
In the cisco network architecture, a data cable is used to interconnect the telephones,
where computers or pc console also obtains its network from there.
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Fiber optic is used within the company to as a communication medium within and outside
the companys premises. For instance in telecommunication, it is used to carry voice signals
and data because of its large bandwidth. Hence it eradicates a lot of hardcore wiring that
would have been used. An example includes its use in carrying telephone signals from the
exchange room to Saosa where, they are radiated to Telkom Kericho town via a radio
transmitter.
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plunged into darkness if one lighting circuit fuses. A 1.5mm cable is used either in a loop-in
or joint-box method of installation. The use of junction boxes with fixed brass terminals is
the method often adopted in domestic installations. The type of circuit used depends upon
the installation conditions and requirements. One light controlled by one switch is called
one-way switch control
One-way, two-way or intermediate switches can be obtained as plate switches for
wall mounting or ceiling mounted cord switches. Cord switches provide a convenient
method of control in bedrooms or bathrooms and for independently controlling an office
luminaire.
To convert an existing one-way switch control into a two-way switch control, a threecore and earth cable is run from the existing switch position to the proposed second switch
position. The existing one-way switch is replaced by a two-way switch
8.2.2 Socket outlet circuits:
Socket outlets are obtained in 15A, 13A, 5A and 2 A ratings; each 13 A plug top contains
a cartridge fuse to give maximum potential protection to the flexible cord and the
appliances which it serves. Socket outlets may be wired on a ring or radial circuit.
i. Radial circuits
In a radial circuit each socket outlet is fed from the previous one. Live is connected to live,
neutral to neutral and earth to earth at each socket outlet. The number of permitted socket
outlets is unlimited but each radial circuit must not exceed the floor area stated.
ii. Ring circuits
Ring circuits are very similar to radial circuits in that each socket outlet is fed from the
previous one, but for ring circuits the last socket is wired back to the source of supply. Each
ring final circuit conductor must be looped into every socket outlet or joint box which forms
the ring and must be electrically continuous throughout its length. The number of permitted
socket outlets is unlimited but each ring circuit must not cover more than 100m 2 of floor
area.
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As a general rule, conversion of electrical power into mechanical power takes place
in the rotating part of an electrical motor. In DC motors, the electrical power is conducted
directly to the armature i.e. rotating part, through brushes and commentators. Hence in this
case a DC motor can be called a conduction motor. However, in AC motors, the rotor does
not receive electrical power by conduction but by induction in exactly the same way as the
secondary of a transformer receives power from the primary. That is why such motors are
known as induction motors. Of all the AC motors the poly-phase induction motor is the one
which is extensively used for various kinds of industrial drives.
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The electric motor has played a leading role in the high productivity of modern
industry, and it is therefore directly responsible for the high standard of living being enjoyed
throughout the industrialized world. The induction motor has truly emerged as the prime
mover in industry, powering machine tools, pumps, fans, compressors, and a variety of
industrial equipments.
8.5.1
Electrical
Characteristics
and
Connections
Voltage, frequency and phase of power supply should be consistent with the motor
nameplate rating. A motor will operate satisfactorily on voltage within 10% of nameplate
value, or frequency within 5%, or combined voltage and frequency variation not to exceed
10%.
8.5.2 Insulation Class
Insulation systems are rated by standard NEMA classifications According to maximum
allowable operating temperatures. They are as follows:
Class Maximum Allowed Temperature*
A
105C (221F)
B
130C (266F)
F
155C (311F)
H
180C (356F)
* Motor temperature rise plus maximum ambient
Generally, replace a motor with one having an equal or higher insulation class. Replacement
with one of lower temperature rating could result in premature failure of the motor. Each
10C rise above these ratings can reduce the motors service life by one half.
8.5.3 Torque and Horsepower
Torque and horsepower are two very important characteristics that determine the
size of the motor for a particular application. Torque is the turning effort. For example,
suppose a grinding wheel with a crank arm one-foot long takes a force of one pound to turn
the wheel at steady rate. The torque required is one pound times one foot or one footpound. If the crank is turned twice as fast, the torque remains the same. Regardless of how
fast the crank is turned, the torque is unchanged as long as the crank is turned at a steady
speed.
Horsepower takes into account how fast the crank is turned. Turning the crank more
rapidly takes more horsepower than turning the crank slowly. Horsepower is the rate of
doing work. By definition, one horsepower equals 33,000 foot-pounds per minute. In other
words, to lift a 33,000-pound load one foot in one minute would require one horsepower.
The discussion so far has only involved torque at a steady speed. More effort is
required to start a load than to keep it going. An AC induction motor is built to supply the
extra torque needed to overcome the inertia of starting a load.
8.5.4 Motor troubleshooting techniques
The general way we used to troubleshoot a motor that had failed was:
Initial inspection- Spend a few minutes with the user and get as much history as you
can on the failed motor. Find out if anyone else recently attempted repairs or modifications.
If so, what did they do and when? Turn the shaft to determine if it rotates freely (a normal
motor should rotate freely). Listen carefully for unusual noises (such as scraping), smell for
burned insulation, and feel for excess heat.
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Resistances of line and load circuit to ground- Manually engage the starter and
measure the resistance through its contacts. You should read 0.09 ohms or less. Disengage
the starter and inspect the contacts closely. A mega ohm meter would be applied to ground
test line and load circuits at the starter. This will effectively identify the resistance to ground
of the starter, line circuits to disconnect and load lines to the motor and starter windings.
Generally, AC devices safely operate at not less than two mega ohms to ground, and DC
devices can safely operate at not less than one mega ohm to ground. But care should be
taken: before ground testing, by disconnecting any electronic control because they can be
destroyed by misapplied high-voltage test equipment. The resistance will depend on the
horsepower of the motor. For example, a 50-hp motor should ideally show 0.05-ohm
resistance. Measurements between phases should be roughly equivalent. Given a variety of
motors in use, specific engineering data may not be given for each one. However, the exact
measurement value is less important than the balance between phases. They should be
close to the identical readings.
Line to line check- it involve testing line to line, so that the operating voltage doesn't
have a path to ground. If an unreasonable voltage imbalance between any two phases is
found, that's a problem. A 5% voltage unbalance is normal and reasonable.
Motor junction box- at least by this point preliminary determination should have been
known of where the problem exists. So the motor lead junction box can be opened and
check the connections inside. Even if nothing is found wrong during the preliminary testing,
the motor connections should be checked many motor failures result from poorly
installed wire nuts or insufficiently insulated connections grounding inside the junction box
or shorting together.
If during testing, recorded low ground readings or open readings at the load side of
the starter, the next step is to test stator winding phase resistance and resistance to ground.
This will help to determine whether the discrepancy is in the motor or in the line circuit. To
conduct the tests, break the motor connection and first test in one direction and then in the
other supply. For the motor, test the stator winding resistance phase-to-phase and phaseto-ground. If a phase-on-phase short is found, the motor needs evaluation for a rewind or
for replacement. If a phase-to-ground short is found, a motor shop may be able to do an inplace repair for a large motor. However, rewinding or replacing is needed.
Final tests and procedure- Once corrected all identified problems and the motor is
installed and aligned, its almost done. Energize the motor and test the controls and overall
system operation. While the motor is running, record the operating voltage and current,
check the balance, and verify that your measurements are within the nameplate
specifications. Listen for unusual noises, Smell for smoke or hot insulation, feel the motor
for excessive heat or vibration and Look for possible obstructions.
8.6 ADJUSTABLE SPEED DRIVE SYSTEMS
Commercial and industrial firms today use adjustable-speed drive (ASD) systems for a
variety of applications. Most common of these include standard pumps, fans, and blowers.
Newer applications include hoists and cranes, conveyors, machine tools, film lines,
extruders,
and
textile-fiber
spinning
machines.
Many applications have unique demands and characteristics. The combination of the
many types of drives available and the abundance of applications has made the selection of
the
optimum
drive
for
a
given
application
a
challenge.
New generation ASDs have evolved with advancements in solid-state electronics.
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ASDs are applied to ac motors regardless of motor horsepower or location within the
factory and can be used to drive almost all types of motorized equipment, from a small to
the largest. These drives help the industry reduce both energy consumption and operating
and maintenance costs while offering improved operating conditions by using new
generation electronic ASDs. The latest generation of ASDs allows ac induction motors to be
just
as
controllable
and
efficient
as
dc
counterparts.
Variety of terms has been used to describe a system that permits a mechanical load
to be driven at user-selected speeds. These terms include, but are not limited to:
Variable-Speed Drive.
Variable-Frequency Drive.
Adjustable-Frequency Drive.
Adjustable-Speed Drive.
The term variable implies a change that may or may not be under the control of the
user. Adjustable is the preferred term since this refers to a change directly under control of
the user. The term frequency can only be applied to drives with an AC output, while the
term speed is preferred since this includes both ac and dc drives. Thus, the term most
commonly accepted is Adjustable-Speed Drive (ASD).
9.2Parts of a motor
Terminal box
Fan
Motor base
Fan cover
Rotor
Bearing
Fins
Stator
Name plate
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4) Once the nature of defect has been confirmed, the motor either goes into rewinding
workshop or undergoes some minor repairs.
5) Minor repairs would be replacement of bearings, replacement of terminal leads etc.
6) Motors confirmed to be having burnt windings are taken into rewinding shop for
stripping and preparation for rewinding. Before the windings are stripped all winding
details are taken and recorded. This include type of connection, pitch of coils,
number of turns per slot, size of wire and number of wires in hand. A drawing is also
made that describes the arrangement of the coils in the slots and the connection
that had been done by the manufacturer. An example of drawing made is as shown
below
7) The burnt windings are cut and removed and slots thoroughly cleaned.
8) The insulation papers are cut to suit the slots and inserted in all slots
9) The coils are made ensuring accurate counts of turns.
10) The coils are inserted into the slots ensuring no scratches occur on the winding
wires.
11) All the coil ends/overhanging are tapped with cotton tape ensuring even layout by
use of a mallet
12) All the wedges are inserted to ensure coils are safely locked in the slots.
13) All termination leads are prepared and carefully soldered and terminated on the
terminal block.
14) The motor is assembled for test on no load to confirm that the windings are alright
15) The motor is disassembled for the stator/rotor to be varnished with Hymeg AD 12. It
is advisable to have the stator/rotor briefly warmed to ensure good varnish
penetration into the windings.
16) The stator is put into the oven for drying process which generally takes about 12
hours.
17) The motor is re assembled and tested; readings of voltage phase and line arrests are
recorded on no load.
18) Once the motor if fully assembled and tested, a delivery note is raised and attached
to the motor.
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19) The user department is advised to collect the repaired motor or the electrical motor
may be used to deliver several motors that have been repaired.
This concludes the motor rewinding process.
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1. Drive shaft - via electric motor, hydraulic motor, belt and pulley etc.
2. Roller bearing - rigid support immersed in lubricating oil bath.
3. Fixed-angle cam - translates rotary motion into linear to the hydraulic cells.
4.
Hydraulic
cells
displace
diaphragms
via
pressurized
oil.
5. Diaphragms - hydraulically balanced so that there are no stresses during flexing.
6.
Inlet
valve
assemblies
allow
liquid
into
pump
chamber.
7. Outlet valve assemblies - allow liquid to flow into pressure discharge line.
8. Pressure regulating valve - controls outlet pressure and prevents pump overload.
Most hydraulic motors are fixed-displacement motors. Displacement is a motor
rating referring to the amount of flow that is required for a specified drive speed. Variabledisplacement piston motors are also utilized, but mostly in hydrostatic drives. Other
important ratings of a motor are torque and pressure. These ratings indicate how much load
a hydraulic motor is capable of handling. Hydraulic motors are entirely enclosed and selfcontained. These characteristics allow them to be submerged or operated in many hostile
environments.
Three types of hydraulic motors are gear, vane and piston-type motors. Each of these
types can be either unidirectional or reversible, although most motors used in mobile
equipment are the latter. In hydraulic gear motors, one of the two driven gears is attached
to the output shaft. Gear motors, which are the least expensive but the noisiest of the
hydraulic motors, have the ability to operate at high speeds; however, they are inefficient at
low speeds. In a hydraulically balanced vane motor, the vane on the inlet port side of the
motor is subject to full system pressure, while the chamber leading the vane is subject to
the much lower outlet pressure, forcing oil through the motor and, as a result, developing
torque.
Hydraulic vane motors are the most popular general-purpose motor, but they are
limited by their tolerance to high pressure systems and the higher percentage of slippage or
internal leakage relative to the lower total fluid flow at low speeds. Hydraulic piston pumps
can be either axial or radial and are generally the most expensive of the hydraulic motors.
They have advantages over the other motors, however, in that piston motors are far more
adaptable to high torque, low speed operation and higher system pressure applications.
Hydraulic motors provide solutions in applications involving infinite speed control,
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stalling under full torque, high power-to-weight ratio and small size. Their characteristics
make them useful in various parts of the industry.
9.6.4Servo motors
Servo motors are typically permanent magnet synchronous motors that often have
low torque-to-inertia ratios for high acceleration ratings. AC servomotors have an output
shaft that can be positioned by sending a coded signal to the motor drive. As the input to
the motor changes, the angular position of the output shaft changes as well. Generally, AC
servomotors are small but powerful for their size and easy to control. AC servo motors vary
by AC voltage and frequency.
AC servo motors are either single phase or three phases. Three phase power
contains three simultaneous sinusoidal or other alternating voltage patterns, typically 120
out of phase with each other. Higher power efficiency and smoothness of operation is
possible with three phase operation. Three phase power is most typically used in the
industry.
AC servo motors vary according to shaft speed, continuous current, continuous
torque, and continuous power output. The shaft speed is the no-load rotational speed of the
output shaft at a rated terminal voltage. The continuous current is the maximum rated
current that can be supplied to the motor windings without overheating. The continuous
torque is the output torque capability of the motor under constant running conditions. The
continuous output power is the mechanical power provided by the motor output. With
multi-speed AC servomotors, motor speed can be continuously adjusted or set at discrete
speeds within the operating range. With reversible AC servomotors, motors can be run in
both clockwise and counterclockwise directions with approximately the same operating
characteristics.
AC servo motors use integral encoders, integral resolvers, and integral tachometers for
feedback signals. Integral encoders contain attached encoders for angular position signals,
and may include absolute or incremental encoders and a number of different encoder signal
types. Integral resolvers contain an attached resolver to indicate the angular
position. Resolvers often rely on magnetic fields and are typically very robust; they are
sometimes specified for harsh environments. Integral tachometers produce an output
indicating rotational motor speeds.
9.7 Braking of motors
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27
Circuit breaker
Circuit breaker
Contactor
coil
Overload (NC)
Contactor
Hold (NO)
contact
Overload relay
A1
Contactor coil
3 - Phase
A2
motor
Power circuit
Control circuit
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The circuit above consists of the power circuit and the control circuit. The power
circuit consists of a circuit breaker to prevent the motor from over current in the line, a
contactor to make and break the motor when required to operate and an overload relay
that prevents overloading of the motor.
The control circuit consists of a stop bush button, that is usually a normally closed
contact to open the control circuit when pressed and a start button that is also a normally
open contact to close the control circuit when pressed. The start pushbutton as shown
above is interlocked with the normally open of the contactor so that when the start button
is pressed and released the motor will continue running until the stop button is pressed.
This is how the direct online operates. In a case where we have a motor that will be
operated in the forward and reverse directions then its circuit would be slightly different as
shown below.
It can be seen that in the forward and reverse direct online starting two contactors K1
and K2 are used. The contactor K2 is used to achieve the reverse direction by interchanging
any of the 2phases at the output of the contactor as shown above in the power circuit. Also
both the normally closed of the 2 contactors are interlocked together in the control circuit
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so that at no instance both contactors are operating at the same time because it will cause
a short in the power circuit.
DOL is Suitable for:
A direct on line starter can be used if the high inrush current of the motor does not
cause excessive voltage drop in the supply circuit. The maximum size of a motor allowed on
a direct on line starter may be limited by the supply utility for this reason. For example, a
utility may require rural customers to use reduced-voltage starters for motors larger than 10
kW. DOL starting is sometimes used to start small water pumps, compressors, fans and
conveyor belts.
10.2 STAR-DELTA CONNECTION IN AN ELECTRIC MOTOR (AC-STARTING)
When an induction motor is started directly online, it takes a starting current 6(six)
times that of the full load current. For large motors the high current causes voltage drop in
the power lines which may trip other motors within the same line. Finlays restricts the
rating of a motor which can be started in the star delta sequence. So to reduce the starting
current of a motor, the voltage across the motor need to be reduced. This can be done by
star delta connection, use of an auto transformer or incorporate a resistor when starting. So
for the star delta connection the motor windings are connected in star during starting and
delta when the motor starts running. By doing so, the starting current and torque are
reduced by 2.5 times of starting current.
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As can be shown above in the circuit there are 3 contactors involved in operation
namely; main, star and delta contactors. The star and delta work in coordination such that
when the circuit is energized from the control circuit, the star contactor comes on first
before the delta contactor. In a greater detail, as the start PB is pressed, the main contactor
comes on and also the timer comes on. So the control wire goes through the main contactor
and then to the timer. From the timer the control wire is split in such a way that one goes
through the normally closed and the other goes through the normally open contacts in the
timer.
The wire from the NC of the timer will pass through the NC contact of the delta
contactor and then to the coil of the star contactor while the wire from the NO of the timer
will pass through the NC of the star contactor and then to the coil of the delta contactor. So
when the circuit is energized, the power will flow from the NC of the timer to the NC of
delta contactor (just to check whether the delta contactor is energized) then to energize the
star contactor coil. After a time set to the timer i.e. 3 seconds it will shift the contact from
NC to NO and thus it cuts out the power from the NC contact to the NO contact. By doing so
the star contactor will be de-energized and the delta contactor will be energized through
the same process. One thing of importance here is the interconnection of the NC contacts to
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only allow one contactor to be in operation at a time. So the motor will run on the star
contactor for 3 seconds and then switch to delta contactor. And this is how the star delta
starting of an AC motor is achieved.
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33
34
Description of operations at the power plant from the dam to the transmission and
distribution channel
From the dam the water flows through closed conduits and is directed to the surge
tank whose purpose is to control the pressure of water entering the penstock. From the
surge tank to the power house the water head is 20M just before the penstock enters the
power house it is made to further divide into two conduits each which leads water to each
turbine in the power house.
In the power house the water enters directly to the enclosed turbines which have
pocket like plates which are made to rotate when hit by the incoming water at a greater
pressure and thus rotary motion is realized. The turbine is connected to the AC generators
using a shaft. Another connection on the shaft is the flywheel. This flywheel makes it
possible to achieve well regulated revolutions of the shaft hence a controlled rotation of the
generators without vibrations.
From the generators the connections of the generated e.m.f is made via cables to
the panel. This is where synchronization is done. The panel contains meters that check the
amount of generated power among other essentials like the power factor and the reactive
power. It also contains relays which are used to detect any problem in the whole system and
they then convey the detected fault to the power control which triples thereafter. An
operating technician can thus rectify the problem himself or do as has been instructed by
the engineer. It is at the panel where excitation can be controlled to realize a higher power
factor and also in cases of breakdown the generators are switched off from there using the
isolators.
The generated e.m.f is then stepped up to 33KV for transmission to the central
power house then distributed to different factories.
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Frequency, commonly 50 or 60 Hz, 16.6 Hz for some railways and, in a few older
industrial and mining locations, 25 Hz.
Phase configuration (single phase, polyphase including two-phase and three phase)
Maximum demand (usually measured as the largest amount of power delivered
within a 15 or 30 minute period during a billing period)
Load factor, expressed as a ratio of average load to peak load over a period of time.
Load factor indicates the degree of effective utilization of equipment (and capital
investment) of distribution line or system.
Power factor of connected load
Earthing arrangements - TT, TN-S, TN-C-S or TN-C
Prospective short circuit current
Maximum level and frequency of occurrence of transients
Advantages of hydroelectricity:
Carbon dioxide emissions are reduced because there is no burning of fossil fuels.
The reservoir can be used for other activities such as sporting activities, irrigation
etc.
Disadvantages
Siltation can fill a reservoir and reduce its capacity to control floods along with
causing additional horizontal pressure on the upstream portion of the dam.
Flow shortage will correlate with the amount of energy produced by the dam.
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or raises the voltage in a circuit but with a corresponding decrease or increase in current. Its
physical basis is mutual induction between two circuits linked by a common magnetic flux. A
transformer consists of two inductive coils which are electrically separated but magnetically
linked through a path of low reluctance. The first coil, in which electric energy is fed from
the a.c supply mains is called primary windings while the other from which energy is drawn
out is called the secondary windings.
A transformer is a device that;
i. Transfers electric power from one circuit to another.
ii. It does so without a change of frequency.
iii. It accomplishes this by electromagnetic induction and
iv. Where the two electric circuits are in mutual inductive influence of each other.
Types of transformers:
Core-type the coils used are form wound and are of cylindrical type. The general
form of these coils may be circular, oval or rectangular.
Shell-type the coils are form wound but are multi-layer disc type usually wound in
the form of pancakes and the different layers of such multi-layer discs are insulated
from each other by paper thus the advantages of such constructions are:
a. Relatively more rigid core
b. Lesser weight and size per KVA rating
c. Lower iron losses at higher operating flux densities
d. Lower cost of manufacture.
Transformers can be classified according to the type of cooling employed namely;
Oil-filled self-cooled
Oil-filled water-cooled
Air-blast
An ideal transformer is one which has no losses i.e its windings have no ohmic resistances,
there is no magnetic leakage and hence which has no I2R and core losses thus consists of
two purely inductive coils wound on loss-free core.
Most of the companys transformers are of a three-phase type, as shown in the figure, and
is used to step-down the mains high voltage of 33KV to low voltage of 415V in order to be
used at the companys residential and also to step-up the voltage generated at the power
houses to the required 33KV for use at the factories.
The chilly environment Finlays made me experience Colds during morning hours;
hence adapting was indeed a challenge
The supervisory duties were sometimes overwhelming given that i was made to
supervise seasonal employees doing menial duties
Working at the manufacturing floor was very tedious and hence required close
monitoring in case of a breakdown. Working on the steam area with very high
temperatures really exposed me to great dangers
Despite all those challenges listed above the industrial attachment 1 was a
success; vast knowledge and experience was instilled on me.
14.0 RECOMMENDATIONS
Due to the problems encountered I would recommend that the company should look
for possible solutions such as to aid in hastening of works especially on the transmission
lines they should buy machines that can help them in lifting the poles rather than employing
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a lot of man power. They should also try to automate the cutting of insulation materials
used in insulating the slots and this will help them to speed up their motor rewinding. The
company should also train their workers on how to handle new people within their
company especially the attaches as they are there to learn more about the practical part.
Also the transport logistics should be reduced because in case of breakdown in
industries then it would be a problem to the engineering staff to attend to it immediately.
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15.0 CONCLUSION
The attachment period really helped me put my theoretical knowledge to the
practical part and I enjoyed my time at the company and wish to get back next time with
more knowledge in order to aid in improved services within the company and ensure they
offer the best to their customers.
The weak point was mainly at the computer science section because I had little time
there and not interacting well with the person I was attached to.
The strong points was at the telephone exchange and motor rewinding section as I was
really helped and gained more than expected not also forgetting the power house where I
had to really apply my theoretical knowledge to practice.
Generally, my objectives for the attachment were successfully met and I thank the entire
James Finlay Limited fraternity very much. I owe my success to them.
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16.0 REFERENCE:
Notes noted during the attachment period
Internet (James Finlays web site)
B.L Theraja
Wikipdia
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