Softly taking control of cooling
April 1st 2008

Damhead Creek is an 800MW combined cycle gas-fired power station.Cooling fans regulate the temperature of the main power station cooling water circuit, switched on as required, according to the ambient air temperature.

Demand varies between seasons and time of day, so the reliability of the fans is critical.

Maintenance costs of over £25,000 per year were caused by the absence of control when starting up fans. Problems included torque and current surges, vee-belt wear and jumping along pulleys, and short lives for motor contactors due to high starting currents. "We didn't need a variable speed system as the fans run up to full speed, so we consulted with Softstart UK and it soon became clear soft-starters were the ideal answer," Ian Carter, plant engineer explains. Softstart recommended their compact RVS series of digital starters with integrated bypass control, installed in IP65 stainless steel enclosure mounted outdoors next to the fan unit drive motors.

"Maintenance costs have been slashed" finishes Carter.