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I-GARD CORPORATION
PARTNER IN GROUND FAULT PROTECTION
August 2014
Potential ground faults often go unnoticed and can cause havoc on plant production processes.
Shutting down power and equipment, ground faults disrupt the flow of products through
manufacturing processes, leading to hours or even days of lost productivity.
Undetected ground faults can also pose potential health and safety risks to personnel. Ground
faults can lead to safety hazards such as equipment malfunctions, fire and electric shock.
Ground faults can cause serious damage to equipment and to your processes. During a fault
condition, equipment can be damaged and processes shut down, seriously affecting your
bottom line.
I-Gard is acknowledged as the leader in the field of ground fault protection. I-Gards long-
standing relationships with a variety of Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEM) including ABB,
Eaton Yale, General Electric, Group Schneider and Siemens, attest to our exceptional level of
quality and performance.
4 Arcing ground faults that are not properly detected and cleared
can be extremely destructive.
Over the last 30 years, I-Gard Corporation, formerly known as IPC Resistors Inc., has grown from a resistor
only company to one that fully incorporates our ground fault protection line into the company. We work to
achieve our business objectives responsibly and respond to our customers needs and concerns.
From research and development to the manufacturing and distribution of our products, safety and quality
are our first considerations. We are committed to manufacturing quality products and demand equivalent
standards from our suppliers to help ensure customer safety.
Quality Systems: I-Gards policies, guidelines, core requirements and procedures, are
designed to ensure consistent product quality worldwide. We are constantly evaluating our systems
in order to maintain the highest product quality.
Education and Training: I-Gard provides ongoing education and training programs on quality and
safety for all our employees.
Supplier Standards: We maintain strict quality standards and expect quality standards from our
suppliers as well.
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Reported in Power Magazine, July 1969, that the cost of arcing ground faults ranged
between $1 billion and $3 billion annually for equipment loss, production downtime
and personal liability.
While a lot has changed in 30 years, losses due to ground faults remain a significant
issue today for the industry with one leading insurance company reporting that its
clients alone reported 228 losses that were attributed to ground faults with a total cost
of US $180 million over a seven year period.
Perhaps of greater concern are the five to 10 arc flash explosions that occur in
electrical equipment everyday resulting in medical treatment. According to statistics
compiled by CapSchell Inc. a Chicago-based research and consulting firm that
specializes in preventing workplace injuries and deaths.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics of the US Department of Labor compiles the Census
of Occupational Injuries from death certificates and other information for US workers
killed on the job. The 2003-2007 database shows that 1,213 workers died and 13,150
workers sustained days away from work due to occupational injuries and illnesses
involving contact with electricity.
technology overview
WHAT IS AN ARC FLASH?
An arc flash is a short circuit through the air that takes place when the insulation between electrified conductors
is breached or cant withstand the applied voltage. During an arc flash, an enormous amount of energy explodes
out from the electrical equipment, sometimes causing death or severe radiation burns to employees working near
energized conductors or circuits. The blast from the arc creates pressure waves that can damage hearing or brain
function and a flash that can damage eyesight.
I-Gard has developed methods for effectively minimizing the dangers of arc flashes
through the use of high resistance grounding. At the 2003 IEEE IAS Electrical Safety
Workshop it was stated that high-resistance grounding for low voltage power
distribution systems enhances reliability and uptime of power distribution
equipment and is proven effective in significantly reducing the frequency and
severity of arc flash accidents. Furthermore, the NFPA 70A recognizes High
resistance grounding as a mean to reduce Arc-Flash Hazards. According to a recent
study by John Nelson (IEEE), high resistance grounding eliminates the hazard of arc
flashes in 95% of all cases.
The common cause of the losses and injuries are undetected arcing faults that occur within a facilities
electrical distribution system. When an electrical system is grounded, there is an intentional connection of
a phase or neutral conductor to earth for the purpose of controlling the voltage to earth, or ground, within
predictable limits. It also provides for a flow of current that will allow detection of an unwanted connection
between system conductors and ground (a ground fault). The root cause of this unwanted connection is often
a result of insulation breakdown.
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The majority of industrial facilities that experience arcing ground faults should not continue to operate without
adequate Ground Fault Protection. These establishments typically operate an ungrounded or solidly grounded
electrical distribution system, both of which have inherent disadvantages.
The reasoning behind the prevalence of ungrounded systems in many industrial facilities appears to be
historical. Prior to the emergence of High Resistance Grounding in the late 1980s, the only choice when
process continuity was required was an ungrounded system that allowed for the controlled shutdown for fault
repairs at a convenient time, and this was of tremendous value to continuous manufacturing processes by
reducing production losses, equipment damage and outages.
Once the system is high-resistance grounded, overvoltages are reduced and modern highly sensitive ground-fault
protective equipment can identify the faulted feeder on first fault and trip one or both feeders on the second fault
before an arcing burn-down causes serious damage.
QA
The intentional connection of the neutral points of transformers, generators and rotating machinery to
the earth ground network provides a reference point of zero volts. This protective measure offers many
advantages over an ungrounded system, including:
A solidly grounded system is one in which the neutral points have been intentionally connected to earth ground with
a conductor having no intentional impedance. This partially reduces the problem of transient over-voltages found on
the ungrounded system, provided the ground fault current is in the range of 25% to 100% of the system three-phase
fault current. However, if the reactance of the generator or transformer is too great, the problem of transient over-
voltages will not be solved.
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IS SOLIDLY GROUNDED SAFER THAN UNGROUNDED?
While solidly grounded systems are an improvement over ungrounded systems and facilitate the location of
faults, they lack the current limiting ability of resistance grounding and the extra protection this provides.
The destructive nature of arcing ground faults in solidly grounded systems is well known and extensively
documented. Electric arcs are caused by the energy dissipated in the fault. A measure of this energy can be
obtained from the estimate of kilowatt-cycles dissipated in the arc:
Limits damage to equipment, prevents additional faults from occurring, provides safety for personnel and
localizes the fault
The limited fault current and fast response time prevents overheating and mechanical stress on conductors.
However, like the solidly grounded neutral system, the circuit must be shut down after the first ground fault
Low-resistance grounding resistors are typically rated 400 amps for 10 seconds, and are commonly found on
medium and high voltage systems
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WHAT IS HIGH-RESISTANCE GROUNDING?
High-resistance grounding of the neutral limits the ground fault current to a very low level (typically under 25
amps). It is used on medium and low voltage systems where continuity of operations is important. Most industrial
distribution systems and critical facilities with distribution systems in medium and low voltage are ideal candidates
for high-resistance grounding.
Limiting fault currents to predetermined maximum values permits the designer to selectively coordinate the
operation of protective devices, which minimizes system disruption and allows for quick location of the fault.
High-resistance grounding provides the same advantages as ungrounded systems yet limits the steady state
and severe transient over-voltages associated with ungrounded systems. There is no arc flash hazard, as there
is with a solidly grounded system, since the fault current is limited to approximately 5A.
To reduce electric-shock hazards to personnel caused by stray ground fault currents in the
ground return path
T
o reduce arc blast or arc-flash hazard to personnel who may have accidentally caused or
who happen to be in close proximity to the fault current
To reduce the momentary line-voltage dip caused by the occurrence and clearing of a
ground fault
To secure control of transient over voltages while at the same time avoiding the shutdown
of a faulty circuit on the occurrence of the first ground fault
Throughout the 15 to 20 years high-resistance grounding has become the standard in hazardous applications
such as mining and petro-chemical, but until recently was limited in its application to industrial operations.
Only recently has high-resistance grounding been adopted as the method of choice by consultants designing
commercial facilities in North America (e.g. banks, data centres, hospitals, defence), and commercial facilities
outnumber industrial facilities by at least a factor of twenty.
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unparalleled protection
Comparative Performance Rating For Various
Conditions Using Different Grounding Methods
METHOD OF GROUNDING
Continued Production:
Better Poor Poor Best
After 1st Ground Fault
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While high-resistance grounding is the safest approach
to grounding a power system, some applications may
remain ungrounded (for legacy reasons) or solidly
grounded the need to provide a reference to ground
or to supply single phase to neutral loads. At I-Gard we
have the necessary products to cover all applications.
product portfolio
UNGROUNDED DISTRIBUTION PROTECTION
The I-Gard VIA has been designed specifically for ground fault
pre-alarm and alarm indication on high-resistance grounded or
ungrounded power systems. Additionally, the VIA can detect DC
ground faults that may occur on AC fed systems.
The Turbo Sleuth contains the fault-limiting resistor, the pulsing circuitry
and if requested, an artificial neutral in a single wheeled enclosure can
be added.
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SOLIDLY GROUNDED PROTECTION
Todays protection requirements demand tripping at the
speed of light: The new Sentri includes three light sensor
inputs, that provide the Sentri with the ability to trip solid
state relays at the speed of light to protect personnel and
equipment from arc flash hazards, by tripping faster than
any other commercial relay.
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HIGH RESISTANCE GROUNDING PROTECTION
NGR Enclosed X X X X
GF Alarm X X X X
GF Pulsing X X X X
Resistor Monitoring X X X
Feeder Indication X X
DSP-OHMNI SYSTEM
The new DSP-OHMNI is designed to provide an alarm, but not trip when one
ground fault occurs in the system- thus retaining system continuity.
The DSP is the only relay to offer second fault protection through the SIFT
system (Selective Instantaneous Feeder Trip). Enabling the user to prioritize the
feeders and upon the occurrence of a second fault on a different phase, select
which feeder will instantaneously trip. Fault finding is made even easier with
the new optional pulsing module. The new generation DSP now offers resistor
monitoring through the DRM module and ModBus communication to facilitate
remote communication and management. The new digital display makes the
alarm and metering information more useful and easier to read.
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With significant expenditure dedicated annually to
product development and application research, I-Gard
leads the way in bringing innovative new products to
market with a commitment to reducing electrical hazards.
Patent 5,917,404
m-GARD RELAY
The m-GARD is a microprocessor based ground fault relay designed and built
to be used on solidly or resistance grounded systems. This innovative digital
electronic relay measures ground fault current using built-in Zero Sequence
Current Sensor (ZSCS), with the ability to operate on any control voltage supply,
it reacts to alternating current only and will reject direct current signals. With the
harmonic filtering feature enabled, the m-GARD provides the reliability required by
modern power systems with variable frequency drives.
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SIGMA RELAY
A combination of an NGR monitor and ground fault relay. It provides
adjustable pickup level and adjustable definite time delay for the
ground current. In resistance grounded systems, the NGR is constantly
monitored to ensure that the 3-phase 3-wire distribution system remains
fault free. SIGMA is designed for use on any resistance grounded system
that requires continuous monitoring of the NGR. A separately mounted
sensor measures the ground current and the voltage across the NGR.
The values measured are compared with settings and trip and alarms
are indicated when an abnormal condition is detected.
In our continuing effort to bring new and innovative products to the electrical industry
that provide additional safety and performance benefits to the user, I-Gard has
developed a state-of-the-art protection relay for mobile trailing equipment, that
protects operators from electrical shock.
The level of safety provided is enchanced through the addition of AC touch voltage
protection, the only relay in the market with this feature.
focus on quality
In addition to ISO standards for manufacturing quality, there are a number of
product specific guidelines and application standards from CSA, UL and IEEE
covering power resistors and ground fault protection products including: UL-508,
CSA 22.2 No. 14 for NGR's below 1.5 kV, for those above 5 kV UL-347 and the CSA-
22.2 TIL-D-31.
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Our focus on quality and testing is exemplified by our CSA approved test facility
that permits I-Gard to develop and verify prototype resistors and relays and is
reinforced through our product category certifications.
All of our resistors elements and protective relays are both CSA certified and UL
recognized and listed.
commitment to standards
CSA International
C22.1 No. 02 2002 Canadian Electrical Code Part 1.
IEEE Std 141 1999 Recommended Practice for Electric Power Distribution for Industrial Plants
IEEE Std 142 1991 Recommended Practice for Grounding of Industrial and Commercial Power Systems
IEEE Std 241 1997 Recommended Practice for Electric Power Systems in Commercial Buildings
Recommended Practice for Protection and Coordination of Industrial and Commercial
IEEE Std 242 1991
Power Systems
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Our reputation as the industry expert in Ground Fault Protection is hard earned and continually supported.
Whether we are providing Contracting Tips to Electrical Business to improve the contractors understanding
of High-Resistance Grounding and how to upgrade an ungrounded facility or partnering with EC&M on their
Ask the Expert program as their expert in Ground Fault Protection or delivering educational seminars at IEEE
conferences, our team of experts provides a depth and breadth of application knowledge that is unmatched in
the industry.
recognized as experts
ASK THE EXPERT
Over the years I-Gard had partnered with Electrical Construction and Maintenance in
a campaign to address questions their readers would have on ground fault protection.
unparalleled protection
Today, our applications experts continue to raise awareness on the safety and
importance on high-resistance ground and ground fault protection directly from our
website www.i-gard.com. Submitting a question and addressing the issue has never
been easier. I-Gard is here to help in providing ground fault protection solutions that
suit and surpass your expectations.
INDUSTRY EDITORIALS
In conjuntion with industry leading trade magazine such as EC&M, Electrical Business, Electricity Today,
International Association of Electrical Inspectors e.t.c., I-Gard has furthered the understanding of the hazard
of arcing faults as well as the benefits and applications of high-resistance grounding through a number of
educational editorials.
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application guides
Our Application and Specification guides, relied on by consultants, end-users and contractors, are constantly being
updated with the latest innovations. The following guides below are available for download from the I-Gard website
www.i-gard.com. Select the Technical Library link and then select Application Guides.
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our production facility
With our focus on quality and flexibility, along with a manufacturing operation that has embraced lean manufacturing
principles; we provide industry leading service and quality levels. Our experienced, well trained and empowered
workforce process every order with the care and attention expected to ensure it is manufactured and shipped on time,
and to the highest quality level.
Corporate Office
7686 Bath Road
Mississauga, Ontario
Canada L4T 1L2
Phone: 905-673-1553
Fax: 905-673-8472
Toll Free: 1-888-737-4787
sales@i-gard.com
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Phone: 905-673-1553 Fax: 905-673-8472
Toll Free: 1-888-737-4787 sales@i-gard.com
www.i-gard.com