Page 2 - Doepke_5961002_diz2025_4_digital_en

Page 2 ––– DIZ | DoePke-Info-ZeItung no 4 | november 2025

System availability, fire protection and machine protection

Doepke e.Guard in action in timber processing
Sawmills are classified as facilities at risk of fire resulting in material damage to milling heads When the first alarm threshold of 150 mA is
because the materials stored and processed and spindles. exceeded, a pre-alarm is triggered. The facility
there are highly flammable. For such areas, can now be shut down in a targeted manner
DIN VDE 0100-420 stipulates protection and without damaging the machinery, allowing
against residual currents of ≤ 300 mA. the electrician to identify and rectify the cause.
In facilities with an increased fire risk, residual Only when the main alarm is triggered – when
current devices (RCDs) with a rated residual the ‘fire hazard’ threshold value of 300 mA is
current of 300 mA are therefore often used. exceeded – is the power supply immediately
If this value is reached or exceeded, the RCD disconnected at all poles.
quickly switches off the power supply at all
poles. This prevents fires from breaking out, By using Doepke e.Guard, the sawmill not only
but often at the cost of the machinery coming ensures that the required fire protection is in
to a standstill, which interrupts or restricts place, but also significantly reduces the risk
production – and this downtime always has of machine damage caused by abrupt shut-
a price. The company decided to introduce our downs. In addition, periodic insulation tests in
intelligent residual current monitoring sys- accordance with DIN VDE 0105-100/A1 are
Where it is not technically possible to use tem e.Guard. Since then, the smart e.Guard no longer necessary, which further increases
RCDs for protection, DIN VDE 0100-420 residual current monitors have been conti- the availability of the facility.
therefore permits the use of residual current
monitors (RCMs) as an alternative. nuously monitoring the facility. However, if
the thresholds set in the e.Guard software are Furthermore, continuous monitoring of the
A large sawmill in northern Germany was exceeded, the facility does not shut down, but residual currents makes it possible to detect
facing exactly this problem: the state-of-the-art instead a two-stage alarm system is acti- faults that develop gradually at an earlier stage
processing machines were having problems vated via the potential-free contacts of the in the long term, enabling even more targeted
with abrupt shutdowns caused by an RCD, e.Guard RCM. intervention.

DRCBO: double the safety, energy efficiency and high system availability

Residual current operated circuit-breakers and save costs. In addition, the use of DRCBOs
with integral overcurrent protection, DRCBOs, makes the task of troubleshooting much easier
are a space-saving solution for implementing for electricians.
residual current protection and line protection Doepke offers its DRCBO units as pulsating
in electrical systems. They also offer a decisive current-sensitive and AC current-sensitive
advantage when it comes to system availabi- Type A, as mixed frequency sensitive Type F
lity: each circuit has its own residual current and as AC-DC sensitive Type B and B+.
protection. If a residual current occurs, only
the affected area is switched off. The DRCBO PV (photovoltaic) and DRCBO
HP (heat pump) were developed especially for
This is useful in private households, for use in the green energy sector. The devices are
example, so that freezers can continue to run short-time delayed, are particularly compact at
and programming or clock settings can be a module width of 2.5 or 4.5, and are energy-
retained. In the commercial sector, targeted efficient to operate thanks to their low dissipa-
shutdowns can reduce operational disruptions tion power.