Eaton SmartWire-DT Is Now Available in North America

Date: March 30, 2011

Solution Transforms Panel Wiring, Improving System Efficiency, Reliability for Original Equipment Manufacturers

Pittsburgh … Diversified industrial manufacturer Eaton Corporation is introducing SmartWire-DT panel wiring solution into the North American market. Already available in Europe, the system is designed to reduce panel wiring complexity, improve system reliability, save installation time and reduce panel space. Transforming the way original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) build control panels, the solution replaces the myriad of wires found in the control circuit into a single cable, connecting motor control components to customers’ programmable logic controllers (PLCs).

“Eaton is committed to providing innovative solutions that improve customers’ businesses by improving system reliability and efficiency,” said Richard Chung, product manager, Eaton. “Fundamentally, the SmartWire-DT system addresses a critical concern for panel builders by dramatically reducing the wiring effort required to build panels, as it eliminates the time needed to cut, strip, mark, bundle, and check numerous individual wires.”

The SmartWire-DT system is engineered to reduce panel wiring complexity and assembly labor time, speed the start-up commissioning processes, and provide extensive run-time diagnostics. It links standard motor control components within the panel, separate distribution panels or remote control stations, and creates communications enabled devices. Additionally, the SmartWire-DT flat cable connections safeguard the control panel from unauthorized wiring changes, helping to protect the craftsmanship and integrity of the control panel.

The SmartWire-DT panel wiring solution uses an eight-conductor, flat cable located in the control cabinet to connect motor starters, pushbutton actuators, and indicator lights. The start of the system is a SmartWire-DT gateway, which establishes the connection to standard programmable logic controller (PLC) fieldbuses, including PROFIBUS-DP and CANopen.

The SmartWire-DT network directly integrates the input/output (I/O) level in the switching devices. As a result, no conventional PLC I/O modules are needed; instead, communication enabled modules are attached to standard Eaton motor control components. Thus, the PLC in the control cabinet simply consists of a central processing unit (CPU).

Typical faults – like loose connections and mis-wired terminations – are reduced with the SmartWire-DT solution, by using the flat cable and the specialized connectors. Each SmartWire-DT enabled device also has individual status indicators, which help to reduce commissioning time and troubleshooting in the field.

Devices on the SmartWire-DT network are automatically addressed with the push of a button on the gateway, assigning addresses in the order that the devices are connected. The system continuously monitors all devices on the network and detects changes in the panel.

The SmartWire-DT system can function on a network length up to 2,000 feet, and can connect up to 99 devices per gateway.

Eaton’s electrical business is a global leader in power distribution, power quality, control and industrial automation products and services. Eaton’s global electrical product lines, including Cutler-Hammer®, Moeller®, Powerware®, Holec®, MEM®, Santak®, and MGE Office Protection Systems™, provide customer-driven PowerChain Management® solutions to serve the power system needs of the data center, industrial, institutional, government, utility, commercial, residential and OEM markets worldwide.

Eaton Corporation is a diversified power management company with 2010 sales of $13.7 billion. Celebrating its 100th anniversary in 2011, Eaton is a global technology leader in electrical components and systems for power quality, distribution and control; hydraulics components, systems and services for industrial and mobile equipment; aerospace fuel, hydraulics and pneumatic systems for commercial and military use; and truck and automotive drivetrain and powertrain systems for performance, fuel economy and safety. Eaton has approximately 70,000 employees and sells products to customers in more than 150 countries. For more information, visit www.eaton.com.

Michelle Phillips

(414) 449-7523