Stahlin Non-Metallic Enclosures
500 Maple Street
Belding, Michigan 48809
Phone: 616-794-0700
Fax: 616-794-3378
Email: Stahlin2@robroy.com
Non-Metallic Enclosure For High Voltage Meter Application
Helps OEM Meet High Voltage Product Requirements
01/29/2010
Non-Metallic Enclosure For High Voltage Meter Application Helps OEM Meet High Voltage
Product Requirements
Larry Blackwell President Marwell Corporation
Marwell Corporation: High Voltage Products for the Utilities Industry
Marwell Corporation, a privately held company based in Mentone, CA, is a leading supplier of
meter socket adapters for electric KWh meters and products for the general simplification of
KWh meter installation in the United States and worldwide. The materials, workmanship, and
quality control standards of Marwell Corporation meet world class standards. Many
materials have been evaluated to meet extreme electrical, durability, and weather resistant
requirements of the electrical utility service industry.
In the electric utility industry, plug-in, socket-type watt-hour meters are commonly used to
measure electric power consumption at a residential or commercial building establishment.
A socket is mounted on the wall of the residence or building and contains terminals which are
connected to electric line and electric load conductors. The terminals are also connected to
internal conductors within the socket which extend to jaw contacts positioned to receive the
blade terminals of a plug-on watt-hour meter. This completes an electric circuit through the
watt-hour meter between the line and load terminals and the conductors.
Proper Enclosure Selection for Outdoor High Voltage Requirements: Non-Metallic
Composite Materials Do the Job
“Throughout the industrialized world it is a legal requirement to surround outdoor as well as
indoor high voltage equipment with an enclosure. The induced voltage (Vi) on the surface of
the enclosure must be sufficiently low so that it does not present a hazard to personnel and to
animals. Vi is measured as a function of the following parameters: the dimensions of the
enclosure, the distance of the enclosure from the equipment, the voltage of the equipment, the
influence of environmental conditions, and the placing of metal strips on the polymer surface.
The induced voltage at and the short circuit current flowing through a human body upon
touching a polymer enclosure are found to be at acceptably safe levels when a metallic strip
network is enmeshed on the surface”1
Non-metallic composite polymer materials such as Stahlin Enclosures patented SolarGuard
are increasingly being used in the manufacture of enclosures due to their economic
advantage, long life in outdoor and indoor environments, and excellent strength to weight ratio.
Additionally, non-metallic enclosure materials must undergo rigorous electrical testing
requirements by various certification bodies such as Underwriters Laboratories. Included in
these test are specific requirement of the product to meet UL746C requirements Polymeric
Materials For Use in Electrical and Electronic Equipment. Specific electrical and current
testing consists of Hot Wire Ignition, High Current Arc Ignition, High Voltage Arc Tracking,
Comparative Tracking Index (600V), and Dielectric Strength (VPM). In addition to meeting
the rigors of 600 volt electrical equipment, the enclosure must also meet the demands of
being in an outdoor environment. Such demands include the ability to withstand repeated
exposure to ultraviolet rays. Patented SolarGuard provides long term reliable performance
even the harshest environments.
Choosing A Non-Metallic Enclosure: High Voltage-- No Problem
Cabinet materials incorrectly specified due to improper material selection can lead to
catastrophic consequences or added cost from replacement of the cabinet. Our equipment
can range up to 600 volts so we needed to make sure the enclosure material could provide the
necessary protection to meet the legal requirements for high voltages.
Representatives from Stahlin Non-Metallic Enclosures had previously visited our plant, so
when it came time to find enclosures for some of our newer product lines we contacted them
to see if they had the right product to meet our needs.
Stahlin Non-Metallic Enclosures
500 Maple Street, Belding, Michigan 48809
Phone: 616-794-0700, Fax: 616-794-3378, Email: Stahlin2@robroy.com
With the successful use of these
Stahlin enclosures for some of our
large utility projects we have been
able to land additional important
projects for our company. The
conversion to non-metallic
composite enclosures not only
meets the demands of diverse
applications; it also meets our
need to continue to offer high
voltage meter products that help
our company remain competitive
in the global marketplace.
(click or copy image for
hi-resolution version)
Receive up-to-date
information by
enrolling in our News
Program:
Have Questions?
Request information
online.
Join Our RSS News
Feed for up-to-date
information
When you subscribe to
a feed, it is added to the
Common Feed List.
Updated information
from the feed is
automatically
downloaded to your
computer and can be
viewed in Internet
Explorer and other
programs.
Visit Yahoo to learn
more about RSS news
feeds.
Click Here To:
Subscribe to OUR
News feed
Stahlin Non-Metallic Enclosures
500 Maple Street
Belding, Michigan 48809
Phone: 616-794-0700
Fax: 616-794-3378
Email: Stahlin2@robroy.com
After initial field testing we knew that Stahlin had a number of enclosure lines such as J
Series, DiamondShield® and DuraBoxx, each of which offered performance benefits required
by our product applications. With the successful use of these enclosures for some of our large
utility projects we have been able to land additional important projects for our company. The
conversion to non-metallic composite enclosures not only meets the demands of diverse
applications; it also meets our need to continue to offer high voltage meter products that help
our company remain competitive in the global marketplace.
For additional information about Marwell Corporation: Contact Larry Blackwell, President.
PO Box 139 Mentone CA 92359. Phone: 909-794-4192. Email: larry@marwellcorp.com Web
site: www.marwellcorp.com
For More Information on Stahlin: Visit: www.stahlin.com
References: 1.-http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/xpl/freeabs_all.jsp?arnumber=4112348
Stahlin Non-Metallic Enclosures
500 Maple Street, Belding, Michigan 48809
Phone: 616-794-0700, Fax: 616-794-3378, Email: Stahlin2@robroy.com