Legally compliant and efficient: Why a complete solution for heat calculation pays off

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The IEC 61439 norm presents planners with complex challenges when it comes to calculating heat. In this interview, our Managing Director Stefan Mülhens talks about the advantages of software-supported solutions for calculating the temperature in the switch cabinet.

Question: If someone does not want to compile their heat calculation manually, they can find various online tools to support them on the net today. How do you rate these offers?

Stefan Mülhens from AmpereSoft in an interview situation

Stefan Mülhens: The benefit is likely to be small. With the freely available online tools, many of the time-consuming tasks are usually still left to the plant engineer. They usually only take over individual calculation steps, but do not offer any support in the manufacturer-independent collection of the required data. For example, I have not yet seen a free tool that can perform calculations according to VDE 0660-507, so that the range for systems with rated currents between 630 and 1600 A is usually not covered here.

Question: In contrast, what are the central advantages of software-supported solutions for heat calculation?

Stefan Mülhens: Leading systems make it possible to perform the heat calculation quickly, reliably and fully. With our TemperatureCalculator, planners achieve significant time savings by simply calculating the heat development in the switch cabinet at the push of a button. In addition, the solution creates the legally required documentation verifications according to DIN EN 61439-1 completely automatically without any additional effort. This means that planners work much more efficiently and are on the legally safe side.

Question: A core problem in the thermal calculation of switchgear is a lack of manufacturer information regarding material data. How do you solve this problem?

Stefan Mülhens: For this purpose, the TemperatureCalculator is seamlessly linked to our sister solution MatClass. MatClass is an independent tool for material management based on the eCl@ss ADVANCED structure, an open, always up-to-date and cross-industry standard for product data. This gives the TemperatureCalculator direct access to all calculation-relevant values from the manufacturer databases.