Square D^® Power-Zone^®4 Low Voltage Metal-Enclosed Switchgear with Masterpact^® circuit interrupters ensures the reliable launch of the space shuttle Atlantis

In the Fall of 2000, Schneider Electric was first asked to work on several NASA projects with select Kennedy Space Center engineering and facility groups.  Key criteria for the projects revolved around:  (1) the durability and reliable performance of the equipment; (2) the ability for the solution to withstand extreme environmental conditions (e.g. extreme shock, vibration and high heat); (3) equipment must fit and be able to work in a small confined space in, on & around the shuttle launch pads, and finally, (4) the solution must require low maintenance. 

Senior Sales Executive, Greg Wolfe, and Senior Mechanical Engineer, Jeffrey Gatscher, both worked closely with NASA on the MLP project and developed a customized solution for NASA involving numerous Square D brand, low voltage electrical distribution products including the Power-Zone^® 4 low voltage metal-enclosed drawout switchgear. PowerLogic^® and Quantum PLC’s as well as an I-Line^®, an NF Panel and a Masterpact NW breaker were also provided to NASA for evaluation.  These products were then evaluated in accordance with very stringent requirements that NASA has for Mobile Launch Platforms (MLP’s).  NASA would not grant ANY manufacturer an order without solid "proof" that the manufacturer’s equipment can withstand the rigors of a space shuttle launch. 

The biggest challenge all manufacturer’s who were evaluated face in a mobile launch platform test is that the platform and the equipment contained within it SHAKE VIOLENTLY – as the enclosed video footage will also attest to!

Envision for a moment, the familiar orbiter, two solid rocket boosters and an external fuel tank all sitting on the mobile launch pad just one deck up above the Schneider Electric Square D^® Power-Zone 4 Low Voltage Metal-Enclosed Switchgear with Masterpact circuit breakers.  The exhaust from the orbiter actually passes "through" two decks of the mobile launch platform just 30 feet above the PZ4.  For the duration of Main Engine Firing and then the solid rocket booster firing, the mobile launch platform building is moving and shaking violently.   

View photo of NASA launch pad 39B construct.

Enter the PZ-4, as it is affectionately nicknamed, and which is designed to provide superior electrical distribution, protection, and power quality management for an entire facility. The prime components of the switchgear are the Masterpact^® NW and Masterpact NT ANSI-rated circuit breakers.  Our newest Masterpact circuit breakers are also loaded with communications that can marry with the existing Square D PowerLogic systems that NASA also already has.

Power-Zone 4 switchgear is designed to maximize the functionality of the Masterpact NW and NT circuit breakers, which, in turn, deliver maximum uptime, system selectivity, ease of maintenance and circuit protection. All of this in the smallest footprint available for low voltage drawout switchgear.

Benefits of the PowerZone 4 include:

• Small footprint for increased capacity in smaller space
• Higher available fault currents
• Open Protocol Communications for sophisticated user applications
• Low Maintenance requirement

To view the video footage of the PZ-4 in action during the space shuttle launch of the Atlantis, click here. 

Note: The Video footage is a large file and may take a few minutes to download to your PC. Please also be aware that the video does show some significant shaking and vibration to the PZ-4 equipment during the shuttle ignition and launch sequence as well as some temporary lighting outages occurring in the launch platform during the launch.  However, despite these extreme conditions, the PZ-4 held up and performed flawlessly to expectation, whereby the shuttle Atlantis was successfully launched on September 9, 2006. 

Powerlogic and our Quantum PLC's had been put through many tests & gyrations on the Kennedy Space Center complex along with virtually all of our competitor's offering.  The Powerlogic and the Quantum PLC products were accepted by NASA as "unequalled" and now enjoy a "sole source" vendor status to this date. Schneider Electric has also since budgeted a new mobile launch for a new Crew Exploration Vehicle that is due out in 2010, whereby a PZ4 and several new IPC2 combo units were also specified by NASA as a result of the successful completion of this test pilot.

A second launch from a Square D equipped mobile launch pad has not yet occurred.