Welcome to the ACH580 the new HVAC drive from ABB

With the product launch fast approaching we were invited by ABB to attend a pre-launch training session for the highly anticipated arrival of the new ABB ACH580 drive.

There is a lot for this new drive to live up to! The popular ABB ACH550 sold over 100,000 units in the UK alone. Here are some of the key benefits of the new kid on the block; the ABB ACH580:

Compact HVAC drive

As with the ACS580 drive the ABB ACH580 state of the art inverter is the smallest foot print drive available on the market. With large power rating up to 250kW available for wall mounting. The drive can be mounted horizontally, whereas the recommendation previously was only vertical. The space required to be left around the drive has been reduced enabling you to mount these drives in a book shelf style. Very useful if you are short on space and need to mount several drives on a wall in a plant room or within a cabinet. One of the reasons for the small foot print is that the cabling box has been integrated into the overall design; thereby making the drive a reduced height dimension and making the cabling of the drive easier and less hassle.

Robust

There is a wider temperature range available with these drives from -15⁰ C up to +50⁰ C. The IP rating has been increased and is now available in IP55, dust and water jet protection. To enable the drive to be used in more environments and locations ABB have designed a new outdoor casing, available to purchase separately, with this additional protection you can situate the new ABB ACH580 drives outside on the roof in the elements with no concerns about UV or the changeable weather we enjoy in the UK.

Safety

A new safety feature on the ABB ACH580 drive is STO, (Safe Torque Off), this now comes as standard. This complies with SIL 3 safety requirements, meaning you no longer require separate safety features, another expense saving.

Enhanced Features

There are lighter chokes within the ACH580 drive, making this the smallest frame size in this power range.

Brake choppers are standard up to 22kW or R3 frame sizes, and available as options on the larger drives. Previously included up to 11kW in the preceding ACH550 drive it was an additional item for larger sizes.

With all the improvements that have been made on these new drives the motors will run quieter. Which means even further noise reduction than you would usually expect when installing a drive.

Intuitive Keypad

Programming the drive could not be easier using the new intuitive keypad; seen already on the ACS880 and the ACS580 drives. The keypad is from the same platform and looks, feels and works with the same principle. Easy to set up by using the primary settings, you no longer have to remember long lists of parameter settings for initial set up and to start the drive working. The ACH580 HVAC Apps are easy to set up, no more Macros! The new real-time clock enables calendar settings for timed events. The keypad has extra navigation, up and down and side to side keys, which give flexibility, editing settings quickly and easily. The USB connection is on the front of the drive, is easily accessible – no special leads are required. This is very useful when you have more than one drive ‘daisy chained’ to each other. The screen is high resolution, easy to read with clear and concise instructions and a useful help button, which gives you clear instructions or comments.