We spoke with Daniel Alvarez, the Product Line Sales Manager for the Industrial Controls Division at Eaton, to learn more about variable frequency drives, or VFDs. Here, Daniel discusses VFDs and the various benefits they provide, shares some key product selection tips, and introduces us to Eaton’s PowerXL Series.
Energy efficiency has become more than just a sustainability initiative for industrial organizations — it’s a top priority that makes sound business sense. Motor controls, and variable frequency drives (VFDs) in particular, can play a key role when it comes to system optimization. We spoke with Daniel Alvarez, the Product Line Sales Manager for the Industrial Controls Division at Eaton, to learn more. Daniel discusses VFDs and the various benefits they provide — especially with regard to energy efficiency, shares some key product selection tips, and introduces Eaton’s PowerXL Series.
Please introduce yourself and tell us about your role at Eaton.
My name is Daniel Alvarez, and I’ve been with Eaton for six years, since joining as a sales engineer with our OEM (original equipment manufacturer) sales team.
I’ve been in the electrical industry for over 15 years. Prior to my time at Eaton, I worked in electrical distribution, where I held various roles in sales and finance. I graduated from the University of Georgia with a Bachelor of Science degree and have a master’s in business administration from Reinhardt University.
In my current role, I’m able to combine my passion for sales and customer service with my interest in electrical control and automation. I’m also able to leverage my experience to lead product line growth initiatives and collaborate with our North American Sales team to create value for our customers by connecting them with industrial control products that are safe and reliable.
Please provide us with a brief introduction to Eaton.
Eaton is a global power management company that was established over a century ago and currently has more than 90,000 employees. Eaton’s business includes the electrical, aerospace, vehicle, and e-mobility sectors.
The industrial controls division at Eaton is responsible for a wide range of products, including control, protection, and automation solutions, such as NEMA (National Electrical Manufacturers Association) and IEC (International Electrotechnical Commission) contactors, pushbuttons, sensors, and human-machine interfaces (HMIs). Motor control products, such as variable frequency drives, reduced voltage soft starters, and packaged control assemblies, also fall under this division.
Can you please tell us more about the role variable frequency drives — or VFDs — play in industrial applications and why they’re important?
The primary function of VFDs is to control the speed and torque of an industrial motor. Three-phase AC induction motors are the most common. They do this by regulating the frequency (Hz) and voltage supplied to the motor.
VFDs are comprised of three main sections: a converter, a DC bus, and an inverter, which facilitates the transformation of utility or source alternating current (AC) to direct current (DC) and back to a modulated AC.
VFDs are important because of the various operational efficiencies they provide, including reduced energy consumption, enhanced safety, and increased productivity and equipment longevity. They are used in a wide variety of industrial applications, including HVAC and refrigeration, pumping (wastewater, oil and gas, etc.), and conveyor applications. VFDs can also be integrated into a wide variety of other machinery applications. They can be used on fans, pumps, chillers, compressors, mixers, and hoisting equipment.
What role do VFDs play in energy efficiency? Are there other benefits to using VFDs?
Motors are one of the biggest users of power in industrial and commercial applications. Integrating VFDs can help optimize energy efficiency, which reduces the demand on utility power and provides significant cost savings.
VFDs can help users optimize their efficiency in a couple of ways. First, they provide precise speed and torque control to the motor as opposed to running continuously at full power. The energy savings is significant, especially in variable torque applications, such as centrifugal fans and pumps where a small reduction in speed can significantly reduce the power being consumed.
The second way VFDs help with energy efficiency is by limiting inrush current. When a large motor is started across the line, it can draw an exorbitant amount of current that spikes power draw and can even cause tripping upstream. VFDs control motors’ ramp-up speed and torque, much like a reduced voltage soft starter, but with the added advantage of full speed motor control.
VFDs also offer other benefits in industrial motor applications. They can enhance safety with features such as safe torque off (STO), which stops motor rotation in an emergency and provides equipment protection from current overload and power surges.
In addition, many VFDs are equipped with logic, monitoring, and analytics capabilities and can provide redundancy for critical power applications, such as hospitals.
What are some key considerations when selecting a VFD, and how can operators choose what’s best for them?
Start by considering the application and the job the motor will be performing. I also recommend reviewing the motor nameplate, which will give you key details, such as motor type, horsepower, voltage, full load amps, RPMs, service factor, hertz, phase information, and temperature ratings.
Other questions to consider are:
- Is the motor powering a fan or pump? These would typically be considered variable torque loads. Alternatively, if the motor is powering a crusher conveyor belt, it may demand constant torque.
- What are the environmental conditions where the VFD will be located? Is there significant moisture, or are extreme temperatures a concern?
- What NEMA ratings will be required for the application?
- Is limited space or harmonic distortion a factor that needs to be mitigated to avoid power quality problems and interference with certain equipment?
- How will the motor performance be controlled — with an open or closed loop?
- What certifications are required (e.g., UL, CE, RoHS)?
- Cost-understand the value the VFD provides and its market price point.
Think about what equipment protection and safety functions your application requires, such as safe torque off, short circuit current rating, or overload protection, and consider the duty cycle of the motor. Does it run one speed or vary between heavy-duty loads and duration? Ease of use when it comes to programming and interfacing with the drive is another important consideration.
Next, consider the devices the VFD will need to communicate with, such as PLCs, HMIs, and SCADA systems, and the network protocols required, for example, PROFIBUS, EtherNet/IP, Modbus, or BACnet. You should also factor in how many digital and analog I/O terminals you need for control interfaces.
Once you have all this information, you can select the drive that best suits your application. Options include general-purpose industrial drives, HVAC drives, micro or machinery drives, high-performance drives for closed-loop applications, and clean-power drives.
Please introduce us to Eaton’s PowerXL Series.
Eaton has an expansive portfolio of best-in-class VFDs, known as the PowerXL Series. It includes DG1 general-purpose drives, DH1 HVAC drives, DM1 micro drives, and EGP clean-power drives. We also have a soon-to-be-released high-performance drive called the DX1.
All of these VFDs are designed to meet our customers’ performance requirements for a wide range of applications and, in turn, improve efficiency, safety, and reliability. They provide more intelligent control systems through features like Eaton’s Active Energy Control Algorithm, a patented technology designed to optimize the energy consumption of motors by dynamically adjusting voltage based on load conditions.
The PowerXL Series supports multi-PID (proportional – integral – derivative) loops that can eliminate the need for external process controllers. It can also control multiple pumps or fans with a single process signal without the need for a separate controller. Additional features include extensive onboard communications options, I/O terminals that enable easy integration into more applications without the cost of option cards, and a keypad copy/paste feature, which eliminates complex programming and significantly reduces startup and commissioning time.
Can you tell us more about the PowerXL DM1 VFDs?
The PowerXL DM1 and DM1 Pro are the flagship of Eaton’s microdrive offering. They have a compact design with maximum functionality at a cost-effective price point and provide customers with tailored solutions.
The DM1 is the standard model for applications in which drive performance and cost are key factors but direct drive access and user interface are limited or not required. The DM1 Pro has all the advantages of the DM1 with the addition of a keypad and display, onboard safe torque off (STO), and expanded communications. Both are multi-purpose solutions for commercial and OEM machinery applications under 30 horsepower.
DM1s and DM1 Pros can be placed inside a control panel and are DIN rail mountable. They are perfect for pumping, HVAC, refrigeration, and material handling applications and can easily integrate into distributed control packages. The typical customer base would be HVAC, pumping, and machinery OEMs, as well as panel builders, system integrators, and commercial and industrial contractors. They also have advanced motor capabilities built in, which allows them to run specialty high-efficiency motors, such as permanent magnet motors.
All DM1s are equipped with Eaton’s Active Energy Control algorithm, which can achieve up to 10% additional save energy savings compared to competitor drives. They also meet UL safety standard UL61800-5-1 and offer the industry’s best short circuit current ratings.
Additionally, if space is a concern, DM1 VFDs have a compact design that is 12–27% more compact than major competitors’ models. They also have conformal-coded PCBs for protection against moisture, dust, chemicals, and temperature, come standard with an IP20 rating, and are available with an optional NEMA 1 kit.
When it comes to communications, all DM1s have onboard Ethernet and serial-based communication, including BACnet, EtherNet/IP, Modbus TCP and RTU, and I/O — both digital and analog — as well as remote setup capabilities, Bluetooth, monitoring, and analytics.
As far as reliability, DM1 drives have high overload for constant torque applications and low overload for variable torque-rated applications.
The DM1 Pro includes all of these features plus STO (SIL2), a keypad and display, and expanded communication capabilities.
Is there anything else you’d like to share about the PowerXL Series?
The DX1 is Eaton’s latest addition to the PowerXL VFD lineup. It was developed in response to customer requests to combine ease of use in high-performance applications. The DX1 takes encoder feedback to provide precision speed and torque control. This allows the drive to operate sophisticated equipment with minutely accurate data points, like winders, hoists, or any applications that have a lot parts moving at the same time. The DX1 has a touchscreen keypad that streamlines configuration, onboard PLC logic, metering, and communication capabilities. These features make it ideal for closed-loop applications where energy efficiency and monitoring are essential, enhancing efficiency, cost-effectiveness, reducing downtime, and boosting productivity.
Are there any success stories you’d like to share about Eaton’s PowerXL Series VFDs?
We’ve had wins around energy efficiency with major HVAC and refrigeration customers, especially when paired with compressors for additional optimization. The series has also helped material handling customers implement distributed control solutions and has been a solution for a variety of general machine building customers.
There are a lot of competitors out on the market, but we make it easy to integrate our drives with their applications.
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To learn more about Eaton and its PowerXL Series VFDs, click the links embedded here and throughout this article or visit eaton.com/drives. For assistance identifying, procuring, deploying, and maintaining VFDs that can improve your energy efficiency, system safety, and reliability, please contact your local RS representative at 1.866.433.5722 or reach out to the RS technical product support team.
