What Is Transformer Retrofitting?
Retrofitting involves replacing an old transformer with a new transformer customized to your specific dimensions. A retrofit from ELSCO Transformers goes beyond a standard replacement. When you order a retrofit transformer, you get a replacement that helps you meet your company’s evolving electricity needs. Your retrofit will also have a design meant to fit into your existing power system.
Do You Need A Transformer Retrofit?
In addition to catastrophic failure, there are other reasons for replacing a transformer, including:
- End of lifespan: If you have an older transformer, you may need to replace it to keep your facility up and running.
- Increased capacity needs: As your power consumption grows, so should your transformer. We can retrofit your old model with a higher-capacity, more efficient transformer. We can often retrofit to your existing enclosure, which will save you money.
- Natural disaster: Lightning, flooding and other weather events can cause premature transformer failure, requiring a prompt replacement. This can be an opportunity to upgrade your power capacity and efficiency ratings, which can save on monthly utility costs.
- Overloading: Harmonics and increased electrical loads can break down and weaken a transformer, requiring an updated design or a retrofit. Excessive heat breaks down the insulation which shortens the life span of a transformer.
- Maintenance issues: When you experience frequent maintenance issues, you likely will need to update your transformer.
From our years of experience in rebuilding and retrofitting all brands and models of medium-voltage transformers, we bring unique expertise to retrofitting transformers for our customers.
Depending on your specifications, we may be able to retrofit your transformer from our in-stock line of new dry type or padmount units.
Alternatively, if you have time, we can custom-build a transformer to your exact specifications.
We may be able to retrofit one of our in-stock pre-owned transformers to meet your specifications.
Either way, you will obtain a retrofitted transformer with higher electrical efficiency and upgraded power capacity to match your current and future needs.
For Custom Transformer Retrofits
Custom Bus Work
When your plant or facility needs to increase energy production or capacity, or you need to replace an existing dry type, you may have to alter infrastructure to meet your goals. Replacing your dry type transformer with a different model can prove costly, especially if you have to rework all the connections to and from the transformer.
To save money while upgrading, many facility managers turn to new retrofit transformers. These custom systems can provide greater power capacity while maintaining the connections and dimensions of the original. Retrofitting usually involves creating custom buswork to match up the connections.
ELSCO can provide custom bus work for our dry type emergency replacement or retrofit transformers
Our staff will make sure the new low voltage bus bars line up with your facility’s existing low voltage gear and include any necessary high voltage cabling to the high voltage gear.
When you provide us with specifications, we can equip your new medium-voltage dry type transformer with the right bus bar arrangement for your applications and ship it with the transformer.
By ordering our custom bus work, you can:
- Solve unique challenges: Custom bus work will allow you to equip a retrofit transformer with connections that accommodate your setup. You can arrange to connect a Motor Control Center (MCC) to the transformer, share regenerative drive energy and more.
- Simplify the installation process: Retrofit transformers with custom bus work are designed to fit in the space your old transformer occupied. You won’t need to rework any connections or build new enclosures, which means saving time during installation.
- Reduce the cost of upgrading: Retrofit transformers will reuse some of the hardware you already have, which will lower the cost of upgrading your facility’s infrastructure
Contact ELSCO Transformers to Learn More
We are dedicated to helping commercial and industrial clients meet their evolving power needs. Whether you manage a plant facility, university campus, hospital, correctional facility, or electrical supply house, custom bus work can allow your retrofit dry type transformer to relay power efficiently. Request service to learn more about our capabilities.