Spelsberg enclosures help upgrade water company telemetry network

Modernising existing infrastructure is a big challenge for utilities. One water company is currently undertaking a large upgrade of its telemetry assets, entrusting the project to its multi-disciplined engineering solutions provider. Part of the upgrade involved selecting reliable custom enclosures for critical network communications equipment. Consequently, the contractor approached leading enclosure manufacturer, Spelsberg.

Switching from physical to digital

In the past, the water company’s telemetry assets have transmitted key information via the public switched telephone network (PSTN). Data regarding pump operation, water levels and more is sent to a main control room, where operators respond accordingly to information received. To modernise its network, reduce downtime and eliminate the maintenance associated with physical lines, the water company is currently upgrading to digital communications for this equipment.

Initiating the project, the water company approached its framework contractor, which needed to source custom enclosures to house a battery, universal power supply (UPS) and a 3G or GSM router.

Sourcing a bespoke enclosure

An engineer at the framework contractor, who was tasked with designing a solution, commented: “These sites vary wildly, from full size brick buildings to small roadside kiosks. This meant the enclosures had to be compact to fit within all these
pre-existing installations. They would be located outside too, so weather protection was important.

“We also needed a transparent cover, so that water company maintenance engineers could immediately see equipment faults and alarms without opening the enclosure. I did a lot of research into possible suppliers, and the dimensions as well as the available customisations of the Spelsberg enclosure fitted perfectly with my design.”

Engineers initially selected a 400 mm x 300 mm GEOS enclosure, with the internals modified to house the equipment. Featuring durable glass reinforced plastic (GRP) construction, a transparent lid, a mounting plate and an IP66 ingress protection rating – the GEOS proved to be ideal for most of the telemetry sites. However, the variance in assets would present the contractor with an additional challenge.

Sometimes it takes two

“Some of the installations have so little space available, that occasionally we can’t use the GEOS,” the engineer explained. “To overcome this, I proposed a split design, with two separate enclosures linked by a cable. This allowed us to fit everything within tighter spaces.”

Again, Spelsberg had a solution. Two 250 mm x 180 mm TK PS enclosures enable the equipment to be split between them, improving space efficiency. The versatility of the Spelsberg range, as well as the business’ highly flexible customisation service, has allowed every enclosure design requirement to be met.

Custom solutions in quantity

However, like any large-scale project, the framework contractor required a high quantity of the enclosures backed by reliable delivery. This was something else that Spelsberg could provide.

“So far, we have used well over 2,000 enclosures during this project and will require many more in the future. Delivery has been good throughout, and we’ve never had delays due to a shortage,” the engineer said.

The high manufacturing capacity offered by Spelsberg has ensured that despite the increased complexity of the designs, the two enclosure models can be mass produced to meet customer demand.

Ticking the boxes for water utilities

The water company is planning to upgrade all its telemetry assets to digital communications, with Spelsberg enclosures helping its framework contractor to deliver this large, ongoing project. Once complete, the upgrade will greatly simplify network maintenance, reduce downtime and improve the resilience of the telemetry network – all contributing to highly reliable, modernised water infrastructure.

About Spelsberg

Spelsberg is one of the largest manufacturers of electrical enclosures in the world. With over 4,000 enclosures available as standard and further customisation possible, it offers solutions for almost any application.

With the largest supply of non-metallic enclosures, ex-stock in the UK, its products are often available for delivery within 24 hours; customisation is possible on any product, including bespoke entries, engraved corporate logos or fitted terminals, within 48 hours. Products can be ordered direct from Spelsberg or from most leading supply specialists including RS, Rapid, Farnell and CPC.