SACE Emax 3: the evolution of the air circuit breaker for resilient networks

ABB 's new SACE Emax 3 air circuit breaker – the successor to the Emax 2 intelligent circuit breaker – introduces cutting-edge technologies to minimize the risk of power outages.

"Emax 2 is a highly recognized and appreciated product on the market," emphasizes Valentina Bastrakova, Product Marketing Manager for Electrification and Smart Power at ABB. "The challenge of the new project was precisely to integrate cutting-edge technology into a product that deliberately retains the winning features of its predecessor, in line with market needs, but now evolved to anticipate future needs."

This innovative product bears the signature of the Bergamo research centre, while development and production took place in the Frosinone plant .

SACE Emax 3 was designed to integrate seamlessly into existing systems and equipment, evolving alongside changing market needs. Thanks to scalable solutions and ongoing updates, it represents a platform ready to face future challenges.

Developed to maximize system efficiency, Emax 3 combines advanced sensing capabilities with effective power source and load management strategies, ensuring service continuity even under critical conditions.

In an environment where cybersecurity is increasingly crucial, the new ABB circuit breaker meets the highest cybersecurity standards , protecting data while safeguarding people and infrastructure.

"In recent years, we've witnessed a profound transformation: digitalization, energy transition, and new challenges for systems. With Emax 3, we wanted to offer a product that could adapt to these changes," adds Valentina Bastrakova. "A system you can install today, but one that can evolve with its context. From the outside, it may look similar to its predecessor, but inside, it holds entirely new potential , ready to face the future with peace of mind and flexibility."

The new SACE Emax 3 is the result of ABB's experience in the field of electrical distribution and the desire to offer a concrete response to the needs of an ever-evolving market. Designed to integrate seamlessly into electrical distribution systems, it combines the advanced features of:

• versatility,
• reliability
• safety,

ensuring high performance in every application context.

SACE Emax 3 offers the flexibility to customize and adapt features to meet changing needs over time. It features:

• backward compatibility with its predecessor Emax 2;
• ease of updating the functionality of the Ekip Aware protection trip unit;
• advanced connectivity with intuitive interface.

Emax 3 maintains the same overall dimensions, mounting points, terminals, and electrical performance as Emax 2, ensuring integration of the new product without redesigning the system. Furthermore, the Device Substitution certificate eliminates the need to recertify panels already tested with Emax 2.

Thanks to the Ekip Aware protection trip unit, it is possible to carry out software and hardware updates easily to add and/or modify the measurement and protection functions.

The latest-generation interface offers quick access through a simplified menu structure, ensuring efficient interaction with the circuit breaker. Combined with the EPiC mobile app and Ekip Connect software, it allows monitoring, control, and data analysis from a smartphone or laptop.

New key locks and padlocks, redesigned mechanical interlocks ensure a high level of security and operational control, thanks to a simplified design that reduces installation time and optimizes performance over time.

Designed to maximize and monitor business continuity, Emax 3 features advanced energy management. Thanks to intelligent logic functions, Emax 3 intelligently responds to fluctuations in power loads and system demands to ensure uninterrupted power supply to priority loads.

Emax 3 achieves accuracy class level 0.5% for active power and energy, in accordance with IEC 61557-12 .

Thanks to sensors and advanced data analysis capabilities, Emax 3 collects and processes information from the electrical system in real time, including:

• energy consumption,
• plant status,
• environmental conditions such as temperature.

This data can be viewed remotely or directly on the switch's touchscreen, providing real-time insights, notifications, and recommendations for increasingly precise maintenance. This integrated intelligence allows you to move from reactive to predictive maintenance, ensuring:

• real-time monitoring to prevent unexpected failures;
• advanced condition indexing with sensors that monitor the condition of system components to reduce downtime;
• Sense accessory health monitoring for increased reliability and durability;
• Temperature monitoring to verify the operating status of the switch and the system under any environmental and load conditions.

In today's environment, security is paramount. Emax 3 meets the highest cybersecurity standards, safeguarding all data and ensuring extended protection in the field. It is the first open circuit breaker to achieve Security Level 2 cybersecurity certification according to the IEC 62443 standard, introducing data protection and tamper-proofing systems, differentiated access based on roles, and communication only through original ABB components.

But Emax 3's security doesn't stop there. It offers additional, comprehensive protection for people and assets:

• rapid arc flash detection – active protection with rapid intervention that helps reduce the effects of arc flash;
• Remote Racking Device (RRD) that allows safe remote extraction/insertion, preventing personnel from being exposed to risks caused by a possible electric arc.

Critical infrastructures require increasingly resilient and intelligent electrical systems: the new SACE Emax 3 represents a decisive step towards safe and reliable business continuity.

With SACE Emax 3, ABB provides its customers with a technology capable of accompanying them in the evolution of energy requirements , guaranteeing stability, efficiency and safety over time.