In many cases, the options described may be limited in application because of copper alloy or other metal considerations, manufacturing capabilities, or simply the high cost of copper in today’s market.

Copper Bus Bar Efficiency: Make no mistake, size really matters

Bus bar systems for industrial and commercial facilities are often designed to save costs, with the bus bars sized to the minimum safety requirements permitted by local electrical codes. Often the future operating costs are ignored during the design stage, which can result in large amounts of wasted electrical energy due to the inefficient bus-bar conductivity or heating.

While opting for larger cross-sections of bus bar can result in more efficient power distribution grounding systems – with less heating and lower operating costs – the optimum system is one that properly balances initial costs with operating costs in order to minimize total life-cycle cost.

Energy is most often wasted in power or grounding systems because a portion of the electricity flowing through the conductor (bus or ground bar) is converted to heat rather than being delivered as usable electrical energy. The factors that determine the rate at which heat is generated by a bus bar system include:

• The amperage of the system with several factors that determine the resistance.

• The design of bus bar, the cross-section dimensions and the system layout.

• The conductivity of the bus bar metal, e.g. Copper vs. Aluminum.

While inefficient electrical conductivity leads to heat loss, there is a proportionally inverse relationship between the two that can be solved by increasing the bus bar dimensions. Yet the effects of the amperage and the bus bar dimensions are harder to discern.

Once the bus bar dimensions are set and a system is laid out, any increase in amperage down the line will increase the heat loss. Designing a larger cross-section of bus bar will naturally decrease electrical resistance and heat loss. But when is enough, enough?

Interestingly, the effects of amperage vs. dimensions are nonlinear. Thinner, wider bus bar systems actually have better heat-dissipation characteristics and run cooler than heavier bus bars that have less surface area. Since electrical resistance rises with temperature, the thinner, wider configurations are better conductors. Go figure.

Click here to view a set of key ampacity tables.

For customers who lack an engineering degree or Einstein’s brain, please be aware that in addition to this design guide, Storm Copper Quality Team members are on hand to review your specification and provide assistance in discerning ways to reduce cost and lead times.

You can reach them by calling Storm’s OEM Hotline: 1-800-394-4804

Copper Bus Bar Fabrication and Plating – Important Considerations

Storm manufacturers copper bus and electrical ground bars and kits for installations including perimeter grounding, telecommunications centers, towers and antennas. In each of these installations, one of the key factors in producing a cost effective busbar begins with layout of the required holes. From a fabrication standpoint, on copper busbar less than .500” thick, punching holes is much more cost effective than milling holes. The holes in a busbar are always punched in while the stock is flat, and then any required bends are made. When holes are specified too close to a bend, the holes can become distorted slightly. Even a slight distortion can prevent the installation of other components when tolerances are tight, so the only solution is milling holes that are designed too close to a bend. Milling is a slow and expensive process that is easily avoidable by allowing a distance of 1.00” or more from a hole location to a bend in the part.

Another reason that drives up costs, through required milling is tolerance. When hole placement tolerance is less than +/- .005” it is impossible to hold these dimensions on our punch presses. Also, the tolerance of the hole diameter is a concern. When specifications call for +/- .001, we must use a mill to drill the hole. To avoid incurring the additional costs of milling, keep your tolerances to +/- .020”.

It is important to note that punching copper busbar does slightly deform the surface of the part. Occasionally this indenting or rounding of the surface of the busbar can result in a loss of contact area. This minor deformation of the hole is rarely a problem, but worth noting.

Storm’s prototyping capability can also put samples of bus bar connectors in your hands for evaluation in a matter of days. And because Storm offers in-house bus bar electroplating of tin, lead, tin/lead alloys and silver, lead times critical OEM delivery requirements are reduced. Plus internal plating is more cost effective than outsourcing.

Un-plated vs. Tin-plated?

Pure Copper Grounding Bars are the industry standard because of the excellent conductivity of copper. But Storm also offers in-house electroplating of fabricated bus bar. This allows quick response to critical OEM delivery requirements. Moreover, internal plating is more cost effective than outsourcing.

Tin-Plated Grounding Bars can be a better choice for outdoor or other harsh environments, as tin electro-plating reduces the chance of corrosion interfering with the ground connection. Tin plating also disguises the copper color, serving as a secondary theft deterrent, while making the copper unusable for illegal recycling.

Security Ground Bar Kits are also available to prevent theft of copper by replacing the standard hex bolt configuration with Truss Spanner Security Bolts.

For more information on protecting against copper theft, check out our Copper Crime Center

Storm also offers custom stamping for theft prevention. Allow us to stamp your company name, logo, phone number, or a Do Not Recycle message into each ground bar. For more information, link to our live chat center or call toll free: 1-888-334-2177.

Ground Bar Kits were developed by Storm to save time and money, and include the following components:

One .25″ thick grounding bar of solid copper (110 Electrolytic Tough-Pitch). Standoff Insulators: A Mounting Brackets: B Stainless Hex Bolts: C Stainless Spring-Lock Washers: D

Storm also offers Clear Polycarbonate Ground Bar Cover Kits to protect workers and equipment from accidental contact with live voltage.

Kits include one .25" thick grounding bar 6" wide of solid cold-drawn copper (110 Electrolytic Tough-Pitch). Standoff Insulators: A Mounting Brackets: B 3/8"-16 x 5/8" Stainless Hex Bolts: C Stainless Spring-Lock Washers: D

While attending the recent National Association of Tower Erectors (NATE) conference, Storm representatives kept getting comments from tower installation professionals, stating they had a serious need for grounding bars with expanded capacity, which could accommodate more cable terminations.

One of the things that Storm Copper prides itself on is the ability to respond to special needs or requests from customers. Very shortly after the conference, Storm introduced a new grounding bar and optional kit that is well on its way to raising the industry standard from what has been historically a 4” bar.

Like the smaller 4” version, these UL-listed 6″ solid cold-drawn copper ground bars divert maximum current associated with lightning strikes common to communication towers and antenna installations, but they have a one major advantage – a significant expansion in available connection space for an increased number of cable attachments. The .25” x 6” x 12” version of this product has a hole configuration that provides 12 – .41″ drilled holes, EIA spaced at 1.5″ and
6 – Slotted Holes, affording greater space for attaching multiple cables with compression lugs. An additional safety feature is that the additional size also increases spacing from the outside edge to 2”, instead of the standard 1-3/4”. This additional margin of safety serves to further isolate connections from accidental contact when service personnel are working on promises.

Storm 6” grounding bars are available in lengths of 12”, 16” and 18”, or custom orders of any size can be accommodated with a quick turnaround time.

Kits are also available, which makes it more convenient for ordering all the necessary components at one time. For example, a kit includes .25″ x 6 ” x 12″ Solid Copper Ground Bar with 2 – UL recognized standoff insulators; 2 – Stainless Mounting Brackets; 4 – Stainless 5/8 – 1 x 1 hex bolts and spring-lock washers. Kits for larger sizes include additional components proportionate to length.

Storm maintains a huge inventory of standard components, but special configurations are not a problem. Storm uses a computerized flexible tooling system designed to reduce set up and production time on special orders and that’s huge according to owner, Dan Kitts. “Our products usually ship in 24 hours, compared to three to eight weeks that are the industry norm. That’s obviously a significant advantage for time critical installations,” he said.

If you haven’t visited the Storm Grounding Web site you’re in for a pleasant surprise. All products are arranged conveniently for a minimum of clicks required to order and the pricing is structured so contractors and journeymen electricians can save money and pass on those savings to their customers to build loyalty and return contracts. With Storm Copper Components, you can expect the best quality products at very competitive prices, exceptionally fast shipping times, free UPS shipping and a satisfaction guaranteed policy that is second to none.

Check out Stormgrounding.com and see what I’m talking about!