Separable Connectors for Large Motors

Continuing growth in electric motor size is coupled with greater need for reliable interconnection between motor and power system to minimize process downtime. Yet the many standards governing electrical clearance, moisture resistance, grounding, safety, and cooling of electrical apparatus have little to say about that interconnection located within the motor terminal box. The traditional bolted and taped terminal lug joints, requiring long hours of skilled labor to make up, need remaking each time the circuit must be opened for testing or motor servicing. The high-voltage separable connector, forming a watertight, yet easily removable joint at low cost, now offers a suitable alternative if its limitations are fully understood.