ICS take great pride in building our BMS control panels to the highest quality in accordance with our customers exacting standards.
It’s obviously very important that once delivered and installed the control panel can be energized safely and set to work. The installation and commissioning engineers can be assured that the control panel has been thoroughly tested in accordance with the manufactured drawings and relevant safety standards, therefore saving time commissioning when time is always at a premium.
Many people think that once the design has been agreed and signed off it is simply a case of building the control panel in line with the approved for construction issue drawings and the delivering to site, however nothing could be further from the truth. A typical control panel can contain up to many hundred individual components and thousands of electrical connections so there is always the need to ensure that everything has been assembled correctly.
How does ICS test a control panel?
Every BMS control panel that ICS manufactures is always built to the highest quality standards, with what we believe are the best available components. In order to achieve this, we have a safe environment to work within; proven processes to follow; the correct tools for each process and employing highly skilled people.
What is the Process?
In line with our manufacturing process, we have a systematic approach for testing our BMS control panels. Before any power is applied to the control panel various checks and test are carried out.
These are summarized below:
Cleaning – Once the control panel has been fully assembled and is ready for testing it is thoroughly cleaned inside and out to remove any small debris left over from the manufacturing process. Care is taken inspecting the external control panel shell to ensure that there are no scratches or dents in the enclosure that may have damaged the structured powder coating.
Design and Construction – As part of the design process fully dimensioned internal and external layouts are produced and incorporated within the wiring schematics. The manufacturers components utilized within the control panel and shown on the layouts are detailed on a separate page as part of the wiring schematics. These are all cross-referenced against our own or the customers supplied specification.
Earthing Arrangements – It is imperative that all BMS control panels have a good path to earth so that in the event of an electrical fault, there is a good fault path for the fault current to flow to earth to help prevent the danger of electric shock to people. As part of the testing process the earthing arrangements are thoroughly inspected and inspected to ensure that they are adequate prior to the continuity being measured and the earth bonding resistance results recorded.
Tightness Testing – On all circuits but especially power supplies it is essential that a tightening check is carried out for the long-term integrity of the connections. Even if a connection is slightly loose there is always the risk that with cyclic heating and cooling of the connection under load, it will lead to the connection becoming even looser, potentially leading to a short-circuit, electrical failure or even a fire. All power connections are tested using calibrated torque screwdrivers and wrenches with the settings being dictated by the manufacturers recommendations.
Cabling – The cable wiring colours are generally as per IEC 60455, referenced in BS EN 61439 unless there are specific requirements detailed within the project specifications. Cable sizes are referenced within the BMS control panel wiring schematics, with each cable being identified with a unique number and finished with a suitable crimp or ferrule depending upon the termination type.
Point to Point Testing – Prior to any circuits being energized point to point testing is carried out on all cables, this involves the cabling of each circuit being checked to ensure that each wire is terminated correctly at both ends.
Shrouding – Most components are IPX2 rated direct from the individual manufacturers, however some customers or project specifications require additional shrouding to prevent certain components or semi-exposed elements being able to be accidentally touched. In these instances, we manufacture custom acrylic shrouds that can be any shape or size to cover the required area and equipment. With the shrouds being complete with suitable voltage warning labels and requiring tools to remove.
Insulation Resistance Testing – An insulation resistance test is carried out to ensure that there are no short circuits within the control panel (for BMS control panels with a proprietary bus-bar a flash test is also carried out).
Power Circuit Testing – Each circuit is energized in a logical order by operating its appropriate MCB or inserting its fuse. Using a voltage tester, the circuit is checked to ensure that the circuit is distributing power to the correct components only.
Control Circuit Testing – The control circuit logic associated with each circuit is checked to ensure that the various switches, lamps, and interlocks function as required.
BMS Controllers and HMI Display Testing – The inputs and outputs at each BMS Controller are tested as far as practicable when software is not installed along with the operation of and HMI Displays.
Test Equipment
As the test procedure is somewhat comprehensive the correct test equipment for each process being undertaken is always used and dependent upon the type of construction of the panels the testing process will alter.
Typical equipment used on every BMS control panel test would be:
- Wire Links (to simulate inputs and make low voltage circuits)
- Signal Generators (0-10VDC – 4-20mA)
- Digital Multimeter
- Earth Continuity Tester
- Insulation Resistance Tester
- Earth Loop Impedance Tester
- RCD/RCBO Tester
Where a BMS control panel has been manufactured with a bus-bar system additional test equipment is also used:
- Torque Wrenches
- Flash Tester
All equipment including crimping tools, torque wrenches and electronic testers are fully calibrated by a third-party specialist meeting the requirements of UKAS Calibration 0511.
Copies of the certificates are available at any time and the instrument serial numbers, calibration date and calibration certificate number are included within the BMS control panels test certificate and inspection documentation.
Who tests the control panels?
The initial verification and testing procedure is carried out by the BMS control panel assembler. After this test the whole process is undertaken again by a second engineer who has not carried out any work on the panel or it is carried out by our dedicated test engineer.
Confirmation of the panel testing
As previously outlined the scope of testing is quite extensive and is also essential to ensure that all the individual elements are carried out correctly and that no process is overlooked.
The panel tests are referenced on the control panel wiring schematics during the testing process and the transferred onto our test certificate and inspection document for the control panel. A copy of the test certificate and inspection document is made available to the customer for their records and is also issued during any client FAT (Factory Acceptance Testing). The documents are saved along with all the other project documentation for future reference should they be required.