Electrical Busbar Maintenance on Ships

A busbar is a copper plate/bar, which is used, in ship’s main and emergency switchboards to conduct electricity from generators or from one electrical terminal to another. Technically, there are no electrical wire connections inside the main and emergency switchboards on ships for connecting power supply from generators to these switchboards. All high voltage and high current systems are connected by bus bars.

Th busbar ’s copper plates/bars connected together with the help of nut bolts, which transmit electricity as required. During normal ship operations, the busbars connections subj ct d to ship’s h sh environment along with the vibrations generated by the ship and ship machinery such as main engine, auxiliary engines, compressors etc.


These vibrations cause loosening of nut bolts in the busbar, which can lead to short circuit or any other type of accident. Loose connections inside the switchboard can also lead to sparks that can cause fire.

Moreover, the busbars are meant to carry high voltage and current, which tend to heat up the lines due to energy flow in the system. For this reason, inspection and maintenance of busbar at regular inspection of time are required for smooth operation.

Safety

If any maintenance is planned for busbars, highest standards of safety are required as even the tiniest mistake can lead to electrocution and even death of the crew. The busbar maintenance is therefore performed when the complete busbar panel or switchboard is turned “OFF”.

When the bus bar maintenance should be done?

Busbbar maintenance can be done when th ship is in bl ck out condition, i.e. ship’s generators are not running and no power is supplied to main or emergency switchboards.

If the main switchboard busbars are to be inspected or to be work on, keep emergency generator running. Keep in mind that there will be some portion of the main switchboard, which will be fed by emergency switchboard. Hence know the complete system properly and keep away from those areas. The best time to do busbar maintenance is when the ship is in the dry dock.

Safety before doing busbar maintenance

1. Put the “lockout” tag in all generators and in the emergency generator.
2. Keep all the generator system including load dependent start stop system in manual mode.
3. Ensure to wear rubber gloves even when the board is not in “Live ” condition.
4. Wear all required personal protective equipment (PPEs) when working on switchboard.
5. If the ship is in complete black out situation, ensure that before cleaning the main and emergency switchboard, the area is well lit by sufficient lights. In dry dock, same can be arranged from shore workshop.