How Busbar Inspection and maintenance is carried out?

Any maintenance on busbars should only be performed when the ship in Dry dock or black out condition.

1. Open the door for main and emergency switchboards where inspection is to be performed.
2. Carryout visual inspection of copper plate and nut bolts. Mark any missing or burn out areas.
3. By hand or using a metal or plastic stick (where access for hand is not possible), tap the bus plates gently so as to make out for any loose connection. Ensure to wear electrical gloves even when busbar is not live.
4. The busbars are mechanically supported inside the switchboard by means of insulators, which may be of rubber or ceramic materials (bad conductors). Check for any damages in the insulator part.
5. By using an adjustable spanner or particular size spanner, tighten the nuts in the busbar connection for main and emergency switch boards.
6. Check the tightness of the wire connections, which is connected to the circuit breakers.
7. Clean the bus bar and switchboard area with the help of vacuum cleaner.
8. If u find any loose connection or spark, black-out the particular and adjacent busbar before tightening the nut.
9. If u find any metal piece or nut bolts missing or inside the panel, ensure to remove it as the same can cause short circuit or fire
10. Inform the Chief Engineer and the in-charge of that particular machinery regarding the same.
11. Reset the main power and check if there is any abnormal sound in main switch board and emergency switch board.
12. Monitor the temperature of the busbar area with laser temperature gun.
13. Keep the emergency switchboard in the auto mode.

The ship’s electrical officer is required to, Inspect the busbar periodically for record keeping and also as stated by the preventive maintenance system. This is done to avoid any type of accident from electrical faults on ships. When doing such inspection the following highest safety measures are to be taken with all required PPEs as the busbar is “LIVE.

Check the load in the running generator by means of KW meter provided in the main switchboard. Open the bus bar access door provided at the backside of MSB or ESB.

Once the inspection and maintenance is completed:

1. Close the bus bar access doors.
2. Remove the lock out tag.
3. Restore the main power supply by the generator.