October 6, 2003

New Wildlife Protection for Upright Omni-Rupter^® Switches.

Birds and tree squirrels are a leading cause of short term unexplained outages on distribution systems. To address this problem, S&C is pleased to introduce a wildlife protection option for manually operated Omni-Rupter® Switches in the upright configurations. The new option effectively prevents animals from making phase-to-ground part contact.

The key to the wildlife protection option is its unique angled wildlife discs that cover the bases of the support insulators—providing an excellent barrier between the energized and grounded parts of the switch. These discs snap together without tools, and fit both Cypoxy® and porcelain insulators. The wildlife discs are made of a durable, flexible, UV-stabilized polycarbonate material — the same material S&C has used on distribution fuse rain caps for over 20 years. The sloped construction of the discs provides an uneven foothold for climbing and perching animals, while shedding ice and rain. The steep slope of the discs also deters nest building under energized parts of the switch. The wildlife discs float on the insulators and have no effect on the insulation characteristics of the switch.