A telecom infrastructure company operating 200+ off-grid base stations across remote areas in Southeast Asia faced recurring power system failures. Each site relied on a 48V DC power system with battery banks and solar PV panels. The company served over 500,000 subscribers and required 99.9% uptime to meet service-level agreements.
The original breakers were generic AC/DC rated units with only 6kA breaking capacity. They experienced frequent nuisance tripping caused by inrush currents from rectifiers and solar charge controllers. Over 12 months, 40% of sites reported at least one unplanned outage due to breaker malfunction. In 15% of fault events, the breakers failed to clear short circuits, causing battery bank damage and inverter failures. Average repair cost per incident was $1,200, and total annual losses exceeded $100,000.
After assessing alternatives from three suppliers, the engineering team chosen the SingIElectric SC65-63 for three reasons. First, its 10kA DC breaking capacity matched the requirements for 48V systems with high short-circuit potential from parallel battery strings. Second, the arc chamber design—optimized for DC arcs—provided consistent quenching even under inductive loads. Third, the compact 1-pole format (18mm width) allowed direct replacement without panel modifications. The breaker also carried IEC 60947-2 certification for DC applications.
The rollout covered 50 pilot sites over three months. Key steps included:
A typical challenge was mismatched busbar spacing in older panels. The team resolved this by adding terminal adapters, which added only 15 minutes per site.
After six months of operation:
"The SC65-63 eliminated the random trips that plagued our sites. Our field team trusts this breaker because it handles DC arc without hesitation." — Senior Electrical Engineer, Telecom Operator
