Most of our products are developed by ourselves or
in international co-operation.
The development of electrical penetration assemblies – EPAs (or hermetic cable penetrations) in Hungary started in 1987, when a team of researchers designed, built and type tested the AHA type, 12 kV, 600 A EPA. About 100 pieces of those EPAs were installed in Paks NPP.
VISOLA Ltd was founded by the same three research engineers in 1991 and – based on their former experience – undertook the development and manufacturing of further EPAs intended for replacement of obsolete power and I&C penetrations in Paks NPP. The design of the new products were based on application of glass-to-metal sealed penetrations, made by SCHOTT Electronic Packaging GmbH. Those were completed by gamma-screening developed by VISOLA Ltd. Altogether 370 pieces of complete EPAs equipped with Schott-insulation were delivered to Paks NPP
In 2006 VISOLA Ltd started a new development project to elaborate an economic technology for refurbishment of EPAs. The Hungarian government made a decision to extend the service time of VVER type reactor blocks of Paks NPP. During this project several old I&C EPAs had to be renewed or replaced. According to a new concept the original casing tubes with gamma shielding had to remain in containment walls and only obsolete penetration modules were to be replaced with new ones. VISOLA Ltd developed a family of new cable penetration modules with epoxy resin insulation. The work was financially supported by an EU and Hungarian government fund, called GVOP project. The new modules with special stainless-steel accessories enable the refurbishment of old EPAs on site. The same procedure is used for renovation of aged EPAs in our workshop.
VISOLA Ltd also developed heavy duty leakage proof cable junction boxes for EPAs.
For the reconstruction program of Paks NPP called Severe Accident Handling project in the early 2010-s our company updated some of the reactor block’s temperature measurement system elements ie. the thermometer junction box. In cooperation with the German ODU GmbH we developed new LOCA-proof connectors and with KW Eupen in Belgium we designed new, more flexible LOCA proof patch cables.
EU FUNDED TENDER PARTICIPATION
With the support received through the GINOP-2.1.7 Prototype Development Grant, our company has developed:
- heavy-current cable penetration assemblies rated at 1 kV with 100 A and 200 A nominal current, and
- C&I/IT cable penetration assemblies suitable for the transmission of Ethernet (Cat 5e) and coaxial cable lines.
Within the framework of the same project, we also began fundamental research into the adaptation of metal-ceramic bonding technology, which has not yet been applied in Hungary. In this development, we are collaborating with domestic universities, research institutes, and laboratories, and we have established an independent base of measuring and testing instruments to support our R&D and quality assurance activities.
Key details of the awarded grant are as follows:
- Project ID: GINOP-2.1.7-15-2016-00724
- Beneficiary name: VISOLA Electrical Insulation Technology Ltd.
- Project title: Development of new prototypes of electrical and C&I cable penetration assembly product family
- Contracted grant amount: HUF 101,572,706
- Grant intensity (%): 65,55%
- Project description: The objective of the project is to develop new types of electrical and C&I type cable penetration assembly product family that is superior and more efficient than previous solutions. A clear goal is also to develop and introduce technologies in Hungary that make it possible to manufacture a family of feedthrough modules domestically that meet higher technical requirements and can be applied across multiple industrial sectors. These products will meet the specific needs of the pharmaceutical, food, and chemical industries, metrology, general electrical engineering, and other specialized fields. The new technology to be introduced aligns well with the company’s philosophy of meeting unique requirements through a flexible and creative approach, thereby continuing to create high added value in the future.
- Actual project completion date: 03.04.2019