Schneider Electric powers Heathrow's Terminal 5

The Terminal 5 project that began in 2002 is on schedule to be finished by March 2008, with the delivery of an extensive high voltage (HV) electrical network infrastructure. As a 24/365 facility, T5 demands the highest standards of security and availability of electrical supply to maintain safe and effective operation. Aside from the lighting requirements of the passenger terminal and ancillary buildings, there is a huge electrical power requirement to drive 175 lifts, 131 escalators and 18km of conveyor belt for transporting luggage about the facility.

Equivalent to a town the size of Reading:

Schneider Electric is the sole supplier for the ring main unit (RMU) throughout the site, which covers 260 hectares of electrical infrastructure. This scale is equal in proportion to a town the size of Reading. With two intakes handling the 33kV incomers - one sited in the North of the quarter mile long terminal building, the other in the South. In each of these intake substations, two 33/11kV transformers step down the voltages for distribution around the terminal.

There are also a large number of secondary substations located around the T5 system. Most of these substations consist of two transformer intakes and a hot standby unit consisting of a transformer plus ring main unit. In event of either transformer intake failing, the hot standby unit is connected to share the demand with the remaining transformer intake.

Schneider Electric will continue to work with EDF Energy through to the end of the second phase of the project, which will also see a second satellite building energised in the near future.

The picture shows some of the Schneider Electric people involved in the Terminal 5 project.