L I G H T N I N G P R OT E C T I O N
“Our customer should get a talking measuring station chips and their antennas for their lightning compatibility. No-
that gives them direct information about their lightning pro- body knew, for example, how the data storage on the badges
tection system via smartphone and a suitable app,” Reyno would react if a lightning strike caused high-impulse currents
Thormählen explains is the reason for the introduction of the to fl ow through the conductors. What material do we need to
“smart badges”. “We’ve conducted the real basic research to- use?”
gether with Phoenix Contact. The fi rst step was to test RFID
Lightning protection with vision
A separate system maintenance app has also been developed
together with Phoenix Contact which allows contactless read-
“Lightning protection is be-
coming increasingly import-
ant due to climate change
and the increased use of low
voltage in the IoT sector.” ing thanks to RFID technology. A gimmick? “Absolutely not.
Jens Barghorn,
Managing Director, Blitzschutz Thormählen protection systems, we want to offer lasting safety” (lo)
With this technology, facility management can integrate the
system into their maintenance concept, i.e., act on their own
initiative and not just follow our maintenance routine,” says
Jens Barghorn, describing the advantages of disconnection
point marking.
“We are currently equipping every new order with individ-
ually printed RFID badges, which currently number around
2,000 orders.” “For us, this is an investment in the relationship
with our customers,” Reyno Thormählen adds. “Lightning pro-
tection is a long-term issue. We don’t want to supply lightning
thormaehlen.com
Individually printable RFID
badges facilitate maintenance
With the information from
the chip, the technician
immediately recognizes the
most important details of
the system to be tested
The Phoenix Contact innovation magazine
UPDATE 4/20
43