UK-based FG Wilson makes self-contained generator sets, which are easy to install & operate, and are designed for a long and productive working life.

If you’re working on a construction site, it’s likely that you have a generator set to provide temporary power, possibly running all day for the duration of the project. Choosing a generator set can be an important decision. There are many different products in the market and all of them fill a useful niche.

Mithilesh Singh is from FG Wilson, a UK-based brand which has been in the business for more than 50 years and which is now making a mark in India with a range of generator sets from 10 to 200 kVA, sourced and fully supported in India, and all CPCB II emissions compliant.

He says, “First and foremost, FG Wilson is a volume manufacturer, with 625,000 generator sets installed since 1990, which is as far back as our IT systems can look. And because we build for volume, we go to great lengths to ensure our products are as reliable as possible when they’re working for their owners.”

That means a rigorous approach to testing before any FG Wilson products reach customers.

Mithilesh says, “We have a modern Engineering Centre in the UK, built with an investment of $26 million, which houses our R&D facilities and also contains Europe's largest fully automated hemi-anechoic chamber, providing state of the art acoustic research and test capabilities.”

At the Centre, every new product design is tested for 500 hours on a resistive load bank and inspected throughout for design weaknesses which, if found, are then corrected before launch. This includes testing of full load power rating with testing of cold load step and hot load step to ensure the generator set can produce quoted performance. Mithilesh says this is important: “The 500 hour test determines the likely reliability of the generator set in a customer’s environment, and the full load power rating allows us to validate the performance data of the engine. For us, the data from the engine manufacturer is a starting point and our test confirms the actual engine performance in the generator set when it’s in action. It’s not always the same as the standard engine data and for us, it’s important to make sure the performance data are exactly right for the customer’s application.”

Enclosures are fitted around every outdoor generator set in an urban environment including those on construction sites, and the same rigorous approach to testing is applied to these. Mithilesh says, “Designers of generator sets always face a constant battle to control noise and heat. You want an enclosure which is as small as possible and which suppresses as much noise as possible, but that in turn makes engine cooling a challenge. So it’s a constant process of trade-off and design tweaks to get all three, size, noise and cooling, where you want them. That means a designer needs a very detailed understanding of airflow through enclosures and it’s really important in high ambient temperature environments. It’s not difficult to put an enclosure around a generator set. It is much more challenging to make it work in a high ambient temperature.”

As part of product testing, noise pressure level is measured at 1 m & 7 m and calculated from measurements on a hemisphere. This means that customers can be sure that the generator set has been properly tested and independently certified and that it is within stated and legal limits and is not louder than expected or promised. At the same time, volumetric airflow is measured to ensure reliable performance at stated ambient conditions and to ensure that the generator set will not repeatedly shutdown due to high engine temperature.

The testing doesn’t stop there either: it includes vibration analysis, alternator testing, water ingress testing, safety and serviceability audits and EMC testing to ensure generator sets do not interfere with other equipment.

Once installed, FG Wilson generator sets are supported by a global parts operation which ships up to 3 million parts a year from a stocklist of 11,500 different parts. Mithilesh says, “Our formula is very simple: self-contained generator sets which are easy to install and operate, designed for a long and productive working life, supported by a wide and professional dealer network and which represent value for money.”

To find out more about FG Wilson generator sets in India, visit www.fgwilson.com/india