As early as 2017, tens of thousands of imported grounding clamps installed at Depcom’s solar utility fields were beginning to show signs of degradation. Greaves performed an exhaustive metallurgical analysis to determine the cause and engineer a solution. They then took to the field and replaced every failing connector with a superior one manufactured by Greaves at their Centerbrook, CT plant.

Depcom had initially deployed a bronze clamp system manufactured overseas that would clip to the I-beams supporting the solar panels and attach the number two grounding wire. Over time, the clamps were found to have stress cracks, and the initial presumption was that they were improperly installed. But when Depcom brought in a team from Greaves to study and resolve the issue, they collaborated with the University of Connecticut Materials Science & Engineering lab and found that the problem was metallurgical – electron microscopic images revealed that the bronze clamps had been subject to galvanic corrosion caused by high zinc content and rapid cooling in the manufacturing process. Additionally, the bronze alloy contained lead, which formed dendrites that bisected the stress cracks during the cooling.

Depcom then enlisted Greaves to engineer and produce a new, custom design using extruded aluminum. The newly designed connector is now available in a range of sizes and includes an integrated zip-tie, which keeps all components gathered neatly. This new line of connectors is called the GBC Series.

Greaves then went above and beyond, with Matt Strand, Greaves’ owner, driving out to Depcom solar fields to assist in the replacement of tens of thousands of the defective bronze clips with the new Greaves-designed aluminum clamps. Greaves’ response was a model of problem-solving and customer service that would be very hard to find among larger firms, proving Greaves’ motto: Small enough to care, big enough to deliver!

Do you have a special application or project? Find a Greaves rep in your state using the interactive map at this link, or call Greaves directly at 1-800-243-1130.