TORONTO, ONTARIO - October 12, 2004 - Schneider Electric Canada today announced that it is working in conjunction with the Canadian Standards Association (CSA) on a voluntary recovery for its Square D and Federal Pioneer Arc Fault Interrupter (AFI) circuit breakers. The products may not provide arc detection capability due to the failure of a third-party supplied internal component in the electronic detection circuit.
The recovery pertains to Square D QO® and Homeline
® (Canada and the USA) and Federal Pioneer Stab-lok® (Canada) 15- and 20-amp AFI circuit breakers manufactured this year between March 1 and September 23, 2004. While the breakers will continue to function like a regular circuit breaker, providing short circuit and overload protection, they may not detect a high resistance, low current arcing fault. These products are typically sold through electrical distributors and retail home improvement stores and installed in residential and light commercial applications. AFI circuit breakers are required by the Canadian Electrical Code in the bedroom circuits of new residential construction.
“The safety of our people, our customers and our products is our organization’s number one priority,” said Gary Abrams, president of Schneider Electric Canada. “We accept nothing less than excellence when it comes to safety, and we are voluntarily recalling all breakers that may be affected to help ensure our customers’ safety. We are working with the CSA and provincial regulatory agencies on a corrective action plan and have sent this information to our distributors and customers. Our distributors and customers have associated our Square D and Federal Pioneer brands with industry leadership, safety, quality, reliability and innovation for over 50 years and we will act quickly and appropriately to ensure they receive the quality products and services they expect from us.”
Schneider Electric has sent detailed instructions to its network of distributors, customers and retailers on how to identify and return these products. This potential arc fault issue has been corrected and the company has significantly increased the manufacturing capacity of its AFI breakers. New breakers have already begun shipping to its distributors and customers. If distributors or customers have any immediate questions, they can call toll-free 1-800-565-6699 for any additional information available.
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Schneider Electric is the world’s power and control specialist, with leading brands such as Federal Pioneer, Merlin Gerin, Square D and Telemecanique. We have proven power distribution, industrial control, automation and energy management products and systems installed in utilities and industrial, commercial and residential facilities worldwide. Schneider Electric generated sales of approximately $14.2 billion in 2003 in 130 countries.
Schneider Electric Canada is part of the North American Operating Division of Schneider Electric, which markets products to customers in the United States, Canada and Mexico. In North America, we are a leader in all our key market segments – residential construction, commercial and industrial construction, process automation and control, and original equipment manufacturers (OEMs).
In Canada, Schneider Electric has 1,000 employees, four manufacturing facilities, 23 sales and service offices and 300 electrical distributor branches across the country. Visit us on the internet at www.schneider-electric.ca.
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