Hexar Solutions

Case Study: Cagemaker Manufacturing — Industrial Workshop Electrical Fit-out

A Brisbane manufacturing business expanding into a larger workshop asked us to design and install the electrical fit-out — new main switchboard, three-phase circuits for fabrication machinery, compressor power, lighting and safety circuits. Five-week programme, finished the day before the first machine arrived.

Talk to us about your site · Call 1300 365 700 · [email protected]

The challenge

The building was an empty 1980s shed with a single-phase 63A supply. The customer needed three-phase, a new MEN, machine circuits sized for the largest tool (a 15kW press), and a safety-rated emergency stop system that could be expanded as new machines came in. They also needed it on a fixed price, because they were already committed to a delivery date with their machinery supplier.

What we did

Energex application for upgrade to three-phase 100A supply.
New main switchboard with Acti9 distribution, Type 2 surge protection, and bus-bar capacity for 40% future expansion.
Three-phase circuits to 6 machine bays with isolation switches and lockout-tagout fittings.
Compressor circuit (15kW soft-start) with thermal protection.
Workshop high-bay LED lighting and exit lighting to AS 2293 / AS 1851.
Safety circuit: emergency stop ring with Pilz safety relay, hard-wired to all three-phase bays.
Test and tag of all customer-supplied portable equipment before commissioning.

The outcome

Fit-out finished one day ahead of the machinery delivery. Customer signed off on the fixed price with no variations. The safety circuit has since absorbed three new machines without modification to the original ring — exactly what we designed it for.

The stack

Schneider Acti9 board, iC60H breakers
Pilz PNOZ safety relay
Philips industrial high-bay LED
AS/NZS 3000:2018, AS 4024 (machine safety), AS/NZS 3008 (cable sizing), AS 2293 (exit lighting)

What we’d tell another customer

Design the switchboard and safety system for the next 18 months, not just opening day. The extra buswork and one larger safety relay cost the customer about $1,800 up front and saved them an estimated $9,000 in rework when they added machines three months later.

Talk to us about a similar project

If you’re planning warehouse automation, an industrial workshop fit-out, an EV charging rollout, or a switchboard upgrade in Brisbane, we’d be happy to come and look at the site. Free assessment for commercial work. Call 1300 365 700 or request a site visit.