IN Brief:
- Schneider Electric has launched MCSeT in the UK as a medium-voltage switchgear platform for industrial, commercial, and utility distribution applications.
- The range combines EvoPacT HVX vacuum circuit breakers with integrated sensing, connected monitoring, and digital operation to extend service life and support predictive maintenance.
- The launch reflects a broader push to modernise UK distribution assets under rising electrification pressure, while reducing material use and removing SF6 from the breaker design.
Schneider Electric has launched MCSeT in the UK, positioning the medium-voltage switchgear range as a digitally connected platform for industrial, commercial, and utility power distribution. The launch comes as distribution assets face heavier loading from electrification, more distributed generation, and rising expectations around visibility, resilience, and operational safety.
At the centre of the range is the EvoPacT HVX circuit breaker, which Schneider says supports up to 50,000 mechanical and electrical operations at 12 kV and 17.5 kV, and 30,000 operations at 24 kV, alongside up to 50 short-circuit breaking operations at normal rated current. The company is positioning that operating life as a route to lower breaker replacement rates and reduced maintenance compared with earlier vacuum circuit breaker platforms.
The digital layer is equally central to the launch. MCSeT is equipped with integrated sensors and connectivity for continuous condition monitoring, feeding data into Schneider’s software and service stack. Schneider says the system can identify up to 63% of potential downtime scenarios and support predictive maintenance strategies that cut maintenance costs by up to 40%, while digitally enabled switching, racking, and earthing functions allow more tasks to be carried out without operators entering the arc-flash zone.
David Pownall, Vice President of Power Systems, Schneider Electric UK&I, said: “The transformation of power systems depends on solutions that are not only innovative, but practical, scalable, and ready to deploy today. The launch of MCSeT in the UK reflects our commitment to supporting the modernisation of the UK’s distribution infrastructure through smart, safe, and digitally connected technologies.”
Schneider is also leaning on the sustainability case. MCSeT uses 20% less raw materials in its optimised design, and the EvoPacT HVX circuit breaker removes the need for SF6 greenhouse gases. More information on the UK launch is available here.
