How Germany’s Hockenheimring uses ABB circuit breakers to help power world class events

The Hockenheimring in Germany is traditionally a motorsports race track, known mostly for its world-class events such as Formula One or the German Touring Masters (DTM).  However, it has also become a major venue for open air concerts and other large-scale events. Live concerts can regularly attract around 100,000 visitors.  Imagine the enormous amount of energy needed to support the infrastructure or lighting and sound systems of these events.

A reliable power supply is vital for the Hockenheimring.  A power failure during a motorsports race or a concert could have dire consequences. For some time now, the Hockenheimring has relied on ABB products including numerous miniature circuit breakers, residual current circuit breakers and circuit breakers, to ensure a reliable power supply.

Already in 2004, ABB products helped secure the power supply, when Kimi Raikkonen set a new track record of 1: 13.780 minutes at the Hockenheimring.  That’s the same amount of time that it takes ABB to manufacture 117 circuit breakers at its German factory.  Every day, ABB circuit breakers protect electrical lines worldwide from over currents. Can you guess how many circuit breakers fit side-by-side on the 4.574 kilometers long race track? You can find the answer and a few other entertaining comparisons in the attached infographic.