Schneider Altivar drive spares

The Altivar family encompasses Schneider Electric's full range of variable speed drives, divided into the Altivar Machine range for OEM and general industrial applications and the Altivar Process range for continuous process industries. The ATV320 and ATV340 serve the machine segment, offering compact form factors, integrated communication and application-specific functions such as hoist, conveyor and pump control. The ATV600 and ATV900 process drives are designed for the demanding requirements of water, mining, oil and gas and metals applications, with advanced control algorithms, process-specific function blocks and support for redundancy configurations.

The ATV320 is the direct successor to the very widely installed ATV312, which dominated the small drive market through the 2000s and remains extremely common in South African plants. While the ATV320 can often replace an ATV312 in an existing installation, the wiring configurations, parameter sets and mechanical dimensions differ, so a like-for-like swap without engineering review is not advisable. Schneider provides migration guides for the ATV312 to ATV320 transition, and these should be consulted before attempting a replacement. The ATV12 remains available for the simplest applications where only basic speed control is required.

Altivar drives support a comprehensive range of communication options, with Modbus and CANopen integrated as standard on most models and optional cards available for EtherNet/IP, PROFIBUS DP, PROFINET and other industrial networks. This communication flexibility makes Altivar drives well suited for integration into larger control systems and SCADA environments. The parameter structure across the Altivar range is consistent in concept, so technicians familiar with one model can generally commission another, though the specific parameter assignments and application functions differ between the Machine and Process families.