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A Lasting Connection: Amusement & Water Park Connectors

For visitors, amusement and water parks are an ideal setting for a fun, relaxing, occasionally thrill-filled day. However, theme parks can be an incredibly harsh environment for the electronic systems that power the fountains, rides, water slides, and games.

Fountains and display shows, for instance, often incorporate hydraulics, multifaceted water fixtures, pumps, laser lighting, and even pyrotechnics. To drive and power these functions, reliable and fully sealed interconnects are critical.

Functionality underwater is only part of the challenge, as and water park interconnects must also withstand harsh chemicals, including chlorine or bromine, throughout the product’s lifetime. Alongside these considerations, as technology progresses, designs are becoming more compact, increasingly complex and sensitive to EMI noise interference.

Submerging an In-Line Power Connector

Bulgin has worked with several theme parks to provide intermateable connectors for existing designs to ensure performance and reliability. For example, the Bulgin team worked with a park in California that needed a power connector that could be submerged in chlorinated water for prolonged periods while sustaining 90A of current using 6-8AWG conductor sizes.

This in-line connection would power and drive the motors and water pumps utilized in a water display show that featured fountains, lasers, and pyrotechnics. When they came to Bulgin’s engineering team, the customer had been looking for a connector solution to no avail.

This particular park was already using an array of Bulgin Buccaneer connectors (Power/Signal and Data). When they approached the engineering team with this issue, we suggested developing a new connector set. To meet the customer’s unique specifications, Bulgin developed the 9000 high power series and supplied them with our PXP9010/04/P/1 and PXP9011/04/S/1, which satisfied their requirements.

Durability & Reliability Come First

The engineering team’s threaded locking collar solution is fabricated out of a high-grade Delrin® plastic that houses four 4/0 conductor sized terminals and adaptors to accommodate the 6-8awg cables commonly used in theme park fountain applications.

The Delrin plastic housing can be subjected to the most extreme environments, from complete burial to underwater submersion and even exposure to unfavorable temperatures – all while protecting the inner circuits with our IP68 technology.

Bulgin prides itself on sourcing materials that will last the product’s full lifetime. If a specific design involves exposure to abrasive chemicals or other unique concerns, Bulgin’s engineering team will work with you side-by-side to make material substitutions as needed and ensure the product you receive is fully compatible with its intended environment.

This project was initiated over five years ago. Bulgin provided a sample set to the customer and to this date, the same sample is still underwater, powering and driving their motors and pumps.

Bulgin maintains a working relationship with the customer, having secured their confidence that our connections will last the duration or life span of their end units/products.

Conclusion: Industry Standard Products, Bulgin Performance

In many instances, Bulgin’s amusement park and water park customers come to the engineering team after a component fails. Bulgin’s products are built for plug-and-play usage, though they are also available to be fully customized when necessary.

A range of interminable and interchangeable connector options are available to maximize the ease of Bulgin’s clients’ design teams. When a competitor’s connector fails, leading to moisture or water penetrating circuits in the field, you can count on us.

The Bulgin team understands how to deal with the harsh environments of amusement and water park applications, ensuring all materials conform to the unique application challenges while maintaining electrical ratings.

If you would like to learn more about the products, interconnect solutions, or value-added services offered, please contact Bulgin today.

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