What this MCCB carries and where it fits
The Siemens 3VA1116-4EF32-0HA0 is a SENTRON molded case circuit breaker (MCCB) designed for line protection — meaning it sits at the feeder or main distribution point, not downstream at a motor or branch load. It's a 3-pole unit with a TM240 thermal-magnetic overcurrent release, rated 160 A continuous at 40 °C. The TM240 release gives you a fixed thermal pickup and magnetic trip calibrated for the 160 A frame; no interchangeable trip units here, which simplifies stocking if your BOM calls for this exact curve. Breaking capacity is the headline number that decides whether this breaker holds on a fault. At 240 V it interrupts 121 kA; at 415 V, 75.6 kA; at 440 V, 52.5 kA; and at 500 V or 690 V it still clears 11.9 kA. That's a high-interrupting rating for a 160 A frame — it handles stiff utility or transformer-fed faults without needing a current-limiting fuse upstream. The rated insulation voltage is 800 V, so the internal clearances are sized for 690 V systems. This variant includes an integrated shunt trip (STL) release — the auxiliary release type listed as design of the auxiliary release. That means a remote signal (from a safety relay, E-stop circuit, or PLC digital output) can electrically trip the breaker without a handle operator. No undervoltage release, no ground-fault monitoring, no communication module; this is a straightforward line-protection MCCB with remote trip capability.
Thermal derating — the real continuous current
The 160 A rating holds from 40 °C up to 50 °C ambient inside the enclosure. At 55 °C it derates to 158 A, at 60 °C to 155 A, at 65 °C to 153 A, and at 70 °C to 150 A. If your panel ambient runs hot — say a packed enclosure with drives or transformers — the 150 A floor at 70 °C still gives you headroom on a 150 A feeder. The maximum operating temperature is 70 °C; storage range is -40 °C to 80 °C.
Panel fit and mounting
Dimensions: 130 mm height, 76.2 mm width, 70 mm depth. That's a standard 3-pole MCCB footprint for a 160 A frame — mounts on a DIN rail or directly to a backplate via the screw terminals. The 76.2 mm width (3 inches) is the critical dimension for multi-breaker spacing in a panel layout; three of these side-by-side occupy 228.6 mm plus the required air gap between units. No trip indicator on the front face, so fault status is read from the handle position or via the shunt trip circuit.