Rating and fit
The Siemens 3VA1116-5EF36-0AF0 is a 3-pole SENTRON molded case circuit breaker (MCCB) rated for line protection, carrying a rated continuous current Iu of 160 A and a rated insulation voltage Ui of 800 V. The interrupting capacity is the headline: 187 kA at 240 V, 121 kA at 415 V, 75.6 kA at 440 V, and 17 kA at 690 V. That 187 kA at 240 V means it can safely clear a fault on a high-capacity 240 V distribution bus without upstream coordination issues — a common requirement in industrial panelboards fed by large transformers. The TM240 thermal-magnetic release provides fixed thermal and magnetic trip settings, so no field adjustment of the trip curve; you size it for the load and leave it. Thermal derating is published across the operating range: the breaker holds 160 A continuously up to 50 °C, then tapers to 153.6 A at 55 °C, 150.4 A at 60 °C, 147.2 A at 65 °C, and 144 A at 70 °C. If your panel ambient runs above 50 °C, the 160 A nameplate is not the usable number — size your load against the derated value at the actual enclosure temperature. The operating temperature range is -25 °C to 70 °C, with storage from -40 °C to 80 °C.
Panel integration and wiring
Dimensions are 130 mm height, 76.2 mm width, 70 mm depth. The 76.2 mm width is a standard 3-pole MCCB footprint — it fits the same DIN-rail or mounting-plate cutout as other 160 A frame breakers, so a panel laid out for a 3VA1112-5EF32-0CA0 will accept this unit without drilling new holes or moving the bus bars. The IP40 front protection means the breaker face is splash-resistant but not sealed; install it inside a panel with a door, not in a washdown zone. Auxiliary contact configuration is 1 auxiliary switch plus 1 trip alarm switch (HQ type). That gives one NO/NC for status feedback and one dedicated alarm contact that changes state only on a trip event — useful for remote fault annunciation without adding an external relay. No undervoltage release, no shunt trip, no ground-fault monitoring, no communication module are fitted on this variant; those functions require a different order code or field-installable accessory.