What this MCCB is and where it fits
The Siemens SENTRON 3VA2163-7MS36-0AC0 is a 3-pole molded case circuit breaker (MCCB) rated for 63 A continuous current across the full ambient range from -25 °C to 70 °C — no derating needed up to that ceiling. It is designed specifically for starter protection, meaning it is built to coordinate with motor contactors and overload relays in motor control centers (MCCs) and individual motor starter buckets. The 3VA2163 frame carries a maximum adjustable trip setting of 945 A and a minimum of 189 A, giving you a wide band to match motor full-load amps without swapping the breaker body.
Breaking capacity — the so-what for fault duty
At 240 V AC this MCCB interrupts 330 kA — that is the highest standard breaking capacity in the 3VA2 frame, sized for industrial distribution where the available fault current at the motor control center bus can exceed 200 kA. At 415 V and 440 V it still holds 242 kA, and at 500 V it delivers 187 kA. The sharp drop to 3.7 kA at 690 V tells you this frame is not intended for 690 V motor circuits; the 690 V figure is a residual rating for lightly loaded feeder duty. For a 480 V or 400 V motor starter lineup, the 242 kA at 415 V gives ample SCCR headroom to avoid a cascading failure upstream.
Integration notes for panel builders
The breaker measures 105 mm wide, 181 mm tall, and 86 mm deep — a standard 3-pole MCCB footprint that fits Siemens SENTRON mounting plates and busbar systems without adapters. It ships with 2 auxiliary switches HQ (high-quantity) built in, so you have one normally-open and one normally-closed contact for status feedback to the PLC or motor control relay without adding an external accessory block. Power loss is 4 W maximum, negligible for thermal budget in a sealed enclosure. The design includes no undervoltage release, no communication function, and no ground-fault monitoring — this is a plain starter-protection breaker for hardwired motor circuits.