Mike,
yes that is basically what I'm saying. (Darn, it is near impossible to type on a german kezbaoard which has z and y transposed)
As I understand it, it is supposed to keep the utilitys fuse on the pole from blowing. This saves the utility some work in replacing fuses, I suppose. It also allows the consumer to overload the breaker less than with a type B or C, which I suppose translates into less load on the network. As the main breaker is anyway bigger than the rest of the breakers in the house, it should still be selective towards smaller breakers. (E.g. the main breaker is 63 A and the outlets are on 20A circuits.)
(I am in Switzerland at the moment on a business trip. All outdoor cable here is orange. Not rubber, but something else. I swear that one in every ten vehicles this morning belonged to a sparky and there were guys at work everywhere. Later in the day, lots of party tents with beer halls and shops went up later, explaining where the cables were to go.)
