SWITCHGEARSave size and money with <strong>your</strong> next<strong>power</strong> generation switchgearUtilising modern technologies can save space and money for <strong>your</strong> next project, reportsindustry professional, Steve Evans, the CEO and General Manager of DEIF's NorthAmerican operation, based in Fort Collins, Colorado. WIP has the story.Just as <strong>your</strong> cellphone has morphedfrom a bag to a brick to amicro-computer, modern advancedcontrollers have dramatically reduced insize and increased their functionality.Reducing the quantity of componentsand dramatically simplifying the wiringalso has the benefit of greatly reducedinstallation and start up times, a betterMean Time Between Failures, and - whenusing remote control devices - evenincreased safety compliance to NFPA 70EArc Flash.With all the controls at the generator,the switchgear can now be standard OEMstyle switchgear that can be ordered integralwith the rest of <strong>your</strong> distribution gearinstead of separate emergency <strong>power</strong>system switchgear. This will result in asmaller footprint and also substantial costsavings over traditional layouts with boththe distribution switchgear and separateemergency <strong>power</strong> system switchgear.Multiply these savings by 144 and you willsee why Sotreq, a Caterpillar dealer inStandard distribution switchgearfeatures simple components likecurrent transformers and potentialtransformers.South America, decided onthis approach for theinstallation of 144Caterpillar C32 gensets allrunning in parallel.Connected in 9 groups of16, the banks of 16 unitsare dispatched by a hostcomputer with all theparalleling, synchronising,protection and advanced<strong>power</strong> managementfeatures like fueloptimisation, run time management &equalisation, peak shaving, import orexport control, zero <strong>power</strong> transfer, closebefore excitation, and load dependentgenerator start/stop being done by theDEIF AGC controller mounted at eachgenerator.Modern distributed <strong>power</strong> generationcontrollers are often distinguished by twobasic types: open-transition controllersand paralleling controllers. Commonfeatures available with both types ofmodern controllers includecommunications with both the engine andthe building management and/orautomation system, and basic electricalprotection (over and under volts, over andunder frequency, over current, overspeed, and engine protection like overtemperature, low oil pressure, etc.).Open transition controllers operate likethe basic automatic transfer switch: theymonitor the utility <strong>power</strong> and - in theevent of an outage - start the generatorand automatically operate the switches tobring the <strong>power</strong> back to critical loads.The two sources - utility and on-siteemergency <strong>power</strong> generators - neveroperate in parallel. There must be atleast a momentary loss of <strong>power</strong>, thus theIn the event of an outage - start the generator andautomatically operate the switches to bring the<strong>power</strong> back to critical loads.term - open transition.Paralleling controllers carry out thefunctions of the open transitioncontrollers plus they add the ability toparallel multiple generators and/or one ormore generators with the utility <strong>power</strong>system.Parallel operation requires severaladditional and complex features includingexpanded protection (reverse and forward<strong>power</strong>, loss of excitation, loss of a phase,loss of utility detection, etc.), voltageand speed (Hz) matching, and real andreactive <strong>power</strong> (KW and KVAR) sharing.The best way to keep the operators safeis to get them away from the high <strong>power</strong>switching components. Operators withexperience in <strong>power</strong> generation arebecoming harder to find, resulting in mostend users having to rely heavily uponautomatic control systems.Most systems utilise the N+1 or 2Ntheories of system design, increasingredundancy and thus reliability with extrageneration capacity instead of expensivemanual systems no one is trained tooperate.Internet linkwww.deif.comWIP32MARCH 2010 • WORLDWIDE I NDEPENDENT P OWER
Noise Control That Exceeds ExpectationsAcoustic EnclosuresAcoustic ISO ContainersAcoustic Drop-Over CanopiesLoose Acoustics forPlantroomsEngine Exhaust SilencersTurbo Charger Air FilterSilencersGenerator Installation/Fit-OutElectrical Installation/Fit-Out<strong>Turbine</strong> Intake, Exhaust& Ventilation SystemsHigh Pressure In-LineSilencersSteam Vent & BlowDown SilencersRetro-Fit Anti-IcingSystemsRetro-Fit CoolingSystemsSecondary AcousticBuilding Design &ConstructionEnvironmental NoiseSurveys, Analysis& Data AcquisitionThe World’sLeading Specialist inNoiseControlSolutionsfor Power GenerationIndustriesIAC Power DivisionTel: +44 (0)1962 873000Fax: +44 (0)1962 873111E-mail: info@iacl.co.ukWeb: www.iacl.co.uk
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