Switchgear monitoring management: To keep the switches on

Industry experts discuss how important it is to have condition monitoring of switchgears and its solutions.

Switchgear’s operation condition is very important for system reliability. To detect any defects in switchgears and to prohibit possible failure of switchgear system which may cause unwanted power outages, switchgear condition monitoring system is done time to time. Switchgear monitoring system is basically comprised of components such as partial discharge sensors, instruments and diagnostic software to observe the condition and current working switchgears in order to schedule the maintenance power cuts and plan the proper preventive measures required to be executed to avoid failure of switchgear system. Experiments indicate that the monitoring system can perform accurate online detection of the operation condition of switchgear, and it can offer exact forecasting in time.

Condition monitoring of switchgears: How important?
Generally switchgears of reputed brands perform well as per the specifications and guidelines of ISI designated standards and failures are also rare with these brands.
Dushyant P Dave, Director, Dave Shah & Co.(Switchgear) Pvt. Ltd is of the opinion that without monitoring huge financial and human life losses can occur. He states the following:

• Rupturing of oil-filled switchgear tanks will result in burning of oil with huge fires capable of damaging the switchyard, nearby plant, machinery and buildings.
• Normally such accidents occur at the time of switching on the equipment, or in case of high temperatures or due to low maintenance.

Switchgear monitoring solutions:
Neelaksh Pathak, Business Development-Manager, HPL Electric & Power Ltd. says, “We have switchgears starting from 16Amps MCPs to 63Amps MCPs and if we talk about MCCBs, we have 63Amps MCCB to 800Amps MCCBs. We also have microprocessor based and thermal magnetic MCCBs. In switchgears, we have changeover switchgears, onload changeover switch gears and motorised changeover switch gears. We also have ACBs starting from 800Amps to 6300Amps. We have monitoring systems upto 1500W in DC switchgears. We follow a monitoring mechanism through RS485 and optical fiber. We also have wireless solutions for all these type of monitoring in DC switchgears.”

There are monitoring solutions that monitors ‘voltage’, checks ‘current’ status of the switches, checks whether it is ON/OFF or and checks the temperature of the ‘inclusive’, where all the switchgears have been assembled. All these come under switchgear monitoring management.

Dave describes the following process solutions:

• Need to keep layout and single line drawing records of switchgears and cables, connecting them in proper manner
• All switchgear and allied cables must be installed as per relevant standards and certificates and approvals from the government certified bodies; must be obtained from time to time.
• Maintenance technicians should be well trained
• Particularly for electrical shock the earth leakage breakers can be tested simply by use of test button provided on the same.

All switchgear and allied cables must be installed as per relevant standards, certificates and approvals from the government certified bodies from time to time.
Dushyant P Dave, Director, Dave Shah & Co.(Switchgear) Pvt. Ltd

HPL has monitoring systems upto 1500W in DC switchgears and follows a monitoring mechanism through RS485 and optical fiber.
Neelaksh Pathak, Business Development-Manager, HPL Electric & Power Ltd