Lord Consulting

-it is now a market-ready technology!!-

Having worked now for some 7 years to research and progressively introduce on-line PD technology throughout Australia and New Zealand, it is very satisfying to report that the technology to carry out this work has very recently been greatly upgraded to a state of maturity and performance under adverse noise conditions that has never been previously possible.

Working with the UK company IPEC Engineering, in itself a partnership of the three leading international authorities in this technology including Dr Ross Mackinlay who has been known to New Zealand customers through his support of our 4 power Industry conferences over that period, the resultant product is a very professionally presented package.

Rather than invest in custom-made hardware, IPEC have elected to use a high-end LeCroy oscilloscope/PC device, covered by an international 3 year warranty.

Software is very impressive, it now incorporating such features as a sophisticated PD pulse recognition algorithm to give up to a 50 times improvement in the PD signal to noise ratio, as well as an impressive Event Recognizer feature which categorises received signals into appropriate categories (switchgear PD, cable PD, noise etc). Cable PD is now measurable in Pico Coulombs, rather than mV as was previously the case. The equipment now has a spot testing mode for field surveys and a monitoring mode for longer term recordings to qualify the PD nature over, say, 24 hours.

PD in cable can be located with the cable still in service via the use of supplied software and a unique portable battery-powered PD transponder device.

Applications are also well covered for switchgear surveys and large motor surveys, greatly increasing the versatility and potential utilisation for a contractor. Suitable IPEC-made pickup units are provided for all applications and normally packaged as a single system.

Training is provided over 5 days and that includes an initial 2 days in the classroom learning to use and recognise all likely PD scenarios, then 3 days in the field. Formal on-going support is included at no extra charge for renewable 12 month periods.

Whilst it may still fairly be described as one of the more complex items of testing equipment for the power industry, experienced cable fault technicians with a basic PD knowledge can be confidently using the IPEC unit in one week.

Being one of the most enticing means to manage and assess cable and switchgear condition as it is done with the sample still in service, the technology is definitely here to stay and, most importantly, can be purchased now confidently at reasonable rates and implemented immediately.