Carry out primary maintenance on substation mechanical plant and apparatus in the power industry

Overview

This standard is about primary maintenance, maintaining mechanical plant and apparatus in substations in an electricity power utilities environment.  This could apply to both electrical transmission or electrical distribution networks and could typically apply to voltages from low voltage up to and including transmission voltages such as 400,000 volts. Networks could be aligned with systems using traditional or emerging energy technologies.

This standard includes confirming safety documents and instructions, carrying out risk assessments, confirming the system is safe to work on, carrying out primary maintenance, testing and checking completed work, ensuring stored energy is released, confirming completed work before reenergisation and completing documentation.

This standard is for crafts persons or technicians working for network owners or operators or their sub-contractors who are responsible for primary maintenance, maintaining mechanical plant and apparatus in substations on electrical networks.  This could be carried out by people with different levels of network operational authorisation, but in each case, they will be required to have the degree of supervision which is required for their individual level of authority.

Performance Criteria

You must be able to:

  1. identify the work location using system information in line with organisational procedures
  2. carry out all work within the remits of own authority and under the supervision of suitably authorised personnel when required
  3. receive and confirm safety documents and instructions about primary maintenance activities to be carried out in line with organisational procedures
  4. carry out site specific risk assessments of work areas and condition of plant and apparatus to be worked on, identifying hazards and required control measures in line with organisational procedures
  5. check the system is confirmed as safe to work on in line with organisational operational safety rules
  6. communicate the status of substation plant and apparatus primary maintenance to affected parties and designated people when required and in line with organisational procedures
  7. use approved tools, equipment and consumables for substation mechanical plant and apparatus maintenance in line with organisational procedures
  8. work in line with health and safety, environmental and other relevant regulations, directives and guidance at all times
  9. carry out primary maintenance on substation mechanical plant and apparatus in line with workplan, safety instructions and organisational procedures
  10. carry out testing procedures before, during and after primary maintenance in line with organisational procedures
  11. check completed primary maintenance complies with organisational maintenance specifications and no damage has occurred to substation plant and apparatus
  12. complete documentation for substation plant and apparatus primary maintenance in line with organisational procedures
  13. confirm completed primary maintenance meets safety requirements before reenergisation of plant, apparatus or the network
  14. leave work areas in a safe condition in line with organisational procedures
  15. deal with network issues and complications in line with safety and organisational procedures
  16. escalate issues that you cannot resolve to the designated person in line with organisational procedures when required

 

 

Knowledge and Understanding

You need to know and understand:

  1. Electrical power principles including three phase alternating current and direct current theories; voltage; dynamic and static engineering systems; application of electrical and electronic circuit theory and interfaces between the system voltage
  2. Electricity network design, construction, capabilities, complexities, operations, boundaries, topologies and control boundaries
  3. Apparatus which makes up the transmission or distribution network and the design, operation, function and limitations of transmission or distribution plant and equipment, substations, transformers, overhead lines, switchgear and auxiliary equipment
  4. Standard terminology, abbreviations and nomenclature in relation to substation plant and apparatus and identification and maintenance techniques
  5. The regulatory requirements associated with safety while carrying out work in power networks on substation plant and apparatus including the requirements for working in a live exposed high voltage environment
  6. How to assess the location and structure and safe procedures for access, egress, working at height and proximity to live equipment
  7. The general and inherent dangers of working with electrical systems of different voltages under outage and non-outage conditions and required measures to address them
  8. Organisational procedures and safety instructions for receiving and confirming operational, network related instructions in normal and fault conditions, including remote and emerging technological advances
  9. The principles of pre task and point of work dynamic risk assessment, when they are required and how to carry them out and record findings
  10. Operational restrictions, their purpose and actions to be taken and how to recognise and use physical signage and network diagram indicators
  11. Who to notify about network related operations, when to notify them and organisational procedures for doing so
  12. Electricity network principles of operation of substations in normal and fault conditions and associated protective devices and their indicators in the event of system fault scenarios
  13. Sources of system information and how to interpret them to identify points of isolation and earthing arrangements including system diagrams, work instructions, fault logs, protection data
  14. The sequence of processes, procedures, stages and operational safety rules relating to primary maintenance including how to handle and check the integrity of oil for testing and how to handle and top up switchgear insulating gas
  15. The environmental impact of disposal, organisational decontamination procedures and what to do if things go wrong, including the use of spill kits
  16. The approved plant, apparatus, tools and consumables required for substation mechanical plant and apparatus maintenance and how to obtain, inspect, prepare, carry out pre-use checks, use, maintain and store them
  17. Temporary or standby auxiliary supplies, when they are required and how to use them
  18. Primary maintenance procedures and techniques for plant and apparatus including transformers, switchgear, panel wiring, batteries and chargers, cable,  automation equipment, switchgear housing, busbars, circuit breakers, tap changers, isolators, compressed air equipment, neutral earthing resistors, vacuum equipment, isolators, interrupter heads, TX dehydration and other bespoke equipment
  19. How to release stored energy, when it is appropriate to do so and the implications of not doing it
  20. Safety, earthing and bonding materials and where and when they should be applied
  21. The purpose of checks and tests for substation plant and apparatus, when they are required and how to carry them out including visual checks, functional checks, electrical tests
  22. Organisational procedures and systems for recording and storing operational information and to meet cybersecurity and data governance requirements, including role-based access, secure storage, audit logging, data retention
  23. The route to authorisation and supervision at different levels and the training, experience and certification required for your role