Engineering Institute of Technology

Professional Certificate of Competency in Substation Design (Main Equipment)

This professional development course is targeted at engineers and technicians who need practical skills and knowledge in the design of the equipment required for substations. 

Depending on the functions performed by a substation, the configuration and complexity can vary significantly. The designer’s skill lies in anticipating the present and future needs that the substation will address, selecting the appropriate design configuration, and calculating the ratings of main equipment such as busbars, transformers, and switchgear to ensure trouble-free service over several decades.

Sufficient consideration should be given to the maintenance of critical substation equipment, and appropriate redundancies must be planned as well. This is essential; otherwise, consumers served by the substation may experience frequent supply outages, which is undesirable from both a service and financial perspective.

It is also necessary to ensure that the substation will operate satisfactorily under both normal and fault conditions without any failures. This is achieved through various calculations performed for postulated conditions. These calculations are collectively referred to as system studies. The type of studies will depend on the complexity and criticality of the substation and the loads connected to it.

During the design phase, studies need to be conducted for current conditions as well as future anticipated conditions. Such studies, known as system studies, can range from simple fault-level calculations to complex network simulations. The conditions and requirements will dictate the necessary system studies to be performed.

Modern industries generate significant harmonics on the power grid, which can lead to premature equipment failures due to heating or harmonic resonance. In such cases, harmonic filters and other measures to inhibit resonance will need to be planned.

This course covers all the main equipment for substations, such as circuit breakers, isolators, transformers, current transformers, and busbars, as well as the design and selection of this equipment. Included case studies and examples complement the coursework.

The course consists of 12 modules, covering topics such as calculating equipment capacity, selecting suitable configurations, VAR compensation, and harmonic control.

Course Start Date

• 13th May 2025