reports
conference
Western Power Delivery
Automation
Conference, 2009
Spokane,
WA, USA
page 88
2009 Power
System
Conference
Clemson,
South Carolina,
USA
page 85
DistribuTECH,
2009
Georgia Tech Fault &
Disturbance Analysis
Conference
Sand Diego,
CA, USA
page 84
PAC conferences
around the world
Protection, Automation and Control
conferences around the world provide
forums for discussions and exchanges
of ideas that help the participants
in resolving the challenges that our
industry faces today.
Atlanta,
GA, USA
page 89
Texas A&M
Conference, 2009
College Station,
Texas, USA
page 86/87
South East Asian Protection
& Automation Conference,
SEAPAC, 2009
Melbourne,
Australia
page 86
PAC.SPRING.2009
83
by Karlheinz Schwarz , BC Hydro, Schwarz Consulting Company (SCC), Germany
from around the world
conference reports
84
DistribuTECH and Transtech 2009,
February 3 -5
Conference and exhibition
on automation, information
technology and T&D
engineering for the Utility
Industry, San Diego, CA, USA.
The 19th DistribuTECH and
Transtech Conference & Exhibition
was held from February 03 to 05,
2009 at the Sand Diego Convention
Center in San Diego (California,
USA). It is a key event in North
America. The event offered many
opportunities to electric power
system professionals to learn about
the latest offerings in technology,
share experience with existing
solutions and exchange ideas about
the challenging future of the power
industry.
The event was well attended by
vendors, utilities, system integrators
Karlheinz Schwarz is the president of Schwarz Consulting Company; Karlsruhe/Germany. Since 1984 he is involved in international
standardization activities, representing main industry branches in
the global standardization of real-time communication systems and
information modeling.
San Diego Convention Center.
PAC.SPRING.2009
and other experts. The number of
exhibitors has grown since 2008.
The domains covered by
the conference and exhibition
comprise automation and control
systems, information technology,
transmission and distribution
engineering, power deliver y
equipment and water utility
technology. One crucial focus was
on the many facets of the Smart
Grids. Many of the three hundred
exhibitors offered solutions for
smarter or intelligent Grids. The
new US government is expected to
support alternative and renewable
energy and to accelerate rebuilding
the whole electric network and to
make the power delivery system
a Smart Grid. The event showed
that many companies and groups
are prepared (or waiting) to receive
The opening
session of the
conference.
The exhibition hall.
the “Obama Dollars” – to build the
system of the future.
DictribuTECH was attended by
about six thousand specialists from
all over the world.
Some seventy product and
service categories with some 4.000
products have been offered. Crucial
categories were:
AMR
Meters & Meter Reading,
SCADA
Communications
Distribution automation
Systems integration
Some 180 presentations and
discussions at the Conference and
other sessions demonstrated the
focus on the smart Grid, smart
metering, communication and
information technology.
Ten percent of the paper
present at ions disc ussed the
use of IEC 61850 for different
applications.
The Utility University offered
tutorials on subjects of extreme
importance to the industry:
Using the IEC 61850 Standard
for Communication Networks and
Systems in Substations
S u b s t at i o n P ro t e c t i o n ,
Control, Communications and Data
Integration in the New Century
Subst at ion Automat ion
85
DistribuTECH
covers automation
and control systems,
energy efficiency,
engineering, demand
response, renewables
integration, power
delivery equipment
and water utility
technology.
Clemson Power Systems
Conference 2009
The 2009 Power System
and Smart Grid: Design Issues,
Alternative Approaches and Cyber
Security Considerations
From WAN to LAN and HAN:
Communications Fundamentals for
AMI and SmartGrid Applications
The implementation and use of
IEC 61850 and IEC 61970 (CIM –
Common Information Model) is
accepted in the whole industry. All
major vendors are already providing
IEC 61850 conformant device and
tools.
It seems that the technology
focus shifts further away from
distribution networks – the main
focus of the DistribuTech years
ago. Now it is smart metering and
end-user devices, e.g., home energy
management. There was much talk
about building automation and even
partnerships between utilities and
cities for joint projects (e.g., “Smart
Grid City”, Boulder, Colorado).
The trend is for the smart grid –
the intelligent utility. Utilities are
leaving the isolation. Utilities are
more and more forced to interact
with other groups across the whole
energy value chain and beyond it.
That’s where the biggest challenges
are because it is not where utilities
traditionally have had control: the
environment, electrical energy
efficiency and renewable energies.
conference was organized by
Clemson University and held
10-13 March 2009.
The conference progr am
included multiple tutorials, panel
and paper sessions covering
different topics of interest to the
electric power systems protection,
automation and control industry.
The tutorial topics were:
Innovation you can use today
Introduction to generator
protection
On-line instability and PMU
(Phasor Measurement Units)
Sec ur it y concer ns for
protection engineers
T h e f ive p a n el s e s s i o n s
provided a forum for discussions
of different topics related to Smart
Grid concepts, technologies and
applications:
Our role in the Smart Grid
evolution
Smart Grid demonstration
projects focused on large scale
resource integration
Plug-in hybrid electric vehicles
Planning for increased
renewable energy portfolio
AMI and the Smart Grid
A total of twenty six technical
papers were presented focused on:
Synchrophasors functionality
and applications
IEC 61850 architecture and
applications
Line protection
Generator and bus protection
Distribution system protection
and power quality
The Smart Grid
The program each day started
with opening remarks followed by
a keynote speech. Keynote speeches
were also delivered during the lunch
and the conference banquet. The
keynote speakers were industry
executives from utilities and
manufacturers. Like the rest of the
conference program, they focused
on different aspects of Smart Grid
technology for the different levels of
the system hierarchy, as well as on
the impact of renewable energy.
During the coffee breaks the
participants had the opportunity to
discuss the products and software
tools presented at the exhibition.
PAC.SPRING.2009
Exhibition area
at the Madren
Center in
Clemson, South
Carolina.
from around the world
conference reports
86
Networking
during the
conference
dinner.
Texas A&M
Protective Relay
Conference, USA
South East Asian Protection
& Automation Conference
The 62nd Annual Conference
for Protective Relay Engineers
was held in College Station,
The SEAPAC was held in
Melbourne, Australia - 17-18
March, 2009.
The welcoming remarks by
the chairman of the conference
Rodney Hughes were followed
by the first day keynote speaker Simon Bartlett, from PowerLink,
Australia, who discussed different
issues related to the “Secondary
S y s t e m s i n To d ay ' s P owe r
Systems”. The second day keynote
speaker was Marco Janssen from
U T Innovation, Netherlands,
as a representative of the UCA
International Users Group who
talked about “Being a Smart
User”.
The conference is responding to
the increasing pressure on utilities
to provide ever more reliable and
robust electricity supply to the
consumer under tight regulatory
requirements. It focused on best
practices and offers a forum for
discussion of protection, control
and automation issues in the
region.With new developments
in protection and automation,
it offers a timely review of the
achievements of the industry in
its current operations and helps
the participants to take the lessons
forward at a time of transition to a
new generation of protection and
control technology.
The 36 papers presented at
the conference discussed project
st r ategies for development ,
justification, implementation
and project management as well
as design objectives and solutions
for green field projects, brown
field developments through to
full life cycle management of
the asset. The ever increasing
use of automation, Intelligent
Electronic Device technology and
IEC 61850 in substations made
them the main subjects of papers
represented at SEAPAC.
Texas, USA, and was hosted by
Texas A&M University.
In his Welcome address the
conference Chair Prof. B. Don
Russell writes:
“For 62 years the Annual
Conference for Protective Relay
Engineers has provided the best
available information on protective
relay applications and technology.
With the changes that have occurred
in the electric power industry and
with the business emphasis on
efficiency and cost savings, the relay
conference is even more important
than ever.
Engineers tell me that they
have f ar less t ime today to
familiar ize themselves w ith
available equipment and systems
and must rely more than ever
on manufacturers and outside
contractors. This means that the
networking and concentrated
information that is provided by our
relay conference is critical to helping
protection engineers understand
new protection concepts, advances
in equipment, and problems that
Forty six papers on different
subjects were presented in
paper and breakout sessions.
PAC.SPRING.2009
87
The Texas A & M Conference was
held from
30 March to 2 April,
2009.
Texas A&M
University is
the first public institution
of higher
education in
Texas.
have occurred in the application
of systems and devices. Engineers
interested in the design, application,
and operation of protective relay
systems and equipment will be
challenged by a wide range of
papers, panels, and discussion
forums that will help them do their
jobs better!
The planning committee of
the conference works closely
w i t h r e p r e s e n t at ive s f ro m
manufacturing companies and
operating utilities to select papers
and presentations that are both
practical and educational. Special
tutorials are presented that provide
new engineers with the basics and
fundamentals. Utility presentations
give application information that
represents a valuable supplement
Forty six papers were presented
in paper or breakout sessions held
at the J. Earl Rudder Theatre or the
Memorial Student Center. The
papers covered practical aspects
of generator, distribution and
transmission protection, as well
as the analysis of system events,
testing and communications.
In the evening the attendees
visited the hospitality suites at the
College Station Hilton, where they
could see and discuss the latest
products provided by protection
and control equipment and tools
manufacturers.
Paper sessions were held at the
J. Earl Rudder Theatre.
to manufacturers’ specifications. At
every level the planning committee
seeks to strike a balance between
innovative concepts and practical
solutions to current problems.
We are very happy you have
joined us for this important event.
It is our hope that the Conference
for Protective Relay Engineers at
Texas A&M University will be
added to your annual calendar on a
permanent basis.”
The conference was preceded by
a day of tutorials and manufacturers’
presentations on the latest advances
in power system protection and
control technologies.
John Tengdin
presents a
paper at the
conference.
The conference
was held at the
Texas A&M
campus.
PAC.SPRING.2009
from around the world
conference reports
88
Western Power Delivery Automation
Conference, 2009
This conference focuses on
the issues of automation
and control of power system
substations.
The 11th annual Western
Power Deliver y Automat ion
Conference 2009 was organized by
Washington State University and
held at the historical Davenport
hotel in Spokane, WA from 6 to 9
April, 2009.
At a time when Smart Grid is
becoming a topic of discussions
even in the media and billions of
dollars are included in the stimulus
bill, the conference proved once
again that it has already been
working for a decade on making
the grid smarter by focusing on the
fast-growing issues of automation
and control of substations and
electric power system.
The conference started with
the keynote address by Carl
Imhoff from the Pacific Northwest
National Laboratory who talked
about “Transforming the North
American Power System: Policy
and Technology Drivers of the
Smart Grid Agenda”.
This two-and-a half-day event
was split in five sessions during
which industry experts presented
twenty papers selected by the
program committee. The papers
covered a wide range of issues
that are very important for the
successful transition of automation,
control and protection systems
from the electromechanical and
solid state technology of the last
century to the wide spread use of
the technology of the twenty first
century.
The main topics covered by the
papers were:
N e t wo r k s - p r o t o c o l s a n d
communication
Case studies and applications
The conference was
held at the
historical
Davenport
hotel.
Security
Control and automation logic
S C ADA and w ide area
measurements
En gineer in g and projec t
management
E ac h paper present at ion
was followed by questions and
discussions that allowed the
participants to express their
opinion and the authors to further
explain the subject of their paper.
During the coffee and lunch
breaks, as well as after the end
of the day the attendees had the
opportunity to see demonstrations
and discuss the applications of
the latest intelligent electronic
devices and software tools that are
becoming the foundation of the
Smart Grid at the distribution and
transmission levels of the power
system.
This program committee has
The exhibit area
during a coffee
break.
selected 20 top presentations
on basic technologies,
foundations for automation,
experimental case studies, and
applications of technology.
PAC.SPRING.2009
89
Georgia Tech
Protective
Relaying
Conference
The 63rd Annual Georgia
Te c h P r o t e c t i v e R e l a y i n g
Conference was held 22-24 April
2009 in Atlanta, Georgia, USA.
The venue of the conference was
the historical Fox theatre.
For t y papers selec ted by
the program committee were
presented by authors from around
the world in ten sessions during
the two and a half days of the
conference. Most of the sessions
were running in parallel in the
Egyptian Ballroom and the Grand
Salon of the Fox Theatre.
The papers presented at the
conference covered a wide range
of topics such as protection
theory, applications and testing
of generators, distribution and
transmission systems, as well as
IEC 61850 process bus solutions
and XML based configuration
tools.
Karl Zimmerman and David
Costello received the 2008 Walt
Elmore Best Paper Award.
Purdy Mohammed received
the Clayton Griffin Student Paper
Award for her paper “Applying
Demand Side Management to the
Trinidad Network”.
After the end of the paper
sessions on Wednesday and
Thursday the participants in the
conference had the opportunity
to visit the hospitality suites
of leading manufacturers from
around the world and discuss the
different protection, automation
and cont rol dev ices, test ing
equipment, configuration, short
circuit analysis and coordination
tools.
Georgia Tech Fault &
Disturbance Analysis
Conference
The two conferences were
organized by Georgia Tech in
five consecutive days.
The 12th Annual Georgia
Tech Fault and Disturbance
Analysis Conference was held
20-21 April 2009 in Atlanta,
Georgia, USA at the Georgia Tec
Global Learning Center.
Twenty papers were presented
in four sessions during the two
days of the conference. The
papers covered a wide range of
subjects – analysis of different
events requirements and tools
for fault and disturbance analysis,
communications and systems
architectures.
The program also included a
User Forum, as well as display and
discussions of actual fault records
brought by participants in the
conference.
In the evening the attendees
visited the hospitality suites of
multiple vendors, where they
could see demonstrations of the
latest disturbance and fault analysis
devices and software tools and
discuss their applications.
Rich Hunt received the 2008
Best Paper award.
Paper session
at the
Grand Salon .
PAC.SPRING.2009
The historical Fox theater was the conference
venue.