"...Supporting control features include automatic meter reading; distribution network mapping down to individual households; and load
management / surveillance, which will allow the power company to monitor and adjust power consumption remotely..."
Advanced Control Systems wins Taiwan Power project with complete
DA/DSM technology
Advanced Control Systems, Inc. has won a contract from Taiwan Power Company to design, build and deploy the world's first
fully-implemented Distribution Automation and Demand-Side Management (DA/DSM) system. The Atlanta-based company submitted the
joint-venture bid as part of a multi-national consortium with Mitsubishi Electric Corporation (MELCO; Kobe, Japan) and Shihlin Electric
Engineering Company (Taiwan). The project will automate power distribution for Tai-Chung, Taiwan's capital and third largest city.
Installation will begin in April 1999, with completion scheduled for 2000.
Advanced Control Systems, a technological leader in supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) and distribution management
systems (DMS), is responsible for the breakthrough software that makes the 965 million New Taiwan Dollar (approximately US $27.6M)
turnkey system possible. The primary purpose of the system is feeder automation, including overhead, underground and mixed feeders. It
incorporates advancements such as real-time trouble-call analysis and feeder fault detection / restoration, including a virtually
instantaneous display of trouble spots. All operations will be fed by a single database image of the complete distribution system. This
real-time capability includes true graphical map displays and requires complete integration of the databases for trouble-call, fault
detection and distribution. The connectivity model supporting these features, as well as fault isolation and load management, is
technology pioneered by Advanced Control Systems. This is the most significant component of the system, which will monitor and
regulate electrical distribution all the way to the end user. "The Tai-Chung project builds on our solid foundation of SCADA and DMS
experience. But we're also well-known for pushing the capabilities of these systems," said Chairman and CEO John M. Muench. "The
scope of the project, especially when you consider the advanced features, is a confirmation of our technological depth."
The system is designed to increase up-time and reduce operating costs for Taiwan Power. Tai-Chung is heavily industrialized and densely
populated -- simply getting to the area affected by a power failure can take hours. Without up-to-date facilities for finding and isolating
faults, homes and businesses are at the mercy of a lengthy trial-and-error procedure. When the project is completed, Taiwan Power will
be able to locate, isolate, and, in many cases, resolve power outages automatically, without dispatcher intervention, in real time.
Supporting control features include automatic meter reading; distribution network mapping down to individual households; and load
management / surveillance, which will allow the power company to monitor and adjust power consumption remotely. The project will
also incorporate distribution system analysis (distribution power flow, optimal switching, short circuit analysis and protection
coordination). A development system is also part of the project. This gives Taiwan Power the ability to construct prototype databases,
develop their own control strategies and perform distribution modeling tasks. The latter is valuable for determining appropriate
expansion of the distribution system.
Project hardware to be supplied by Advanced Control Systems includes a master station and workstations connected on a local area
network, along with data links and communication subsystems. Automatic switches will replace manual switches, and remote terminal
units (RTUs), feeder terminal units (FTUs), data concentrator units (DCUs) and customer terminal units (CTUs) will be installed.
The Tai-Chung power distribution network encompasses 180 square kilometers, serves more than one million people, and incorporates
three distribution substations, thirteen secondary substations, 38 main transformer banks and associated feeders, switches, capacitors and
distribution transformers. While it is common in the U.S. for customers or outside consultants to coordinate the design, purchase and
installation of control systems, in Asia and South America systems are typically sold on a turnkey basis. This is the case with the
Tai-Chung project, where the joint venture will provide a fully integrated, operational system, rather than individual components to be
incorporated by the customer or a third party. MELCO will finance and manage the project and install the pad-mounted underground
network and pole-mounted sectionalizing switches for the overhead network. Shihlin, the local contractor, will implement the
communications subsystem and install field devices, as well as generate and test the system database. The control program's user
interface, user manuals and all other accompanying documentation will be in Mandarin Chinese, using Chinese characters.
Advanced Control Systems, Inc. develops and manufactures SCADA, DMS, energy management (EMS) and substation automation (SA)
systems. Established in 1975, the company is a leader in the application of computerized control and monitoring for energy distribution
systems, and has commissioned nearly 500 systems worldwide. The company is based in Norcross, Georgia, with offices in Texas and
California, and agents throughout the world. |
