Challenge of managing organisational changes, necessary for new substation automation systems

Abstract

The functions in a substation are increasing. The approach of utilities was to use different boxes per function. With the upcoming of IEC 61850 and increasing processing power, functions are no longer restricted to one box. This new approach of substation automation systems has a great impact on the lifecycle of the system and indirectly on the organisational structure. In the conventional systems each department has its own box. By integrating the functions in one system, the responsibilities of different departments should be clear. Efficient working procedures and smart choices of hardware are proposed to optimize the rollout of new substation automation systems.