Irrigation Pumping Station Automation Panel Refurbishment — Yamula Mansap

Scope of work

• On-site survey of the existing system and preparation of the refurbishment design
• Manufacturing of automation panels to IEC 61439
• Field control panel with operator terminal
• Renewal of the motor drive panels
• Rewriting of the PLC software
• Removal of the old panels, installation of the new panels and commissioning

Technical solution

Setting the boundary of the refurbishment

The first step in refurbishment work is establishing clearly what will be replaced and what will stay. The site survey showed that the existing motors and hydraulic equipment could remain in service, so the scope was limited to the control and automation side, which reduced the investment cost.

Panels to IEC 61439

The new panels were manufactured to IEC 61439, the standard for low-voltage switchgear and controlgear assemblies. This is not merely a certification matter: internal separation, temperature-rise behaviour, short-circuit withstand and continuity of protection are all designed to the requirements of that standard.

Field control with operator terminal

So that station personnel can work without depending on the control centre, a touch operator terminal was fitted to the field control panel. Pump states, levels and alarms are visible at the station as well.

Managing the outage

Removal of the old panels and installation of the new ones were scheduled outside the irrigation season, so the water delivery calendar of the stations was not affected.

Outcome

Both stations were returned to service with panels built to the current standard and with rewritten software. Dependence on obsolete hardware with no available spare parts was removed, and the operations team can now see the system from the station itself.