ENERGY AUDIT AND ELECTRICAL AUDIT STANDARDS
GUIDELEINES AND STANDARDS
In cooperation with local, state, Federal Regulations and national associations many guidelines and regulations have been written to address both electrical inspections and energy managements programs. At all times the local, state and federal regulations must be meet to insure compliancy with all the organizations. These guidelines are only to be used to help meet the other requirements through an organized auditing process.
Applicable codes, standards and references should be used and some are listed below:
§ National Electrical Code - NEC
§ National Electrical Manufactures Association – NEMA
§ American Society for testing and Materials – ASTM Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers
§ National Electrical Testing Association – NETA
§ American National Standards Institute – ANSI
§ State and local ordinances
§ Insulated Power Cable Engineers Associated – IPCEA
§ Association of Edison Illuminating Companies
§ OSHA Part 1910: Subpart S, 1910.308
Other organizations may be involved as well and are listed below
- Occupational Safety and Health Association
- Hawaii Department of labor
- Hawaii Department of Health
- Environmental Protection Agency
Electrical Industry Standards
All electrical inspections shall be conducted by a responsible person and shall utilize all manufactures instruction manuals applicable to each piece of equipment that will be electrical energized. All personnel shall utilize NFPA 70E requirements when working on electrical equipment.
All equipment found defective shall be reported to the proper building manager. The inspector shall maintain a written report of all tests and present a certified final test report. Any equipment found to be defective will be repaired before any final testing is completed that may skew the reporting statistics. The following test guidelines will be followed and the testing report shall include the following:
- Summary of project
- Description of the equipment
- Description of test
- Test results
- Conclusions and Recommendations
- Appendix, including appropriate test forms
- List of test equipment used and calibration dates
Safety and Precautions
Safety practices will be adhered to and not limited to the following requirements:
§ Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 –OSHA
§ Accident Prevention Manual for Industrial Operations, Seventh Edition, National Safety Council, Chapter 4.
§
Applicable State and local safety operating procedures
§ NETA Safety/Accident Prevention Program
§ Owner’s Safety practices
§ National Fire Protection Association, NFPA 70E.
All tests shall be performed with the apparatus de-energized except where otherwise specifically required by the nature of the test.
Power circuits shall have conductors shorted to ground by a hot line grounded device approved for the purpose.
All work in all cases shall not proceed until all safety precautions have been investigated and established.
The following programs should be available for each building.
Programs Available
□ Power Systems Studies and field service study
Power system studies are studies that look at the quality of the incoming source of power from the local utility. The power system study re-establishes the baseline for the initial designed power requirements that were established when the building was built. It also establishes the current baseline, establishing the need to upgrade
Main Building transformers, incoming cabling, and grounding and distribution systems inadequate to meet the demand of today’s equipment.
□ Ground fault certifications and ground grid testing services
These tests verify low ohmic ground paths, ground grid integrity and low resistance that are paramount for the safety of personnel and equipment. Transient voltage surge protection and suppression ground fault and relay performance testing are all part of this program.
□ Cable testing and fault identification and relay testing and calibration
Preventative and troubleshooting cable testing identifies, locates and isolates potential and actively faulted cables. Among the most critical of all testing falls within the electrical system the relays serve as the brains to energize breakers. The study verifies pick up points and time delay settings.
□ Thermograph surveys
Surveys help identify hot spots and potential voltage, current conditions that can cause fires and premature failure of critical equipment.
□ Predictive, preventive maintenance and troubleshooting
Periodic testing establishes baseline and trends that indicate when major maintenance, reconditioning or replacement will be required. This foreknowledge gives more time to plan the most efficient, effective, and cost effective maintenance programs.
Proper start up and acceptance testing
□ A program designed to establish baselines and establish warranty guidelines with manufactures recommendations for equipment operation.
Modernization
□ Modernization programs insure that existing distribution systems can support modern equipment without causing damage to equipment and building due to high harmonic distortion and under sized neutral grounding situations.
Audits
Power quality Audits Yes or No
1. Are power specifications required by the equipment being meet?
2. Is the power infrastructure sufficient for new equipment to be installed?
3. Are grounding issues causing hidden problems?
4. Are transient or undetected power conditions apparent?
5. Does a current or voltage imbalance exist?
6. Do excessive harmonics exist?
7. Transformers are within specified limits?
8.Cabling is intact and shows no signs of wear?
9. Grounding and bonding is correct for this application?
10. Is equipment installed with arc flash protection?
11. Are trips within instanteous trip settings?
12. Grounding and bonding within established limits?
13. Thermo imaging plan in place?
14. Breaker maintenance on scheduled interval?
15. Switchboard cleaning?
16. Transfer switch testing and maintenance?
17. Generator load testing?
18. Emergency systems available?
19. Qualified Personnel?
The following periodic maintenance checks being completed.
□ Load flow/ power factor measurements
The primary function of the power distribution system is to provide real and reactive power as demanded by the loads connected to the system. At the same time, frequency and various bus voltages must be kept within specified tolerances, even though load demands may undergo large and unpredictable changes.
□ Harmonic Analysis study
The operation of non-linear loads especially variable frequency drives (VFD) in power distribution systems create harmonic currents that flow throughout the power systems. Significant harmonic current and voltage magnitudes can have adverse effects on system components and overall system operation. Harmonic currents cause increased power losses in transformers, motors and cables. The higher power losses increase equipment operating temperatures, increasing the possibility of overload, increasing thermal stress on insulation, and reducing overall system efficiency.
□ Power factor correction capacitor checks
Power factor correction capacitor banks are particularly vulnerable to the detrimental effects of power system harmonics. Most capacitors are designed to operate at a maximum of 110% of rated voltage and 135% of rated kvar. Large magnitudes of voltage and current harmonics can exceed these design limits, and cause severe capacitor bank damage.
□ Power system Monitoring services
Electrical distributions are being subject to higher loads and greater harmonics than ever. Real time monitoring and remote control of power systems helps identify problem areas, pinpoint the root cause, enable quick resolution, and if necessary, enact remote control of power distribution equipment. These actions prevent costly outages and loss of equipment, while extending the service life of equipment.
□ Utility Monitoring plan
Effective utility monitoring begins with the reading of the buildings billing summary and an effective trending program to solve discrepancies with utility billing. Personnel shall be educated in rate structures and costs appearing on the buildings utility bill. Load profile can be developed on monitoring of the main meter data. This leads first to supply side management of power and then utilizing the energy more efficiently through demand side management.
□ Switchgear and switchgear assemblies
All switchgear assemblies shall be inspected and cleaned annually. Installation discrepancies and code violations that may have to be repaired to insure compliance. All switchgear bus connections will be tested and verified for tightness. Tightness testing will be with a calibrated torque wrench in accordance with manufactures recommendations and or an acceptable torque table. All switches will be opened and closed to insure proper operation. Perform ground resistance tests on each bus section, phase to phase to ground in accordance with manufactures recommendations. Perform insulation resistance tests at 1000 volts DC on all control wiring. Verify by drawings fuses match rated amps for service of equipment.
□ Protective relays
Inspect for damage, moisture, freedom of movement and verify settings for operation. Testing timing of relays at manufactures time measurements for activation.
□ Air switches (Fused switches, Pringle switches)
Inspect for deterioration and mechanical conditions. Check for proper fuse sizes IAW with drawings. Check blade alignment and arc interrupter operation. Verify expulsion limiting devices are in place on all holders having these devices. Check fuses knife blades for tightness. Clean switch and lubricate as required. Check blade clearances IAW manufactures recommendations.
□ Circuit breakers
Check for deterioration and lubricate as needed. Inspect anchorage, alignment and grounding, inspect arc chutes. Inspect moving and stationary contacts for condition, wear and alignment. Verify primary and secondary contact wipe are correct. Check tightness of bolted bus connections by calibrated torque wrench method. Check cell fit and element alignment. Racking mechanism if used or charging mechanism for proper operation. Perform a contact resistance check. Perform 1000 vdc test in opened and closed position. When possible use a breaker replacement swap out to send breaker out for bench testing. Check delay, instantaneous pickup of primary and ground fault protection devices.
□ Ground Fault System
Visual inspection followed by neutral main bonding connection inspection to insure the following is met: zero sequence system is grounded upstream of sensor. Ground straps systems are grounded down stream from sensing devices and ground connections are made ahead of neutral disconnect link. Conduct trip testing checking for auto reset and non automatic resets.
□ Testing
System neutral insulation shall be a minimum of 100 ohms and not greater than 1 mega ohm. Relay timing shall be 150% and 300% of pickup current into sensor. Total trip time will be monitored electrically. System operation shall be tested at 57% of rated voltage. System neutral insulation shall be a minimum of 100 ohms and preferably (1) mega ohm or greater.
Relay pickup current shall be within 10% of device dial or fixed settings and no case greater than 1200 amperes.
□ Motor control Centers
Inspected for damage cleanliness and grounding, Verifying all run stop and auto selections positions. Lubricate and tight connections. Measure phase to phase, current imbalances and insulation resistance. Trip overloads to verify performance.
□ Electrical bus maintenance
De-energize utility side connections and isolate building connections. Meg bus at 500 volts and record results. Loosen and re-torque and re-meg at 500 volts record results.
□ Transformers
Clean and inspect transformers and tighten connections. Collect data when on line and verify transformer is within specifications.
□ Emergency Power and transfer switches
Verify cleanliness and tightness. Time switching of transfer switch and verify re-setting through automatic operation.
Energy management
□ Spreadsheet summarizing monthly utility bills is prepared and compares costs and consumption levels on a square foot basis.
□ Property has a least one years worth of load profile data at 15 minute intervals
□ Property has load profile meter installed by utility company
□ Property has an energy management plan to prioritize conservation and cost reductions.
□ Property has a graphical model of building for energy studies
□ Property has detailed energy accounting program
□ Property has conducted an energy feasibility study
□ Has the building been benchmarked by energy star program
Grading and Assessments with recommendations
Grading of Electrical Maintenance will be conducted by grading each question category by one point for a total of 20 points. Each maintenance item scored at 0 – 5 points with a maximum score of 75 points. Engineering personnel scoring 1 to 5 additional points given for knowledge of systems.
100 – 80 Outstanding
80 – 60 Satisfactory
50 and below unsatisfactory
Energy management survey
Rated as satisfactory if 5 items are checked. Outstanding, if greater than 5 items are checked.
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