Pre-Fix

Completed

Other Power and Storage Technologies(Electricity transmission and distribution)

Applied Research and Development

ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY (Electrical and Electronic Engineering)

Not Cross-cutting

Project Contact
Western Power Distribution (WPD) - East Midlands

Network Innovation Allowance

Ofgem

01 October 2021

31 March 2023

ENA months

£1,840,963

Power

East Midlands

Network Innovation Allowance

Project Contact, Western Power Distribution (WPD) - East Midlands

Project Contact, Western Power Distribution (WPD) - South Wales
Project Contact, Western Power Distribution (WPD) - South West
Project Contact, Western Power Distribution (WPD) - West Midlands

Project Contact, Western Power Distribution

Over an 18-month project duration, Pre-Fix will deliver a roadmap that will help embed the benefits of pre-fault and disturbance information into operational processes. This project will be delivered using the following work packages:WP1 Specification: This work package records the requirements that must be delivered from all of the systems to be developed within this project.WP2 Design/Development: This work package conducts the deeper design requirement to deliver WP1, including design documentation and operational protocols, which will explain: (i) Deployment and application guidelines; (ii) Design and setting documentation (for permanent fit devices); and (iii) Communication philosophy and requirements.WP3 Build and Install: This work package constructs the systems required to deliver the functionality, installs the trial infrastructure and tests ahead of trial.WP4 Testing: This work package tests the components and system ahead of trials. WP5 Trial: This work package conducts a system trial prove the system requirements in an operational context.WP6 Learning and dissemination: This work packages will encapsulate learning into a manner that could enable further progress towards operational exploitation by WPD and other DNOs. This project seeks to overcome the barriers to wide-spread HV pre-fault capability represented by vendor tie in and proprietary software.This project will utilise HV pre-fault capture capable devices from different manufacturers to demonstrate how they can all contribute into common data platform. This project will also demonstrate how certain existing network devices such as power quality monitors, protection relays and LV monitors might also help contribute to HV pre-fault detection in addition to their basic functions. This project will also show how consistent operational dashboards and reports can be developed from this platform to enable a consistent policy driven approach to be implemented across an organisation. Key activities that will be carried out during the project include:Use of trial data from other DNOs to inform platform design and support testing.Architecture specification for the common information platform.Interoperability specification and setting of pre-fault gathering devices.Design of common operational user interfaces.Live trial of devices, platform and reports. The objectives of this project are to: Develop and validate a process to enable pre-fault capable devices from different manufacturers to contribute information onto the same platform.Develop and validate processs to enable pre-fault information to be drawn out of this platform.Develop and validate standard reports that enable a consistent and effective pre-fault policy driven decision making to be made in an operational environment.

Pre-Fix will develop and demonstrate a Common Disturbance Information Platform (C-DIP), allowing equipment from different vendors to be utilised for pre-fault detection and more accurate fault location on HV overhead line and underground cable circuits. The outputs from this project are expected to deliver game-changing performance benefits for the operation of distribution systems across GB in RIIO-ED2 and beyond.

14/10/22