TECHNICAL SERVICES

DIRECTOR: 
Mr S A Adams (Pr.Eng. MBL)
Engineer: 
Mr G S Anderson (Pr.Eng)
Director Secretary: 
Ms P Veitch

Overall Summary of the Directorate

The function of the Director is to strategically manage and control the Protection, Metering, Training, System Control, Communications and Radio Divisions to legislated standards.

He ensures that the existing technology and communication equipment is managed to monitor and control 640MW over an area of 1950km² between the Sundays and Gamtoos Rivers and the Winterhoek Mountains to legislated safety and quality standards. He is responsible for metering approximately R1,2billion or 3700 GWh of electricity per annum to 221100 customers. He also ensures continuity of supply 24 hours per day through the control and protection of approximately 50 HV (22 kV to 132 kV) substations and 2850 MV substations and equipment and is also responsible for the monitoring of the health of the network and advising the Distribution Director in the event of any faults or equipment failure. He has to account to the National Electricity Regulator on all quality of supply statistics annually.

Many functions of this Director involve the managing and control of information via central computers and the remote operation of instrumentation located in substations throughout NMB. The Training Division is responsible for the preparation of training material, the keeping of records, the training of learners and the annual skills audit.

All operations comply with legislation and national and international standards. 

Manager (Metering):
Mr Willem van Jaarsveld

The Metering Division manages the metering of 220 000 domestic, 950 commercial and 170 industrial electricity consumers and the procurement, testing, commissioning and maintenance of all metering equipment and infrastructure. Of particular importance is the transmission of metering information from meters located at the sites of large consumers to a central computer at Munelek. A central database also manages all metering information in NMB. Approximately 70% of electricity usage is by industrial and commercial consumers. The Metering Manager is accountable for the accurate metering of over R1,2 billion of electricity in NMB to legislated standards. He is constantly investigating new technology to automate metering via remote transmission, thereby minimising metering errors. A website is available to remotely read industrial power users exceeding 500 kVA. This facility is presently being expanded.
 

Manager (System Operations):
Mr Bernhardt Lamour

The System Operations Engineer is accountable for the maintenance of stipulated quality of supply conditions on the electricity network of 1600 km of underground cable and 650 0km of overhead line (1950 km²) 24 hours per day. In the event of faults, it is his duty to have faulty circuits isolated as soon as possible, safely and with minimum injury to plant and personnel without interrupting the supply to 23 000 customers. He requires a thorough knowledge of the power flow distribution in the network under both normal operating and fault conditions in all types of weather, as well as the dynamics involved in tap-changing at the various substations, 365 days per year. In addition, he is responsible for alerting the Distribution Director of all faults on the network and controls all quality of supply and statistics to NRS047/048 standards.

All operations are governed by the Occupational Health and Safety Act.

Manager (Training):
Mr Johan Scheepers

The Training Manager is responsible for the training of all staff in the Directorate in accordance with the Workplace Skills Development Plan and associated modules, as well as the training of various categories of students as and when required, both for municipal and, where possible, community benefits. He also manages an Annual Skills Audit in order to benchmark progress regarding the skilling needs that were established throughout the Directorate. In this way, the progress of each individual can be followed throughout the year.

All training has to comply with legislated requirements.

Manager (Protection Services):
Vacant

The Manager of the Protection Division is responsible for the analysis of different fault conditions on the network and in the field via sophisticated software and information obtained from a central computer and the control instrumentation at substations in the field. He is also responsible for co-ordinating his requirements into the planning, installation and commissioning of disconnecting devices at particularly the HV substations.

The Protection Division ensures that in the event of a fault on the network, the relevant circuit or equipment is automatically safely and efficiently disconnected, safeguarding the public, the staff and plant and equipment to legislated standards. The protection equipment located in the substations can discriminate between various types of faults and equipment failure and work in tandem with various disconnecting devices to ensure quality continuity of supply 24 hours per day. The communication between the various substations is transmitted via underground and overhead pilot cable located throughout NMB.

All protection equipment has to comply with international and local standards.