The National Cleaner Production Centre South Africa (NCPC-SA) aims to raise awareness of the importance of Power Quality in the manufacturing industry at this year’s Africa Energy Indaba (AEI).

Power Quality refers to the degree to which a power system conforms to established standards; in the South African context the standard is NRS048. It refers to voltage, waveform, and frequency parameters of power, and deviations in these parameters affect equipment connected to the power system in its ability to function properly.

The NCPC-SA is a programme of the Department of Trade Industry and Competition and is hosted by the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research. It is a national support programme that drives the shift towards a green economy through resource efficiency and cleaner production interventions in South Africa.

“Power Quality is relevant for South Africa as the country moves from coal-fired thermal power towards renewable energy generation,” says NCPC-SA quality assurance manager Tanya van Zyl.

She explains that local Power Quality issues arise because of solar photovoltaic and wind power generation; the proliferation of non-linear loads, such as variable-speed drives and light emitting diode lighting; larger loads, such as electrical arc furnaces; and natural causes of voltage dips, including lightning strikes.

Production halts, owing to machine downtime, will lead to income losses, primarily in all-day manufacturing and industrial operations, while ageing infrastructure and theft of commodities, such as copper and earthing straps, from substations could further aggravate the situation.

“Power Quality management becomes important for manufacturing companies that use sensitive control equipment,” adds Van Zyl.

She says that a manufacturing company’s equipment may also be the source of harmonic distortion that is emitted onto the power grid affecting other users connected to the power grid.

To tackle the Power Quality issues in South Africa, the NCPC-SA has established an end-user course that covers a foundational understanding of Power Quality, and an expert course, which is suited to engineers and electricians wanting to gain an understanding of measurement, assessments, management and solutions.

However, Van Zyl notes that the NCPC-SA has faced challenges implementing Power Quality measures, owing to a lack of awareness and the technical nature of Power Quality and its solutions.

Hence, the NCPC-SA is “in the process of demystifying Power Quality through training and developing a crop of plant electrical engineers and consultants who can help to address the problem”.

It also aims to mitigate potential issues as South Africa transitions to renewable energy and energy efficiency improvement projects to avoid the same Power Quality challenges faced in Europe and the US, Van Zyl adds.

Participation at the AEI

The NCPC-SA will participate in the Innovation and the Circular Economy plenary panel (12) on the third day of the Indaba, and will present two technical presentations in the Energy Trade Zone, which is set up to provide free workshops to attendees. The presentations will cover methodologies and case studies on topics such as Power Quality and systems optimisation.

The NCPC-SA aims to bring “technical expertise and advice to industry members regarding the implementation of energy management in their sustainability journey”.

The centre will be available at the actual exhibition to offer attendees information on its subsidised training and support services for the industry.

Since 2010, the NCPC-SA, along with international implementing partner and specialised agency United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (Unido), has implemented the Industry Energy Efficiency Project and will execute an energy project focused on improving eco parks.

“The NCPC-SA and Unido’s participating at the AEI enables energy companies and companies seeking energy services to find out about projects and services we run that could benefit them on a national level,” she concludes.