Workshop Overview

This five-day Peganix workshop is designed for engineers, technicians, utility professionals, and industrial operators working across Africa’s evolving power systems.

Across the continent, electrical infrastructure is under increasing pressure from rapid urbanisation, ageing equipment, renewable integration, and inconsistent maintenance regimes. Failures in switchgear, circuit breakers, and transformers are among the leading causes of outages, equipment damage, and operational losses in utilities, mining operations, manufacturing plants, and commercial facilities.

This workshop focuses on practical, field-relevant knowledge for the application, installation, operation, testing, and maintenance of low, medium, and high voltage equipment. It bridges the gap between theory and real-world conditions found across African power networks.

Participants will work through real case scenarios drawn from utility environments, industrial sites, and hybrid grid systems to develop actionable skills that can be implemented immediately.

Workshop Outcomes

By the end of the programme, participants will be able to:

• Apply practical knowledge in selecting, operating, and maintaining switchgear, circuit breakers, and transformers in African operating conditions
• Diagnose common failure modes linked to environmental stress, poor maintenance, and network instability
• Interpret protection schemes and testing results to improve system reliability
• Implement safety and isolation procedures aligned with high-risk substation environments
• Develop asset management strategies suited to constrained budgets and ageing infrastructure
• Work confidently with equipment from major global manufacturers commonly deployed across Africa

Key Industry Context:

The workshop directly addresses:

• Frequent grid instability and voltage fluctuations
• Ageing and poorly documented infrastructure
• Limited access to replacement parts and OEM support
• Environmental stress (heat, dust, humidity) impacting equipment lifespan
• Skills gaps in maintenance and diagnostics
• Integration of renewables into weak or unstable grids
• High cost of downtime in mining, manufacturing, and utilities

Delivery Approach:

This is not a lecture-based course. It is structured as an applied workshop:

• Real case studies from utilities, mining, and industrial operations
• Equipment-based discussions using globally deployed brands
• Interactive problem-solving sessions
• Daily practical scenarios and group analysis
• Participant-led discussions on challenges within their own organisations

Certification

Participants will receive a Peganix Certificate of Completion, recognising practical competency in the application, maintenance, and management of critical electrical infrastructure.

Workshop Structure (5 Days)

Day 1: Fundamentals of Switchgear and Network Context

The first day establishes a clear understanding of how switchgear operates within real power systems, with emphasis on how African grids differ from stable, high-redundancy systems.

Core Topics

• Power system overview in developing and constrained grids
• Single line diagrams and network interpretation
• Active and passive components in distribution systems
• Role and utilisation of circuit breakers
• MV switchgear types: ring main units, load break switches, fuse combinations
• Auto-reclosers and their role in unstable networks

Focus For day 1:

• Managing radial and weak networks
• Load shedding environments and switching stress
• Rural vs urban distribution challenges

Day 2: Switchgear Applications, Technologies and Selection

This day focuses on how different switchgear technologies perform in real-world conditions and how to select appropriate systems under practical constraints.

Core Topics

• Principles of current interruption
• Oil, air, SF6, and vacuum circuit breakers
• Operating mechanisms and performance limitations
• Fixed vs withdrawable systems
• Switchgear standards and compliance
• Factors influencing equipment selection

Focus For day 2:

• Trade-offs between cost, reliability, and maintainability
• SF6 handling challenges and environmental considerations
• Equipment selection where budgets and supply chains are limited

Day 3: Specifications, Protection and Operational Safety

Participants move into system-level thinking, including protection schemes, specification design, and critical safety practices.

Core Topics

• Switchgear ratings and system requirements
• Protection systems: CTs, VTs, relays
• Substation layout and design considerations
• Cable terminations and installation practices
• Short circuit performance and testing interpretation

Operational Safety

• Isolation procedures and switching protocols
• Lock-out/tag-out systems
• Safety interlocks and alarm systems
• Substation work practices

Focus For day 3:

• Working safely in under-resourced substations
• Managing human error risks in high-pressure environments
• Adapting global safety standards to local realities

Day 4: Diagnostics, Maintenance and Asset Management

This day is highly practical and addresses one of the biggest gaps across African power systems: maintenance and lifecycle management.

Core Topics

• Inspection methodologies and fault identification
• Partial discharge measurement
• Timing tests and thermographic analysis
• Common deterioration mechanisms
• Maintenance of oil, vacuum, and SF6 circuit breakers
• Oil testing and contact maintenance

Asset Management

• Time-based vs condition-based maintenance
• Asset registers and tracking systems
• Defect reporting and control systems

Focus For day 4:

• Extending lifespan of ageing equipment
• Maintenance under budget constraints
• Building practical maintenance systems without full digital infrastructure

Day 5: Power Transformers – Operation, Protection and Testing

The final day focuses on transformers, which are often the most expensive and vulnerable assets in African power systems.

Core Topics

• Transformer construction and types
• Core and shell design, cooling systems, insulation
• Operational principles and performance characteristics
• Loading, thermal performance, and paralleling
• Tap changers and vector groups

Protection Systems

• Differential protection, overcurrent, and earth fault
• Buchholz relay and pressure relief systems
• Temperature monitoring and alarms

Testing and Maintenance

• Oil quality analysis and dissolved gas analysis
• AC and DC testing methods
• Preventative maintenance strategies
• Techniques to extend transformer life

Focus For day 5:

• Transformer failures due to overloading and poor oil management
• Challenges in oil testing and diagnostics access
• Managing transformers in unstable and fluctuating networks