Over-specification due to lack of knowledge

Abstract

In today’s market place a few main developments can be noted, e.g.:The growing lack of technical background knowledge on both the user and manufacturer side, due to lack of training on the jobDecisions are made too much from the financial side, too far from the technics. Both user and manufacturer are very well equipped with lawyers and general managers, but not with the overall grid knowledge carriersThe rat race in spec selling on the manufacturer side, resulting in requesting too much for the application in the grid from customer sideNote 2) and 3) above seem to be contradictory, but they aren’t !The user will ask more and more for the highest specifications, even if not needed at all, or not matching with other specs requested. The motivation is always ‘just to avoid any risk’. But the risk will never be zero.IEC standards follow this market trend by raising the bar on a continuous basis, e.g. by specifying extra classes and/or extra tests. In the end the only winners are the test-labs.These tendencies, present both for the primary and the secondary switchgear are discussed in the paper with several examples.