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Thursday, October 30, 2008

AMA fire and explosion at the ADM/Growmark grain elevator in Destrehan caused "considerable structural damage" to the facility, according to an initial report from the state Department of Environmental Quality.The cause of the explosion has not been released.There were no reported injuries in connection with the matter, which knocked out power to nearly 1,500 homes and has closed River Road.The road was re-opened to traffic at 2:45 p.m.


A spokeswoman for ADM said the company would release a statement about the matter but had not done so as of 2 p.m.
Elizabeth Todd, a spokesperson from the U.S. Occupational Health and Safety Administration, said the investigation of the accident could take up to six months, but may not take that long.


OSHA will determine whether any safety regulations were violated before the accident, while the DEQ will investigate whether there was any impact on the environment.


The grain elevator was evacuated shortly after the 1:30 a.m. blast, but residents of the surrounding neighborhood were not asked to leave, according to the St. Charles Parish Emergency Operations Center.


The explosion knocked out power to 1,448 customers in the area for about 90 minutes, Entergy spokesman Doug Rhodes said.


"It scared the heck out of us," said Mrs. Frank Sipos, who lives a few blocks way from the elevator.


Grain elevators are essentially storage facilities for grain. In South Louisiana, grain is shipped downriver from the midwest and stored at the grain elevator until it is loaded onto ships for export overseas.


The elevator is one of three in the parish. The others are owned by Bunge North America, which is also in Destrehan, and another ADM facility in Ama, on the parish's west bank.


ADM employs 178 people at both grain elevators, according to the St. Charles Parish Department of Economic Development.
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MARKETPLACE

IEGC

collapse of NE Grid




OBJECTIVE
CONSTITUTION
ERPC MEMBER
FUNCTION
SECRETARIAT

OBJECTIVE

To facilitate integrated operation of power system in Eastern Region.

CONSTITUTION

Govt. of India vide its resolution F. No. 23/1/2004-R&R dated 29th November 2005 had established Eastern Regional Power Committee comprising the states of Bihar, Jharkhand, Orissa, West Bengal and Sikkim with following members:-
Member (Grid Operations), Central Electricity Authority (CEA)
One representative each of Central Generating Companies, Central Transmission Utility (CTU), National Load Despatch Centre and the Eastern Regional Load Despatch Centre (ERLDC)
From each of the states in the region, the State Generating Company, State Transmission Utility (STU), State Load Despatch Centre (SLDC) and one Distribution Company by rotation (where more than one such company exists) would be represented.
Every independent power producer (IPP) having more than 1000 MW installed capacity in the region would have one representative each.
One member representing all other IPPs operating in the region.
One member representing the electricity traders in the region.
Member Secretary, ERPC ------ Convenor

5
Besides, the ERPC Secretariat performs the following duties namely:
Keep custody of records of proceedings of the Committee, sub-committees, task force and working groups of the ERPC.
Prepare agenda for the Committee and Sub-Committee meetings.
Prepare minutes of Committee and Sub-Committee meetings.
Take follow-up action on the decision taken in the Committee & Sub-Committee meetings.
Maintain archive of data and information pertaining to operating parameters, protection system and communication system of the regional power system.
Collect from constituent members or other offices, companies, firms or any other party as may be directed by Committee, such information as may be considered useful for the efficient discharge of functions of the Committee under the Resolution and place the information before the Committee and its sub-committees.


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GRID MANAGEMENT



Page 2
Table of Contents
1
OVERVIEW........................................................................................................................................ 7
2
EXISTING POWER SYSTEM AND LOAD DESPATCH FACILITY........................................... 13
3
SYSTEM DEMAND AND CONTROL............................................................................................ 16
4
CURRENT BLACK START AND SYSTEM RESTORATION PROCEDURES........................... 18
5
EXISTING ISLANDING SCHEMES............................................................................................... 26
6
DEMAND ESTIMATION AND CONTROL................................................................................... 34
7
NETWORK SECURITY AND SYSTEM OPERATION................................................................. 37
8
OUTAGE PLANNING...................................................................................................................... 44
9
SCHEDULING AND DESPATCH PROCEDURE.......................................................................... 47
10
GRID DISTURBANCES AND REVIVAL................................................................................... 55
11
ISLANDING SCHEMES...............................................................................................................59
12
ENERGY ACCOUNT AND SETTLEMENT SYSTEM .............................................................. 62
13
EVENT INFORMATION AND REPORTING............................................................................. 64
14
MANAGEMENT OF LOAD DESPATCH & SYSTEM OPERATION CODE........................... 68
ANNEXURES
FUNCTIONS OF SLDC as per Indian Electricity Act
(i)
State Load Despatch Centre in a State subject to the provisions of the sub-section 55(3)
of the Act, may give such directions and exercise such supervision and control as may
be required for ensuring the integrated grid operations and for achieving the maximum
economy and efficiency in the operation of the power system in that State.
(ii)
All directions issued by the Regional Load Despatch Centre to any transmission licensee
of the State Transmission lines or any other licensee of the State or generating company
(other than those connected to inter-state transmission system) or sub-station in the
State shall be issued through the State Load Despatch Centre (SLDC) and the State
Load Despatch & System Operation Code
8
Page 9
Load Despatch Centre shall ensure that such directions are duly complied by the
transmission licensee or licensee or generating company or sub-station.
(iii)
The regional Load Despatch Centre or State Load Despatch Centre, as the case may be
shall enforce the decision of the Regional Electricity Board.
1.3.1 SLDC Functions & Responsibility
The following are contemplated as principal functions of the SLDC:
Liaison with the State Generating Units, Distribution Companies, IPP, CPP and NRLDC
and other in matters related with operation of State Transmission System.
Collection of data related with system operations, interchange and exchange of energy.
Clause 2.6 of IEGC.
Load Despatch & System Operation Code
9
Page 10
(ii)
Except where specific provisions made in IEGC, the operation of SLDC is governed by
Grid Code (Part-I _General & Planning Code) and this Load Despatch & System
Operation Code(Part-II of Grid Code).
(iii)
As a constituent of the Northern Region the Connection Conditions specified in Chapter-
4 of IEGC applies to RVPN and relevant extract of the IEGC Connection Conditions is
placed at Annexure-1.3.
(iv)
All generating units, which are synchronized with the grid, irrespective of their
ownership, type and size, shall have their governors in normal operation at all times. If
any generating unit of over fifty (50) MW size is required to be operated without its
governor in normal operation, the NRLDC shall be immediately advised about the
reason and duration of such operation. All governors shall have a droop of between 3%
and 6%. The exemption from free governor mode operation in respect of any generating
stations shall be sought from CERC under clause 1.6 of IEGC. Such petitions for
exemption
shall
be
preceded
by
study
preferably
by
CEA.
(v)
Under Clause 6.1 (e) of IEGC, Control Rooms of NRLDC, all SLDC, power plants & EHV
(33 KV & above) substations and any other control centres of regional constituents are
to be manned round the clock by qualified and adequately trained personnel.
(vi)
Following chapters of IEGC set out the demarcation of responsibilities between NRLDC
& SLDC and role of SLDC:
Chapter 4
-
adding this
forecasted requirement for each state with a weight age corresponding to
percentage entitlement of the state in the ISGS hydro station. This interim
schedule would be rounded off to the nearest feasible MW for the ISGS hydro
station to get the final schedule of the ISGS hydro station. With this procedure,
Load Despatch & System Operation Code
52
Page 53
the generation schedule would adequately reflect the weightage according to
MW demand of each beneficiary in the ISGS hydro station
9.10.2 The entitlement for each beneficiary would then be worked out by NRLDC
based on such interstate hydro generating station schedule and percentage
entitlement of the beneficiary. The above general procedure will be followed
except in case of extremely low water inflows, when the hydro stations would
be scheduled for operation only during the peak hours.
9.11 Allocation of un-requisitioned surpluses
9.11.1 In line with section 5.7.3 of the CERC's orders on ABT, each ISGS could
negotiate the terms with any beneficiary for such un-requisitioned power on
day-to-day basis. A copy of all such agreements would be made available to
NRLDC and NREB Secretariat, and would be supplied to SLDC. In case SLDC
desires to avail full or part of such un-requisitioned surplus, such agreements
would get first priority in allocation of un-requisitioned surpluses at the terms
and conditions of the offer/agreement. In case of such surplus, requisitioned by
states, exceeds the availability; allocations to each state will be decided by
NRLDC/NREB Secretariat as per policy guidelines of NREB.
9.11.2 In respect of state sector power projects, SLDC shall evolve procedures for
best drawl schedules and scheduling of hydro stations and incorporate the
same as annexure to this Code.
9.12 Exchange of information
9.12.1 With the implementation of ABT, the generation schedules and drawls
schedules would have a bearing on payment to ISGS for the energy charge and
for unscheduled interchange. Therefore, the timely and accurate exchange of
information in regard to schedule is of paramount importance. This aspect
gains extra importance particularly in view of the CERC order of ABT dated
4.1.2000 wherein under schedule 1.0 it is stated that 'generation schedule and
drawl schedules issued/revised by NRLDC shall become effective from
designated time block irrespective of communication success'. In order to avoid
any adverse effect commercially on the state the need for a reliable and fast
communication arrangement for exchange of information in respect of
scheduling cannot be overemphasized.
9.12.2 Considering the large volume of information needed to be exchanged in a time
bound manner, the transfer of information between NRLDC and other
constituents i.e. states and ISGS, shall be preferably carried out on PC-to-PC
communication link through Internet / public switched telephone network
(PSTN).
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http://www.ercap.org/Guidelines/GeneralCode.html

IEGC GRID CODE The Text


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Documents...
CERC (Open Access) Regulations, 2008 dated 25.01.08- for Inter State Transmission
CERC (Open Access) Regulations 2008 - Approved Procedures for Bilateral TransactionsCERC (Open Access) Regulations 2008 - Approved Procedures for Collective Transactions
New UI rate w.e.f 07-01-08 - Ammendment by CERC in Tariff Regulations dt.28-12-07
staff paper on “Developing a Common Platform for Electricity Trading" dated July 2006
Guidelines for Grant of Permission For setting up and operation of Power Exchange dated Feb2007
Grant of permission to Indian Energy Exchange Limited for setting up of Power Exchange dated 31.08.07
Grant of permission to Indian Energy Exchange Limited for setting up of Power Exchange dated 09.06.08
Indian Electricity Grid Code (IEGC)
ABC of ABT - A Primer on Availability Tariff
Reliability, Security and Economy in Power Transmission

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CERC

Proposal for Amendments of the Indian Electricity Grid Code (Comments invited by 31-07-2008) 1. Public Notice 2. Draft Regulations
Date further extended to 31-05-2008 for submission of information by Central Generating Companies and Central/Inter-State Transmission Companies.
Date Extended to 30-04-2008 for submission of information by Central Generating Companies and Central/Inter-State Transmission Companies.
Proposed Amendments in Hydro Tariff Regulations from 01-04-2008 deferred - Existing tariff Regulations to continue
Notification of Escalation Rates, Inflation Rate, Discount rate and Dollar-Rupee Exchange rate as per Competitive Bidding Guidelines 1. Notification dated 31-03-2008 2. Explanation for the Notification on Escalation Rates dated 31-03-2008
Proposal For Amendment Of Hydro Tariff Regulations Form 01-04-2008(Comments invited by 07/03/2008) 1. Public Notice 2. Draft Regulations 3. Explanatory Memorandum 4. Order Seeking information From Hydro Generating Stations
CERC issues Draft of Revised Regulations on open access in Inter-state Transmission For Comments (Comments invited by 10/01/2008) 1. Public Notice 2. Draft Regulations 3. Explanatory Memorandum


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Website Links
Electricity related
Public Sector Undertakings
State Electricity Regulatory Commissions
Load Dispatch Centres
State Electricity Boards

Regional Power Committees
Eastern Regional Power Committee
Northern Regional Power Committee
Southern Regional Power Committee
Western Regional Power Committee

Tuesday, October 28, 2008


How Total is Your Quality Management?



Jim Clemmer

Notre Dame football coach, Lou Holtz, once observed "When all is said and done, a lot more is said than done." Despite all the talk -- passionate speeches, glossy brochures, clever ads, high tech videos, convincing sales pitches, snappy slogans, strategic plans, and solemn annual reports -- the service and quality action delivered by most organizations is mediocre at best.


Many well intentioned "Total Quality Management" improvement efforts aren't working. In their international study of Total Quality Management practices, the Conference Board of Canada found one study which showed that "seven out of ten North American companies fail in their attempt to execute a total quality strategy." But before you conclude that TQM was just another passing fad -- a "flavor of the month" -- take a closer look. Only a minuscule number of organizations in North America have truly tried Total Quality Management. Most have talked about TQM, while implementing PQM -- Partial Quality Management.


Moving from Partial Quality Management to true Total Quality Management is exceptionally tough. Here are a few of the keys:
Senior Management Involvement -- permission, lip service -- even passionate lip service -- isn't enough. Managers and supervisors adopt the visible priorities of their boss. Too often service and quality improvement is what the top delegates to the middle, to do to the bottom. At Vancouver based Finning Ltd (the world's largest Caterpillar dealer), CEO Jim Shepard and his executives are not only first in line for all the service and quality training being given to everyone else, they are also the trainers delivering sessions to their people.
Focusing and Supporting Teams -- while departmental, work group, branch, project, or process improvement teams are clearly at the centre of today's high performing organizations, managers often get too many teams going before their time. Many medium to large-sized organizations aren't ready to support more than a few pilot teams in year one or two of their implementation. In a poorly prepared organization, improvement teams smack into "old guard" supervisors and managers who think a coach belongs in a hockey rink, or fostering innovation means "if I want any of your bright ideas I'll give them to you." Team suggestions to realign inhibiting systems and cross-functional processes are given a lukewarm, and sometimes hostile, reception by those very managers and specialists who installed and now "snoopervise" them.
Planning and Reporting -- service and quality improvement must be approached with the same discipline and rigor as good business planning. The manager who throws staff, dollars, or training at improvement activities in the whimsical belief some of it is bound to stick, deserves the whimsical service and quality he or she gets. Effective organizations often spend months involving management, unions, work teams, board members, and possibly key suppliers and customers in strategic quality planning. Their service and quality measurement and reporting systems are every bit as rigorous as their financial statements.


Broad and Balanced Approach -- a sure sign of Partial Quality Management is an over-reliance on a few improvement tools and techniques. Effective implementations pull together the best techniques from the fields of customer service -- understanding and increasing perceived value, quality improvement -- improving processes at all levels through gathering, analyzing, and monitoring critical performance data (Xerox calls this "fact-based management"), and organization development -- building leadership skills and changing the organization's culture.


Building Skills as Well as Knowledge -- three slide trays, a bunch of videos, and five pounds of books and manuals, all delivered by a dynamic presenter, may teach team members or leaders about group dynamics or process management. But often this "spray and pray" approach doesn't help participants figure out how to keep meetings focused or resolve conflicts. In improving physical fitness, we all know that understanding common sense ideas is one thing, putting common sense into common practice is something else. The technology used in most training programs doesn't work. It may leave participants excited, enlightened, and aware, but is rarely leaves them more competent.
True Total Quality Management produces dramatic results. But moving from PQM to TQM requires as much discipline, consistency and new habit formation as moving from endless dieting or new year's fitness resolutions, to long-term, permanent lifestyle change.
Jim Clemmer’s practical leadership books, keynote presentations, workshops, and team retreats have helped hundreds of thousands of people worldwide improve personal, team, and organizational leadership. Visit his web site, http://jimclemmer.com/, for a huge selection of free practical resources including nearly 300 articles, dozens of video clips, team assessments, leadership newsletter, Improvement Points service, and popular leadership blog. Jim's five international bestselling books include The VIP Strategy, Firing on All Cylinders, Pathways to Performance, Growing the Distance, and The Leader's Digest. His latest book is Moose on the Table: A Novel Approach to Communications @ Work.

"... writes persuasively about the need for better balance in our lives...urges readers to consider their legacy...offering the chance to relax, reflect and regroup...interweaves anecdotes, quotes, fictional stories and his own musings in a leisurely style..."— The Globe & Mail
Simultaneously practical and inspirational, Jim Clemmer takes a refreshing approach to leadership and personal growth. Growing the Distance is full of wisdom, anecdotes and pithy advice in an informal, easy-to-read digest format. Great reading for all walks of life."— Nancy Semkin, Manager, LeadershipDevelopment, Royal Bank Financial Group
"....participants gave you a 4.5 out of 5 for the overall quality of your presentation. Participants particularly enjoyed your casual and informal presentation style, being in control in a group setting and the manner you were able to connect with the audience..."— Musawir Karim, Senior Research Associate and Program Manager, Centre for Management Effectiveness, The Conference Board of Canada
Jim Clemmer: Keynote Speaker, Workshop/Retreat Leader, and Management Team Developer
Leadership Books Free Leadership Articles Keynotes on Management

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Quality Is Free: The Art of Making Quality Certain


(Signet Shakespeare) (Paperback) by Philip B. Crosby (Author) "What does "making quality certain" mean? ..." (more)




This review is from: Quality Is Free: The Art of Making Quality Certain (Hardcover) This book tells you about one of the most underused tools in the QA Manager's box of tricks - the Cost of Quality. Read this book with a view to understand this principle and Crosby gives some invaluable guidance on how to go about a Cost of Quality Initiative. I have gone into job interviews with this trick up my sleeve when asking for a greater salary than they were offering and it opens peoples eyes. Yes, it's dated and yes you need to take some of the definitions and bring them up to date. As with anything you should read many sources and take nothing as gospel. A classic that at such a low cost now is a crime not to own. When folks see Quality is Free it sure prompts some interesting conversations too :)
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Quality Without Tears: The Art of Hassle-Free Management by Philip B. Crosby

The Deming Management Method by W.Edwards Deming

Out of the Crisis by WE Deming

What Is Total Quality Control?: The Japanese Way by Kaoru Ishikawa

Quality

In the vernacular, quality can mean a high degree of excellence (“a quality product”), a degree of excellence or the lack of it (“work of average quality”), or a property of something (“the addictive quality of alcohol”).[1] Distinct from the vernacular, the subject of this article is the business interpretation of quality.

Contents
1 Variations of a business definition
2 Improvement of quality
3 Market sector perspectives
4 Citations and notes
5 References
6 See also
7 Finding related topics
//


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Is Quality Free?
2/23/04
Click here to start
Table of Contents
Is Quality Free?
Is project quality really free?
Cost benefit of quality
If not free, then how much?
Prevention
Detection
Cost of Non-Conformance - Internal
Cost of Non-Conformance - External
So, is Quality Free?
Economics of Quality Conformance
Economics of Quality Conformance
Economics of Project Quality
Author: R. Max Wideman
Email: max_wideman@sfu.ca
Home Page: http://www.maxwideman.com/
Other information: The information contained in this Issacon is for your personal project use. A credit for the source will always be appreciated, but please don't use the graphics or text files for commercial purposes.

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The Total Quality Management Free Article Library
We've brought together what we think are some of the best material and articles on Total Quality Management, (TQM), and continuous improvement. The first section listed below is the Tribus Library, where all articles have been written by Myron Tribus, an internationally know quality expert, and perhaps more importantly, a very well educated, find and wise individual.
The following sections contain articles (by topic) which we feel have merit by virtue of their quality and content, or because they are of interest due to the topic.
Note that the most important contributors to the field are Edward Deming, Crosby, and Juran. If you are interested in books by any of these three, we have provided some good prospects in our book review area.
The Tribus Library (listed with permission of Tribus)
Note: These articles are available only in adobe acrobat (pdf) format. That means you need to have the adobe acrobat reader software which you can get free from Adobe (click the icon below).

Deming's Way, 1981, ( First published by Tribus in 1981, just after he had met Dr. Deming. It has been reproduced in several languages and is now considered a classic in the field. It is intended to introduce Deming's ideas to a skeptical audience without need for technical explanations.
Reducing Deming's 14 Points to Practice, 1984,Discussion of how Deming's ideas were utilized in Japan in a number of companies that had won the Deming Prize.
Lean on Quality, Discusses how it is that you become lean by being very good You don't become good by becoming lean
Policy Deployment How to deploy a policy through a company and be assured that the people hear what you intended to say, at all levels.
Nine Questions to Drive TQM Processes, 1993, Questions a leader can raise which help focus people's attention on quality improvement.
The CEO Doesn't Understand Quality. How Do I Save My Company?, Reflections on a common problem. Strategies are reviewed beyond the obvious one, "Write a new resume".
When the Boss Starts to Talk About Quality, Should I Listen?, How to understand Boss-speak on the subject of quality.
Checklist for Quality and Productivity, A list of things to look at when reviewing an enterprise's quality effort.
How Deming redefined the concept of management, A brief review of Deming's philosophy of management.
General TQM & Continuous Improvement Articles
Quality, Religion and Business Performance Shaping the New Corporate Voice: The Challenge of Heeding Customer Voice Quality Management Cost of Quality Revisited (Quality Digest)Launching Projects Successfully With Front-End Project Planning (Quality Digest) How Total Is Your Quality Management? (Jim Clemmer)The Five Elements To TQM By Lance Dixson The Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award The Ethical Implications of Quality God's Total Quality Management Questionaire Read This - Very Funny!
Applications To Specific Sectors/Industries
How Quality Management Really Works in Health Care (Juran Institute)Total Quality Principles:: How One Construction Company Is Putting Them To UseCHARTING A NEW COURSE: Public Schools Embarking on a Quality Journey
TQM Related Tools
Six Sigma Strategies: Creating Excellence in the Workplace (Quality Digest)Non-Statistical Quality Control The Conference Method Of RedesignJust-In-Time Systems An Explanation of ISO 9000
Management, Leadership, Change & TQM
Followership: An Essential Element of Leadership TQM And Organizational Change And Development By Thomas Packard, D.S.W. (Good!) Top Management Commitment Essential to Change Process (Kaizan Institute)

Important Note: Articles authored by and copyright Robert Bacal, can be used for your own personal use free of charge. Reprints for other uses can be arranged for nominal fees.. Please click here for more information about reprint rights and how to arrange them.

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Asian markets regain heavy losses
Story Highlights
NEW: HK's Hang Seng rebounds more than 12 percent

NEW: Singapore's Straits Times recovers from early plunge into positive territory

Japan's Nikkei finishes up 6 percent; S. Korea's KOSPI closes up 5.6 percent

Wall Street closes down, while European markets were mixed

Next Article in World Business »


Read VIDEO INTERACTIVE

(CNN) -- Investors in Asia on Tuesday largely shrugged off the latest sell-off on Wall Street, as stocks in Japan and South Korea closed up, while Hong Kong's main index was strongly in positive territory.


A passerby looks at an electronic stock board in downtown Tokyo, Japan, on Tuesday.

1 of 3 Tokyo's Nikkei finished the day up 6 percent, while in Seoul, the KOSPI closed up 5.6 percent.

The Hang Seng in Hong Kong also was on the rebound Tuesday -- up more than 12 percent in afternoon trading -- after tumbling nearly 13 percent a day earlier. Singapore's Straits Times also climbed back, from a loss of 7 percent earlier in the day to one percent in positive territory.

In Taipei, the Taiwan Weighted lost less than a percent, while Australia's All Ordinaries closed down a third of a percent.

The general rebound came as futures trading pointed to a positive open on Wall Street, a day after the Dow Jones industrial average lost 203 points or 2.4 percent, slumping in late-day trading.

The Nasdaq composite fell 3 percent, while the Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 3.2 percent. Watch what was affecting Wall Street »

The main European markets enjoyed a mixed day with Paris' CAC 40 falling nearly 4 percent, and London was down less than a percent. Frankfurt was the lone bright spot in Europe, ending up a little less than a percentage point. See market updates

The volatility in world markets coincided with Monday meetings in Tokyo -- of G7 financial ministers and central bank presidents -- and in Brasilia, Brazil -- of foreign and finance ministers from Mercosur economic bloc nations.

"We are concerned about the recent excessive volatility in the exchange rate of the yen and its possible adverse implications for economic and financial stability," the Group of Seven said Monday in a statement.

The finance ministers and bankers said they would "cooperate where appropriate" to help stabilize world markets. They said they were monitoring the situation closely.

In Brasilia, officials agreed that protectionist policies frequently adopted by individual South American nations in past decades would hurt more than help, The Associated Press reported.

The developments came as the Bank of England warned in a cautiously positive biannual report that adverse developments in emerging markets could put fresh strains on financial systems in developed countries, AP reported. The bank also said that hedge funds remain particularly exposed to global troubles, AP cited it as saying.


During the weekend, China played host to a weekend of Asian-European talks in Beijing, where leaders from 43 nations, along with the heads of the European Commission and ASEAN, vowed to act together on the financial crisis.

Mideast markets also dropped sharply during the weekend, despite the announcement by Saudi King Abdullah that he would invest billions of Saudi riyals into the market.

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Monday, October 27, 2008

How Power Grids Work
by Marshall Brain

Introduction to How Power Grids Work
The Power Plant
The Power Plant: Alternating Current
The Power Plant: Three-phase Power
Transmission Substation
The Distribution Grid
See more »
Distribution Bus
Regulator Bank
Taps
At the House
Safety Devices: Fuses
Safety Devices: Circuit Breakers
Lots More Information
See all Energy Production articles
Hydroelectric Power


Hydroelectric Power
HowStuffWorks Original Video: From the archives of Discovery: Hydroelectric power uses the energy of water to create electricity. Learn more about hydroelectric power in this video. (January 29)

More Science Videos
More HowStuffWorks Videos
Electrical power is a little bit like the air you breathe: You don't really think about it until it is missing. Power is just "there," meeting your every need, constantly. It is only during a power failure, when you walk into a dark room and instinctively hit the useless light switch, that you realize how important power is in your daily life. You use it for heating, cooling, cooking, refrigeration, light, sound, computation, entertainment... Without it, life can get somewhat cumbersome.
Power travels from the power plant to your house through an amazing system called the power distribution grid.

Power grid distribution lines can be above or under ground. See more power grid pictures.
The grid is quite public -- if you live in a suburban or rural area, chances are it is right out in the open for all to see. It is so public, in fact, that you probably don't even notice it anymore. Your brain likely ignores all of the power lines because it has seen them so often. In this article, we will look at all of the equipment that brings electrical power to your home. The next time you look at the power grid, you will be able to really see it and understand what is going on!

Search for Power Grids at Alibaba - the world’s largest online base of suppliers and importers.

Related Products:
Power Cable
Copper Wire
Cable Ties
Cable Connectors
Steel Tower
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Substation Connectors
Quality power connectors, fast service, great prices.

Introduction to How Power Grids Work
The Power Plant
The Power Plant: Alternating Current
The Power Plant: Three-phase Power
Transmission Substation
The Distribution Grid
Distribution Bus
Regulator Bank
Taps
At the House
Safety Devices: Fuses
Safety Devices: Circuit Breakers
Lots More Information
See all Energy Production articles



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Glossary for Grid Control

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
A
Access Charge A fee imposed on seller to gain access to a utility's transmission or distribution lines necessary to deliver power to a point of exchange or use.
ALEC The American Legislative Exchange Council is a national association of state legislators. who develop and promote free market policies. One of ALEC's primary purposes is the development of model legislation to be used by its legislator members in the states.
Alternating Current (AC) Current which varies from zero to a positive maximum to zero to a negative maximum to zero. a number of times per second. the number being expressed in cycles per second of Hertz (HZ)
Alternator A device for converting mechanical energy into electrical energy.
American Public Power Association (APPA) A national service organization representing 2000 municipal and other state or local publicly owned electric utilities throughout the United States.
Amperage The strength or intensity of an electric current. measured in amperes (AMPS)
Ancillary Services Services provided by a utility and other suppliers to a provider of generation which maintains the quality. safety loading. accounting and planning necessary to move generation from one point to another.
Avoided Cost The cost that a utility is expected to incur for its customers in providing (generation) service to its customer. This is the price paid by utilities to cogenerators in many states.
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B
Battery Charge Rectifier A component which changes AC voltage from the battery charge windings (within the STATOR) to DC voltage. This voltage could be used to charge a battery.
Bilateral Contracts A contractual system between a buyer and a seller to obtain generation and/or ancillary services of a given type, duration, timing and reliability over a contractual term.
Black-Out Refers to a condition when all electrical power is disrupted to your area.
Bottleneck Facility A point on the system, such as a transmission line, through which all electricity must pass to get to its intended buyers. If there is limited capacity at this point, some priorities must be developed to decide whose power gets through. It also must be decided if the owner of the bottleneck may, or must, build additional facilities to relieve the constraint.
BPA Bonneville Power Administration. One of five federal power marketing administrations that sell low-cost electric power produced by federal hydro electric dams to agricultural and municipal users. BPA serves Idaho, Oregon and Washington as well as parts of Nevada and Wyoming.
Broker Systems An electronic marketplace in which electric generation is priced and purchased.
Brown-Out Refers to a condition when the system voltage drops below acceptable levels causing lights to dim and potentially causing other electrical equipment to function improperly or to be damaged.
Brush A conducting element, usually graphite and/or copper, which maintains sliding electrical contact between a stationary and a moving element.
Bulk Power Supply Often this term is used interchangeably with wholesale power supply. In broader terms, it refers to the aggregate of electric generating plants, transmission lines, and related equipment. The term may refer to those facilities within one electric utility, or within a group of utilities in which the transmission lines are interconnected.
Buy Release A secondary market for capacity that is contracted by a customer not using all of its capacity.
Buy Through An agreement between utility and customer to import power when the customer's service would otherwise be interrupted.
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C
Captive Customer A customer who does not have realistic alternatives to buying power from the local utility, even if that customer had the legal right to buy from competitors.
Cascade Failure A failure mode wherein the failure of one component of a complex system causes other components of that system to fail; for example, in a system of standby emergency diesel generators that must be synchronized in AC parallel to operate, a failure mode on one generator could cause all of the other generators in parallel to fail.
Co-op The commonly used term for a rural electric cooperative. Rural electric cooperatives generate and/or purchase wholesale power, arrange for the transmission of that power, and then distribute the power to serve the demand of rural customers. Co-ops typically become involved in ancillary services such as energy conservation, load management and other demand-side management programs in order to serve their customers at the least cost. (All Co-ops do not necessarily generate electricity.)
Cogeneration (Cogen) Generating electricity using a waste heat fuel source (full or partial) which comes from another industrial process.
Common Cause Failure The simultaneous failure of more than one system component due to shared causes, often extraordinary events, such as natural disaster, human error, etc.
Computer Grade Power Electricity meeting the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers Standard 446-1987. This standard sets time and voltage intervals which electronic equipment must tolerate without malfunction.
Conductor A wire or cable designed for the passage of electrical current.



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ThesaurusLegend: Synonyms Related Words Antonyms
Noun
1.
power grid - a system of high tension cables by which electrical power is distributed throughout a region
power system, grid
electric main - a main that distributes electricity
facility, installation - a building or place that provides a particular service or is used for a particular industry; "the assembly plant is an enormous facility"
infrastructure, base - the stock of basic facilities and capital equipment needed for the functioning of a country or area; "the industrial base of Japan"
power cable, power line - cable used to distribute electricity
power plant, power station, powerhouse - an electrical generating station
wn()
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2008 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.


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Electricity Terms
A-B C-D E-F G-H I-J K-L M-N O-P Q-R S-T U-V W-Z
Acid Rain: Also called acid precipitation or acid deposition, acid rain is precipitation containing harmful amounts of nitric and sulfuric acids formed primarily by nitrogen oxides and sulfur oxides released into the atmosphere when fossil fuels are burned. It can be wet precipitation (rain, snow, or fog) or dry precipitation (absorbed gaseous and particulate matter, aerosol particles or dust). Acid rain has a pH below 5.6. Normal rain has a pH of about 5.6, which is slightly acidic. The term pH is a measure of acidity or alkalinity and ranges from 0 to 14. A pH measurement of 7 is regarded as neutral. Measurements below 7 indicate increased acidity, while those above indicate increased alkalinity.
Adjustment Bid: A bid that is used by the Independent System Operator to adjust supply or demand when congestion on the transmission system is anticipated.
Aggregator: Any marketer, broker, public agency, city, county, or special district that combines the loads of multiple end-use customers in facilitating the sale and purchase of electric energy, transmission, and other services on behalf of these customers.
Ampere: The unit of measurement of electrical current produced in a circuit by 1 volt acting through a resistance of 1 ohm.
Ancillary Services: Necessary services that must be provided in the generation and delivery of electricity. As defined by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, they include: coordination and scheduling services (load following, energy imbalance service, control of transmission congestion); automatic generation control (load frequency control and the economic dispatch of plants); contractual agreements (loss compensation service); and support of system integrity and security (reactive power, or spinning and operating reserves).
Anthracite: The highest rank of coal; used primarily for residential and commercial space heating. It is hard, brittle, and black lustrous coal, often referred to as hard coal, containing a high percentage of fixed carbon and a low percentage of volatile matter. The moisture content of fresh-mined anthracite generally is less than 15 percent. The heat content of anthracite ranges from 22 to 28 million Btu per ton on a moist, mineral-matter-free basis. The heat content of anthracite coal consumed in the United States averages 25 million Btu per ton, on the as-received basis (i.e., containing both inherent moisture and mineral matter). Note: Since the 1980's, anthracite refuse or mine waste has been used for steam electric power generation. This fuel typically has a heat content of 15 million Btu per ton or less.

FixedCarbonLimits
VolatileMatter

Apparent Power: The product of the voltage (in volts) and the current (in amperes). It comprises both active and reactive power. It is measured in “volt-amperes” and often expressed in “kilovolt-amperes” (kVA) or “megavolt-amperes” (MVA).
Ash: Impurities consisting of silica, iron, alumina, and other noncombustible matter that are contained in coal. Ash increases the weight of coal, adds to the cost of handling, and can affect its burning characteristics. Ash content is measured as a percent by weight of coal on a "received" or a "dry" (moisture-free, usually part of a laboratory analysis) basis.
Available but not Needed Capability: Net capability of main generating units that are operable but not considered necessary to carry load, and cannot be connected to load within 30 minutes.
Average Revenue per Kilowatthour: The average revenue per kilowatthour of electricity sold by sector (residential, commercial, industrial, or other) and geographic area (State, Census division, and national), is calculated by dividing the total monthly revenue by the corresponding total monthly sales for each sector and geographic area.
Barrel: A volumetric unit of measure for crude oil and petroleum products equivalent to 42 U.S. gallons.
Base Bill: A charge calculated through multiplication of the rate from the appropriate electric rate schedule by the level of consumption.
Baseload: The minimum amount of electric power delivered or required over a given period of time at a steady rate.
Baseload Capacity: The generating equipment normally operated to serve loads on an around-the-clock basis.
Baseload Plant: A plant, usually housing high-efficiency steam-electric units, which is normally operated to take all or part of the minimum load of a system, and which consequently produces electricity at an essentially constant rate and runs continuously. These units are operated to maximize system mechanical and thermal efficiency and minimize system operating costs.
Bbl: The abbreviation for barrel.
Bcf: The abbreviation for 1 billion cubic feet.
Bilateral Agreement: Written statement signed by a pair of communicating parties that specifies what data may be exchanged between them.
Bilateral Contract: A direct contract between the power producer and user or broker outside of a centralized power pool or power exchange.
Bituminous Coal: A dense coal, usually black, sometimes dark brown, often with well-defined bands of bright and dull material, used primarily as fuel in steam-electric power generation, with substantial quantities also used for heat and power applications in manufacturing and to make coke. Bituminous coal is the most abundant coal in active U.S. mining regions. Its moisture content usually is less then 20 percent. The heat content of bituminous coal ranges from 21 to 30 million Btu per ton on a moist, mineral-matter-free basis. The heat content of bituminous coal consumed in the United States averages 24 million Btu per ton, on the as-received basis (i.e., containing both inherent moisture and mineral matter).

FixedCarbonLimits
VolatileMatterLimits
CalorificValueLimits Btu/lb

LV
=
Low-volatile bituminous coal
MV
=
Medium-volatile bituminous coal
HVA
=
High-volatile A bituminous coal
HVB
=
High-volatile B bituminous coal
HVC
=
High-volatile C bituminous coal
Boiler: A device for generating steam for power, processing, or heating purposes or for producing hot water for heating purposes or hot water supply. Heat from an external combustion source is transmitted to a fluid contained within the tubes in the boiler shell. This fluid is delivered to an end-use at a desired pressure, temperature, and quality.
Broker: An entity that arranges the sale and purchase of electric energy, transmission, and other services between buyers and sellers, but does not take title to any of the power sold.
Btu (British Thermal Unit): A standard unit for measuring the quantity of heat energy equal to the quantity of heat required to raise the temperature of 1 pound of water by 1 degree Fahrenheit.
Bundled Utility Service: All generation, transmission, and distribution services provided


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Preamble
These Oshawa PUC Networks Inc. (OPUCN) Conditions of Service documents contain a variety of terms that may need to be defined in the context of this document. This Section defines those terms.
2. Source for definitions:
A Electricity Act, 1998, Schedule A, Section 2, Definitions
MR Market Rules for the Independent Electricity Market Operator (IMO),
Chapter 11, Definitions
TDL Transitional Distribution License, Part I, Definitions
TTL Transitional Transmission License, Part I, Definitions
DSC Distribution System Code Definitions
SSS Standard Supply Service Code Definitions
ARC Affiliate Relationship code Definitions
RSC Retail Settlement Code Definitions
OEB Ontario Energy Board Act, 1998
After each of the defined terms listed below, the Act, Rule, or Code where the term is also defined is listed. Where the definition in the Act, Rule or Code is different from the one in this Glossary, the word "modified" follows. Any differences are minor in nature, and do not present an ambiguity. The definitions contained in these Conditions of Service will prevail, if there is a conflict with any other document.
3. Defined Terms
"Affiliate Relationships Code" means the code, approved by the OEB and in effect at the relevant time, which among other things, establishes the standards and conditions for the interaction between electricity distributors or transmitters and their respective affiliated companies; (TDL, DSC, RSC);
"ancillary services" means services necessary to maintain the reliability of the IMO-controlled grid, including frequency control, voltage control, reactive power and operating reserve services (MR modified, TDL, DSC, RSC, OEB, A);
"building" means a building, portion of a building, structure or facility; (RSC)
"Canadian Standards Association" or "CSA" means the not-for-profit membership-based association serving business, industry, government and consumers in Canada and the global marketplace, who's head office is in Mississauga, Ontario.
"Conditions of Service" means the document developed by a distributor in accordance with subsection 2.4 of the DSC that describes the operating practices and connection rules for the distributor; (DSC)
"connection" or "connect" means the process of installing and activating connection assets in order to distribute electricity to a Customer; (DSC)
"Connection Agreement" means the written agreement entered into between OPUCN and a distributor or embedded generator connected to OPUCN's distribution system that delineates the conditions of the connection and delivery of energy to or from that connection;
"Connection Agreement Offer To Connect" means the written agreement entered into between OPUCN and a Customer or developer who wants to be connected to OPUCN's distribution system that delineates the conditions and costs of the connection;
"connection assets" means that portion of the distribution system used to connect a Customer to the existing main distribution system, and consists of the assets between the point of connection on a distributor's main distribution system and the ownership demarcation point with that Customer; (DSC)
"Customer-owned substation" means a facility located on private property owned, operated and maintained by the Customer. The facility will have at least one transformer with a high side voltage of either 44KV or 13.8KV, isolating switches, fuses, lightning arrestors, secondary switches, appropriate structures, fencing, and may have capacitors. The equipment will be installed and operated in accordance with the Ontario Electrical Safety Code published by the ESA.
"Customer" means a Person that has contracted for or intends to contract for connection of a building, and/or who contracts to receive distribution services; (DSC modified)
"demand" means the rate at which electric energy is delivered to or by a system or part of a system, generally expressed in kilowatts or megawatts at a given instant or averaged over any designated interval of time; (MR)
"developer" means a Person or Persons owning, or acting on behalf of an owner(s) of property or building for which new or modified electrical services are to be installed;
"disconnection or disconnect" means a deactivation of connection assets or electrical service that results in cessation of distribution services to a Customer; (DSC)
"distribute", with respect to electricity, means to convey electricity at voltages of 50 kilovolts or less; (A, MR, TDL, DSC, RSC, SSS, OEB)
"distribution loss factor" means a factor or factors by which metered loads must be multiplied such that when summed equal the total measured load at the supply point(s) to the distribution system; (DSC, RSC)
"distribution services" means services related to the distribution of electricity and the services the OEB has required distributors to carry out, for which a charge or rate has been approved by the OEB, under section 78 of the Ontario Energy Board Act; (RSC, DSC, TDL modified)
"Distribution Services Agreement" means an agreement entered into between a distributor and a person connected to its distribution system that delineates the conditions of the connection and delivery of electricity to that connection; (DSC)
"distribution system" means a system for distributing electricity, and includes any structures, equipment or other things used for that purpose. A distribution system is comprised of the main system capable of distributing electricity to many Customers and the connection assets used to connect a Customer to the main distribution system; (A, MR, TDL, DSC, OEB, SSS modified, RSC, ARC modified)
"Distribution System Code" or "DSC" means the code, approved by the OEB, and in effect at the relevant time, which, among other things, establishes the obligations of a distributor with respect to the services and terms of service to be offered to Customers and retailers and provides minimum technical operating standards of distribution systems; (DSC)
"distributor" means a Person who owns or operates a distribution system; (A, MR, TDL, DSC, OEB, SSS modified, RSC, ARC)
"Electricity Act" means the Electricity Act, 1998, S.O. 1998, c.15, Schedule A; (MR, TDL, DSC, RSC, SSS modified)
"electrical room" means an isolated room or enclosure, with outside access, built to applicable codes to house associated electrical equipment such as meter installation equipment, Customer's electrical service, transformer, etc.;
"Electrical Safety Authority" or "ESA" means the Person or body designated under the Electricity Act and its regulations as the Electrical Safety Authority; (A, DSC)
"electrical service" means the Customer's conductors and equipment for delivery of distribution services from OPUCN;
"Electricity and Gas Inspection Act" means the Electricity and Gas Inspection Act, 1980-81-82-83, c 87;
"embedded distributor" means a distributor who is not a wholesale market participant and that is provided electricity by a host distributor; (RSC, DSC)
"embedded generator" or "embedded generation facility" means a generator whose generation facility is not directly connected to the IMO-controlled grid but instead is connected to a distribution system; (DSC, MR modified)
"embedded retail generator" means an embedded generator that settles through a distributor's retail settlements system and is not a wholesale market participant; (DSC, RSC modified)
"embedded wholesale Customer" means a Customer who is a wholesale market participant whose facility is not directly connected to the IMO-controlled grid but is connected to a distribution system; (DSC, RSC)
"emergency" means any abnormal system condition that requires remedial action to prevent or limit loss of a distribution system or supply of electricity that could adversely affect the reliability of the electricity system; (DSC, MR modified)
"emergency backup" means a generation facility that has a transfer switch that isolates it from a distribution system; (DSC)
"energy" means the product of real power multiplied by time, usually expressed in kilowatt-hours (kWh);
"energy diversion" means the unaccounted for use of distribution services that can be quantified through various measures upon review of the meter mechanism, such as unbilled meter readings, tap off load(s) before revenue metering or meter tampering;
"enhancement" means a modification to an existing distribution system that is made for purposes of improving system operating characteristics such as reliability or power quality or for relieving system capacity constraints resulting, for example, from general load growth; (DSC)
"expansion" means an addition to a distribution system in response to a request for additional Customer connections that otherwise could not be made; for example, by increasing the length of the distribution system; (DSC)
"Expansion Agreement Offer To Connect" means the written agreement entered into between OPUCN and a Customer or developer who wants to be connected to OPUCN's distribution system that delineates the conditions and costs of the expansion and connection;
"extreme operating conditions" means extreme operating conditions as defined in the Canadian Standards Association Standard CAN3-C235-83 (latest edition);
"four-quadrant interval meter" means an interval meter that records power injected into a distribution system and the amount of electricity consumed by the Customer; (DSC)
"general service" means any service supplied to premises other than those designated as residential service, municipal street lighting service, or sentinel lighting service. This includes multi-unit residential establishments such as apartment buildings metered through one service;
"generate", with respect to electricity, means to produce electricity or provide ancillary services, other than ancillary services provided by a transmitter or distributor through the operation of a transmission system or distribution system; (A, TDL, DSC, OEB, RSC)
"generation facility" means a facility for generating electricity or providing ancillary services, other than ancillary services provided by a transmitter or distributor through the operation of a transmission or distribution system, and includes any structures, equipment or other things used for that purpose; (A, MR, TDL, DSC, RSC, OEB)
"generator" means a Person who owns or operates a generation facility; (A, MR, TDL, DSC, OEB, RSC)
"good utility practice" means any of the practices, methods and acts engaged in or approved by a significant portion of the electric utility industry in North America during the relevant time period, or any of the practices, methods and acts which, in the exercise of reasonable judgement in light of the facts known at the time the decision was made, could have been expected to accomplish the desired result at a reasonable cost consistent with good practices, reliability, safety and expedition. Good utility practice is not intended to be limited to the optimum practice, method, or act to the exclusion of all others, but rather to be acceptable practices, methods, or acts generally accepted in North America; (MR, DSC)
"host distributor" means the registered wholesale market participant distributor who provides electricity to an embedded distributor; (RSC, DSC modified)
"IEEE" means Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers;
"IMO" means the Independent Electricity Market Operator established under the Electricity Act; (A, TDL, DSC, OEB, MR, RSC, SSS)
"IMO-controlled grid" means the transmission systems with respect to which, pursuant to agreements, the IMO has authority to direct operation; (A, TDL, DSC, MR, OEB, RSC)
Glossary of Terms
Section 100 – Introduction
Section 200 – Distribution Activities
Section 300 – Customer Specific
Section 400 – Glossary of Terms
Section 500 – Appendices
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We sometimes we need to know the exact definition of frequently used terms. We have compiled a list of the most frequently used energy industry terms:
Appliance blocking
Distribution system
Electrical energy
Electricity grid
Electricity
Energy
Ripple control
Protected customer
Circuit breaker
Kilowatt-hour
Network voltage
Voltage deviation
Consumption location
Authorized customer
Transmission system
Power surge
Surge protection
Rate
Low tariff
High tariff

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