Improving power quality and grid edge development

While gaining visibility of electrical networks can be challenging, QubeScan delivers fleetwide health analytics and comprehensive management of its PQube3 measurements. By gaining these insights, operators can respond more proactively to anticipated failures in the grid.

QubeScan provides grid operators, utilities, and commercial and industrial (C&I) customers with greater visibility of power quality at the grid’s edge, which is critical as deployments in renewable generation, electrical vehicle (EV) charging, and microgrids increase. The platform allows users to sense, evaluate, and proactively act on everchanging grid stability and power quality.

It also comes with customisable analytics, which enables operators to review and detect events within the system. They can also record and analyse shareable data and configure trend alerts according to site requirements.

“The ability to look back at a power quality event in a factory and see real time data is a very powerful thing,” explained John Mitchell, Global Sales and Marketing Director at CP Automation. “Operators can receive an email in their inbox with an alert or warning about power failures at a particular time, and then go back to the electricity grid as part of the root cause analysis.

“We already supply the full range of Powerside power quality analysers, including the PQube3, and this new platform complements them nicely,” added Mitchell. “The QubeScan brings a higher level of integration, and it puts the power back in the operator’s hands by giving them added control.”

As markets move towards a modern, distributed energy grid, non-linear power sources continue to create dynamic instabilities, particularly at the grid’s edge. Instabilities like transients and underlying distortion sources are challenging to detect in the electrical distribution system and pose a risk to equipment. Factors like net metering and load management further complicate potential issues. Therefore, the demand for improved analytics is growing.

Combining sophisticated measurement and analysis will be essential for navigating these ongoing power quality dynamics. Combined with world-class compact low voltage (LV) and medium voltage (MV) sensors, QubeScan delivers synchronised AC/DC analogue and digital measurements, and environmental parameters to cover all system aspects. This enhanced solution supports the grid, enabling continued growth of distributed energy and EV charging on existing networks.