Electrical Systems Design for the Non-Electrical Engineer

If you have no formal electrical engineering education, this course will teach you how electrical distribution systems for commercial and industrial buildings are designed and operated. Emphasizing basic electrical concepts rather than rigorous mathematical derivations, expert instructors introduce the fundamental direct current concepts and extend them to single-phase and three-phase alternating current systems. After completing this course you will know how to design low voltage (1,000 volts and below) electrical distribution systems and you will have a sound understanding of the associated codes and standards, as well as the important grounding, power quality, and arc-flash issues.

• Working professionals who design electrical systems but who do not have a formal electrical engineering degree
• Plant engineers
• Electrical contractors
• Utility engineers
• Others responsible for the electrical and lighting systems in manufacturing plants and commercial and institutional buildings

Basic Concepts

• Voltage, current
• Resistance
• Ohm’s law
• Power, watts
• RMS, average values
• Inductance
• Capacitance
• Three-phase systems
• Power factor

Grounding Concepts

• Grounding for safety
• Grounding for equipment operation

Basics of Low Voltage Power Distribution

• Power factor
• Transformer operations and system voltages
• Neutral currents and harmonics on neutrals
• Faults, fuses and circuit breakers

 System Design Philosophy

• Voltage levels: transformers, theory, types, connections
• Overcurrent protection: fault calculations, interrupting ratings, coordination
• Load study/possible loads: load characteristics, load locations

Standards, Recommended Practices, Guides, and Codes

• Introduction to National Electrical Code® (NEC)

Electrical Construction Materials

• Basic electrical construction materials: wire, raceways, devices, boxes, panelboards, motor control equipment, switchboards
• One-line and riser diagrams

Design Procedures for Lighting and Non-Motor Branch Circuits

• Lighting and non-motor branch circuit design: harmonics consideration, NEC requirements, circuit protection
• Motor branch circuit design: NEC requirements, motor protection, circuit protection, calculations
• Feeder circuit design: NEC requirements, circuit protection, calculations
• Problem Assignment

Design Procedures (Continued)

• Service design: commercial/industrial examples, NEC constraints, utility constraints, equipment, switchboards, metering: CTs, PTs
• Fault current calculations
• Discussion of class problem solution
• Lighting design

Advanced Concepts

• Power quality and harmonics: types of disturbances, harmonics, uninterruptible power supplies, distribution techniques
• Arc flash basics

Ryan Kallies

Mr. Kallies PE, LEED AP is a Project Manager and Electrical Engineer at Affiliated Engineers, Inc. in Madison, Wisconsin. His specialty includes knowledge of the special electrical requirements for large scale, technically diverse facilities, such as medical, manufacturing, research, high containment research, data centers and multi-building campus environments. His expertise is in power system design with an emphasis in distribution systems from 15kV to 120V.

James Krier

Jim Krier PE, is a Principal Engineer at Alliant Energy in Madison, Wisconsin. He has held numerous engineering and managerial positions and has specialized in providing power quality engineering services to industrial and commercial customers for more than 26 years. His experience includes harmonic studies, power factor correction, wiring and grounding studies, power quality monitoring, arc flash hazards, surge suppression, substation project management, medium voltage electrical system design, distributed generation, and electrical troubleshooting.

Kevin Rogers

Kevin Rogers is an electrical engineer with a background in electrical power systems. He is a registered professional engineer, and his 18 years of industry experience spans across electric utility, government, commercial, and industrial applications. His technical responsibilities have included design and commissioning of mission-critical facilities, underground medium voltage distribution planning, design, and operations, high-voltage substation design, and relaying protection and control for complex interconnections. Prior to joining UW-Madison's College of Engineering Office of Interdisciplinary Professional Programs (InterPro), Rogers served as the Engineering Manager for an electrical engineering consulting firm where he and his colleagues provided diverse engineering services across the electrical construction industry.