Electrical Engineering
Station Service MCC Replacement
Merced Falls Powerhouse is a single unit 3.5 MW facility on the Merced River near Merced Falls, CA. The 480VAC station service portion of the plant’s power distribution was old and required updating with a new modular system to meet current safety standards.
The station was commissioned on July 21, 1930 (reconstructed date) with an S.
Morgan Smith, vertical Kaplan turbine and a Westinghouse generator. The turbine
nameplate rating is 4,200HP at 26 Ft head. The generator nameplate rating is 3.5
MW, 4.0 MVA, .88 pf, at 12 KV.
DTA’s scope of work was to perform preliminary engineering, an arc-flash hazard
assessment, procurement engineering including a technical specification for the
new MCC, MCC vendor bid evaluation and submittal reviews, detailed design, test
and startup support, and construction support.
DTA’s staff prepared a specification for a motor control center, sized circuit
breakers, revised existing drawings, and prepared new drawings. These drawings
included electrical elementary diagrams, wiring diagrams, single line and
metering relay diagram, MCC arrangement drawings, circuit and conduit schedules,
and a bill of materials. Construction and testing occur in early 2005.