Hands‐on testing and commissioning of substations in the real world can be daunting and dangerous without the proper training. So, TRC’s Testing and Commissioning group is building a training lab in its Lancaster, Pennsylvania, office. The lab will mimic an actual utility substation environment with control house and yard equipment.
TRC is a national engineering, consulting and construction management firm providing integrated services to the energy, environmental and infrastructure markets. One of the unique services TRC provides is testing and commissioning of protection and control systems, which often requires its employees to work in high-risk situations. “The new training lab provides a controlled environment for structured training, ensuring our employees become proficient, efficient, and consistent in hands‐on testing and commissioning, troubleshooting, policies and procedures, safety, QA/QC, planning, communication, and risk reduction,” according to Jason Hostetter, P.E., TRC’s Vice President of Testing and Commissioning.
The lab will give employees the skills they need to “effectively, efficiently and safely perform their job all while delivering a quality product,” said Hostetter.
The lab will not only support the training needs of TRC’s own employees, but also its utility clients - who need to ensure that their in-house teams are prepared to work on the latest protection, control, testing and commissioning equipment -will also have opportunities to use the facility through courses offered directly by TRC’s experts. These customized courses will be designed to meet specific client needs, preferences and standards in the testing and commissioning field.
