Very few solar people really understand the interconnection process from the utility side – so starting today, for a limited time, “Electric Utility Distribution Equipment” is free for HeatSpring members.

Tim Taylor teaches the course. He’s published a suite of highly-rated courses covering IEEE 1547, interconnection to transmission, interconnection to distribution, and a free course on Utility-Scale Solar PV & Distribution Voltage Challenges.

He’s a great mentor to work with as you embark on a journey to become an interconnection specialist.

About the course: Electric Utility Distribution Equipment

If you’re looking to be more effective in working on projects with small utility-scale solar, battery storage or community solar that connect directly to utility distribution, you might be asking:

• What’s a pad-mount distribution transformer?
• Why does my project need a fuse or a recloser where it connects to the utility system?
• What’s the difference between a three-phase line and a single-phase line?

If you are new to a job with a distribution utility, municipal, or co-operative, or work with a Solar PV organization such as a developer, design/engineering, or community solar provider that works with Solar PV farms connected to utility distribution, this course provides a solid background in utility distribution equipment.

This course is heavy on visuals and makes the material easy to understand, through:

• Photos
• Diagrams
• Videos

28 different types of the most common distribution equipment are discussed, including:

• Transformers
• Conductors
• Reclosers
• Voltage regulators
• Fuses
• And more.

To give context to the distribution discussions, an overview of the following is provided:

• Generation
• Transmission
• Substations

The course goes through the process of laying out a distribution feeder, from the substation down to residential meters in the fictitious town of TaylorTown, and also discusses:

• Three-phase and single-phase lines
• Voltage regulation
• Short-circuits and protection
• Feeder switching

You will also learn common distribution terms/nomenclature, and the typical values of voltage, current, and power throughout a distribution system.

This is an introductory level course – students are not required to have any prior utility power system knowledge, and no math is required.

The course requires approximately four hours to complete, and assignments include videos, lectures and quizzes to reinforce comprehension.

About HeatSpring Membership

HeatSpring Membership is a bundle of learning opportunities that would otherwise cost a lot more. Here’s what you get:

1. Extended access to paid courses. Wll of our courses come with 1-year of unlimited access. Sometimes people get busy and don’t finish, but they don’t want to pay for the class again. This is original reason we created HeatSpring membership. Now you can pay the small monthly fee for as long as you need to finish the class and get your certificate of completion.
2. Certificates of completion for all free courses. We have lots of teams that use our free courses for learning and professional development. If earning certificates of completion help with tracking and motivation, then membership is a really affordable tool to get better results for your team.
3. Member access to premium courses. With membership you get access to a bunch of premium courses that you would normally have to pay a lot more to take. Sometimes they carry CEUs. We try to add a new course every month to keep it fresh. Like all of our premium courses, once you’re enrolled you have a full year to take the course.

Membership is intended to lower the barrier to learning so you can make professional development a regular habit. Membership is also available to Teams. Team discounts are applied automatically and team memberships have all of the same benefits as the individual memberships.