About
Thomson Bridge provides essential electrical skills and
safety leadership for workforces who build, commission, operate and maintain
assets across Generation, Transmission, Distribution and Rail Networks,
together with the Oil & Gas and Mining Industries.
Founded in 2013,
today we operate on a global scale, by working with our Electrical,
Safety and Education practitioners located across the world.
Energy
transformation is occurring globally, and major themes driving business
decisions include utility grid modernisation, system hardening, renewable
generation expansion and integration, electrification, communications and
outsourcing.
Thomson Bridge powered by RelyOn Nutec are electrical
engineering, safety and education practitioners. We work across renewable
and thermal generation, transmission, distribution, and rail networks, and
service the high voltage skills and compliance needs for the oil and gas,
mining and utility industries.
Our goal is to support you to
develop and maintain a competent workforce; operate with safe and consistent
work practices; and meet regulatory compliance and audit readiness. Our
Electrical Engineers and Subject Matter Experts are advising on
industry best practices, risk analysis, safe operating procedures. We
provide comprehensive advice for managing High Voltage and Low Voltage
plant. We consult with governments, electrical and safety authorities and
regulators to ensure practical workplace safety environments, supported by
training and skills development; easy to use learning solutions, and
electrical work procedures, calculations. With a presence across 22
countries, Thomson Bridge is powered by RelyOn Nutec who bring a
globally connected network, together with national & local
relationships to ensure:
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Technical Leadership - decades of High Voltage Industry Experience
provided by Senior Authorised Persons, Power Systems, High Voltage and
engineering professionals
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Contextualisation - aligning products to local country/jurisdictional
context including relevant electrical and safety regulations, operating
procedures, permit to work systems
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Engineering and Design Support - from our engineers, instructional
designers, technical writers and digital practitioners*
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Innovation – incorporating leading, technology-based learning
solutions that solve real world training and operational challenge
Training & Courses
We provide training services for skills,
safety and compliance in our rapidly evolving energy landscape. Our global
training team includes energy practitioners, engineers, L&D professionals
and digital platform and content innovators. We offer instructor-led and
blended training, and a wide range of eLearning titles which is complemented
by flexible delivery via our training facilities, digital infrastructure,
tools and content for online experiences. Read more about Training and Courses
Electrical and Engineering ConsultingWe provide direct access to
Subject Matter Experts with extensive knowledge of the Electricity Supply
Industry, energy networks both transmission and distribution, renewable
technologies, rail networks, data centres and large-scale electrical
infrastructure projects.
For industrial scale electrical
environments, our team advises on industry best practices, risk analysis, safe
operating procedures, and provides comprehensive advice for managing High
Voltage and Low Voltage plant.
Our power quality support and
assessment is available to validate design and provide support in developing
effective power quality solutions.
Our chartered electrical
engineers can support your project from the design phase, through to the
submission of technical criteria including generator performance standards, to
the formal demonstration of compliance as required for renewable
generation.
The team are available to support plant commissioning,
staged compliance, or to assist your assets complete detailed fault analysis
during the operational phase and enable prompt correction and return to
service.
Read more about Electrical and Engineering Consulting
High & Low Voltage Electrical Safety Rules
We develop Electrical Safety Rules and High Voltage and Low Voltage Operating
Procedures to ensure employees and contractors working on or near electrical
apparatus can operate safely and effectively.
Our HV professionals
and electrical engineers have extensive experience across renewable and
thermal generation, transmission, distribution and rail networks, HV
operations, control rooms and the powergrid interface.
We design
and prepare Electrical Safe Access Rules and Procedures for high and low
voltage plants across networks, power stations, utilities, mines and HV
customers.
Our experts also provide an audit service to test
compliance against regulations. Procedures are prepared to be consistent with:
- Government Regulations and Codes of Practice
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Network Utility Connection Guidelines for High Voltage Connections and
Embedded Generators
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Company operational procedures, including Lock Out Tag Out (LOTO) procedures
- Company installed equipment and manufacturers manuals
- Industry best practice
Incorporating procedures and instructions for operational teams to ensure
workers operate safely, efficiently and your business is compliant.
We
develop customised documentation for compliance with Electricity Regulations,
transmission and distribution network obligations, contract obligations and
maintenance plans.
Our capabilities extend to providing
detailed technical documentation for frontline operational teams. We provide
consultation and technical writing services under the supervision of Engineers
and Subject Matter Experts for
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Procedures – for operational and maintenance activities such as
Electrical Safety Rules.
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Switching Instructions – for energisation, routine switching, faults
and ad-hoc switching.
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Policies – to guide decisions and achieve consistent, rational
outcomes.
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Practice Guidelines – Industry publications developed in consultation
with clients, peak industry bodies and regulators.
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Emergency Plans - for organisational and site-based activities such as
Emergency Response and Bush Fire Management.
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Processes – process maps, diagrams and posters that enable processes
to be publicised and shared.
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Forms – produce contextualised forms or templates for a variety of
technical uses, including permits, authorisations, logbooks and safe work
method statements (SWMS).
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Work and Maintenance instructions – detailed instructions for
performing tasks with reference to procedures, technical manuals and company
knowledge.
Thomson Bridge prepares arc flash calculations, reports and recommendations
for generation and infrastructure assets such as turbines, collector groups
and balance of plant.
Our aim is to provide practical and
actionable advice that maximises a safe operating environment and work
practices. Arc flash calculations are prepared for the primary power
components and primary switching locations. Our engineers utilise the ETAP Arc
Flash Analysis software to perform the assessment of arc flash hazards and
incident analysis.
We work with our clients to consider
critical factors including system power distribution configuration, plant
operating modes, protective equipment selection and settings, working
distances, PPE, work practices and training.
Our Arc Flash services
are delivered by an experienced team of electrical, power system and
protection engineers. Our clients own and manage portfolios of generation and
infrastructure assets across Australia.
Thomson Bridge was
also the lead author of the Electrical Arc Flash Hazard Management Guideline
which was published by the Australian Energy Council.
Read more about Arc Flash Calculations and Reports
Asset Management Plans & Maintenance Procedures
Our Subject Matter Experts and engineers have extensive experience in
developing management plans and maintenance procedures.
These
documents outline the minimum HV asset maintenance (preventive and predictive)
required for Balance of Plant.
The plans ensure compliance
with AEMO and energy regulators and reduce the risk of asset failure, thus
generation potential.
Our Team members have held key and
senior roles across network service providers and asset owners and bring
a wealth of experience to consulting assignments.
Example
maintenance procedures include:
- Oil samples
- Insulation and insulation resistance testing (Meggar)
- Conductors and contact resistance testing (Ductor)
- Thermography
- Substation batteries
- Visual inspections
- Circuit breaker maintenance
- Transformer maintenance
Our Switching Instruction consulting services are performed by our skilled HV
practitioners who are knowledgeable, flexible and committed to the safety of
everyone who works with HV equipment and electrical networks. They understand
how to assess hazards, determine and evaluate risks and implement safety
protections to operate safely, for themselves, their work party and the
network.
Our team develop libraries of switching instructions for
routine switching, faults and ad-hoc switching as required. Read more about Switching Instructions
Engineering & Systems Audits, Investigations
Auditing services for compliance with regulatory or internal processes,
systems audits for continuous improvement and engineering audits to evaluate
maintenance and work procedures. Our people are qualified auditors with
recognised qualifications and industry Subject Matter Experts. Our
reports provide a gap analysis and identify areas for improvement and
recommendations.
Audit assignments can include:
- Regulatory Compliance
- Internal Processes Compliance
- High Voltage Operations Audit
- Electrical Safety Rules reviews
- Safety Management
InvestigationsThomson Bridge provides an independent
investigation service using experts familiar with the Electricity Supply
Industry, networks, plant procedures and regulations.
Investigation
of incidents and near misses is a key part of most company safety management
systems. Incident investigations provide warnings that operations may not be
achieving the safety objectives assumed.
Our investigations go
beyond immediate and basic technical causes and seek to
examine management systems, root causes and safety failures. Our
objective is to deliver effective analysis and recommendations to our
clients.
Read more about Engineering & Systems Audits, Investigations
Power Quality
Our engineers have varied backgrounds and extensive experience across the
Electricity Supply Industry, industrial applications, and rail networks.
We
can provide consultancy advice for existing power quality management or
undertake power quality assessment to inform corrections or development of
effective power quality solutions.
Our assessment team can provide
operational support for the review of installed Power Quality Meter (PQM)
data, to detailed root cause analysis (RCA) and reporting. We can co-ordinate
and deploy temporary PQM to assist detailed analysis.
With the
rapid deployment of renewable and novel technologies we have developed skills
to support your asset from the design phase through to operation.
Our
engineers can provide advice on the National Electricity Market (NEM) and grid
connection applications, or the National Electricity Rules (NER) and
compliance assessments.
We can assist the development of Generator
Performance Standards (GPS), and the validation of models (GPS R1) for project
submission. Provide commissioning support and detailed assessments of plant
reliability runs.
Our chartered engineers can advise on or draft
compliance plans and support R2 compliance assessment. Assessment includes
data capture, modelling on PSSE and similar platforms, and the submission of
detailed reports.
Our senior engineers are available to support
management representations to the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO).
Read more about Power Quality
Cable Studies
Our electrical engineers support cable studies and advise on the selection of
Low Voltage and High Voltage cables.
We assess cable sizing and
shock protection using ETAP and similar packages. Our studies provide
ampacity, voltage drop, and can provide short circuit current (SCC)
assessments.
Our engineers can advise on specific applications such
as cable selection for solar arrays in accordance with IEC and regulatory
requirements. This can be directly linked to protection co-ordination or the
selection and arrangement of over current protection in accordance with the
IEC requirements.
Comprehensive studies and reports can be provided
to assist in:
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Assessment of voltage drop, power loss, cable heating, cable ageing/life
expectations.
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Validation of cable reticulation designs, and the segregation of power and
telecom/signal cabling.
Our team can provide assessment of cable joint, termination, or
underground overhead transition (UGOH) failure in support of root cause
analysis.
Read more about Cable Studies
Protection Studies
Our engineers provide consultation on selecting appropriate power system
protection. We assess and provide Protection Co-ordination Studies and provide
guidance on the maintenance of relays and data sets.
We help in
assessing system faults and demonstrating GPS compliance during actual fault
scenarios. Our senior engineers are available to provide detailed assessments
and make representation to Network Service Providers and the Australian Energy
Market Operator (AEMO).
With our access to ETAP, PSCAD, and PSSE,
SKM power tool assessments, we can advise on adjustments to protection
settings or modification to protection to reduce Arc Flash incident energy
hazards, adjust protection to accommodate plant modifications, and assess
First and Second line protection co-ordination.
Read more about Protection Studies
Learning Management & RTO Services
By partnering with Thomson Bridge, Employers can concentrate on their core
business while using our services to meet training, regulatory and compliance
requirements for their staff and contractors.
For selected
Electricity Supply Industry trades, we can assist in the management of skills
and qualification recognition for experienced workers, as well as new workers,
via apprenticeship programs.
We have developed a highly effective
learning management system that enables scheduling of training, recording of
attendance and certification tracking.
Use our eLogBook application
on mobile devices to track training and task completions.
Read more about Learning Management & RTO Services
