2008 IEEE PES Transmission and Distribution Conference and Exposition

Technical Tours

Technical Tours offer a close-up look at some of the most technologically advanced facilities in the world.

Attendees to the 2008 IEEE PES Transmission and Distribution Conference and Exposition are invited to participate in the technical tour program. The technical tours have been arranged by the 2008 host utility, ComEd. As a 2008 attendee you will be introduced to important state-of-the-art sites and facilities during your visit to the Chicago area. You are encouraged to review the list of the tours and check the availability of each tour. Remember, space on each tour is limited and at a premium. Reservations are being accepted on a first-come, first-served basis.

ComEd’s West Loop Substation
1110 N. North Branch, Chicago, Illinois
Date: Tuesday, April 22, 2008
Times: 8:00 am-12:00 noon, 10:00 am-2:00 pm, 12:00 noon-4:00 pm

Summary – Attendees will walk through a brand new state-of-the art ComEd Substation. This substation contains 138kV air insulated switchgear, 345kV gas insulated switchgear, two 300MVA transformers, relaying and control schemes. Attendees will view a short video of the project. The Project Manager will explain the challenges, which included the construction of a transmission tunnel beneath the Chicago River.

Bus ride is approximately half an hour in each direction. The tour will last 3 hours, including transportation. Tours will be staggered every 2 hours. Fire retardant clothing, hard hats and safety glasses will be provided for visitors. Tour attendees must wear serviceable shoes – no heels or open toed shoes will be allowed.

Twin Groves Wind Farm
Eastern McClean County, Illinois
Date: Monday, April 21, 2008
Time: 8:00 am-5:00 pm

Summary – Located on the wind-swept Bloomington Moraine in eastern McLean County, Twin Groves Wind Farm (formerly Arrowsmith) offers 396 MW of affordable, pollution free wind energy, enough to meet the annual energy needs of about 120,000 homes. The site contains 240 wind turbine generators, with a rated capacity of 1.65 MW each. The project is also bringing new jobs and substantial tax revenues to the county and local schools. Total roundtrip time is 4 hours.

ComEd’s Operations Control Center (OCC)
Date: Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Time(s): 8:00 am-1:00 pm, 11:00 am-4:00 pm

Summary – Attendees will tour ComEd’s state-of-the-art Operations Control Center. All dispatch activities for the ComEd distribution system, which serves more than 3 million customers, take place from this center. The tour will detail the physical layout of the facility, including the emergency command center and dispatch “pods” as well as an explanation of the IT systems
in use.

Argonne National Laboratory
9700 S. Cass Avenue, Argonne, Illinois
Date: Monday, April 21, 2008,
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
Time: 8:00 am-1:00 pm

Summary–A typical tour of Argonne visits facilities such as the Advanced Photon Source (APS) and the Argonne Tandem-Linac Accelerator

Logistics –American Citizenship is required.