SLAC Today logo

Electrical Infrastructure Renewal Projects to Start Soon

(Photo)
Map of the substation update work areas. (Image: SLAC Facilities.)

Starting later this summer and continuing through November 2011, modern electrical equipment will replace outdated equipment at SLAC, ensuring economical and reliable power distribution to lab areas served by Substations 26S and 40S—including SIMES, PULSE and Building 40—as well as upgraded capacity of the utilities in Building 23. Consequently, some areas of the lab will experience the appearance of heavy equipment, road/traffic changes and weekend planned power disruptions during transfers to alternative power systems. Early this month, the project team held meetings with affected lab personnel to present the work plans and define the coordination necessary to minimize the project's impact in your areas.

The construction project for substation 40S and 26S has been awarded, and work will start soon.

Substation 40S (campus area) modernization is scheduled to start later this summer and continue through the end of 2010. Substation 40S serves Buildings 40, 40A annex, 43, 84 and the cafeteria. The project design team has studied the area needs and incorporated measures to ensure normal operation during the renewal of Substation 40S. Initial construction activity will focus on the erection and testing of the temporary power equipment. Power to the affected buildings will be transferred to the temporary power system in late September and remain so for several months. Before the year ends, power will be returned to a modernized Substation 40S.

Substation 26S (Heavy Fabrication area) renewal is scheduled to start in January, 2011. Substation 26S serves Buildings 25, 26, 28, 36, 38, 280 and 449. Meetings with the affected building managers will be scheduled later this year. The project team will employ the basic strategy used for Substation 40S but modified for 26S, ensuring normal lab operation during construction. By late summer of 2011, the renewal will be complete.

Lastly, the Central Campus Utility Plant housed in Buildings 23 and 101M will undergo an electrical capacity upgrade and reconfiguration of the electrical distribution system. The construction is scheduled to commence in January, 2011 and continue through June of that year. The work will provide the utility plant with safe, maintainable and reliable electrical equipment critical to servicing campus area building services. Meetings with the relevant building managers will be scheduled later this year to outline the strategy to keep lab operations on par during construction.

These projects are part of facilities upgrades supported by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. These funds have provided the opportunity to modernize some of the lab's aging infrastructure. Our commitment to the lab is to apply these funds in a manner that respects the normal operation of the lab and its personnel while providing measurable benefits today and into the future.

—Fred Kraese and Javier Sevilla, SLAC Facilities
  SLAC Today, August 19, 2010