The Path to a Digital Substation with the WAGO Application Grid Gateway
7 May 2021
Improving Network Management and Operation

Network operators and municipal utilities can’t ignore the digitalization of the energy sector and the efficiency increases required by new regulations. WAGO Application Grid Gateway now offers the operators of power distribution networks a solution they can rely on for digitizing substations. This allows them to improve network management and operation while avoiding unnecessary grid expansion. Here you can find out exactly what WAGO Application Grid Gateway is and how it benefits asset managers and network managers.

WAGO Application Grid Gateway: Improving Network Management and Operation!

WAGO Application Grid Gateway primarily supports operators of power distribution networks in assessing network performance with digital substations to improve network management and operation. WAGO Application Grid Gateway replaces imprecise assumptions and estimates with real, accurate measured values for network monitoring of typical grid configurations – on both the medium-voltage and low-voltage levels. The results include better network status assessments and the possibility of resource-efficient network coordination and economical grid expansion. WAGO Application Grid Gateway is an economical solution that helps advance the digitalization of new and existing substations. This is possible thanks to precise measurement on up to 80 channels and acquisition of state data for subsequent recipient-specific preprocessing in the network station, secure transfer with accuracy down to the second, and remote monitoring. That, in turn, allows transparent data acquisition in a substation for up to two transformers with 15 low-voltage outputs each.

What is the WAGO Application Grid Gateway?

WAGO Application Grid Gateway is an application that makes it possible to easily commission a small-scale telecontrol system in the substation through simple parameter setting. Storage and transfer of measured data, as well as visualization, are handled in a decentralized manner by the second-generation WAGO PFC200 programmable logic controller (PLC). The PLC is installed in the substation as a small-scale telecontrol system. In the complete configuration, WAGO Application Grid Gateway can be used with a single WAGO PFC200 to acquire data from two transformers with 15 outputs each on the medium- and low-voltage outputs.

The measured values of the medium voltage, transformer, low-voltage outlets, position reports and temperatures are transmitted to the network control system via IEC 60870-5-104. Commands and setpoints can also be received and processed. Data from external measurement systems, such as short-circuit and ground-fault direction indicators and PQ* measuring instruments, can be read out via Modbus®. The entire parameterization can be stored in a clear manner and, if necessary, added to other stations.

The option of simulating measured data makes it possible to commission new substations at the station builder's location from the network control system – all without the field side being connected.

The application includes integrated HTML5 Web visualization, which preprocesses the data from decentralized data acquisition in the digital substation and organizes it clearly for different user groups. The firmware is hardened according to the BDEW White Paper standard, and the communication concept is ISMS-compliant.

Customized Hardware Configuration

The hardware compatible with the WAGO Application Grid Gateway is a PFC200. This second-generation WAGO Telecontroller is a programmable logic controller (PLC) with various interfaces, is freely programmable per IEC 61131 and allows additional open-source programming on the Linux® operating system. The modular telecontroller is durable and well-established in the industry. Digital input and output modules for controlling medium-voltage switchgear can also be added – an example being the motor drives of load switches and their feedback signals.

To make the low-voltage network on the substation's transformer output transparent, the required measurement technology for both the transformer and low-voltage outputs can be easily retrofitted by connecting 3- or 4-wire measurement modules to WAGO's small-scale telecontrol system.

We'll support you in customizing your hardware; together, we will find the right system solution for your digital substation. Talk to us!

Why Choose the WAGO Application Grid Gateway? – Application Examples

The WAGO Application Grid Gateway has several possible applications and can benefit diverse groups of users. The following application examples illustrate how it pays off:

Asset managers can more accurately plan the substation's maintenance cycles by accessing both stored data and digital drag indicators.
Grid managers are prepared for local situations by having remote access for maintenance and errors in the grid.
Remote updates for software modules and extensions are possible, eliminating unnecessary travel.

A substation equipped with a small-scale telecontrol system that’s commissioned and monitored remotely via WAGO’s Grid Gateway application combines efficiency and safety with profitability and sustainability – for networks and their operators. This is because accurate measurement data from the medium- and low-voltage ranges provides network transparency and forms the basis for setting and implementing a sensible, integrated, future-proof, profitable digitization strategy. The many forms of added value resulting from this allow network operators to act with foresight.

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Power Engineering

Shaping the energy industry of tomorrow: In the face of increasing decentralization and fluctuating power generation, the individual elements of an energy system must be intelligently interlinked. WAGO offers many solutions for these challenges.

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The Path to a Digital Substation with the WAGO Application Grid Gateway 7 May 2021 Improving Network Management and Operation