Principles of Substation Design and Construction

Day #1

Substation Types and Purposes

• Fundamentals of power system operation
• Objectives of substation design

Overview of the Substation Design and Construction Process

• Establishing the need for substation facilities 
• The project scope document: what it is and what it should contain 
• Site selection and environmental issues
• Engineering design: equipment specifications and drawings
• Construction 
• Testing, start-up, and commissioning

Initial Steps in the Design Process: Setting the Bounds for the Overall Project

• Reviewing and understanding the project scope document
• Information to gather before the first site visit 
• What to look for on the initial site visit 
• Determining site adequacy for initial and future requirements 
• Environmental, zoning, and public perception issues 
• Construction and construction outage requirements: access for construction and O&M equipment
• Ordering material/delivery date issues

Site Selection and Design

• General requirements
• Environmental and permitting issues 
• Site preparation
• Drainage and erosion protection
• Surface materials
• Roads and access

Permitting and Environmental Issues

• Acquiring necessary permits
• Zoning and ordinance restrictions 
• Longterm site impacts
• Impacts during construction: runoff/stream pollution

Foundation Design

• The site visit and what to look for 
• Understanding soil test reports

Bus Designs for Reliability

• Bus configurations and 1-line diagrams
• Forced and planned outage performance 
• Cost-reliability comparisons

Day #2

Substation Layout: Converting 1-line Diagrams to Physical Layouts

• Substation components and required code clearances 
• BIL, insulation coordination, and surge arresters 
• Future expansion
• Access for O&M
• Design exercise

Grounding and Ground Grid Design

• Purpose of grounding
• Field-testing ground grid resistance and soil resistivity
• Materials and installation

Major Substation Equipment

• High-voltage and medium-voltage disconnect switches 
• Design exercise

Day #3

Secondary Substation Equipment

• Surge arresters

Major Substation Equipment

• Circuit breakers
• Circuit switchers

Auxiliary Equipment and Systems

• AC/DC station power and control system supplies
• Design exercise

Protective Relaying and Control

• System protection objectives and philosophies 
• Protective relaying schemes for major substation equipment 
• Typical relay types and applications

Expansion and Upgrade of Existing Substations

• Feasibility and limitations

Registration Date/Time:
2/3/2026 7:15am Eastern Time

Event Dates/Times:

• 2/3/2026  7:45am - 5:15pm Eastern Time
• 2/4/2026  7:45am - 5:15pm Eastern Time
• 2/5/2026  7:45am - 4:00pm Eastern Time

• Program Director

  Kevin Rogers

• Kevin Borgmeyer

  Kevin Borgmeyer, PE, is a retired Senior Manager of Electrical Engineering in Wisconsin. In this role Kevin managed the departments of Substation Engineering, System Protection Engineering, CAD Engineering Services, and Relay, SCADA, and Telecommunications Technical Support. He has managed electric utility substation projects for more than 30 years, during which he has worked in a variety of engineering management positions. Kevin also has extensive design experience as a substation and transmission engineer and senior system protection engineer. Borgmeyer received a BSEE degree with electric power emphasis from Iowa State University.

• Sheldon Silberman

  Sheldon I. Silberman, PE, Retired as Senior Manager of Engineering and Design Outsourcing Transmission Services after 46 years at Xcel Energy in Minneapolis, Minnesota. In this role, Silberman managed all consulting services for the engineering and design of Northern States Power (NSP) substation and transmission line projects. In his career with Xcel Energy/NSP he held various engineering and management positions related to substation design, construction and maintenance. Silberman received a BSEE degree in electric power systems from the University of Minnesota.

All course materials are available on the first day of class. 

The hotel room block at the Holiday Inn (venue) is limited. Please complete your reservation promptly. Hotel booking information and reservation link will be available closer to the course start date.

Please watch for course updates to the email address you provide during registration. Please check your spam folder if you do not see emails from the "wisc.edu" address. 

If you are planning to attend an Interdisciplinary Professional Programs course, payment is required at the time of registration. Below are the payment options:

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• Search for the course on the website and then click on the Enroll Now button from the course webpage.
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• Call CERC Registrations at 608-262-2451.
• Provide the registrations representative with:
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Mail in a completed registration form and check payable to UW Madison.

• Fill out a registration form (found either in the back of the course brochure you received in the mail or here).
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Military

If using SF-182 form, please call our registration number at 608-262-2451 or email interpro@union.wisc.edu for details and instructions.

Event Cancellation

We reserve the right to cancel a course due to insufficient enrollment or unforeseen events. If we cancel a course, participants will be notified via email or phone and will be given the option for a full refund or to transfer their registration and any fees paid to another course. We are not responsible for non-refundable plane tickets, hotel reservations, and other travel related expenses. For enrollee Course Cancellation, refer to notes on course page.

If you cannot attend, please notify us no later than one week before your course begins, and we will refund your fee. Cancellations received after this date and no-shows are subject to a $150 administrative fee. You may enroll a substitute at any time before the course starts.