COURSE OVERVIEW:

Earthing and lightning protection are the primary safeguards for electrical infrastructure and personnel, requiring a deep understanding of soil physics and high-frequency discharge phenomena. This course provides an advanced exploration of the design and maintenance of grounding grids and lightning interception systems for utility, industrial, and commercial facilities. Participants will examine the transition from simple rod electrodes to complex meshed grids, focusing on how these systems manage both steady-state fault currents and the extreme energy of atmospheric discharges.

The scope of this training addresses the rigorous analytical requirements of the IEEE 80 standard for substation grounding and the IEC 62305 standard for lightning protection. It covers the technical nuances of soil resistivity testing, step and touch potential calculations, and the selection of materials that withstand both mechanical stress and electrochemical corrosion. The curriculum provides a detailed focus on the integration of internal surge protection and equipotential bonding, providing a framework for creating a coordinated protection system that safeguards sensitive electronic assets.

Coverage includes the practical implementation of periodic testing and maintenance protocols to ensure long-term system integrity. Attendees will learn to utilize specialized test equipment for measuring earth loop impedance and grid resistance, even in electrically noisy environments. By combining theoretical electromagnetic analysis with practical construction and maintenance strategies, the course equips professionals with the expertise required to design and manage protection systems that minimize the risk of equipment failure and ensure life safety.

COURSE OBJECTIVES:

After completion of this course, the participants will be able to:

• Design comprehensive earthing systems according to IEEE 80 and BS 7430.
• Calculate step and touch potentials to ensure personnel safety during faults.
• Perform professional soil resistivity surveys and interpret the results.
• Model earthing grids using software for fault current distribution analysis.
• Design lightning interception systems using the Rolling Sphere method.
• Select appropriate materials to prevent galvanic corrosion in earthing grids.
• Implement equipotential bonding and grounding for sensitive electronics.
• Conduct earth resistance testing using the Fall-of-Potential method.
• Inspect and maintain lightning conductors and surge protection devices.
• Evaluate the impact of soil moisture and temperature on grounding performance.
• Troubleshoot causes of high earth impedance and grounding noise.
• Design specialized grounding for telecommunications and data centers.

TARGET AUDIENCE:

This course is intended for Electrical Design Engineers, Facility Managers, Safety Engineers, and Technical Leads responsible for grounding and lightning protection systems.

TRAINING COURSE METHODOLOGY:

A highly interactive combination of lectures, discussion sessions, and case studies will be employed to maximize the transfer of information, knowledge, and experience. The course will be intensive, practical, and highly interactive. The sessions will start by raising the most relevant questions and motivating everybody to find the right answers. The attendants will also be encouraged to raise more of their questions and to share in developing the right answers using their analysis and experience. There will also be some indoor experiential activities to enhance the learning experience. Course material will be provided in PowerPoint, with necessary animations, learning videos, and general discussions.

The course participants shall be evaluated before, during, and at the end of the course.

COURSE CERTIFICATE:

National Consultant Centre for Training LLC (NCC) will issue an Attendance Certificate to all participants completing a minimum of 80% of the total attendance time requirement.