GE provides a new set of services for non-intrusive inspection that gives customers an inside look at asset health without opening anything up. These non-intrusive inspection services are the latest addition to a broad range of support and services for HV/MV equipment and HV systems, and enable condition assessment of ageing and critical High Voltage (HV) equipment including: Live and Dead Tank Circuit Breakers, Gas-Insulated Substations (GIS) and Generator Circuit Breakers.

These advanced methods provide fast and cost-effective diagnostics delivery and include a Digital X-Ray to evaluate the condition of aluminum, porcelain or polymer main, arcing and moving components. Three other inspection methods are Dynamic Contact Resistance Measurement (DCRM), Vibration Monitoring and Ultra High Frequency (UHF) Analysis.

The comprehensive service encompasses recommendation in the choice of inspection methods, onsite inspections, diagnosis and maintenance recommendations. Inspection of internal components through advanced non-intrusive methods generates reliable data to evaluate the health of the asset. The evaluation of asset condition can be provided in few hours by GE experts.

Assessing the health of aging fleets of HV Air or Gas-Insulated Switchgears is a critical step in implementing a condition based maintenance strategy. It helps to make the best decision between repair and maintenance, and to prioritize and plan the actions optimizing expenses. Inspections support the evaluation of the state of the asset thus helping reduce the risk of failure or an unplanned outage.