• New firmware update satisfies line protection operating speed requirements for IEC- and IEEE-oriented utilities
• Maximizes performance of utilities’ protection and control systems
• Generates segregated PMU data for up to six feeders

MARKHAM, ONTARIO—December 2, 2013—In an increasingly global business environment, GE’s Digital Energy business (NYSE: GE) offers utilities a single platform of protection and control devices capable of meeting international specifications and protocols with its new Universal Relay (UR) firmware (FW) version 7.2. GE’s UR provides utilities worldwide with the technology they need to maximize the performance of their electrical systems’ protection and control elements.

The UR 7.2 is GE’s latest addition to its advanced family of protection and control products designed to meet the demanding operating speed requirements of IEC-oriented utilities around the world. Line protection requirements—such as language, special pilot schemes, line protection performance, enhanced selectivity for specific fault cases and communication protocols—for IEC-oriented utilities vary from country to country. While some companies face more stringent standards and regulations than others, GE’s new UR 7.2 complies with requirements worldwide and meets the needs of each individual utility.

“The UR 7.2’s advanced technologies, including improvements in line protection functionality, take GE’s protection and control offerings to a new global level,” said Juan Macias, general manager, GE’s Digital Energy business. “Enhancing our UR line protection to comply with rigorous IEC application requirements enables GE to provide innovative technology capable of meeting and serving IEC utilities’ needs, no matter where they are located.”

As the use of synchrophasor-based applications to monitor electrical grid usage has become increasingly common throughout the industry, it has led to the development of a broad range of phasor measurement unit (PMU) devices. GE’s PMU devices provide comprehensive synchrophasor functionality that addresses the challenges of meeting each region’s specific applications and power system requirements.

Additional features include:

• By generating segregated PMU data for up to six feeders, GE’s UR PMU reduces the number of PMU devices needed for multiple-feeder applications by up to 80 percent. Additionally, up to six VT banks can be connected to a single device.
• Devices can simultaneously deliver metering class (M Class) and protection class (P class) PMU data meeting the latest version of IEEE C37.118 (2011) standards, helping to optimize PMU based metering and protection applications.
• New support of PMU data on the UR C60 breaker controller device removes the need for dedicated PMU devices for synchrophasor-based breaker control logic.
• The UR 7.2’s PMU’s comprehensive transformer protection technology removes the need for dedicated rate of change of frequency devices to be installed to monitor electrical flow spikes.
• The new UR also increases selectivity of neutral directional overcurrent protection for complex fault events.

For more information, visit gedigitalenergy.com/multilin/catalog/urfamily.htm.