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A series of technical tours is planned for both education and enjoyment. These tours cover a variety of fascinating areas of interest and will present excellent opportunities to visit locations and facilities that are not normally open to the general public. The following will provide some information regarding the technical tours being offered.
Sunday March 15, 2009; 10:30 AM, 6.5 hours
2.5 hours away – provided box lunch on the bus
Cost: $50, includes box lunch
The recently constructed Wild Horse wind powered generation facility of Puget Sound Energy consists of 127 wind turbines with 1.8 MVA generators that stand 221 feet to the turbine nacelle and 351 feet to the upper tip of the wind blades. The tour will start at the Maintenance Center at the lower edge of the site with exhibits explaining the operation and control of the Vestas wind turbines. If weather allows, the tour will continue up to the recently opened visitor center at the top of the ridge. Wild Horse is located near Vantage, Washington, about two and a half hours east of Seattle. Note: This tour is subject to cancellation in case of inclement weather with heavy snows.
If the Wild Horse tour is canceled due to weather, you will be notified via the email address provided during registration.
Monday March 16, 2009; 1:30 PM & 2:30 PM, 2.5 hours
Cost: $20
Seattle City Light will host a tour of its System Control Center which monitors real-time operation of generation, transmission and distribution facilities in a 131 square mile service area that includes the Cities of Seattle and Shoreline, as well as parts of Burien, Tukwila and Seatac. The tour will consist of a discussion on how the electric system is monitored, metered and controlled followed by a demonstration of the Energy Management System. Visitors will have an opportunity to get a panoramic view of the operator's environment from a vantage point above the arena floor.
Tuesday March 17, 2009; 8:15 AM & 9:15 AM, 3 hours
Cost: $30
Boeing is the United States' most successful commercial airplane manufacturer and the largest non-agricultural employer in the Northwest. The Future of Flight Aviation Center and Boeing Tour showcase the Boeing Company and the Everett assembly plant product line including the 747, 767, 777 and the new 787. As part of the tour, visitors will tour the largest building in the world by volume (472,000,000 cubic feet). On the Boeing flight line, visitors will see airplanes in various stages of manufacture and flight testing for airline customers around the world. The Everett plant is located 25 miles north of Seattle.
Tuesday March 17, 2009; 1:30 PM & 2:30 PM, 3 hours
Cost: $20
The Sabey DataCenter campus is the largest multi-tenant internet and data service center on the West Coast. The 75 acre site includes four office, several flex-tech and seven data center buildings. The Sabey DataCenters are world class facilities with ten major internet service providers. Visitors will have the opportunity to get an overview of the office building complex, tour the main electrical infrastructure for Building 5 (MSG Room) and tour one of the many emergency generator and UPS rooms.
Wednesday March 18, 2009; 8:30 AM, 3 hours
Cost: $20
Puget Sound Energy will host a tour of its newly rebuilt and expanded Factoria Substation. This transmission and distribution substation has a 115kV Gas-Insulated-Switchgear (GIS) ring bus with four positions connecting with two transmission lines and two 25 MVA power transformers. A new control building includes a line-up of seven 15kV metalclad circuit breakers serving 12.5kV distribution feeders and also the protective relays, controls and communications for the GIS equipment. An older open air distribution feeder bay with five individual 15kV circuit breakers completes the substation.