Yorkshire manufacturer recruited to help ‘rewire London’

Leeds-based Winder Power has been commissioned to design, build and install two transformers to supply power to two tunnel boring machines at New Cross, London.

This formed part of a London Power Tunnels (LPT) project worth £400,000.

The two transformers that were installed comprised a 5000kVA, 13000/11000V Transformer along with a 13000V Earthing Transformer.

Winder Power has contributed to the second phase of an ambitious project to “rewire London”. The LPT2 scheme is a £750m investment to future proof the capital’s electricity supplies.

In summer 2019, National Grid began work on the construction phase of the LPT2 project, building 30km of cable tunnels stretching from Wimbledon in south west London to Crayford in south east London.

The tunnels, which will be up to four metres in diameter, will largely be buried deep beneath the streets, in order to minimise disruption on the surface.

Once the transformers had been designed and built at Winder Power’s Pudsey factory and headquarters, they were subjected to a stringent type testing approval process.

Installation took place over two weeks, with challenges including restricted access, a complex set of road closures, as well as rigorous on-site health and safety procedures.

Senior site manager Carl Truscott, from Murphy Power Networks, said: “I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate the installation team on their safe, professional and finely tuned work ethic. My thanks go to the entire team who worked on the project.”

Winder Power managing director, Paul Matthews, added: “As a business we were delighted to be given the opportunity to support National Grid with their LPT2 project.

“The entire team worked tirelessly to ensure that at every stage of the process we adhered to our principles of manufacturing excellence, with safety at the forefront of everything we do.

“There are very few companies who have the in-house capability to design, build, test and install such a complex transformer requirement, which is a credit to everyone involved.”