Cold-Load Pickup

The temporary overcurrent condition created by reenergizing a feeder or lateral which has been outaged for some period, due to cold-load pickup, is a constraint to distribution system overcurrent protection coordination. A software tool has been developed in a recent DSTAR project to allow the user to input local conditions and to obtain a predicted time-current characteristic for the pickup, shown in the output example below. The Cold Load Pickup Software is an example of a tool created by DSTAR research which enhances the efficiency of distribution engineering in the current atmosphere of stretched utility engineering resources.