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Converting from SKM to ETAP
https://brainfiller.com/arcflashforum/viewtopic.php?f=15&t=4836		 Page 1 of 1
Author:  Nick, EE, PE [ Thu Jan 10, 2019 1:12 pm ]
Post subject:  Converting from SKM to ETAP
The IT group of our company is pushing us to convert from SKM (used at 3 sites in North America) to ETAP (used at ~10 sites in Asia) so they don't have to support two separate software packages and save in licensing costs.

Does anyone have experience converting from SKM to ETAP?
Any Lessons Learned?
Any major issues encountered?
Is there any data loss? (I'm thinking of notes in panel schedules and other little things that might not transfer)
What kind of effort was required? (Our site alone has 13 SKM projects with over 1000 buses in each)
What support did you need to be successful? (Did a contractor help?)
Any other advise?

(I'm not asking for comparisons between SKM and ETAP, as it looks like ETAP has all of the same capabilities. I just want to know what we're going to run into during the transition so we can prepare...)

Thanks!
Nick
Author:  Robertefuhr [ Mon Jan 14, 2019 9:47 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Converting from SKM to ETAP
We have done this in the past. We can usually get the everything moved over except for the protective devices. Bus, conductor, motor, transformer and utility data is not to bad. Every software company stores the circuit breaker data differently and it is extremely hard to convert the data from one program to another. Most likely, you will have to re-enter the protective device data and settings into ETAP.

Also, any one line drawing that was created in SKM will have to be recreated in ETAP. You TCCs will also have to be recreated in ETAP.

In short, it is a lot of effort and expense to do this. It may be cheaper to pay the maintenance fees for SKM instead.
Author:  Spryduck [ Mon Jan 14, 2019 10:23 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Converting from SKM to ETAP
I've done this a few times and can concur with the previous statements. It is a major PITA.

Also, I saw some interesting issues pop up with the database connecting/disconnecting things in the ETAP model that were not connected that way in the SKM PTW model due to some differences in how the components are allowed to be named.
Author:  John.Francis [ Tue Jan 15, 2019 12:29 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Converting from SKM to ETAP
Hi Nick,

My name is John Francis and I am with ETAP. We have a built-in conversion tool that imports SKM models into ETAP. The conversion automatically brings in the one-line diagram including load flow and short circuit data. The auto-generated one-line diagram is based on the original layout or you can select to use autobuild to intelligently enhance the one-line layout. You can also select to arrange the ETAP model to include nested networks when importing multiple one-lines.

When importing the protective devices, ETAP creates a mapping table which maps the PD settings to the ETAP library. You just need to confirm the mapping. After the library mapping is confirmed, the conversion recreates the TCCs for you.

This conversion tool has been drastically enhanced in ETAP 18 <removed personal contact info>
Author:  Nick, EE, PE [ Thu Feb 14, 2019 2:41 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Converting from SKM to ETAP
Hi John,

Thanks for your reply!

I have heard of the conversion tool. Do you have a list of any items that don't make it through the conversion?

Specifically, I'm thinking of panel schedules, as the ETAP panel schedules look much different from SKM. We have a lot of notes in our panel schedules that I would hate to lose.

Protective Devices could be challenging if there are a lot that don't get mapped.

I'm concerned that ETAP has sold our IT group that it will work seamlessly, but they haven't gotten into any details on how much effort we're going to put on our electrical engineering teams that have to actually work through the conversion.

~Nick
Author:  Nick, EE, PE [ Thu Feb 14, 2019 2:44 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Converting from SKM to ETAP
Hi Spryduck,

Can you elaborate on your experience being a major PITA?

Did you use the built-in conversion tool?

How big were the projects you converted?

What effort (engineering-hours) would you say you put into the conversions?

In the end, do you feel as if all information was maintained, or was there anything that was lost?

Thanks!
Nick
Author:  Nick, EE, PE [ Thu Feb 14, 2019 2:52 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Converting from SKM to ETAP
Robertefuhr wrote:
We have done this in the past. We can usually get the everything moved over except for the protective devices. Bus, conductor, motor, transformer and utility data is not to bad. Every software company stores the circuit breaker data differently and it is extremely hard to convert the data from one program to another. Most likely, you will have to re-enter the protective device data and settings into ETAP.

Also, any one line drawing that was created in SKM will have to be recreated in ETAP. You TCCs will also have to be recreated in ETAP.

In short, it is a lot of effort and expense to do this. It may be cheaper to pay the maintenance fees for SKM instead.


Hi Robert Fuhr,

Thanks so much for your opinion!

Did you use the built in conversion tool that John Francis of ETAP refers to?

How big were the projects you converted?

What effort (engineering-hours) would you say you put into the conversions?

In the end, do you feel as if all information was maintained, or was there anything that was lost?

Thanks!
Nick
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