Protection Engineering
JMB Engineering provides specialist protection engineering services, ensuring your electrical network is properly coordinated and your protection devices operate correctly when called upon. We work across mining, data centres, renewables, utilities and heavy industry — from underground and open-cut coal to metalliferous mines, data centre developments and renewable energy projects.
From relay settings calculations and grading studies through to on-site injection testing and commissioning, our protection engineers work across the full lifecycle of protection systems in mining and industrial environments.
What We Deliver
- Protection coordination and grading studies
- Relay settings calculations (overcurrent, earth fault, differential, distance)
- Protection relay commissioning and injection testing
- Protection settings review and audit
- CT and VT sizing and specification
- Protection philosophy development
- Incident investigation and root cause analysis (protection-related)
- AS/NZS 61850 and IEC 61850 system design
Arc Flash & Fault Level Studies
Protection settings are only as good as the fault data behind them. We deliver fault level (short-circuit) studies and arc flash hazard assessments to IEEE 1584, quantifying the energy available at every point in your network so protection can be graded correctly and personnel PPE categories assigned. These studies are built on detailed power system models — the same modelling rigour we apply across mining and data centre networks.
Temporary Power & Outage Protection
When a site runs on temporary generators during a shutdown, fault levels collapse and standard protection settings can become dangerously insensitive. We review and re-specify protection for temporary supply arrangements so your site stays protected through the outage. Read our insight on temporary generator power for mine outages to see why the site-side engineering matters.
All injection test results, maintenance testing reports, relay settings and coordination records are stored on our Protection Database platform — giving your team easy-to-access compliance records and a centralised, auditable register of all protection assets and their history.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a protection coordination study?
A protection coordination study confirms that protective devices — relays, fuses and circuit breakers — operate selectively, so the device closest to a fault trips first and isolates the smallest possible part of the network. It is essential for safety, compliance and minimising downtime.
Why is protection coordination important?
Correct coordination (or discrimination) prevents nuisance tripping, limits equipment damage, reduces arc flash energy and keeps the rest of the plant running when a fault occurs. Poorly coordinated protection can trip main breakers unnecessarily and take a whole site offline.
Do you provide arc flash and fault level studies?
Yes. Arc flash studies are calculated to IEEE 1584 and delivered alongside fault level (short-circuit) studies and protection grading, so you get a complete picture of incident energy, PPE requirements and equipment ratings.
What deliverables come with a protection study?
Relay setting schedules, coordination curves, single-line diagram markups, arc flash results and a clear technical report with recommendations — ready for site electrical teams to implement.
We work with all major relay manufacturers including SEL, ABB, Siemens, GE and Schneider, and our engineers hold the relevant mining industry safety qualifications for site attendance. Contact JMB Engineering to discuss your protection requirements.