About the Bay Layout Area

Bay layout area calculation estimates the floor space required for each bay in a solar plant's HT switchyard — including equipment footprint (VCB panel, CT, PT, isolator, bus section), maintenance clearance, and access corridors — used for switchyard general arrangement (GA) drawing planning.

How to calculate it

1. 1Typical bay dimensions at 11 kV (outdoor): width 3–4 m per bay; depth 8–12 m (from incoming line to the bus). Total area per bay: 24–48 m².
2. 2At 33 kV: width 5–6 m per bay; depth 12–18 m. Total area: 60–108 m².
3. 3Add control room: 12–20 m² for a 1–5 MW plant; 25–50 m² for 5–50 MW.
4. 4Number of bays: one per feeder + one bus section bay + one transformer bay. For a 2 MW plant at 33 kV: incoming feeder (1) + transformer bay (1) + bus section (1) = 3 bays minimum.
5. 5Total switchyard area ≈ bays × bay area + control room + access road within the switchyard (typically 4–6 m wide between rows of equipment).

Worked example

An 11 kV switchyard for a 2 MW plant: 3 bays × 4 m × 10 m = 120 m². Control room 15 m². Internal access road 50 m². Total switchyard area: ~185 m² (within a 15 m × 15 m plot boundary). Equipment layout: bus running east-west at 4 m height; VCB panels on concrete pedestals with 1.5 m front clearance.

What you can calculate

• Bay dimensions
• Total footprint
• AIS/GIS
• Voltage class

Frequently asked questions