The claim that practical electrical work experience is more important than theory is not reliable

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Electricians can be divided into high-voltage electricians and low-voltage electricians. Since electricians are the ones who carry out specific projects and are responsible for the operation and maintenance of electrical equipment, the hallmark of their work is to execute tasks practically, rather than focusing on design. Even when calculations are used, table lookup is the primary method. In fact, **standards and specifications also take into account the needs of those who carry out the actual work; many aspects that require calculation and verification are replaced by technical specifications and parameters, which greatly facilitates the work of electrical professionals and promotes standardized management. This shows the **importance of standards and norms. Imagine we want to build a factory that contains many pieces of equipment, each with its own power range. After taking on the design task, the electrical engineers at the design institute first determine the calculated current for these devices based on their power and operating mode. Then, they calculate the incoming current at each level for the various distribution systems, as well as the capacity of the power transformers. After knowing the capacity of the power transformer, the circuit breakers and distribution equipment at each level are determined based on the transformer’s rated current and short-circuit current. The specifications for the connection cables are established in accordance with relevant standards, and the thermal stability of the cables must also be verified. Finally, the control schematic diagrams for each set of equipment must be designed, and these diagrams are provided to the manufacturer for the production of the distribution and control equipment. Afterwards, the installation company carries out the installation, commissioning work based on the diagrams designed by the design institute, and delivers the system to the user for operation. Once the equipment is put into operation, electricians are responsible for its maintenance. Since they are maintenance personnel, their knowledge base in electrical work is naturally not at the same level as that of electrical engineers. The claim that practical electrical experience is more important than theory is not reliable. yunrun.com.cn/tech/2524.html Everyone is familiar with sockets. When we need to use a socket at work, a regular electrician will install it without having to consider the user’s load requirements. A competent electrician will know what the user’s load capacity is and select an appropriate socket based on that capacity. This is the difference between intention and unintentionality. One day, when I returned to the residential complex, the property management came to see me and said that the water pump unit there was broken and needed to be replaced. A supplier would arrive the next day to submit bids, and they asked me to assist them in reviewing those bids. The author said: Doesn’t the community have an electrician? Just have him do the oversight, right? The property management said that the electrician knew what to do but didn’t understand why, so they were unable to ensure proper quality control. The next day, several suppliers arrived; they discussed water pump units and motors, as well as frequency converter control. When discussing control circuits and inverter control methods, PLCs as well as PID control were also covered. I saw that this electrician could indeed only pour water for everyone and couldn’t say a word. Afterward, the electrician asked the author to provide him with some books so that he could study hard*. I asked about his level of knowledge, and he said he only remembered Ohm’s law; he didn’t know anything else. One day, the intercom at my home stopped working, so I asked an electrician to replace it. The electrician had the supplier do the replacement; he wasn’t involved at all from start to finish. The author thinks that for this electrician, is experience more important than theory? It’s not at all the case; it’s simply that he doesn’t take his responsibilities seriously. His pitiful amount of experience is worthless – at best, it only serves to occupy a job position. When I first started working, I was an electrician at an old state-owned enterprise, having been there for over half a year on a practical training period. These electricians need to learn high-voltage electrical equipment technology, low-voltage electrical equipment technology, the principles of motor control, as well as power electronics measurement and control technology. In addition, there are various assessments and professional qualification exams required by companies, so everyone works very hard and is very busy; the atmosphere for learning is excellent. This knowledge belongs to the specialized field of factory power supply, and its scope far exceeds the electrical knowledge covered in middle school physics. Is it useful to learn this knowledge? It’s definitely useful. The enterprise has 35kV substations, a large number of motors, and various temperature controllers controlled by thyristors. The company even has a dock and a dedicated train station, whose equipment also requires electricians to maintain. The image below is a sample picture from ABB, showing the control rooms of metallurgical and steel rolling enterprises, where the staff include engineers as well as workers. It goes without saying that knowing Ohm’s law alone isn’t enough to get by here. It is evident that the so-called claim that “an electrician’s experience outweighs theory” has, of course, a negative answer. Napoleon said that a soldier who does not want to be a general is not a good soldier. It’s perfect for this use – an electrician who doesn’t want to be a technical leader is not a good electrician. Author: Patrick Zhang, a senior electrical engineer at ABB and a renowned expert in the field of electricity who has over 180,000 followers on Zhihu. His contributions can be found in hundreds of projects, including Beijing Subway, Terminal T3 at Capital Airport, the permanent ship locks of the Three Gorges Dam, Shanghai’s maglev train, and the Daya Bay Nuclear Power Plant! Books such as \"Principles of Low-Voltage Switchgear and Their Control Techniques\" and \"Lao Pa’s Explanation of Low-Voltage Electrical Apparatus Technology\" have been published and received high praise