Hydroelectricity is an important element of Switzerland’s economic and social development. The canton of Valais – the country’s principal producer of hydroelectricity – has developed particular expertise in the field and attaches great importance to maintaining this expertise, both among current operators and engineers in the hydropower sector, and the traditional know-how of hydropower industrialists. The sector has a strong training and research dyanmic to preserve and develop this expertise.
The upkeep, maintenance and surveillance of hydroelectric facilities require specific know-how. Although the various actors operate in very different contexts, they all have the same tasks: maintaining intake feeders and water supply, controlling flows, and maintaining structures. The technical expertise this requires and the knowledge of the natural environments around facilities are passed on empirically, from one generation to the next, while taking account of economic, legislative and technical developments. In the field of hydroelectricity, peer-to-peer knowledge sharing is particularly important among engineers.
