IET Malaysia Technical Talk Series: Intelligent Industry and Resilient Power Systems

Ir. Norul Rafiq bin Namas Khan, C. Eng. is a Professional Engineer who offers experience and knowledge in failure investigation to contribute to high quality electrical engineering solutions and improvement programs. He has carried out technical services for international clients across Europe, Middle East, Africa, America, Australia and Asia – a total of over 30 countries in 6 continents.

He has over 18 years’ experience conducting over 200 root cause investigations for a broad array of medium and high voltage equipment failures, some of which have resulted in loss of life and damage to property from fire incidents. Such investigations
are mainly carried out for the purpose of continuous engineering practice improvements, claims (insurance and warranty), as well as arbitration and litigation pursuits. The investigations cover equipment voltage classes ranging from 0.415 to above 500 kV (LV, MV, HV and EHV) for both AC and DC currents. He has extensive knowledge about conceptual and practical power system insulation materials, failure modes and testing methodologies related to root cause analysis of power failures.

Aside from the above core area of focus, he has worked with renewable energy related projects including commissioning of grid connected large scale solar plants (between 2017 and 2020) and technology survey for a future grid connected offshore wind park (in 2022). Looking forward to the future and the energy transition, among the important key drivers in power systems are electric vehicles and energy storage. Over the past 5 years, he has carried out numerous failure investigations involving RE including grid connected solar, HVDC submarine interconnectors, offshore wind and grid connected energy storage systems.

He is a passionate lifelong learner who is always looking for new solutions to existing and future challenges. There is a special place for new business development in his heart. In 2023, he ventured into an Independent Consulting role and registered Volta Engineering and Inspection Sdn. Bhd. (Volta Forensic), a Malaysian-based forensic engineering company. Through this company he offers his expertise in electrical failure investigations to various stakeholders in the energy sector in and around Asia Pacific. Volta Forensic offers regional support for the international organizations KEMA Labs Netherlands, Cesi SpA. At Volta Forensic, he regularly carries out technical trainings relating to Electrical Failure Investigations, Apollo Root Cause Analysis™, Utility-scale Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS), Condition and Remaining Life Assessment of Power Utility Assets, Power Cables and Submarine Power Cables.

In 2025, he graduated from Cohort C14 in a 12-week Battery MBA program organized by Battery Associates, a multidisciplinary international organization committed to sustainable battery innovation. He now contributes to the global Battery Associates community by promoting knowledge exchange, collaboration, and innovation in the battery and energy storage sector.

Dr. Mohammad Reza Beikzadeh is a senior AI strategist, industry advisor and academic with more than 35 years of experience in AI, semantic technology, big data and generative AI. He has advised UK startups, led Axiata’s regional data science training across 6 countries, contributed to 4 Malaysian national big data initiatives and built innovation capability through 9 filed patents, 100+ technical talks & workshops as well as supervision of 3 PhDs, 19 Master’s and 100+ degree students. Holding MSc and PhD degrees in Artificial Intelligence from the University of Essex, UK, he is recognized for bridging advanced AI research with practical industrial transformation.