Cool Technologies Keep Lineworkers Well-Connected

By Tom Tate
When electric cooperatives were formed in the 1930s, their technology was primitive by any standard — digging holes for the utility poles by hand, walking the poles up into those holes, using ladders to reach equipment needing service. And if you had to get in touch with the line crew, face-to-face communication was the only option.

Today, the lineworker rivals any other worker when it comes to having the necessary tech to get the job done safely, quickly and more accurately. Let’s take a look at a few of the devices behind this evolution, starting with the tablet.

Many electric co-ops send their crews into the field with ruggedized tablets. What are those? They are tablets (and smartphones) with special cases and screen protectors built to tough specifications that will allow a lineworker’s devices to survive bouncing along in a line truck, being exposed to all kinds of weather and being dropped into a bucket or toolbox.

Depending on the electric co-op, the data and other content on these ruggedized devices varies. Often work orders detailing the day’s project are found on these devices. These can include construction drawings for how the job is to be built, the bill of materials so the crew knows what to pull from inventory before hitting the road, and system maps so lineworkers know exactly where to go. Gone are the reams of paper and cumbersome map books of the past.

Not quite as new, but equally important, are global positioning system, or GPS, coordinates. This functionality might be built into the lineworker’s tablet, a ruggedized smartphone or a handheld unit. As more co-ops map their systems using GPS coordinates, the GPS capability gets the crews where they need to be in an efficient manner. Some GPS units are designed specifically for heavy trucks, and plot routes that avoid bridges with weight limits or roads with height restrictions.

Close up of an infrared camera

Infrared cameras help lineworkers scan power lines and other equipment and find hot spots that could mean equipment that could fail.

Another popular tool is the forward-looking infrared camera, also known as FLIR. Many people are familiar with this technology from the many ghost hunter programs currently on television. With a FLIR camera, crews can rapidly scan power lines, transformers and other equipment when searching for hot spots. A piece of distribution equipment about to fail will often get hot. While not visible to the naked eye, it shows up clearly on a FLIR display. Scanning the system with a FLIR camera is a fast and accurate means of spotting a problem before it becomes an outage.

And today, many lineworkers have eyes in the sky in the form of drones. Colorado’s electric cooperatives cover territory that is often difficult to access when they need to survey the system for necessary repairs or to locate a new power line route. Instead of tackling the job on foot or on four-wheelers, the co-op crews might be able to send in a drone. Flying above the area provides a great view of the situation and allows the crew to make an assessment of what to do next without having to be there in person. This is especially useful after a major storm when roads can still be blocked.

Cooperatives are laser focused on providing the best reliability possible at the lowest possible price. A major aspect of reliability is getting the lights back on as quickly as is safely possible after an outage. Key in this is the outage management system, or OMS. This system builds on “geo-tagged” system maps (each pole has its GPS location mapped), sophisticated engineering models of the distribution system and, for maximum accuracy, an advanced metering system.

When an outage occurs, the system uses models and databases to determine the exact location of the fault and the extent of the outage. Crews can then be sent to the right spot to correct the problem. Part of this restoration effort might be a vehicle tracking system that tells operations staff the exact location of each line truck. The crews closest to the outage are sent to restore power — and essential information can be accessed on the tablets, depending upon the situation.

Sometimes all the technology in the world is not enough and a good old-fashioned visual inspection is required. During daylight hours, it can be easier to see the cause of a problem. But at night, lineworkers need a reliable source of light. Today, that comes from LED flashlights and truck-mounted lights. These powerhouses are a fraction of the size of regular flashlights, and they make an older incandescent model look like a candle by comparison. In the hands of a lineman, they provide an amazing view of the lines during the darkest of nights.

Technology is permeating every aspect of cooperative operations, allowing your electric co-op to constantly improve your service. The well-connected lineworker is at the forefront of that technical evolution.

Tom Tate of writes on the electric industry for the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association.

Tri-State logo

Tri-State Committed to Reduce Statewide Emissions

During recent proceedings, the Colorado Air Quality Control Commission accepted Tri-State Generation and Transmission’s voluntarily-announced retirement dates for its coal power plants Craig Station Units 2 and 3. This is after the AQCC was considering enforcing early closures.

According to a Tri-State press release, the plan meets or exceeds federal requirements to improve visibility in Colorado’s national parks and wilderness areas, according to Tri-State CEO Duane Highley. The cooperative power supplier’s Craig Station Unit 1 will retire by December 31, 2025; Craig Station Unit 2 by September 30, 2028; and Craig Station Unit 3 by December 31, 2029.

And separate from the AQCC proceedings, Tri-State and Gov. Jared Polis announced Tri-State’s goal to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in Colorado by 80% by 2030. This is part of Tri-State’s innovative Responsible Energy Plan. Tri-State filed its Electric Resource Plan with the Colorado Public Utilities Commission on December 1. The ERP includes a preferred scenario to reach emissions reductions by retiring Craig station, adding 1,850 megawatts of renewable resources and a significant reduction in greenhouse gas emissions that support state goals.

EV Charger Added, Thanks to Co-op

The town of Fraser took advantage of Mountain Parks Electric’s Electrify Everything program and installed a Level 3 electric vehicle charger. With a grant from the Granby-based electric cooperative and the Colorado Energy Office, this is the first fast-charging station in Grand County. It is located at Lions Ponds, and the ribbon-cutting ceremony was held in late November.

 

 

Poudre Valley REA logo

Co-op CEO Wins Award

Poudre Valley REA CEO Jeff Wadsworth was named Fortnightly Foremost Innovator in Microgrids for 2020. The recognition was awarded by Public Unity Fortnightly, a utility organization that supports innovation. The yearly Fortnightly Top Innovators awards select the most outstanding individuals in 10 categories of innovation.

Wadsworth was honored for PVREA’s work installing a microgrid for Red Feather Lakes, a community which is served by one transmission line prone to damage from weather, natural disasters and human accidents. The cutting-edge microgrid technology will provide backup for the electric grid for the area. It is one of the first in the state. PVREA’s goal is to have the microgrid operational by spring.

Holy Cross logo

Co-op Commits to Go Carbon Free

Holy Cross Energy in Glenwood Springs announced a new, ambitious 100X30 goal to provide 100% carbon-free electricity to its consumer-members by 2030. The announcement was made in a press conference December 14 with Gov. Jared Polis offering his congratulations to the co-op. The 100X30 plan follows the co-op’s Seventy70Thirty plan announced in 2018 in which the co-op pledged to provide 70% of its power from clean and renewable resources and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 70% from 2014 levels by 2030. That plan is ahead of schedule and the co-op rewrote its goal to create the 100×30 goal.