For utilities who want to reduce costs in record time
BY ROB HOYSGAARD, ARI
Save, or saving, is defined as the act of avoiding unnecessary waste or expense. The key word in that definition is unnecessary. A 50 percent reduction is essential, on-the-road vehicles do not result in savings; rather it produces a loss in productivity. Over the past four years, fleet managers have been charged with this contradictory task: “do more with less” and...
Protecting utility workers using mobile technologies BY TOM OCONNOR, Panasonic Solutions for Business Nearly every lineman has heard of a colleague who has been injured—or worse—while on the job. Because of the dangers inherent to their job (that is, electrical safety in the field), these brave...
How technology is changing testing and performance monitoring BY AARON RUDGER, Keynote North American electric utilities are experiencing a rapid shift to a mobile- first environment. Numerous research firms are confirming that the sale of smartphones and tablets has overtaken personal computers....
How mobile solutions improve restoration efforts BY JIM MENTON, ClickSoftware Electric utilities are modernizing the power grid to meet the demands of an increasingly digital society. In the same way, mobile solutions are helping service personnel (line crews, contractors, and supervisors)...
How managers and field technicians can benefit from global positioning BY RYAN DRISCOLL, GPS Insight The global positioning system (GPS) was originally designed for the U.S. military so that soldiers could easily find their objectives and to coordinate troop and supply movement. Now, the...
A coalition of large energy consumers and ratepayer advocates has filed a complaint with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), urging the agency to prohibit transmission owners from independently planning "local" transmission projects exceeding 100 kilovolts (kV). The coalition argues...
Remote field operations present the safety organization with a myriad of challenges when it comes to ensuring the safety of the people that you send out to work in the field every day. Without a doubt, this includes the line workers, but it also includes nearly every member of the staff whose...
For many utilities, scheduling each day’s construction and restoration work means manually organizing and keeping tabs on ever-changing crew schedules and resources. Managers meticulously update whiteboards dotted with color-coded magnets representing crews and trucks. Augmenting the...
In June 2012, the Ontario Legislature unanimously passed Bill 8, the Ontario Underground Infrastructure Notification System Act, which, among other things, requires owners of buried infrastructure in the public right of way – including municipalities, universities, hospitals and private...
Utility workers are often subjected to challenging working conditions for hours at a time, yet are responsible for many mission-critical tasks. These workers must communicate with the entire organization while also representing the customer-facing side of their company. Equipping workers with...
Utility workers and linemen work in one of the most mobile industries in the country. Think about it: utility workers are always moving from one project to the next as efficiently as possible. Since utility workers rely so heavily on their work vehicles, it is critical that they drive a vehicle...
