Day in the life of a lineman in a smart grid world

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By Louis Szablya

As we move closer to a smarter grid, it becomes apparent that the innovative systems and technologies will touch nearly every utility department and employee. This is the first of a four-part series that explores some of the benefits and impacts the smart grid may have on the people who work for utilities.

From replacing a meter to extending and upgrading feeders and laterals, the utility worker’s primary concern is safely getting the job done right, the first time.  The future smart grid will enhance the safety, efficiency, and flexibility of a worker’s daily job by deploying new technologies and systems integrated into the everyday lives of each of us. Let’s follow a one-person line crew, and see how his day would be improved.

8 a.m. Instead of driving to the central loading dock, the lineman walks to his office—the line truck.  Overnight, the various systems (asset, order, materials, and workforce management) evaluated the field personnel available, materials, equipment, and locations of the work orders and assigns jobs as appropriate, making sure that each crew has all the tools and necessary materials.  In the truck, he logs in to his primary portal, and his customized homepage shows a summary of all the information he needs, including the optimal route for his jobs for that day.  The highly secure login also triggers the automatic vehicle location system and associates him with the vehicle so the dispatcher can monitor his location for improved safety.

8:30 a.m. The utility is transferring load from one substation to another, and although much of the switching is done automatically, there is one mid-line manual switch that must be closed before the job can be completed. Looking at the map of switches on his handheld wireless computer, the lineman can connect directly with the distribution management system (DMS) and watch the transfer process in real time.  He sees switches change status as the automatic switching procedure executes.  When the automated procedure reaches the step where the manual switch must be closed, it stops. In a quick text message exchange the dispatcher confirms that the lineman should close the switch, and he does after completing the safety procedures.  He updates the status of the switch on his handheld and sees visual confirmation on the screen.  The automated transfer then continues and completes the switching orders.  The lineman receives confirmation of completion along with voltage readings that verify that everything is operating correctly. The next job in the optimized route plan appears on his screen.

3:25 p.m. An afternoon thunder storm causes a power outage in a neighborhood two miles away from the lineman’s location. By evaluating the various line crews’ locations and inventories, the system pings the lineman’s handheld computer to notify him that he is the closest crew with the appropriate materials. The lineman accepts the change in plan and heads to the point of need.  The system reroutes his afternoon jobs and switches time-critical tasks to other crews to allow him to focus on the outage. Using the computer, he notifies the utility engineer or dispatcher in real time when power is restored, and the utility communicates the restoration to its customers through automated voice response calls, in-home displays, text messages, emails, and proactive social media messages.  The lineman’s display shows his next work order, and he is on his way again.

By interfacing directly with the smart grid system throughout the day, the lineman’s daily tasks become safer and more efficient and provide near real-time communication and feedback on the electric delivery system to the utility and its customers.

Louis Szablya is director of smart grid integration with SAIC, where he helps clients identify and resolve integration issues that arise as smart grid technologies are adopted.

Next week: Day in the life of a utility engineer in a smart grid world