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FeedsHome: June - July 2008 › Lead Story › A real asset
A real asset
30/06/2008 | Channel: Fleet Management
Using geospatial data can dramatically improve both cost and business efficiencies, as Infoterra Ltd's Dr Andy Wells explains
Given that the activities of most utility operators are spread over a broad geographical area, it's always been a major challenge to manage assets and ensure
that they are fully optimised. Assets such as poles, overhead powerlines, and manhole covers, are often understandably difficult to manage with the natural/built environments changing around them, let alone obtain access to and inspect. A significant proportion of time and cost is spent on these activities.
To add to the complexity, recent legislation has increased the utility sector's focus on the risk management of assets, turning this from what was once just an option to a regular task that needs to be closely monitored. For example, it's now mandatory for distribution network operators to implement all aspects of the electrical safety and continuity (ESQC) regulations across all their assets, introducing a significant new cost pressure. In order to maintain a healthy bottom line, utility organisations require a more intelligent and cost-effective method of monitoring and maintaining their multiple, distributed assets.
An intelligent approach
Our company, Infoterra Ltd, a leader in the provision of geospatial products and services, is currently working with a number of leading utility organisations to help manage their assets using geospatial data.
Through the acquisition and interpretation of airborne & satellite imagery, and terrain
height data, Infoterra can rapidly and accurately locate a utility company's assets, and provide exact details/mapping about what is in an asset's close environment - it could be a deciduous tree, a private house or a public accessible area. This intelligence provides the utility company with the knowledge to make far more informed decisions about their maintenance priorities, route scheduling, risk analysis and ongoing asset management requirements.
With respect to vegetation management, recent reports have shown that the utility sector is currently spending some £50 million annually. Using accurate geospatial data, utility companies could dramatically reduce this cost, while at the same time increasing management efficiency. For example, mapping overhead power line network and adjacent vegetation, can allow maintenance teams to make more accurate predictions as to when vegetation is likely to cause a risk to the supply - all from their desktops.
Scheduling maintenance for greater efficiency
Using this intelligence a utility can then schedule the maintenance team weeks or months in advance to carry out the necessary vegetation cutting work - often deploying a team in one geographical area to several hotspots - but on different power supply lines for increased efficiency.
This approach also enables the fleet management team to ascertain when a visit is not required to a specific area saving valuable man-hours and associated expense. While it sounds obvious, historically teams have followed a supply route from start to finish to maintain the supply - a time consuming and often-needless use of resources.
Helping EDF to ensure power supplies are unaffected by vegetation
Infoterra is already helping EDF Energy Networks, one of the UK's largest energy
companies, to map its overhead high-voltage power line network and adjacent vegetation to ensure a continued safe and reliable electricity supply.
Infoterra, using the latest high-resolution aerial imagery, is delivering an accurate mapping solution to the vegetation team at EDF Energy Networks. This will enable the team to rapidly identify priority areas without site visits, so helping EDF Energy Networks to achieve efficiencies for its vegetation management budget.
The survey covers the Eastern and Southern areas of EDF Energy Networks' operational area (a region incorporating more than 5.5 million customers and covering 30,000 sqkm), and supports compliance for the Department of Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform's Electricity Safety, Quality and Continuity (ESQC) regulations.
“Our contract with Infoterra will ensure that we have an accurate vegetation map of our entire overhead high-voltage network, allowing us to identify sites requiring immediate attention and tightly manage our vegetation cutting budget.” - Ray Crouch, vegetation contracts manager for EDF Energy Networks.
Helping E.ON Central Networks map its network for maintenance efficiency
Infoterra was also recently awarded a contract from E.ON Central Networks to map its overhead powerline network for Leicestershire. E.ON Central Networks, the electricity distribution company for central England, and its staff will take advantage of this highly accurate network map to carry out detailed and rapid initial surveys from their desktops.
Infoterra will use high-resolution stereo imagery to map the precise power line pole locations, pole heights, span lengths and the exact network length. This detailedmapping will help E.ON Central Network's initial assessment of risks that could adversely impact power line operation and improve power line pole renewal/ maintenance projects.
“E.ON Central Networks is one of the UK's leading Distribution Network Operators, and we are constantly looking for innovative ways to improve our internal business processes and the strategic management of our network. Thanks to the high level of detail in Infoterra's mapping solution we will have invaluable information for our ongoing asset management.” - Robert Ferris, innovation manager for E.ON Central Networks.
Geospatial data delivers solutions
These are just two examples of how major utility operators are increasingly recognising the importance of holding accurate recordsand detailed information about all their assets. Thanks to the accuracy of our geospatial data, we can provide organisations with the ability to carry out detailed sitesurveys straight from the desktop, reducing the requirement for numerous on-site visits, particularly in off-road locations.
Further applications where geospatial data can help the utility sector include the accurate location of poles and towers, the measurement of powerline sag, and detailed capture of ground features. All this information is prepared ready for use in the appropriate geographical data format, allowing risk management programmes to
start and end with this information.
Additionally, Infoterra can offer network operators a complete spatial asset
management solution to deliver the precise levels of intelligent data that they require. This will support the assessment of existing network resilience, ensuring that utilities can improve their key operational management and expenditure decision-making while meeting all their statutory obligations.
Dr Andy Wells is sales director at Infoterra Ltd, a leading provider of geospatial products and services. Infoterra helps government and industrial organisations around the globe derive business benefits from accurate spatial data.
For further information please visit: www.infoterra.co.uk
that they are fully optimised. Assets such as poles, overhead powerlines, and manhole covers, are often understandably difficult to manage with the natural/built environments changing around them, let alone obtain access to and inspect. A significant proportion of time and cost is spent on these activities.
To add to the complexity, recent legislation has increased the utility sector's focus on the risk management of assets, turning this from what was once just an option to a regular task that needs to be closely monitored. For example, it's now mandatory for distribution network operators to implement all aspects of the electrical safety and continuity (ESQC) regulations across all their assets, introducing a significant new cost pressure. In order to maintain a healthy bottom line, utility organisations require a more intelligent and cost-effective method of monitoring and maintaining their multiple, distributed assets.
An intelligent approach
Our company, Infoterra Ltd, a leader in the provision of geospatial products and services, is currently working with a number of leading utility organisations to help manage their assets using geospatial data.
Through the acquisition and interpretation of airborne & satellite imagery, and terrain
height data, Infoterra can rapidly and accurately locate a utility company's assets, and provide exact details/mapping about what is in an asset's close environment - it could be a deciduous tree, a private house or a public accessible area. This intelligence provides the utility company with the knowledge to make far more informed decisions about their maintenance priorities, route scheduling, risk analysis and ongoing asset management requirements.
With respect to vegetation management, recent reports have shown that the utility sector is currently spending some £50 million annually. Using accurate geospatial data, utility companies could dramatically reduce this cost, while at the same time increasing management efficiency. For example, mapping overhead power line network and adjacent vegetation, can allow maintenance teams to make more accurate predictions as to when vegetation is likely to cause a risk to the supply - all from their desktops.
Scheduling maintenance for greater efficiency
Using this intelligence a utility can then schedule the maintenance team weeks or months in advance to carry out the necessary vegetation cutting work - often deploying a team in one geographical area to several hotspots - but on different power supply lines for increased efficiency.
This approach also enables the fleet management team to ascertain when a visit is not required to a specific area saving valuable man-hours and associated expense. While it sounds obvious, historically teams have followed a supply route from start to finish to maintain the supply - a time consuming and often-needless use of resources.
Helping EDF to ensure power supplies are unaffected by vegetation
Infoterra is already helping EDF Energy Networks, one of the UK's largest energy
companies, to map its overhead high-voltage power line network and adjacent vegetation to ensure a continued safe and reliable electricity supply.
Infoterra, using the latest high-resolution aerial imagery, is delivering an accurate mapping solution to the vegetation team at EDF Energy Networks. This will enable the team to rapidly identify priority areas without site visits, so helping EDF Energy Networks to achieve efficiencies for its vegetation management budget.
The survey covers the Eastern and Southern areas of EDF Energy Networks' operational area (a region incorporating more than 5.5 million customers and covering 30,000 sqkm), and supports compliance for the Department of Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform's Electricity Safety, Quality and Continuity (ESQC) regulations.
“Our contract with Infoterra will ensure that we have an accurate vegetation map of our entire overhead high-voltage network, allowing us to identify sites requiring immediate attention and tightly manage our vegetation cutting budget.” - Ray Crouch, vegetation contracts manager for EDF Energy Networks.
Helping E.ON Central Networks map its network for maintenance efficiency
Infoterra was also recently awarded a contract from E.ON Central Networks to map its overhead powerline network for Leicestershire. E.ON Central Networks, the electricity distribution company for central England, and its staff will take advantage of this highly accurate network map to carry out detailed and rapid initial surveys from their desktops.
Infoterra will use high-resolution stereo imagery to map the precise power line pole locations, pole heights, span lengths and the exact network length. This detailedmapping will help E.ON Central Network's initial assessment of risks that could adversely impact power line operation and improve power line pole renewal/ maintenance projects.
“E.ON Central Networks is one of the UK's leading Distribution Network Operators, and we are constantly looking for innovative ways to improve our internal business processes and the strategic management of our network. Thanks to the high level of detail in Infoterra's mapping solution we will have invaluable information for our ongoing asset management.” - Robert Ferris, innovation manager for E.ON Central Networks.
Geospatial data delivers solutions
These are just two examples of how major utility operators are increasingly recognising the importance of holding accurate recordsand detailed information about all their assets. Thanks to the accuracy of our geospatial data, we can provide organisations with the ability to carry out detailed sitesurveys straight from the desktop, reducing the requirement for numerous on-site visits, particularly in off-road locations.
Further applications where geospatial data can help the utility sector include the accurate location of poles and towers, the measurement of powerline sag, and detailed capture of ground features. All this information is prepared ready for use in the appropriate geographical data format, allowing risk management programmes to
start and end with this information.
Additionally, Infoterra can offer network operators a complete spatial asset
management solution to deliver the precise levels of intelligent data that they require. This will support the assessment of existing network resilience, ensuring that utilities can improve their key operational management and expenditure decision-making while meeting all their statutory obligations.
Dr Andy Wells is sales director at Infoterra Ltd, a leading provider of geospatial products and services. Infoterra helps government and industrial organisations around the globe derive business benefits from accurate spatial data.
For further information please visit: www.infoterra.co.uk
