A couple important trade shows are just around the corner. The International Construction & Utility Equipment Exposition (ICUEE) will take place Oct. 16-18 in Louisville, Kentucky, and the International Lineman's Rodeo will be held Oct. 24-28 in Overland Park, Kansas. A good mix of vendors will be on hand at both of these shows, exhibiting the latest in tools and equipment. With these key face-to-face opportunities fast approaching, I asked several utilities how they make purchasing decisions for their field operations.

Involve Everyone in the Process

The first thing I learned was that good purchasing decisions aren't made by management. Rather, they require an entire team. Southern California Edison's (Rosemead, California) Gregg Patterson says, “Since our service territory varies from desert, coastal, mountain and agricultural farming, it is imperative that we get accurate input from crews working in all these areas for tools and equipment needed for them to perform their jobs in a safe and productive manner.”

Patterson, a technical specialist in the construction methods department, is responsible for reviewing new vehicle and equipment products. He heads up a tool committee called the Transmission Distribution Business Unit tool team. “This group is comprised of individuals from all levels of our service territory: linemen, foremen and some first-level supervision, as well as one or two manager levels. This ensures that we look at and evaluate tools based on the needs of the field and not just someone's wants and desires. We try to include a cross section from all types of work environments on our system in the buying discussion.”

When Southern Company (Atlanta, Georgia) is looking at a new purchase, a product-specific review team is created. The team oversees both the technology review and field-deployment activity of a new purchase. Bruce Townsend, the lead analyst for the Automated Resource Management System team, says, “When Southern Company began automating its field operations 10 years ago, new equipment was available everywhere. But new technologies are notorious for not always doing what they promise to do.

“With more than 26,000 employees and 6800 vehicles in the field, the magnitude of making a decision is significant,” Townsend adds. “To ensure that the new solutions for field operations are in the best interest of the company, we select a product team made up of representatives from all of our five sister companies.”

Go Prepared to Trade Shows

Florida Power & Light (FPL; Miami, Florida) takes the tool-committee approach a step further. As major opportunities to “kick the tires” on new products and equipment come along, such as ICUEE every two years, FPL sends several representatives with lists and specifications drawn up in advance to discuss with the manufacturers at the trade show.

Claude Masters, FPL's manager of vehicle acquisition and fuel, described the plan, saying, “Two years ago when we went to ICUEE, I was assigned to a team made up of a distribution lineman, an engineer, a field superintendent and a safety manager. We had nine purchasing items to review in two and a half days. There were seven or eight teams in all. Each morning at the hotel, all of the teams got out their list of requests, looked at the show program and laid out a schedule of where their team was going to go. For example, one of the items we were there to look at was the backyard mini diggers. Based on field surveys that had been conducted among workers, we had a list of questions and specifications we were looking for. We visited with two mini digger manufacturers in the morning and a third one in the afternoon.”

Tap Your Vendor's Expertise

Robert Padgett, a first-class lineman training specialist for Lakeland Electric (Lakeland, Florida), emphasizes how important it is for utilities to have strong relationships with their vendors. “You stick with your vendor, and he will stick with you. Vendors know what is going on in their market and can keep us up-to-date on what is working and what is not.

“For example, we buy a lot of Klein Tools,” says Padgett, who is responsible for training apprentices and linemen on new tools and equipment. “Over the years, our distributor has become more than just a tool catalog salesman you order pliers from. When we get ready to look at a new product, we call our rep and ask him what he has heard out in the industry about this product.”

Padgett's final piece of advice: “You can save a ton of time and money and avoid buying something that doesn't fit your needs by shared decision making.”