September 1, 2011
Digital Edition
September 2011 Digital Edition
View this issue in our digital edition format...
Global Viewpoint
No Worries, Mate
I just returned from Australia where I attended the Utility Arborist Association's annual meeting, which was held in Parramatta (west of Sydney). While...
Features
New Transmission in California
California has a strong appetite for electricity. Its residents increasingly favor a supply produced through renewable resources such as wind. Southern...
Virtual Eyes Guide Remote Switching
Covering a large geographical area, Finland's transmission system is extensive, having been constructed over decades to satisfy the country's increasing...
E-Learning Keeps Workforce Current
Kansas City Power & Light (KCP&L) has been active with distribution automation (DA) projects for more than 20 years. The utility understands one of the...
Lighting the Fiber
Active in the electric utility industry for years, grid automation is viewed as one of several core technologies needed to update the industry's electric...
Concrete Conquers Desert Environment
Overhead lines face severe environmental problems in the desert of the Gulf state of Oman, especially in the vicinity of coastal areas. Oman has desert...
When Disaster Strikes
In their homes, most people keep a supply of candles and flashlights available in case a storm leaves them in the dark. Some even keep canned goods and...
Business Developments
Siemens to Strengthen Its Renewables Business Through Realignment
Siemens is gearing up for further growth in renewables. Effective Oct. 1, 2011, the company plans to realign its renewables business into two independent...
Nexans to Build EHV Cable Plant in U.S.
Nexans has announced its intention to build a plant for the manufacture of underground extra-high-voltage (EHV) cables, and possible extension to submarine...
Grounding and Lightning Workshop 2011
Grounding and lightning issues remain a concern across the industry as it is continuously challenged with higher safety standards and a need to better...
Duke Energy and Progress Energy Shareholders Approve Merger
Shareholders from Duke Energy and Progress Energy have approved the merger of the two companies. The merger will increase our ability to more economically...
Bayer Takes Product to IVM Market
Esplanade 200 SC will be the first product offered from the new industrial vegetation management group of Bayer CropScience LP's Environmental Science...
Smart Grid
NYISO Unveils $74 Million Smart Grid Initiative, Breaks Ground on Control Center
The New York Independent System Operator (NYISO) has unveiled details of a US$74 million smart grid initiative, which is being supported by a U.S. Department...
GWP Smart Grid Project Scores Among Nation's Best
Glendale Water & Power's (GWP) Smart Grid Project received the highest customer score of all smaller utilities and among the highest customer scores for...
Alstom Grid Wins Contract to Launch Southwest Power Pool Energy Market
Alstom Grid has signed contracts with Southwest Power Pool Inc. (SPP) to deliver energy market software solutions for SPP's new Integrated Marketplace,...
Vermont Electric Awards OSI a Smart Grid SCADA Contract
Vermont Electric Cooperative (VEC) has awarded Open Systems International Inc. (OSI) a contract to provide a new supervisory control and data acquisition...
Green Energy Corp Receives Funding From Colorado GEO
Green Energy Corp, a software company that enables traditional and emerging power providers to move to the smart grid, has been awarded US$2 million in...
Technology Updates
Fingrid Field Tower Model Saves Arable Land
Transmission system operator Fingrid Oyj has developed a transmission line tower, in cooperation with design agency Muotohiomo Oy, for use in fields....
CFE Upgrades Automation in Mexico City
Comisin Federal de Electricidad (CFE) provides generation, transmission and distribution of electricity to 34.7 million metered customers of Mexico's...
AEP Streamlines Protection and Control with Drop-In Module
A new take on substation control buildings from American Electric Power (AEP) puts a twist on the drop-in control building concept, and the application...
Correction:
In the July issue, in the EPRI/URMC news brief on page 20, an incorrect conversion was provided. When in fact, Thermal Direct was able to measure the...
Brazilian Electric Utility Installs 3M ACCR, Boosting Power to So Paulo Without Larger Towers
Using the 3M ACCR overhead conductor, a transmission line carrying electricity through a congested portion of So Paulo, Brazil's largest city, was upgraded...
Quarterly Report
GITA and CEPA Forge GIS Partnership
Coahoma Electric Power Association (CEPA), a rural electric utility cooperative in northwestern Mississippi, is dedicated to increasing efficiency, improving...
Characters with Character
Self-Made Success
Everyone has dreams, but not everyone has the courage or means to pursue them. Fortunately for children and parents across the United States and around...
Products and Services
Phasor Data Concentrator Enhancements
Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories (SEL) announces the addition of several new features that improve synchrophasor data availability, provide additional...
High Power Connector
Anderson Power Products introduces the SPEC Pak High Power Connector. The SPEC Pak line's housing design and materials create a rugged, watertight and...
Phase Attribute and GPS Location Datalogger
Origo announces the PhaseID Dataloggers remote phase identification instruments for determining, indicating and datalogging the actual phase attribute...
Doble Test Assistant Software for Online
Test Analysis DTAWeb is Doble's next-generation database software for the analysis of your Doble test results. It saves time and improves efficiency with:...
Portable Test Sets
Megger's new OTS80PB 8-kV and OTS60PB 60-kV portable oil test sets make accurately measuring the breakdown voltage of insulating oils a fast and straightforward...
Single-Phase UPS
The UniStar family of single-phase on-line uninterruptible power supply (UPS) units from Staco Energy Products is available in tower or rack designs....
Jacket Seal Elbow
Hubbell Power Systems offers an all-in-one design that seals the outer jacket of an underground cable, completely eliminating the need for separate seal...
Straight Talk
Storage: The Silver Bullet
Storage changes everything. That's the anthem we hear more often in the electric industry today as we face an evolving energy policy and a variety of...
Electric Utility Operations
Linemen Deploy Smart Grid Technology
Smart meters empower customers to take control over their energy usage. These devices are one of the foundational technologies for the smart grid, and...
PRODUCTS & Services
Fall-Restriction Device Buckingham Manufacturing introduces the SuperSqueeze. This device has a one-handed brown strap and a green woven strap adjustment,...
Parting SHOT
Photograph by Mark Ellingboe, NV Energy NV Energy's Chad Garner, journeyman lineman, and Miles Parra, apprentice lineman, prepare to replace a damaged...
Social Media Connects Linemen
When you ride in an airplane, you never know who you are going to sit next to. Case in point: One time, on the way home from a business trip, I took a...
Chris Ketner
Born in Mesquite, Texas. Married for seven years to the love of his life, Randee, and has an English bulldog named Tank. Has line work in his blood; his...
Peer-to-Peer Accountability: Speaking Up
When you work in the utility industry and lose a close friend and coworker, it is an experience you will never forget. Years ago, I remember when two...
Aerial Linemen Maintain Hydro One's Lines
Since 1949, linemen have relied on helicopters to inspect and maintain the transmission and distribution system for Hydro One, formerly Ontario Hydro....
