The US$1.27 Billion Middletown-Norwalk Project Broke Ground in the transmission industry, incorporating new management techniques and new technologies that helped the project finish approximately one year ahead of the initial schedule and under budget.

It was just over four years ago when Northeast Utilities (Berlin, Connecticut, U.S.) and its subsidiary Connecticut Light & Power (Hartford, Connecticut) embarked on an effort to upgrade the transmission system in one of the most power-constrained regions of the United States. Placed in service in late 2008, 69 miles (111 km) of the new 345-kV transmission line — 24 miles (39 km) of which is underground — now strengthens the transmission backbone in southwestern Connecticut to provide a secure source of reliable electricity for years to come.

NEW APPROACH

Early on, CL&P determined that management of this critical and complex project would require an innovative partnership. Engineering and construction firm Burns & McDonnell (Kansas City, Missouri, U.S.) was chosen for this relationship. While this close partnering arrangement was not new in the utility sector, it had not been used in the electrical transmission industry. A program management solution was implemented that combined use of internal resources at CL&P with the establishment of a Burns & McDonnell project office in Wallingford, Connecticut. That office opened in 2005 with five employees and was eventually staffed with 80 full-time employees dedicated to the M|N Project.

The program management approach gave CL&P flexibility and single-source accountability from design through construction. Implementation of this approach facilitated an aggressive schedule as planning and permitting efforts advanced simultaneously with design and construction.

With dedicated owner oversight, the program management approach consisted of an integrated team of project managers from both the contracted program manager and the owner. When changes to the project scope or other key factors arose, project managers from both teams worked together to quickly accommodate the task at hand. The program management contract was structured so that a portion of the program manager's compensation was dependent on the success of the project. This method provided motivation for the program manager to be flexible and work through issues with the owner.

The program management model provided authority for Burns & McDonnell as CL&P's agent over the entire project. The responsibilities of the Burns & McDonnell team included real estate acquisition, environmental planning/monitoring, design, procurement, community relations, safety, project and document controls, scheduling, construction management and quality assurance/quality control.

CRITICAL COMMUNICATIONS

The M|N route runs through a densely populated region, touching more than 7000 private property owners and businesses.

From the beginning, the owner and program manager anticipated communication would be a critical component. Although a project hotline and Web site were set up at the outset to capture public comments and questions, it quickly became apparent that a more robust communications system was needed, one that would efficiently and effectively link key members of the project team to react and respond to public concerns.

Project managers soon realized that project field staff would need quick and convenient access to data related to community issues in order to be prepared to respond in a timely manner if approached by a customer near the project.

In order to build the type of data dashboard needed to assist the project team on this large-scale project, more than 3 GB of data needed to be transferred over a Wi-Fi connection or air card. This just wasn't practical. Furthermore, a traditional dashboard provides the user with rows and columns of numbers. However, this is hardly useful for a staff member working in the field, who is contacting residents in person and often without prior notice.

Burns & McDonnell decided that the solution would have to connect the vast array of numerical data with a graphical interface that could be quickly interpreted by the user.

The result was OneTouchPM, a geographic information system solution designed by Burns & McDonnell that integrates design information with key project management software and merges all of that information into a 3-D virtual model of the project. The Google Earth proprietary method of streaming large amounts of geospatial data allows remote users to access information in near real time with little delay. The data collaboration tool provides information on environmental issues, permitting, community relations, design specifications and construction status. It integrates data from ArcGIS, PLS-CADD, MicroStation, AutoCAD, Primavera and Expedition with the Google Earth interface.

When implemented, the OneTouchPM system provided an immediate ability to prevent and resolve conflicts in the field, resulting in increased public satisfaction and reduced complaints. For example, a construction site manager moving into a new area checks the system before starting the workday. He is instantly aware that two neighboring residents have registered concerns about construction work that may harm trees on their properties. The site manager can address those concerns by talking to the property owners before beginning the work and then conveying critical information to the construction crew. The site manager logs the steps taken to address the residents' concerns and submits it to the community relations staff in the Wallingford office, so the information can be incorporated into the database and made available if the property owners call the hotline at a later date. Having a history of past issues and conversations readily accessible enables the community relations and field staff to work seamlessly with one another and stay informed at all times, which contributes to the success of the project.

Community relations professionals also benefit by having critical construction and engineering data in a geospatial dashboard. Customer requests that would take hours or days to fulfill under old systems are now typically handled within minutes and during the initial call. The real-time delivery of information eliminates frustration over communications delays.