Nearly every substation worker or lineman has answered a service call in the middle of the night. But as unwelcome as those calls are for utility employees, the power outages that often result can be downright frustrating for utility customers.

At AmerenUE — a St. Louis, Missouri-based investor-owned utility — a team of substation managers, engineers, supervisors and superintendents is dedicated to using cutting-edge technology to stop such faults before they happen.

The result: increased reliability for the company's 1.2 million electric customers.

Identifying Slow Breakers

One key device in UE's toolkit is a machine called the Profile P2, from Kelman Technologies (Chicago, Illinois). This device allows technicians to accurately measure how long it takes a breaker's contacts to open and close, allowing employees in the field to quickly and easily identify breakers that need attention.

Using the Profile P2, a single UE field worker can conduct a single test in 10 minutes, and test an entire bus or bank of breakers in just one to two hours.

New technicians are taught how to use the machine when they begin working in the field, and experienced users also train journeymen and apprentices about the tool and its application.

But P2 is just one of many cutting-edge devices used in the field. UE provides an annual update training class to go over new equipment, and crews are introduced to other pieces of new test equipment in monthly or quarterly safety meetings.

Testing Oil

Another key to curbing substation faults and power outages is oil sampling and testing. Oil is not only the lifeblood of any substation or transformer, but one of the best predictors of the equipment's overall stability.

When UE technicians take oil samples from substation equipment in the field, they typically send it to the UE laboratory to determine what type of particles or gases are in the oil, whether or not there is a breakdown in the oil's insulating capacity, and how much wear is on the LTC contacts.

Keeping Our Pledge

Oil testing and field measurement tools have helped UE to make a fundamental switch in substation maintenance practices. Instead of following a time-based maintenance program in which substation components are replaced based on age, UE takes a condition-based approach that uses state-of-the-art digital data collection and analysis tools.

The next step for UE's use of digital tools in the field is the ability to send data wirelessly to a data collection center, which would speed up analysis and repairs even more. But for now, UE is proud to be using these 21^st-century tools to help it live up to its pledge to connect Missouri by providing reliable power, dedicated customer service, and vision for a sustainable future.

While no utility can guarantee 100% reliability, it is clearly in everyone's best interest to have a robust, stable electric distribution system. By continually evaluating data and using the latest technology, UE's substation crews are minimizing outages and helping the crews to identify issues before they become major problems.

Pete Sperruzza (psperruzza@ameren.com) has been with AmerenUE for the last 24 years. He is a substation supervisor of construction and maintenance in St. Louis, Missouri.