Electric Energy T&D - Index

Electric Energy T&D - EEMag March / April 2008 - Index

moshe benbassat
For decades, electric utilities have invested
millions of dollars in computer technology
and human resources to reliably forecast
future demand. Reliable forecasting affects
long-term planning for infrastructure buildout,
staffing, maintenance and repairs,
providing executives with a telescopelike
view of projected costs, revenues and
potential profits.
Advanced technologies such as artificial
neural networks and agent-based simulation
systems gather information about myriad
factors including everything from weather
patterns to holidays and massive sporting
events like the Super Bowl or the Olympics.
In most cases, utilities have not invested
anywhere near the same resources in
managing their workforces. That’s going to be
an increasing problem as their infrastructures
and field technicians continue to age. Power
lines, transformers, substations, etc. all wear
down and need repair. Those technicians who
have accumulated 5-30 years of hands-on
knowledge are nearing retirement, and they
typically take that expertise with them when
they leave.
This article discusses the challenges of
workforce management in the electric utilities
industry, and the barriers to achieving real
efficiency when using archaic systems to
schedule their workforces – both internal
and third-party contractors. It also discusses
the technologies that automate scheduling
of installation, maintenance and repair of
assets while providing real-time information
about technician location and job status.
64 I March-April 2008 Issue
Getting a charge out of service
optimization
By Moshe BenBassat, CEO and founder of ClickSoftware
This technology can also automate customer
demand forecasting for short- and long-term
projects down the road as well as capacity
planning to ensure companies have the right
staffing levels to meet the demand. Reporting
tools give decision makers vital key performance
indicator (KPI) information at their fingertips
so they can make smart decisions. Optimizing
mobile workforce management will go a long
way to help utilities improve overall operational
efficiency, cut costs and increase profits as
they take steps toward becoming real-time
service enterprises.
Complex factors weighing on
mobile workforce management
Electric utilities face some of the most
complex challenges of any industry when it
comes to workforce management. On any
given day, field technicians read, install and
repair meters, respond to downed power lines
or work on long-term infrastructure projects.
They may work alone, in a crew, or with a
team of outside contractors. Technicians
can find themselves at a home, a business,
or a substation for a municipality that has a
contracted service guarantee.
A single workforce absence can throw entire
schedules into disarray, forcing dispatchers
to scramble to find additional resources
with the necessary skills and experience to
get jobs done on time. A shortage of field
resources means electric utilities have to do
whatever is necessary to complete those jobs,
whether that means paying overtime, hiring
outside contractors, or both.
Then there are the additional industry factors
that force utilities to find ways to reduce costs
and efficiencies – all ultimately affecting how
they manage their workforces. Governments
worldwide are increasingly mandating reduced
carbon emissions, which presents significant
cost, infrastructure and logistics challenges.
Commercial customers increasingly demand
lower prices, supply security, zero interrupts
and higher network capacity while trying to
reduce peak usage via demand management
and better consumption plans.
The aging workforce coupled with the relatively
low numbers of young field technicians
joining the ranks should scare any electric
utility executive. Here’s why. According to
the U.S. Department of Energy, as much
as 50 percent of the line worker workforce
could retire in the next decade. The largest
percentage of the workforce population is in
the 45-54-year-old age range, based on U.S.
Bureau of Labor Statistics. So when those
people who have accumulated three decades
of expertise – including everything from
remembering part numbers to efficient repair
shortcuts not outlined in a manual – leave,
that knowledge generally doesn’t transfer to
incoming technicians.
The aging infrastructure is also going to
demand organized, well-anticipated planning.
The more utilities can do to prepare for short-
and long-term repairs and replacements, the
more efficiently they will complete these
projects, minimizing the risk of problems
such as unplanned outages.