Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN) is investing an initial sum of £255k in new hand-held technology which will help its engineers locate the source of underground cable faults much more quickly, minimising the length of power cuts and in some cases even stopping them happen altogether.
The new technology, known as TOUCAN - Thermal imaging Of Underground Cable Networks, works on heat-sensitive thermal imagery and is able to 'see' through tarmac and concrete to pick out where parts of the cable network have been damaged, developed a fault and caused a power cut or look like they need repair before they cause the power to go off.
TOUCAN trials show early signs of significant benefits for the industry, allowing operatives to quickly locate and identify faults with precision, eliminating ambiguity of location and minimising potential disruption to SSEN's customers and the electricity network.
Stewart Reid, SSEN's Head of Innovation, explains how the new technology will help keep the lights on and reduce power cuts: "We want to deliver the best possible customer service at all times, and for our customers that first and foremost means keeping the lights on and preventing power cuts. In addition, we believe customer expectations will only increase as electric vehicles become the norm, so we are relentlessly looking for ways to speed up restoration and avoid power interruptions."
"We want to be able to show our customers that we are doing everything we can to get their electricity back on as safely and as quickly as possible. With this new technology our engineers can get straight to the source of a fault or potential fault without having to carry out as much excavation work, which means we can reduce the number and duration of power cuts and reduce any disruption that excavation in the street may cause."
Before the trials started, SSEN ran a simulation exercise completing over 900 scans in four days in an open environment to ensure varying weather conditions were tested. Operatives discovered fault-finding success to be greatly increased at night, where traditional evasive fault-finding methods are generally unavailable to avoid disruption. This was confirmed during the trials, as faults were found within minutes of arriving on the scene using the innovative equipment.
Kevin Dennis, SSEN's Project Manager for the TOUCAN project, is pleased with the way the roll-out is progressing: "TOUCAN is really helping us with our commitment to delivering the best possible service for our customers. Since we began introducing the new devices across our depots this summer, not only has the feedback from staff been very positive, we have also been able to resolve over 20 cable faults more quickly and effectively than if we were using traditional methods."
"Another benefit with TOUCAN is that it will also help us increase the number of 'pre-faults' we locate, as when we are carrying out our routine maintenance the thermal imagery can show us 'hot spots' which can identify a section of cable which is likely to cause a future power cut unless it is replaced."
Project evidence identifies 'time to site' as a key factor in successfully pinpointing faults. The optimum 90-minute window for fault identification means SSEN's Rapid Response Operatives (RROs) are best-placed to use this technology quickly, prioritising the speed of detection and subsequent repair. The use of thermal cameras complements existing tools used by SSEN's teams but act as a first step in pinpointing the source of faults with increased accuracy, meaning less excavation to public roads is required and public disruption is minimised.
Tony Rhodes, Team Manager in SSEN's West London depot, has been using TOUCAN since the end of June, and it has had a really positive impact on the way he and his colleagues work: "The new cameras are really light, portable and simple to use, and over the last couple of months they've made my job a lot easier. When I get called out to a cable fault, the thermal camera accurately highlights the location and takes me straight to it, which means much less digging and lets us get the power back on for our customers a lot more quickly, which is really satisfying."
SSEN has now completed the rollout of these new cameras across its central southern England distribution area, and the new technology is now part of its Business as Usual (BAU) equipment. The company is continuing to roll out the kit across its region in the north of Scotland, with the intention of it becoming BAU towards the end of October this year.
To find out more about SSEN's innovation projects, please visit ssen.co.uk/innovation.