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Jason E. Dettman Lead Programmer Analyst Outage Management / GIS Integrys Business Support

AMR/OMS Integration Improving Utility Operational Efficiencies and Enhancing Customer Value One Ping at a Time. Jason E. Dettman Lead Programmer Analyst Outage Management / GIS Integrys Business Support. Eric J. Charette, PE Senior System Consultant Outage & Mobile Workforce Solutions

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Jason E. Dettman Lead Programmer Analyst Outage Management / GIS Integrys Business Support

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  1. AMR/OMS IntegrationImproving Utility Operational Efficiencies and Enhancing Customer Value One Ping at a Time

  2. Jason E. Dettman Lead Programmer Analyst Outage Management / GIS Integrys Business Support Eric J. Charette, PE Senior System Consultant Outage & Mobile Workforce Solutions Intergraph Corporation

  3. Company Overview • Integrys Energy Group • Holding company based in Chicago, Illinois • Operating Subsidiaries • Wisconsin Public Service Corp: 450,000 electric & 310,000 gas customers • Upper Peninsula Power Company: 51,000 electric customers • Michigan gas Utilities: 165,000 gas customers • Minnesota Energy Resources: 206, 000 gas customers • Peoples Gas: 840,000 gas customers • North Shore Gas: 158,000 gas customers • 5,140 employees • Systems in place at WPSC and UPPCO • Intergraph InService OMS Solution • Smallworld GIS • DCSI TWACS AMR solution (WPSC only)

  4. Business Pain • In electric distribution operations, long standing practices and procedures have withstood the test of time • One standard at WPSC was manually calling customers back after an outage to verify power restoration during major storms • Common to call back all customers to verify that power restoration • Calls were made by the dispatchers • Necessary to prevent return trips to an outage • Callbacks took away from dispatching and prolonged the restoration • Partial solution had additional personnel make calls during a storm • Resulted in higher cost to restore power to same amount of customers • Difficult to manually enter the information into the legacy OMS • Before power could be verified by phone, line crews had left the site for next outage before learning that power was still out

  5. Business Solution • In March 2005, WPS began a multi-million dollar project to implement a commercial off-the-shelf OMS • The system would replace in house legacy systems • Each system had their value, but lacked interactive graphics, real-time network management, switch planning • Goals were higher levels of reliability, increased operational efficiencies, and enhanced levels of customer satisfaction • Interfaces included CIS, GIS and AMR • Smart meters had been installed as part of another project • Project incorporated use of smart meters into power restoration verification process • In April 2006 WPS went live with new OMS

  6. The Process Today • Nearly 18 months after the initial go live of the project • Take advantage of AMR/OMS integration in everyday operations • Upon closure of an outage within the OMS, the interface pings meters of customers who reported power out • Order is automatically closed in the CIS system for successful pings • Manual intervention is taken by a dispatcher for failed pings • May include a phone call back to the customer • Reissuing the call in the OMS for further analysis • Dispatchers now perform critical parts of their job while the meters are automatically pinged • Typical manual customer call lasted up to one minute • With the new automated process, 10 to 15 meters can be pinged per minute

  7. Process Flow Chart 1 1 • 1. OMS sends closure message with meter information for customers who phoned in their outage. This simultaneously goes to the Call Back Application and to the AMR System for Ping • 2. If AMR cannot read the meter, it sends a message back to the Call Back Application where manual processing by the dispatcher must occur • 3. If the dispatcher decides that the crew must return to the site to verify power restoration, they manually reissue the call to the OMS • 4. If the dispatcher decides that the power has been restored, they manually close the call within the Call Back Application and send it to the CIS • 5. If AMR successfully reads the meter, it sends a message back to the Call Back Application as notification to the dispatcher only, and closes the call in the CIS system 3 CIS OMS Call Back Application AMR 2 4 5 5

  8. The Process Today • WPS also leveraged this interface by giving dispatchers the ability to ping meters directly within the OMS from the interactive map • Dispatcher locates a device on the map and generates a list of customers to be pinged that are downstream • Can select a transformer, fuse, breaker, or conductor and automatically send list of downstream customers to AMR • Predictive pings • Help determine the extent of an outage • Confirm what the OMS outage predication engine already has determined • When supply voltage is present, dispatcher can cancel the order before lineman is dispatched • Then they call customer to inform them that WPS has verified power to meter • Can advise customer of additional steps to take

  9. The Process Today • Process handled with OMS and a custom-built application • Called “CB Man’’, short for Call Back Manager • CB Man is now a critical part of the outage management process • CB Man manages • All pings automatically created as part of closing orders • All pings manually created through the map interface • Stores a historical records of all transactions • Simple user interface appeals to everyday user and occasional user • With automation, still important that to retain customer service levels • Dispatchers still make customer call backs during a storm but focus on customers who requested a call back • Customers no longer bothered after hours with call back • With OMS/AMR integration, a meter ping takes place of manual call • Provides near real-time information to dispatch • Eliminating most call backs saves more than 320 hours of annual labor

  10. Call Back Manager

  11. Benefits of the Integration • WPS has eliminated about 20 trips per week to locations where internal problems or other issues are present. • Before dispatching crews, meters under following conditions for single customer outages are pinged • During normal weather reported through IVR • From apartments with no other related calls • With no other reporting customers on same transformer • Single call originating from remote location (work for example) or other location not the same as the outage • Single call based on an alarm system notification • Annual cost savings of nearly $108,000

  12. Benefits of the Integration • Other factors included in cost saving calculations • Wage rate for line electricians • Overtime wage rate • Additional inconvenience pay under union guidelines • Cost to operate response trucks • Average distance required to investigate problem

  13. Benefits of the Integration • WPS also recognized benefits during storms • Recent storm left thousands without power • CB Man proved valuable when dispatchers from non storm areas were assigned to do analyst work • Using the OMS map and CB Man, storm dispatchers pinged meters to confirm outages • Physically located hundreds of miles away • Didn’t know the storm site’s electrical network • According to Dale Klimek, Supervisor of Dispatch Operations at WPS, “Their work helped to eliminate unnecessary trips and allowed our crews to focus on the actual outage locations.” • Completed restoration in less time than storms of the past where AMR/OMS integration not in place

  14. Benefits of the Integration • In WPS service territory, hunting and fishing seasons means returning to vacation property for first time since previous year • If an outage had affected remote areas and was not reported, customers would arrive to a cottage without power • This would result in • An after-hours call to the utility • Cost incurred to repair the problem on overtime for WPS • Inconvenience to the customer. • WPS tracks misreads for several days leading into these weekends • Then dispatch crews to these locations during normal working hours • WPS also uses this technique after storm activity • Ping meters in affected areas to ensure power restoration • By restoring power under these conditions, WPS is able to save cost and provide better, yet hidden, customer service

  15. Benefits of the Integration • Since OMS/AMR interface has been in production, Outage Management customer satisfaction scores have risen steadily each quarter • Scored 8.7/10 on recent outage management survey • Clear that the customers are finding more value with the service that WPS provides during outages • Integration at WPS has led to • Faster outage analysis • Higher levels of reliability • Accurate reporting to the Wisconsin PSC • Increased operational efficiencies • Enhanced levels of customer satisfaction.

  16. The Process Tomorrow • WPS looking for additional ways to leverage technology • Future enhancements may include • To automate the manual ping process for single power outages when the order is created in their CIS • Annual projected savings of ~ $10,000 • Based on 3,000 single customer power outages a year • Allowing customers to verify power status by pinging their own meter through a secured web portal • An integration with an outbound dialer to call customers back after AMR verifies that the power has been restored • Will call customers back after AMR verifies power restoration • Customers may be notified that their power has been restored before they even knew there was an outage

  17. Questions?

  18. Jason E. Dettman Lead Programmer Analyst Outage Management / GIS Integrys Business Support 1.920.433.1096 jedettman@integrysgroup.com Eric J. Charette, PE Senior System Consultant Outage & Mobile Workforce Solutions Intergraph Corporation 1.256.684-3477 eric.charette@intergraph.com

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