Utility Company Saves Time, Cost With Field Service Mobile Computing Solution

For Connexus Energy (Ramsey, MN) inspectors, dealing with freezing temperatures is a daily occurrence for four months of every year. These electric company inspectors measure such variables as oil temperature, silicone condition, circuits, voltage surges, and tolerances at Connexus' 39 distribution substations. Winter windchill temperatures for these Minnesota workers often drop to well below zero degrees Fahrenheit. The number of inspection points varies by substation, with some requiring more than 100 different data entries. That means braving severe cold to record approximately 3,000 substation measurements, which, until recently, they did using pens and clipboards.

A few years ago, Connexus management began looking for ways to improve operational efficiencies. Once the company implemented a computerized maintenance management system, mobile computing was the next logical step.

Test Your Mobile Devices In The Field, Not Lab
Connexus inspectors tested portable computers from five vendors - including personal digital assistants, tablet-type computers, and Intermec's (Everett, WA) 740 color mobile computers. "It's one thing to evaluate a device in a building, but if you're going to use it outdoors, that's where you need to test it," says Brian Sullivan, Connexus systems analyst. "You have to see how the screen looks in the sun, and how the device handles." Sullivan adds that some of the equipment tested couldn't withstand the cold temperatures, wasn't waterproof, and would break if dropped. In contrast, the Intermec 740 met all of the company's requirements.

Database Integration In 8 Hours
Connexus' Intermec 740s run Microsoft Windows CE software for Pocket PC configured by Intermec partner DataSplice (Fort Collins, CO) and Connexus developers. "We have standard bolt-on solutions for computerized maintenance management systems, but what Connexus wanted to do was really different," says Jeff Gibson, senior solution specialist at DataSplice. During an 8-hour training session, Connexus implemented the DataSplice product with full connectivity to the production database. Connexus designers built an Oracle database view accessible on the mobile computer's screen. "The view not only pulls in the inspection points by substation, but also shows the piece of equipment the inspector is looking at, including the equipment number," Sullivan says. "That helps when creating a work order."

Mobile Computing Solution Reduces Costs By 43%
With the old method, by the time the readings were typed into the office computer, analyzed, and equipment operating out of tolerance range flagged for repair, it might be a week or more after the measurements were taken. "By then, that piece of equipment could have failed, and you might have customers without power," adds Sullivan.

Now, when inspectors arrive at a substation, they enter (via the numeric keypad and a stylus) their location into a Intermec 740 and walk from point to point making equipment assessments or taking measurements. At the end of their shifts, they go back to the office and upload the cached data from the mobile computers to the Connexus database via an Intermec Ethernet docking station.

The utility's computerized maintenance management system now has same-day inspection data to analyze. Sifting through thousands of measurement points, it can compile a report on only those measurements outside the normal range. A maintenance manager can dispatch repair crews within hours instead of days or weeks. The chance for analysis oversights is greatly reduced. This new solution also improved the time it takes inspectors to complete their task by 43%. It has reduced Connexus' substation maintenance management costs by the same percentage and, most importantly for customers, has made inspection data available for analysis the day it is gathered. Connexus plans to expand the system for other uses, including inventory control and managing outage crews.