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Discover Co-op Conversations with DEMCO as we explore the power of a local member-owned not-for-profit electric cooperative. Since 1938, DEMCO has woven cooperative principles into every wire, and our business isn’t just about electricity.
At DEMCO, we’re more than just an electric company, and our work, is more than just a job. As a local member-owned cooperative, we are your neighbors, your family and your friends. We exist to serve you, and we take a lot of pride in all that we do.
Our mission is to enhance the quality of life for our members, employees, and communities by safely providing reliable and competitively priced energy services. You’ve probably seen us out in the community—at events on and off duty—doing what we can to make a difference.
And now, you can hear us on your favorite podcast platform as we discuss what makes cooperatives special and inform the community about how we are striving to serve you in everything we do.
DEMCO, Powering life and community, that’s the cooperative difference!
David Latona:
Welcome to Co-op Conversations with DEMCO,
where we talk about the topics that impact your power,
your co-op, and your community. I'm your host,
David Latona.
In this episode, we're talking about how we manage and maintain
the digital map of our entire electrical system –
the lines, poles, transformers,
and meters that deliver power to you,
our members. Joining me today are Carl Westbrook,
our GIS manager,
and Dusty Guarino, our GIS specialist.
Thank you both for being here. Welcome guys.
Carl Westbrook:
Thanks for having us. We're glad to be here.
David Latona:
So Carl managing that digital map.
It's our entire electrical system.
Can you give us an overview of what that entails?
Carl Westbrook:
Sure. Just like you said, it's a digital map,
and it's referenced as a geographic information system.
It's basically a digital map with a database behind it.
We can see all kinds of different information from customer
information down to substation information,
size of our lines, poles, things like that.
We mark the exact locations of our power lines,
poles, transformers and meters and how they're all connected.
David Latona:
Awesome. So it is, and we've learned on episodes prior to this,
that there's a lot of moving parts.
And this mapping system, I'm sure,
takes into account each of those.
Is that right?
Carl Westbrook:
That's correct. We start at the metering points and that goes
into our substations.
And then from the substations, it's delivered all the way down
through the power lines that come to your meter at your business
or to your home.
David Latona:
So tell me why, as members who are benefiting from that power,
why is that so important to them?
Carl Westbrook:
It helps our entire field crews or even persons in the office to
kind of know where you're located,
where our facilities are located.
When power outages occur, it helps them get the power back in a
timely fashion.
Dusty Guarino:
Our work is also what makes our members see what's on our
website,
our outage map. All the transformers,
conductors right down to the street view,
every bit of it is there. This is most visited resource on our
website.
David Latona:
Yeah, that's a great point. I know that's very important.
So when we have our storm center at demco.org,
and whether it's a storm or a planned outage for system
maintenance, outages are reflected on that map in real time.
So our employees use that same map.
So it is very accurate. And it updates in live time every three
minutes.
That's a lot of information every three minutes when you consider
120,000 meters.
And then all of the equipment necessary is in that GIS system.
So what's that like keeping that map updated,
Dusty?
Dusty Guarino:
Anytime something changes like we build a new line,
new equipment is installed or updated,
we make sure that the system reflects what's actually out in the
field.
We also help maintain records and overall databases so that
everything stays current and reliable.
David Latona:
So accuracy really drives everything we do.
Dusty Guarino:
To a "t."
David Latona:
Yes, that's so important. So Carl,
can you give us an example of how that accuracy matters?
Carl Westbrook:
Well, it matters in a big way, especially for after storms,
knowing where outages are,
knowing where these members are located,
we can have our systems operators direct our field crews to know
exactly where they are, instead of them trying to actually try to
find a map to get the address,
and they can go exactly there. Also,
whenever, as Dusty said, whenever new line is added,
our crews that go out and actually what we call stake the lines,
where they draw in new lines,
whether it be overhead or underground,
it helps to have an accurate map so that they're given the member
a valid cost for that extension.
David Latona:
Oh yeah, that makes good sense when they're building new line,
for new services.
And then also I think about safety too,
when that line is being fed from a different direction.
If something changes on that map,
it's very important for our people because safety is so important
to us that they have that information.
So how are they accessing that in the field?
Carl Westbrook:
So everyone has access to our maps which are updated daily.
They use a iPad which carries all of our map information,
and it's at their fingertips.
They can reach it in an instant.
And when you talk about accuracy and safety,
it's especially important for our crews that are working on
underground or buried lines to know where these lines are
located.
David Latona:
That's so great too. And I know we're talking about a lot of
online access and databases.
There's just so many things that go into this operation.
So when they mark up things in the field,
like when they make a change,
what happens on your end? How does your team handle that?
Carl Westbrook:
Well, we take that information that's given to us,
and we'll go on to our actual mapping editing side,
and we'll make those changes, and we'll push that up to our
server.
And then we have a process in the evening that runs,
and it takes all of that information and ports it down to our
crew members' maps. It ports it over to the member facing maps to
our outage map.
So there's a lot of information out there that gets updated
overnight after we do our updates during the day.
David Latona:
That's so amazing too when I think about,
I know I say 120,000 meters,
but then also every pole is on that mapping system,
every transformer,
every substation. And when we think about poles,
well, there's more poles than there are meters.
So there's so many data points on that map that are critical to
those guys working.
So let's talk more about how all of this benefits our co-op
members.
Tell me a little more about that.
Carl Westbrook:
Like we mentioned earlier, one of the biggest benefits is faster
restoration time during outages.
Because we have such an accurate map of our lines and conductors,
we can quickly identify where our problem is and what equipment
may be affected,
what equipment we need to bring to get to that.
David Latona:
Wow. And so all that connects to that outage map that members
actually see on that member
facing website at demco.org.
Carl Westbrook:
That's correct.
David Latona:
So better information helps us respond faster,
keep members informed.
It shows all outages and may help them see the work all around
them as well.
I think about our members have a resource there to see the
progress that's being made.
Because as I understand on that outage map,
we've got illuminated lines that are green when they're on or
when they're hot, and then it's red when there's an outage. So
members can track that when there's a large scale outage or
something similar. So let's talk a little more about storms for a
moment because that's when your work really becomes
visible. Dusty, we've heard a lot about drones being used more.
How are you using them after storms in that response?
Dusty Guarino:
Well, drones have become a really valuable tool for us to use
during storm response.
After a storm, instead of waiting for crews to physically reach
every location,
walk down every line, tromp through the woods,
briars, everything else you can think of,
it's quicker to send a drone up to quickly survey the entire
damaged area.
It saves so much time as opposed to walking and tracking through
everything,
and it collects the data and stores the data for you also.
So that way there's no second guessing on what pole was which or
where this tree was down at or where this pole was broke at.
David Latona:
Wow. So that's our own use of AI,
but you might say this AI helps us identify the actual
damage that's on a pole per se?
Dusty Guarino:
It does. It can tell you what pole it is and how much damage is
on it,
and what is associated with that pole.
David Latona:
So our GIS system, or our layers,
are put into that software to
identify that pole number and that damage that it sees it
associates with that specific pole number,
right?
Dusty Guarino:
That's correct. We get a clear view of the down line,
broke poles or damaged equipment within minutes.
The information is then tied back to our GIS system so we can see
exactly where it is.
We can report it and have others go out and repair it.
David Latona:
So I know that in an emergency response scenario,
you might be serving in a different
capacity than you do each day, but part of that is flying those
lines with that drone or even leading a crew to go
make those repairs. So how does that change what you do during a
storm with that availability of a drone?
Dusty Guarino:
So there's a rural part of our line that is in the northern area
north of Saint Francisville,
that takes a long time to get a truck or a side by side or a
four-wheeler down and parts of that,
you still have to have a boat to get through.
So it takes literally sometimes a full day,
if not two days, to ride the line out just to see what's wrong
with it. So you can go all the way back to go get people,
material,
trucks, everything else to go back to fix it.
We can fly the drone in nearly a 10th of the time,
look at everything,
know where it is, what is wrong,
what it's going to take to do it,
how many people will take, and they'll fly right back on its own,
and we can have it reported before it even gets back to us.
David Latona:
Wow.
Dusty Guarino:
I like to add that for the drone flights for stonework,
it stores all our data.
That way you can go back and look historically at it at it,
or for FEMA reimbursements,
it live streams itself, that always gets seen by the board or the
public service commissioner.
They love to see that.
David Latona:
That is a great point, because what we don't always see is the
record keeping necessary during a storm
restoration, whether it's insurances or FEMA reimbursements that
we rely on as an electric co-op.
Carl Westbrook:
Yeah. As you pointed out, David,
as dusty said earlier that having those records ahead of time
when it comes to reporting this information to FEMA,
we can report it in like very minimal time compared to what it
used to be.
David Latona:
So how much of our system is able to be assessed by drone
flights?
Dusty Guarino:
Well, during storm situations, we always do all our remote areas.
Anything that's hard to get to. But on a day to day instance,
we use the drones still on everything that's up at the road.
We inspect our poles. It gives us a new angle for the looking
from the top down,
which we've never been able to do before. So we're able to see a
lot more issues,
report a lot more problems, change out poles,
and you can see everything from the top down or from the bottom
up if you want to. And also, we have thermal cameras that you
can,
that can detect any kind of heat and corrosion breaking down of
jumpers or lines.
David Latona:
Wow. So I know that we have larger projects,
and we've got to map certain areas for new construction.
It may not be a storm restoration,
but just everyday work.
How is that drone utilized in that scenario?
Dusty Guarino:
So we use drones on any of our larger projects for sure.
We take GPS coordinates. They get it down to a T.
David Latona:
So what about when you're actually flying a drone,
what automation is
involved in steering that drone?
What key, are there safety measures in place that keep it away
from vegetation or away from our lines?
Dusty Guarino:
That's a good question. Everybody that flies a drone with us has
a Part 107 pilot's license.
So they have been to school trained and have a license by the FAA
legal to fly these things.
Then on the drone's perspective,
it has obstacle avoidance.
They'll stop within a couple feet of anything.
Carl Westbrook:
It's an up and coming option for all utilities,
and a lot of businesses are using them now.
We as DEMCO, we've been heavily into it for the last year and a
half,
and it's getting better every day.
David Latona:
So also, as I understand, there are heat sensors.
Tell me about that.
Dusty Guarino:
Yeah, it's called thermal cameras,
and it works off of thermography.
You can fly the drone. Look at any connections on our
substations,
poles, switches, any of our smart switches.
And it'll just, you can view the entire switch,
and you can tell if it has an issue happening,
whether it's getting hot or cooling off or if it's having blinks.
David Latona:
Early in my career, I was invited to go fly with the pilot in the
helicopter with the
engineer was with the pilot, right.
And what I did was when he saw something specific,
this was
after Hurricane Isaac, he would tell me.
And we were flying low enough so that I had a cell signal,
and he would tell me,
drop a pin with my cell phone and send a text message to the
engineers that were here at
headquarters. And so I was, you know,
we would kind of describe the location,
but then drop the pin and send it to them and tell them what it
was – a limb on the line,
a broken pole, a missing cross arm,
whatever it was.
So I felt good because at least I was a contributor in the
restoration.
Carl Westbrook:
So we still do that today, theoretically.
Once a year, our right-of-way department,
an engineer and maybe someone from the operations will fly our
transmission line. And it's still the pilot in the helicopter
going as slow as they can.
And any issues they find, they're using our mobile map on an
iPad,
and they'll basically drop a pin on that particular pole or
structure.
So you don't really have to rely on dropping a PIN to get x,
y coordinates,
because you can actually drop the PIN on the map as it's flying.
So yeah, using the drone and gathering all that information,
it helps our engineers and those that are planning the repairs
to know what to expect.
David Latona:
That's so great. So safer. It's more efficient.
And then also it enables us to communicate more accurately to the
membership what's going on.
I'd say even in a faster time frame,
we have that information a little bit faster.
Carl Westbrook:
That's right. It helps us to prioritize the critical repairs and
gets crews where they need to go at a much faster rate.
David Latona:
And we know during storms we've got a lot of crews.
So a lot of information needs to get to a lot of folks in order
to have them out there working.
And ultimately, that helps us restore power more quickly for our
members.
Carl Westbrook:
Exactly. It's all about improving response time and making better
decisions when it matters the most.
David Latona:
Well, thank you all for joining us and for the important work
your team does behind the scenes.
Thanks for tuning in to Co-op Conversations with DEMCO.
If you like what you heard, leave us a review.
Like and share the episode with a friend.
Be sure to subscribe so you don't miss an episode!
For Carl and Dusty, I'm David Latona.
Let's keep the conversation going.