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AI at the Edge

Utilidata has announced a collaboration with NVIDIA to create a new module with the purpose of providing real-time artificial intelligence (AI) at the edge of the grid.  The new module will be powered by the NVIDIA Jetson™ edge…

FirstEnergy installs new high-voltage wires in Ohio and Pennsylvania to support grid reliability

FirstEnergy, an Ohio-based energy company, is upgrading high-voltage transmission lines in Ohio and Pennsylvania to improve the reliability, resiliency, efficiency, and operational flexibility of the transmission system in the areas.   These upgrades are part of its multi-year…

Geospatial Trend Analysis of Power Plants Completed in the Last 15 Years

For over 40 years MAPSearch has been actively engaged in compiling unique, proprietary, and strategic energy infrastructure information into GIS databases for use by public and private sectors. What Does the Data Reveal About a Transition from Fossil…

Renewable energy forecasting with AI and machine learning

Summary: AI and machine learning enable utilities to improve the accuracy of renewable energy forecasting as we progress towards a clean-energy future. When we look to the future of energy production in the United States, it’s clear that…

4 Myths of DIY Data Platform Projects

The power and utilities industry is now decades into digital transformation and many digital teams are under increasing scrutiny to determine their business impact. For those who have taken a do-it-yourself (DIY) approach to operational data and digital…

2022 ICS/OT Cybersecurity Year in Review

How companies can better secure smart grid technology. The business benefits of digital transformation in grid operations are tremendous, but this progress increases cyber risk to Operations Technology (OT) in the areas of safety, unscheduled downtime, and negative…

Top 3 Cybersecurity Challenges Facing Electric Utilities

The business benefits of digital transformation in grid operations are tremendous, but this progress increases cyber risk to Operations Technology (OT) in the areas of safety, unscheduled downtime, and negative impact on corporate brand. The good news is…

Zondits Interview: EV Adoption Forecasting – How’s That Done?

Zondits speaks with a forecasting specialist about modeling EV adoption to optimize infrastructure deployment. Walter Schaefer is a Senior Engineer at DNV with eight years of experience in electric mobility and transportation, demand side management, and distributed energy…

Power Grid Planning For 2023 and Beyond

Over the next decade, the electric utility ecosystem is perfectly poised to grow its potential along with its complexity. From rising interest rates to regulatory constraints and continuously evolving priorities, utilities face difficult budgetary decisions in tandem with…

Using Machine Learning to Improve Vegetation Management in Power Line Corridors

Vegetation management often represents a utility’s largest operations and maintenance cost, and with good reason. Trees are a leading cause of U.S. electricity outages. Controlling vegetation is a key factor in reducing wildfire risks. And North American Electric…

Widespread Outages Avoided During Record-Setting Heatwave in California Thanks To a Newly Completed Battery Energy Storage System

Finnish energy technology firm Wärtsilä announced it has completed a 125-MW/250-MWh battery energy storage system (BESS) in Calexico, California for renewable energy company REV Renewables. The facility is referred to as the LeConte energy storage project. The energy…

Sensor Data, AI and Advanced Analytics Help Utilities Predict and Mitigate Equipment Failures Before Service Interruptions Occur

Equipment failures cost utilities millions annually – and each year, they are the root cause of nearly one third of customer interruptions. These outages not only leave utility customers without electricity, but also represent significant repair costs and…

4 Capital Planning Challenges Utilities Will Face in 2023

It was easy to anticipate the damage that could be caused by Hurricane Fiona as it barrelled up the East Coast of North America in late September. But the reality of its destruction was still a shock. In…

Solving Complex Feeder Protection Challenges and Reducing Wildfire Risks with Remote Measurements

Date: Tuesday, March 7, 2023 Time: 11:00 AM ET / 10:00 AM CT / 8:00 AM PT / 4:00 PM GMT Duration: 1 hour Sponsor: Synaptec Register Today! Already registered? Click here to log in! Today’s distribution and subtransmission networks are becoming…

Maximizing the Value of Utility Options

This webinar was originally held on March 1, 2023, and is now available for on demand viewing.  Duration: 1 hour Sponsor: Gurobi Optimization Register Today! Already registered? Click here to log in! Avista, as an integrated natural gas and electric utility…

6 Currencies Utilities Should Consider When Prioritizing Capital Planning Optimizations

Imagine this: you’re developing your strategic plan for the next 10 years and there are no budget constraints. You know any project that improves the performance, resiliency and sustainability of your infrastructure won’t only be approved; it’ll be…

Get Schooled on the Viability of Two-Way Vehicle to Grid Energy Storage

In the Greater Boston area, electric school buses are doing more than taking students to and from school. Energy stored in the buses’ batteries is transferred back to the grid during times of demand stress on the regional…

Making Predictive Maintenance Economically Viable for Overhead Distribution Infrastructure

I live in Marietta, Georgia, a suburb of Atlanta, and while we are not in the city proper, the neighborhoods are still densely packed​. Power in this area is provided by Cobb EMC, one of the largest electric…

Electrification Load Forecasting

Abstract As new trends emerge in the ever-evolving electrification environment, electric utility operators need to adapt their distribution networks to account for the new supply and demand on their networks. To account for the changes, operators have been…

Helping Utilities Anticipate EV Charging Loads Through Operational Analytics

Anticipated growth of electric vehicle (EV) sales in the U.S. over the next several years will have a great impact on the nation’s existing infrastructure — especially the grid.   The right infrastructure needs to be in place…

Energy Storage is Changing the Grid: Here’s How to Navigate the New Dynamics

Understand power market dynamics around your plant through accurate and timely market data.   The North American electricity sector is making significant progress toward decarbonizing its power supply as solar and wind become major contributors. However, electric grid…

Sensor Data, Artificial Intelligence and Advanced Analytics Help Utilities Predict and Mitigate Equipment Failures Before Service Interruptions Occur

Equipment failures cost utilities millions of dollars annually. And each year, they are the root cause of nearly one-third of customer interruptions. These outages not only leave utility customers without electricity; they also incur significant repair costs and…

Semantic Modeling for your Data Architecture to Reduce Cost of Analytics

What we see with our clients are that they want to gain more business value from their data. However, the initial direction they take make differ. Some clients focus on technologies while others focus on building their data…

Geospatial Identification of Disadvantaged Communities – A Decision Support Strategy

One of the most common questions utility clients ask is, “How can we identify our disadvantaged customers and tailor our services to meet their unique needs?” As state legislatures, regulators and investors call on utilities to improve energy…

Change Management: Preparing Your Teams for the Grid of the Future

Change has become the new normal in the utilities industry. The following trends are rampant. Rapid growth in renewable energy sources. An uptick in climate-related emergencies. Escalating customer expectations. Expansion of distributed energy resources (DERs) and microgrids. An…

Turning Behind-the-Meter DERs into Grid Assets: Opportunities, Challenges and Principles for Success

Due to advances in technology, the Distributed Energy Resource (DER) landscape is rapidly evolving in terms of price, performance and resulting adoption. Adoption is growing exponentially, and utilities are already rethinking the ways they procure power and operate…

Is Your Data Use Reflecting Your Organizational Truth?

Four steps to enterprise data management for climate-challenged utilities From megadroughts to rapidly intensifying hurricanes, tornado outbreaks and record-breaking temperatures, our public infrastructure is being stressed to the extremes of its original designs. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric…

A Dual Benefit: How GPU-Accelerated Analytics Solves Challenges for Utility Asset Management and Climate Change at the Same Time

Utilities can combat climate change while enhancing their own service operations and bottom line by leveraging data from graphics processing unit (GPU) systems for next-generation GPU-accelerated analytics. Climate change is a growing concern that needs every available tool…

Powering Next-Gen Utility Analytics

This webinar was originally broadcast on July 12, 2022 and is now available on demand! Duration: 1 hour Sponsor: HEAVY.AI Register Today! Already registered? Click here to log in! Webinar Description Utilities have multiple analytics needs, and have…

AMI – Advanced Analytics Opportunities

To be successful today, utilities should implement transformative customer-facing and grid-facing initiatives using advanced analytics on AMI data. Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI), commonly called Smart Metering, is a solution that uses digital meters, two-way communications networks and data…

The Analytics Maturity Assessment is back for 2022

UAI’s Analytics Maturity Assessment is the most comprehensive benchmarking survey for enterprise analytics. “The AMA provides insights based on data and serves as a great measuring stick against our peers in the utility sector.” -Eddy Halter, Evergy What…

The Moneyball for Utility Analytics Teams is a Good Analogy

Entergy’s Andy Quick uses UA Summit 2022 keynote to talk about launching and sustaining a successful analytics function. May 11, 2022, New Orleans – Andy Quick, vice president of business data & insights kicked off Day 2 of…

Start your Analytics Journey with LiDAR

For utilities that are just commencing their analytics journeys, LiDAR is the gateway drug to the world of data-driven, high-efficiency decision-making. Light Detecting And Ranging (LiDAR) is a highly accurate method of digitizing three-dimensional (3D) objects. While many…

Forecasting the Future of Electric Vehicles: Predicting the Grid

Instead of filling up gasoline- and diesel-powered cars, more U.S. drivers are opting to plug in electric vehicles (EVs). According to the International Energy Agency, more than 10 million EVs are in use globally, which represents 1% of…

The Journey to Reliable Data: Essential Steps in Data Governance to Improve the Bottom Line

Every organization requires attention to data governance, which affects every part of the engineering and operations chain, from start to finish. Utility companies frequently rely on digital tools to help make operational decisions, meet regulatory requirements, plan capital…

Demystifying the Digital Twin. Time to Rethink the Definition?

A clear definition for digital assets is critical to realizing their full potential and value. “We have a lot of data, but we still don’t have a lot of information.” If this sounds familiar, you’re far from alone….

Devouring Underutilized Data with Spatial Analytics

Limiting GIS use to a digital replacement of paper maps is a profound underutilization—a lost advantage to address a challenging environment. Overcoming the challenges that utilities face today seems overwhelming at times. Yet, utility issues and solutions all…

Using Artificial Intelligence to Support Utility Industry Solutions

EN Engineering sees artificial intelligence as a key technology as the company continues to innovate solutions for the utility industry. Overview Data is the foundation of every decision-making process within the utility industry. Decision makers need high-quality data…

Beyond Run to Fail: Redefining Low-Voltage Grid Management

By combining a distributed intelligence (DI) platform with real-time vision technology, the possibilities of using low-voltage grid management are being redefined. In today’s dynamic energy industry, the low-voltage grid plays an increasingly critical role—especially as electric vehicles (EVs)…

Remote AI-Driven Inspections Improves Worker Safety and Grid Reliability

This webinar was originally broadcast on March 29, 2022 and is now available on demand!  Duration: 1 hour Sponsor: Hitachi Vantara Register Today! Already registered? Click here to log in! Webinar Description Transmission and Distribution (T&D) asset failures…

The Need for Detailed and Accurate DER and Electrification Growth Information

Inaccurate DER and electrification growth forecasts can have significant impacts on capital and operating costs as well as on the ROI in DER growth. Numerous entities are engaged with the distributed energy resources (DER) and electrification markets, primarily…

How Deep Learning Helps Utilities Facilitate Automation and Innovation: Executive Summary

UAI and Mosaic Data Science host virtual executive roundtable discussion on deep learning. UAI and Mosaic Data Science (MDS) hosted a virtual roundtable with utility representatives from Con Edison, National Grid, Enbridge Gas, CenterPoint Energy, Grant County Public…

Risky business: Why ‘the way we’ve always done it’ is now the riskier approach to utility risk management

“The essence of risk management lies in maximizing the areas where we have some control over the outcome while minimizing the areas where we have absolutely no control over the outcome.”—Peter L. Bernstein, Against the Gods: The Remarkable…

Dynamic Operating Envelopes can Enable DERs in Wholesale Market without Endangering Grid Reliability

Enabling millions of diverse DERs to participate in the wholesale market without deteriorating the reliability of the distribution system by using dynamic operating envelopes. The approval of Order 2222 by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has generated…

Data Readiness Report

What’s inside? For this white paper, UAI interviewed analytics practitioners from business, analytics and IT to learn how they are tackling data. Research includes the UAI Connect archives as well as reviews of articles in trade publications, webinars…

The Single Most Important Investment Needed for EV Initiative Success

No area of operations reveals the risk of failure to transform AMI data into actionable insights more strikingly than transportation electrification. A 2020 Consumer Reports survey found that more than 70 percent of U.S. drivers would consider buying…

How to Handle the Load: Rappahannock Electric Cooperative Utilizes Analytics to Identify System Line Losses and Reduce Costs

Rappahannock Electric Cooperative worked with Burns & McDonnell to simulate load flows in order to develop a digital model that would assist in understanding the correlations between loading, load flow and losses within the system. Rappahannock Electric Cooperative…

Satellites and Vegetation Management: Lessons from Multiple Grid-Wide Rollouts

The importance of utility vegetation management is growing as weather events become more severe; satellites can help. More utilities are adding satellite analytics to their toolbox in their vegetation management process. LiveEO, a satellite analytics company, has rolled…

UAI Aims to Understand Operationalizing Artificial Intelligence

UAI has launched a new survey as part of a research project designed to understand how to operationalize artificial intelligence at utilities. Many utilities are interested in artificial intelligence (AI) but are not sure how to use and…

Affirma – Value by Design

By using Enterprise Information Management and viewing data as a valuable asset, you can optimize its use for day-to-day decision-making.  Affirma, a product recently introduced by Xtensible, helps with data design and governance. Working with utilities over the…

Health of Power Grids Increases When Existing Data is Properly Harnessed

When asset managers figure out how to harness existing high-quality data, they increase the health of power grids. Consider for a moment an analogy of your utility’s power grid as a living, breathing human being. Grids and human…

Cutting-edge Practices for Integrating Asset Reliability & AI/ML models in Wind Generation

This webinar is now available on-demand View the Webinar Now As energy becomes greener, renewable generation is pushing the boundaries of reliability and data science teams. From turbines to batteries, inverters and other technologies, the number of assets…

EPRI Develops AI Model to Reduce Wind Turbine Operations Costs

EPRI has been working with utilities in the United States to digitalize wind assets and develop a physics-based machine-learning hybrid model to identify gearbox damage and extend the life of gearboxes. Wind turbine gearbox replacement cost can be…

Making a Business Case for More Intelligence at the Grid Edge

Grid edge intelligence empowers business transformation, evolves distribution grid operations, enhances customer experience. The future of our modern grid is dependent on leveraging more distributed intelligence (DI) at the grid edge to help manage growth, stability, and safety….

Utilities Assess Benefits and Challenges of Decentralizing the Power Grid through Blockchain Technology

Challenges include building transactive energy infrastructure, operational capabilities and security and decentralized decision-making processes. Decentralization, decarbonization, and digitalization are the three primary driving forces in the paradigm shift to the new energy economy. Decentralization, in particular, is a…

Guard Your Data, but Don’t Imprison It: The Benefits of Data Openness for Utilities

The most valuable utility of tomorrow will be the one that knows how to guard its data while simultaneously pursuing the benefits of data openness. After decades of only having to think in terms of physical assets, utilities…

Digital Asset Management Strategies Can Address Rising Infrastructure Challenges

A comprehensive digital transformation plan can help asset managers develop data-driven, risk-informed asset management strategies. Disruptive trends in the power sector can complicate transmission and distribution (T&D) asset management. But a comprehensive digital transformation plan can help asset…

What is a Data Fabric and How Does it Complement my Data Warehouse?

Connecting DWH to advanced analytics at scale requires a data fabric, not just data availability. For industrial companies, the path to ultimate value from data liberation requires three crucial steps. Many organizations have already achieved step one: liberating…

Energy Decentralization: Why it’s a Big Deal for Every Business

With energy decentralization evolving into so much more than just an energy trend, nearly every business could have a stake in it. Energy transition, or the shift from fossil fuels to renewable sources, is a major step in…

How AI Fuels Digital Transformation

AI should fuel digital transformation, not hinder it. The Digital Transformation Landscape As businesses adapt to the rapidly changing competitive landscape, many are pursuing Digital Transformation (DX) initiatives to increase business agility, improve operational insights, reduce costs, and…

The Benefits of Data and Analytics Training

Workforce training and development result in more engaged, motivated, and satisfied employees. Utilities should be investing in these areas to remain competitive. Utilities are becoming increasingly digital entities—leveraging data and analytics to make operational decisions. As they learn…

Consumers Energy Entire Customer Journey — Executive Summary

Consumers Energy presented for UAI’s July Customer Analytics Community Conversation on creating a process of continuous improvement for retail products and services. Consumers Energy recently lead the July Customer Analytics Community Conversation, which featured a presentation by Francisco…

How Connected Buildings are Re-energizing the Grid

Flexible energy platforms use artificial intelligence, cloud and blockchain to help manage renewable energy usage. On May 11, the Biden administration approved the Vineyard Wind project, a major wind farm off the coast of Massachusetts capable of powering 400,000 homes…

Utilities May Be Key in Broadband Expansion to Underserved Areas

As broadband service rolls out to rural America and to other remote and underserved areas, it is increasingly clear that utilities will have important roles to play. Municipal, cooperative and investor-owned utilities all will have opportunities to be…

Probabilistic Electricity Consumption Forecasting

Machine learning provides an excellent avenue for predicting future energy consumption. Energy Consumption is Ripe for ML Predictions Matching energy consumption with the appropriate level of supply is critical. Excess electricity cannot be stored unless converted to alternate…

Growing Analytics to Meet Current and Future Needs: NYPA’s Approach

NYPA is committed to becoming an end-to-end digital utility. At UA Summit 2021 they laid out how they developed their data analytics strategy, process, and architecture. The New York Power Authority (NYPA) has taken a disciplined approach to…

Automating Utility Pole Recognition & Inspection with Computer Vision

Computer vision offers significant cost savings by way of scalability and automation. The true art of any AI application comes down to how a data scientist can tune AI to accurately label what is in the image set….

Three Things to Know About Power System Flexibility

Utilities in the United States have increasingly recognized the many benefits of power system flexibility and are developing their own services. Flexibility market development has been fastest in Europe I have been writing about the development of power…

Using Satellite Imagery to Identify 37 Different Species of Vegetation and Reduce Risk

A case study by Red Eléctrica de España, Elewit and Overstory. Which tree, of the millions that are located near power lines, could be the one to grow into a powerline or fall and cause a power outage?…

The Role of Distributed Intelligence in Addressing Grid Challenges

Distributed intelligence capability is a key pillar for utilities to building a broad solution—a distributed intelligence platform applies analysis, decision-making and action where it is best utilized for the most valuable outcome. The utility industry is presented with…

How effective is your Data Model in supporting Enterprise Analytics?

An enterprise data model will help utilities drive value out of the data platform in fulfilling the holistic approach of semantic reconciliation, sourcing and data governance, as well as the application of data transformation rules and metadata enrichment….

Bringing Automated Inspection From Concept to Scale by “Closing the Loop”

Computer vision and the quickly evolving field of drones and robotics for inspection have become key figures in the race to realize automated operations across generation and grid. Just over a decade ago, I observed my first computer…

Salt River Project Smart Usage Alerts Project at UA Summit 2021

  UAI’s Erin Hardick talks with Gary Rector, Data Scientist at Salt River Project (SRP), about SRP’s Smart Usage Alerts project. At UA Summit 2021, Gary will give an update on how the project has progressed over the…

Artificial Intelligence: How good is good enough?

Artificial intelligence is a great tool for specific purposes but it’s not a panacea for grid automation. Speak with any data scientist about artificial intelligence (AI) and you’ll soon hear one common gripe: that hype lifts expectations to…

Why Satellite-Informed Vegetation Management is Rapidly Becoming the New Industry Standard

Satellites offer the utility industry enormous opportunities in the area of vegetation management. Students graduating from universities today most likely have never used a paper map to find their destination. The advent of GPS navigation, in combination with…

Using Data Visualization to Realize Return on Smart Grid Investments

Data visualization software can help utilities visualize the return on smart grid investments and show how much change smart grid technologies bring. Data visualization is the graphical representation of data and information using visual elements such as maps,…

Three Problems Data Can Solve for Utilities—And One it Can’t

Apply data and analytics to solve these common challenges No utility has a perfect data and analytics strategy. There are simply too many problems to solve. From cybersecurity to asset inventory to customer experience, utilities are stretched way…

Outsourcing and Analytics: Foresight Makes the Difference

Outsourcing has emerged as a way to support utility analytics activities, but it comes with trade-offs. Outsourcing IT and business processes is not new to utilities. With the increased popularity of analytics, outsourcing has emerged as a way…

For T & D Leaders, Change Is NOT on the Horizon. It’s Here NOW.

The increasingly dynamic nature of the grid means platforms need to handle all aspects of the analytic modelling process in an integrated and seamless fashion to rapidly get from analytical model development to business decision-making.   The proliferation…

Estimating Electricity-Elasticity of GRP for Long-Term Demand Forecasting–Executive Summary

February Data Science Community Meeting Estimating Electricity-Elasticity of GRP for Long-Term Demand Forecasting Purpose February’s Data Science Community Meeting featured Alex Elder, PhD, Data Scientist for The Energy Authority (TEA) speaking about estimating electricity-elasticity of GRP for long-term…

Portfolio Optimization Via More Surgical Customer Resource Acquisition and Evaluation

Blending customer-centricity and utility priorities is the art of portfolio optimization, but doing so can be perfectly scientific. In the first two articles of this series, I detailed how utilities can 1) use data science to break down…

REPORT: Reimagining the Utility Analytics Roadmap, Executive Summary

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY A lot has changed over the past four years. There is more clarity about alternative organizational models, useful process methodologies, technology architecture and tool options, and the skill sets needed to develop and implement an analytics…

Valuating Digital Liabilities

Most power utilities create more or less the same data types as their peers, but what differentiates them is how some are better at extracting value from their data. If data is a company’s most valuable asset, why…

Too Much of a Good Thing?

Why Utilities Need the Right Data to Empower Action While data can be an invaluable tool for utility companies, what happens when there’s too much of a good thing? Many utilities have vast amounts of asset data. This…

UAI and IBM Virtual Roundtable: State of Cloud Adoption in Utilities–Executive Summary

An executive summary on a virtual roundtable with eight investor-owned utilities discussing the state of cloud adoption. Purpose UAI and IBM hosted a virtual roundtable with eight Investor-owned utilities including, AEP, Avista, Duke Energy, Oncor Electric Delivery, Xcel…

Utilities and Data Science: Unlocking Portfolio Potential with an ‘Audience of One’

It has never been more urgent for utilities to understand their customers in vivid detail to unlock the full potential of programs and portfolios. Electric utilities have seen a large increase in low-to-moderate income (LMI) and small-and-medium-sized business…

The Energy Act of 2020, Grid Modernization – A First Look

A first look at Title VIII Grid Modernization from the 533-page Energy Act of 2020. The 533-page Energy Act of 2020 is chock full of provisions that cover almost every aspect of the energy transition, including R&D, development…

Building the Foundation for Utility Asset Analytics Part 2

Asset analytics can help make the shift from run-to-failure to predictive and condition-based maintenance. This is the second part of a two-part series. Read part one here. Process and tool challenges The ability to collect and organize data…

Building the Foundation for Utility Asset Analytics Part 1

Predictive analytics can help utilities realize value through improved reliability, decreased O&M costs, improved safety, and developing a coherent, systematic approach to asset base replenishment. Using analytics for asset management within utility operations is far from a new…

Climate Risk is Investment Risk – What Utilities Need to Know: An Introduction

Investors will be looking more closely at utilities’ exposure to climate risk as an input to their investment decisions.   Climate risk has shareholders, bond holders, insurance companies and ratings organizations worried. Note the recent statement by Larry Fink,…

Using data science to break down program silos and better serve your customers

What if you could double the performance of your utility’s program portfolio without increasing marketing spend? The development of new technologies and new ways of applying data science can make this a reality for utilities and help enable…

The Year of Utility Transformation: Becoming Energy Resilient, Dynamic Energy Providers Through AI

Throughout a year of unprecedented change in 2020, utilities have been committed to developing energy resilience through innovation. While resilience is often thought of only in a grid capacity, this year has seen a fundamental shift in which…

Utility leader Southern Company uses SAS to better manage COVID-driven fluctuations and keep operations steady

Southern Company is recognized as a bellwether utility in the United States and around the world. This leadership position is owed not just to its size – it’s operating companies serve over nine million electric and gas customers,…

The Colors of Hydrogen – Brown, Grey, Blue and Green – Think About It

Hydrogen is the latest buzz for meeting the world’s energy needs. It is another–and some say important–tool for meeting decarbonization goals. For utilities, hydrogen is being discussed as a way to decarbonize heating, lower power plant emissions and…

Improving Asset Risk Mitigation by Making Data a Top Priority

Risk mitigation is the key reason to know the probability of failure of utility assets. Unfortunately, the utilities that know that best, are the ones that have had one or more catastrophic asset failures that jeopardized the safety…

The Trouble with Tons – Tons of Image Data That is

PG&E recently received a CIO 100 Award for Excellence for its creative approach to wildfire risk. The utility applied machine learning to aerial images of transmission towers – PG&E has 2 million – to shorten the time it…

Wisdom Is In Communities, UAI Communities That Is

Have you ever met with utility analytics practitioners who are grappling with the same questions you are? I have. Have you ever participated in a meeting to help vet an early iteration of analytics architecture? I have. Have…

Making AI Work – An NREL “How-to” Guide for Utilities

Utilities have seen the evidence; there is real value in using artificial intelligence (AI) to solve business problems. Artificial intelligence – encompassing machine learning, deep learning, natural language processing and image processing – has been successfully applied to…

Natural Language Processing – Talking In A Way Machines Can Understand

Anyone who has ever used a search engine or virtual assistant is using natural language processing (NLP). Who knew that NLP is artificial intelligence (AI)? Well, probably most of the readers of this blog. In 2018, Karen Hao…

PG&E, California Fire Foundation Renew Partnership to Tackle Wildfire Risk (via T&D World)

Partnership creates grant funding opportunities for fire and community organizations to address ongoing risk of wildfires. Pacific Gas and Electric Co. (PG&E) has renewed its partnership with the California Fire Foundation (CFF) by providing US$1.2 million for a…

Virginia Regulators Seek Comments by Sept. 21 on KU-ODP’s Estimated $14.8m Rebuild Project (via T&D World)

The commission said that any interested person or entity may file a request by Aug. 24 that the commission convene a hearing on the company’s application. Comments on Kentucky Utilities d/b/a Old Dominion Power Company’s (KU-ODP) June application…

South America Forecast to Invest US$18.1 Billion in Smart Grid Infrastructure (Via T&D World)

Investment over the next decade to be led by Brazil, Colombia, and Chile. The fifth edition of the South America Smart Grid: Market Forecast study published recently by Northeast Group, LLC, says the South American smart grid infrastructure market will finally…

Con Edison, NYCHA Complete Inspections, Upgrades at 29 Buildings (Via T&D World)

The company, working with NYCHA, reviewed the energy usage and equipment at more than 200 buildings and identified 29 of those for inspections. Con Edison has completed inspections and service upgrades at 29 NYCHA buildings, ensuring that residents will be…

COVID-19 Lockdowns Demonstrate How AI Reveals Energy Shift Causation for Utilities

Across the board utilities are seeing extreme shifts in energy demand due to COVID-19 lockdown orders, particularly increases in residential consumption. The unpredictability of energy demand makes it hard to manage the grid, so the more utilities can…

Can you Host? Analytics and Interconnection

In 2017, “hosting capacity analysis” is the buzz phrase heard in utility, developer and regulator circles. The Interstate Renewable Energy Council defines hosting capacity analysis as “the amount of DERs that can be accommodated on the distribution system…

Duke Energy Readies for Hurricanes during Pandemic (T&D World)

Utility takes steps to restore power quickly after a storm without compromising on the health of employees and customers. Duke Energy has prepared to respond to power outages as quickly as possible during the hurricane season that started…

Community Heroes: APPA Honors Utilities and Individuals for Service and Leadership (Via T&D World)

The American Public Power Association awarded 13 individuals and 10 utilities for giving back to their local communities. Nineteen individuals and 10 utilities were recognized for service to the American Public Power Association and the public power industry…

Boulder, Xcel Energy Enter Settlement Discussions on Municipalization (Via T&D World)

The City of Boulder and Xcel Energy last week announced that they have begun discussions that may lead to new pathways to reach the city’s energy future goals as an alternative to a city-run, community owned electric utility….

Advanced Analytics and Machine Learning Boost Bee Populations (Via T&D World)

As part of its commitment to using data and analytics to solve the world’s most pressing problems, SAS’ recent work includes helping to save the world’s No. 1 food crop pollinator – the honey bee. With the number…

Leveraging Predictive Data Science to Optimize Vegetation Management

Managing vegetation and tree growth around power lines is an important responsibility that rests on the shoulders (and budgets) of utilities. It plays a critical role in fire hazard mitigation, and ensures the reliability of the grid, but…

UAI’s 2019 Natural Gas Analytics Community Report

The Natural Gas Analytics Community was the first Utility Analytics Institute (UAI) analytics community focused uniquely on the application of analytics by natural gas utilities. The group’s roster was 107 members strong by the end of 2019, and…

Trump’s Order to Secure Power System Met with Favor, Uncertainty in Utility Industry (Via T&D World)

Utilities remain uncertain on how the order intended to secure the bulk power system from foreign cybersecurity attacks will impact current projects and the installed infrastructure base. U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order on May 1, 2020, that…

FirstEnergy Deploys Internal Avian App to Streamline Bird Protection Efforts (Via T&D World)

Digital reporting promotes quicker response to bird-related power issues. FirstEnergy Corp. has deployed an app that allows utility personnel to report avian issues in real time, streamlining the process to protect nesting birds and enhance electric service reliability….

COVID-19: Two Use Cases for Analytics in Preparing for Reopening

As an essential industry, utilities have risen to the occasion by implementing pandemic plans to protect customers and workers while keeping the lights on. COVID-19 has brought unemployment, shutoff deferments and changes in consumption patterns. Now, with states…

North America Has Retaken Role of World’s Leader in Total Microgrid Capacity (Via T&D World)

Guidehouse Insights report shows North America is the leading microgrid market, claiming 36.3% of global capacity.   A new report from Guidehouse Insights examines data on known grid-tied and remote microgrid projects in the proposal, planning, and deployed stages across…

Con Edison, Employees Donate Funds, Equipment, Service to COVID-19 Relief (Via T&D World)

“These heroes are people we know, and they need our help,” said John McAvoy, CEO and chairman of Con Edison.   New York’s doctors, nurses, food banks and firefighters are just some of the many front-line groups battling…

COVID-19: Six Use Cases on How Analytics Can Help in the Short Term

As providers of essential services, utilities have their hands full with COVID-19. From managing a large workforce to serving many customers, utility operations are using analytics to adapt quickly to the pandemic. Fortunately, utilities are more prepared than…

Utility Crews Deploy Rapidly Across the Southeast Following Easter Storms (Via T&D World)

In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, utilities are doing everything in their power to protect workers, ensure safe working conditions.   A series of storms that hit the south and the southeastern United States beginning on Easter Sunday…

Toward an Equitable Energy Future (Via T&D World)

A new energy economy will require long-term interaction between energy companies and communities hosting next-generation energy infrastructure.   Living in a city, it is easy to forget that one in five Americans — about 60 million people —…

Virginia to Embrace Clean Energy Future (Via T&D World)

The Virginia Clean Economy Act will foster economic development across Virginia, reduce carbon emissions.   The Virginia Senate recently passed the Virginia Clean Economy Act, after the House of Delegates’ approval of the bill. Governor Ralph Northam is…

Don’t Need a Crystal Ball to Predict the Future of the Grid (Via T&D World)

Energy storage technology has moved to center stage and has changed renewable energy, DERs, and microgrids along the way. For almost a year now, I have been writing the “Charging Ahead” segment. It has been an exciting undertaking…

Know Your Trees – Storm Management

Getting better at storm-related outage prediction Utilities need to know the “ground truth” One of the utility’s primary missions is to minimize outage frequency and duration.  Outage prevention is even more important during the COVID-19. Until recently, storm-related…

Resource Planning Continues to Get More Complicated – What You Should Know

Resource planning has changed a lot over the last five years, with the increase in intermittent renewables and distributed energy sources. In 2018, the piece Are DER Heavy Utilities Being Held Captive by Technology Limitations?, posited that analytical…

Georgia Power Foundation Invests $1 Million to Support State in COVID-19 Recovery (Via T&D World)

The Georgia Power Foundation is supporting COVID-19 recovery with investments impacting food insecurity, homelessness and displaced worker assistance. The Georgia Power Foundation, Inc. is investing $1 million in 2020 to support the state of Georgia in addressing the…

National Grid, Eversource Propose Transmission Solutions to Enhance Reliability (Via T&D World)

Solutions to provide Greater Boston with enhanced electric reliability and clean energy capacity. National Grid and Eversource are preparing to meet the energy shortfall expected to be caused by the eventual retirement of the Mystic Generating Station. New…

Enterprise Analytics for Optimizing & Personalizing Utility Programs

Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) is becoming ubiquitous throughout the utility industry, providing many sources of value for both utilities and ratepayers as utilities unlock previously unavailable insights to help customers understand their consumption and use that information to…

Hydrogen: The Other “Natural” Gas (Via T&D World)

Government agencies, environmental organizations, and manufacturers around the globe hold high hope for a green H-based economy.   During my time as a young engineer at an electric utility, the standing joke we shared internally about the gas…

A Journey, Not an End Point: A Case Study in Utility Digital Transformation (Via T&D World)

One of the world’s largest energy companies, ENGIE, is committed to being the world leader in the transition to a zero-carbon future. Achieving that goal led to a digital transformation of the business.   The digital transformation of…

The Fleets are Coming, The Fleets are Coming – Electric Trucks, That is

Amazon made big news last September when it announced a deal with well-funded startup Rivian[1] to deploy 100,000 medium-duty electric box trucks by 2030. There are a lot of incentives for companies to adopt electric fleets. Still, there…

AI Provides Smarter Tech for Grid (Via T&D World)

Gridwise, AI is becoming the Rosetta Stone for making sense of big data.   Does it seem like artificial intelligence (AI) is everywhere today? It can be found in everything from transmission to distribution. Gridwise, AI is becoming…

Software Enhances Operational Performance of Transformers (Via T&D World)

ABB Power Grids recently launched its Asset Performance Management Edge solution for power transformers.   ABB’s Power Grids business has launched its APM Edge solution for transformers. This technology accommodates the growing complexity of grid operations to safeguard…

California Wildfires: Snapshot of Utilities’ Mitigation Plans (Via T&D World)

Utilities shared their plans for wildfire mitigation at recent workshops organized by the California Public Utilities Commission.   With the risk of wildfires increasing in California, utilities are taking a proactive and preventative approach. The California Public Utilities…

Wisely Managing Vegetation at the Distribution Level

Ever since the 2003 blackout, vegetation management has improved, largely due to FERC regulation. Still, improvement has been mostly in transmission. The “last mile” of distribution has not achieved maturity. The good news is that analytics infrastructure –…

An Interview with SAS Founder & CEO, Dr. Goodnight

SAS’ Founder and CEO Dr. Goodnight weighs in on analytics in the energy and utilities industry.    SAS has its roots in the energy and utilities industry. Can you provide an overview of how analytics has evolved since…

Embedding Analytics: Data Governance as an Ongoing Practice

Data governance is like motherhood and apple pie. Everyone thinks it is a good and necessary thing. Should the pervasive use of analytics change how data governance is done?   Stakeholders at leading utilities interviewed for Ensuring Success…

Hyper-Personalization That Drives Enterprise Analytics, Customer Experience, and New Business Model

Hyper-personalization drives enterprise analytics Bidgely UtilityAI™ is the energy industry's only AI-powered Platform for Hyper-Personalization. Read this guide to learn more! Bidgely UtilityAI™ is the energy industry's only AI-powered Platform for Hyper-Personalization. UtilityAI delivers actionable insights for every...

Discovering Value in the Intersection of Customer, Grid and New Energy Services

Discovering Value Intersection Customer 2019 - State of the Market Empowered consumers, energy democratization and convergence of industries brings opportunities and threats to the utility industry. Utilities are responding to these as per their inherent strength, perception of...

Embedding Analytics from the Ground Up: Training and Projects

In 2018, UAI, published Ensuring Success in Analytics:  A Playbook for Utility Executives, which provided advice to utility leaders on how to de-risk analytics deployments. The findings, based on interviews with analytics stakeholders at leading utilities, delivered insights…

Reducing Bad Debt & Collection Costs with Predictive Analytics: Part 2

Scrying, the act of staring into reflective surfaces like crystal balls to see the future, can be traced back to the Medieval Period in central Europe (between 500 – 1500 AD). Thanks to predictive analytics, it is being…

Reducing Bad Debt & Collections Costs with Predictive Analytics: Part 1

Modernization of the grid, digitization of the customer experience, and replacing back office infrastructure to support complex rate structures are just some of the factors influencing utility rate increases. Combine these with an economic slowdown in the US…

From Ubiquitous Acronym to Real Business Solution: Why Asset Performance Management Matters Today

I’m not here to sell you on asset performance management (APM)—plenty of blog posts and thought pieces already exist for that purpose. I’m here to shed light on the challenges facing asset-heavy operations and why now is the…

Artificial Intelligence: Smart(er) Front and Back Office Energy Operations

The use of AI in energy operations has picked up the pace in recent years and is now moving beyond back office automation It’s no secret that participating in energy markets and developing strategies requires processing massive amounts…

What Deep Learning Can Teach Utilities

How Duke Energy is gaining insight from self-organizing maps, a form of deep learning. Duke Energy has a reputation for deploying analytics to solve business problems. The Data Science role at Duke was defined in 2014, with the…

Top Analytics Trends and Use Cases Showcased at Utility Analytics Week 2019

Overall utility industry analytics maturity has increased substantially when compared to the first Utility Analytics Week nine years ago. This year’s presentations covered the use of machine learning (ML), artificial intelligence (AI), natural language processing (NLP), deep learning…

Data Hubs Surpass Data Lake Functionality for Asset IoT

Could data hubs provide a life preserver for analytics teams thrown into the deep end with IoT data? “Data hub” may be one of the more popular analytics buzzwords of 2019, quickly surpassing its relative and predecessor, the…

Energy IoT Platforms Cut Complexity, Speed Up Deployments

Defining an energy IoT platform may be tricky, but the need for these bundles is unmistakable. “Complexity” may be an arguable concept, but anyone who’s been through an energy IoT implementation probably has a deeper understanding of the…

PPL and AI: The Journey to ‘Data-Driven’

PPL Electric Utilities recognized early on that data – and the compelling ways it could be put to use – would play a major role in its becoming a “utility of the future” and delivering on its mandate…

A Team Approach to Utility Customer Journey Orchestration

Journey orchestration at its best includes planning and coordination of elements of an activity to produce the desired outcome. Here’s an example: A man by the name of Robert Cass is raising money for athletes with special needs…

Is Your Utility Ready for Smart Inverters?

Smart inverters are getting more attention these days with utilities looking to mitigate voltage instability and variability on the system brought forth by distributed energy resources (DER). As the penetration of DERs increases, autonomous operation of smart inverters…

The Answer to CIS Shortcomings: CRM or Analytics?

Is CRM investment worth it?  Traditional customer information systems (CISs) are billing engines that were built to process meter data and send the appropriate information to the billing department for processing. These systems also grew to include the…

Don’t let Smart Contracts Outsmart You: A Legal Perspective

In the future, Smart Contracts utilizing blockchain are expected to autonomously enable billions of transactions among power producers and transporters, consumers, vendors, service providers and even directly with millions of devices. It is envisioned that advanced Smart Contracts…

On-Demand Webinar: Expert Forum: How and Why Risk-Averse Utilities Need to Capitalize on the 5G Boom

The 5G race is on. Analysts expect carriers to build up to 900 thousand microcells across North America over the next ten years in their drive to achieve market leadership. But carriers aren’t the only ones vying for...

AI’s Action and Impact on the Energy Sector

How do we manage the largest machine ever built? The first time I walked into an electric T&D control center was about a decade ago. With a smartphone in my pocket and a laptop in my bag, I…

Market Snapshot: Utility Asset Performance Management

The world of asset performance management (APM) technology is expanding rapidly. But what does that mean in terms of how utilities are investing solutions that exist in the marketplace today? According to Gartner’s IT glossary, APM “encompasses the…

Community a major caveat to successful open-source model adoption

Open-source analytical models abound, but having a dedicated community is essential. In More to open-source than you think, the ABCs of open source were described in the utility context. While “open-source” is being used to describe developer tools,…

On Demand Webinar: Empowering Utilities with Actionable Data for Tomorrow’s Grid Challenges and New Business Models

Utilities are continuing to face a variety of challenges with an aging infrastructure, and flat or declining revenues as a result of the deployment of solar generation by consumers, coupled with a greater ability to better manage usage...

The shifting role of the CEO in an era of digital transformation – interview with Tom Siebel part 2

When most people think about a democracy versus a dictatorship, they distill it down to collaboration among people, or lack thereof. CEOs who use a dictatorial style of leadership believe that they are the only person who possesses…

On-Demand: Combining AI and Analytics to Address the High Costs and Inefficiencies of Vegetation Management

Vegetation Management has always been a critical function for utilities. It is, however, increasingly top of mind with company executives looking to mitigate the escalating costs and risks posed by vegetation. Due to economic and logistical challenges, utilities...

CapX2020 utilities to study transmission grid’s ability to support ambitious carbon reduction goals

Upper Midwest regional utilities are embarking on a cross-state effort to establish a transmission investment approach. Midwest consortium CapX2020 utilities announced yesterday that they will study the Upper Midwest transmission network to identify system improvements and infrastructure upgrades…

It’s been a good year for Blockchain in energy

After a few years of hype, a lot of questioning and a handful of disappointments, Blockchain is starting to make some inroads into energy and utilities. Once upon a time, Hervé Touati worked as an executive at Shell…

5G and power grid singularity—not if, but when

5G is not just a fatter pipe. It is a much smarter, more capable one that will transform how data is managed in the field. But utilities need to start preparing now.  I’ve written previously about how 5G…

Tom Siebel’s data-driven approach to digital transformation: part 1

Tom Siebel, CEO of C3.ai, weighs in on a data-driven, strategy-first approach. “Putting the cart before the horse”, a cliché’ we inherited from the Greeks, means that the action that should come second is prioritized first. This approach…

More to open-source than you think.

We broke down some common misconceptions about open-source models for utilities. With an uptick in literacy in Python and R, utilities are hearing the term “open source” more often. But, open source has already become ubiquitous in many…

Outage data is everywhere

Social media and nontraditional data sets create transparency of when, why and where major grid events occur. In the fall of 2018, with a new vision of grid resiliency —driven by industry collaboration and a necessity to provide…

Making the Case for Utility Operated, Blockchain Enabled Power Systems

Using blockchain as an enabler of new technologies to assist utilities in keeping up with the times. In April 2016, the first official peer to peer (P2P) energy transaction occurred between neighbors in a residential neighborhood of Brooklyn,…

Oracle customers testing analytics solutions for EV adoption and integration

Oracle is ramping up investment in analytics-based products and services to facilitate smoother utility operations alongside booming EV adoption. Oracle recently announced that the company is “test driving” EV analytics with several partner utilities. Oracle takes a two-pronged…

Tendril & Simple Energy merger Uplight strives to alleviate IT integration headaches

Uplight wants to make it easier for utilities to do more for their customers—and for IT teams work with their solutions on the back end. By now the word has gotten out on the formation of Uplight, born…

A virtual environment with AI-powered digitization

AI-powered technologies are transforming business models, value streams, and revenue opportunities throughout the electric power industry. The prime directive for the “Charging Ahead” department at T&D World is to explore new technologies and older technologies that are being reestablished or…

Utilities discuss working safely with augmented reality at IEEE ESMO 2019

The same technology that superimposes bunny ears on Snapchat is also changing the fabric of utility workforce operations. Last month at the IEEE ESMO Convention, representatives from American Electric Power (AEP), Burns & MacDonnell, XR Product Line, Pillar…

JEA is building flexibility into management of power and water

JEA is preparing for a flexible grid for power and water With the introduction of new sources of power, both distributed and centralized, along with more frequent extreme weather conditions, utilities are looking for ways to enable a…

It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad MADLab

Duke Energy’s MADLab (machine learning, artificial intelligence and deep learning) initiative is an important driver of innovation culture. For the younger audiences reading T&D World, you will need to Google “It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World,” a 1963…

Grid Analytics: Good or Great?

To thrive in the grid of the future, we must leverage analytics to move from good to great. As a kid growing up in Wyoming, I played every sport and, being from a small town, was considered good…

How to Determine the Right Mix of DER

The Austin Energy SHINES project optimizes utility-scale and behind-the-meter resources with a mix of centralized and distributed intelligent systems. Austin Energy is transitioning rapidly into a utility with significantly high levels of renewable resources. In 2015, only 20%…

Utility Disruptors Report 2019: Artificial Intelligence, Electric Mobility and Blockchain

Data is fueling disruption everywhere, and the utility industry is no exception. The exponential accumulation of data is a global phenomenon that is turning many industries on their heads. Research suggests that the amount of data doubles roughly...

In-home Voice Assistants for Utility Customers Part 1: “The New, Better, Mobile Experience”

Sales of in-home voice assistants are surging. According to a report by Market Research Future, the market for this technology is anticipated to achieve revenues worth USD 7.8 billion by 2023 while growing at 39.27 percent of CAGR…

Using data to weigh the pros and cons of performance-based rates

Utilities are relying more on data to minimize the risk of taking on new rate structures. Performance-based regulation (PBR) has been in the news, with Nevada approving legislation calling for a PBR process. Hawaii just approved a Phase…

Customer journey analytics for payment arrangements

Consider this scenario: your utility notices that there was a high volume of calls to make payment arrangements for residential customers in the months immediately following high bill season. Analysis of the calls by disposition code reveals a…

DER control with grid edge analytics

Entergy creates new approaches to better manage the grid that involve more distributed energy resources. Today, approximately 120 megawatts of customer-owned distributed energy resources, almost all rooftop photovoltaic systems, are spread out over 20,000 connections at various customer…

We updated our analytics architecture competitive landscape!

Stay posted for quarterly updates! Big data and analytics are transforming the public utility sector with advances in storage, computing power, applications, and connectivity. Utilities can gather and analyze greater amounts of data faster and cheaper than in…

Utilities collaborate on open-source software

Avista Utilities and Duke Energy partner to create an energy operating system available to the entire utility industry. The electric utility industry is increasingly challenged by external drivers such as regulatory obligations and mandates as well as competitors…

Austin Energy and others moving closer to V2G

Austin Energy wants to understand V2G; so should you. Austin Energy (AE) recently announced that it will work with the Pecan Street project to test Vehicle to Grid (V2G) technology, adding to an increasing number of V2G pilots…

Eight deadly sins of analytics to avoid

Industry consultant Mark Konya weighs in on eight critical factors for analytics. The contemporary view of deadly sins originated from the works of 4th-century monk Evagrius Ponticus; the eight “vices” he advanced include: gluttony, lust, avarice, pride, sorrow,…

Home automation: using data to deliver value propositions that work

From discovering new sources of revenue to data collection and analysis that lead to customer experience, becoming an integral part of the smart home value chain makes good business sense for utilities. But as explained here, utilities are…

How can utilities break into the home automation device market?

The global Smart Home Energy Management Device Market is budding. According to Market Research Future, it is expected to grow at a CAGR of approximately 18% during the forecast period of 2017-2023. Utilities that want in and are…

EPRI identifies impacts, solutions for EMP effects on grid

Three-year EPRI study indicates a cost-effective path to enhance the resilience of the electric grid. The Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) has released findings from its three-year study of the potential impacts of high-altitude electromagnetic pulses (EMP) on the…

Oregon utilities poised to sink or swim with new electric transportation rule

How utilities adopt the new rule will depend on their ability to integrate and analyze electric vehicle, transportation, grid, and customer data. In mid-April, Oregon regulators adopted a new rule to compel utilities in that state to increase…

Utilities opt to use cloud-based analytics, despite lack of monetary incentives

It’s been over two and a half years since NARUC passed a resolution encouraging state public utility commissions to “consider whether cloud computing and on-premise solutions should receive similar regulatory accounting treatment, in that both would be eligible…

How utilities are really using machine learning and artificial intelligence

Want to see how utilities are actually solving problems with AI? Come to Utility Analytics Summit. Artificial intelligence has erupted across markets, promising organizations the capability to transform and optimize the business. Defined, artificial intelligence is the “development…

What solutions are populating the utility analytics space?

We looked to our members to find out which solutions are rising to the top of the utility analytics market. Big data and analytics are transforming the public utility sector with advances in storage, computing power, applications, and…

New technologies creating opportunities in transmission analytics

Power transmission has rarely been the hottest topic in the utility industry. With the integration of large-scale renewables and the drive to decarbonize, this segment of the power value chain has received more attention, and the focus on…

Increasing grid reliability through AI and the power of prediction

Tom Martin, formerly of PG&E and now Trove, discusses an AI data-driven path to outage prevention Reliability – the ability to deliver uninterrupted power to residences and businesses across a service territory – is a top priority of…

Digital twins: big gains for utilities, but not so fast

Digital twins hold promise, but not without a massive data headache The digital twin market is exploding—some say to the tune of $15.66 billion by 2023, at a CAGR of almost 40%. Utilities are among many asset-intensive industries…

Taking strides & realizing value

The State of Utility Analytics from the SAS 2019 Global Utility Industry Survey The utility industry in 2019 is in many regards barely recognizable from the utility industry just 10 years ago. The growth of renewables, electric vehicles,…

Food for thought when feeding machine learning algorithms for vegetation management

Machine learning and artificial intelligence have strong potential in vegetation management, but there is a lot that can go wrong. My last blog discussed the opportunity for transmission and distribution utilities to use artificial intelligence (AI) to improve…

Commonwealth Edison poised to revolutionize energy delivery with Bronzeville Microgrid

Senior Vice President Of Technical Services M. Michelle Blaise Discusses The Project’s Significance In A Time Of Rapid Change. Chicago’s Commonwealth Edison (ComEd) is leading the way in revolutionizing energy delivery alongside Siemens and the Illinois Institute of…

It’s complicated: smart grid in the city

How steady is the bridge between the smart grid and smart cities? The buzz of the smart grid began to cede ground to smart cities just a few short years ago in 2013 (at least if Google Trends…

The thorny issue of analytics-based vegetation management

Hard work could reap big rewards in vegetation management. The world of vegetation management (VM) has received significant press in 2019, and for good reason. In 2017 and 2018, a series of deadly wildfires struck the state of…

Advanced investment planning: a strategic imperative for the smart grid

How utilities are optimizing smart grid investments in the digital age. A typical electric utility is responsible for investing in the maintenance and replacement of millions of assets spread across thousands of kilometers of the network. Making the…

Missouri utility embarks on $5.3 billion grid modernization plan

Microgrid And New Technology Pilot Program To Be Included. Ameren Missouri over the next five years plans to invest $5.3 billion on more than 2,000 infrastructure improvement projects across its 24,000 square mile service area. The Smart Energy…

Applying metering analytics to common distribution challenges

Meter data improves visibility into the edge of the electric system, directly impacting a wide range of utility operations. Distribution utilities have installed millions of smart grid devices, creating an unprecedented amount of data available for analysis. The…

Edge computing plus blockchain is on the bleeding edge (Blockchain series part 2)

Blockchain was developed to facilitate the business of cryptocurrency, but now utilities can leverage the technology to solve other business problems. Marrying Blockchain with edge computing could be the next step forward for utilities. But what happens if…

Asset Performance Management: has the time for utilities to invest finally arrived?

Utilities around the world are waking up to the reality that they must prioritize their investments based on asset health and not age. Gaining an accurate assessment of an asset’s health can be a complicated task, however; drawing…

This is what an analytics partnership looks like: Avista and PNNL’s collaboration

Avista and the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to work together on advancing the grid. You may know that PNNL has been active in developing the concept of transactive energy, “a…

Making Sense of Sensors in the Age of the Smart Grid

Grid operators across Europe are experiencing higher maintenance and reinforcement costs than ever before and, without significant increases in funding, are realizing that they must fundamentally change the way that their assets are operated, maintained and replaced. In…

TOU Rates: Marketing Financial Benefits of EV Ownership

In the face of declining profits, utility companies are recognizing Electric Vehicle (EV) charging as a viable source of revenue. According to a report from the Vermont Energy Investment Corporation, a comprehensive shift to EV charging is estimated…

Blockchain linking business challenges and solutions for utilities (Blockchain series part 1)

Once regarded as a back-door payment solution for less-than-legal online commerce, Blockchain is moving into the mainstream due to its ability to solve complex problems quickly and efficiently. Blockchain has moved away from its tech audience niche, with…

On-Demand: The End of Worst-case Distribution Planning: Forecasting the DER Future

Traditional utility planning is based around static, worst-case analyses of system conditions. To effectively integrate distributed energy resources (DERs) into distribution planning and make the best use of distribution assets, many utilities are implementing scenario-based planning processes that...

On-Demand: Blazing the Analytics Trail at a Public Utility with Duke Energy

From the creation of the Data Science Consultant job family in 2015, Duke Energy now has over 60 data scientists across the enterprise. Norv Clontz, the Director of Data Science Innovation at Duke Energy, will provide an overview...

Customer and Data Analytics Part 2: Mastering Utility Customer Satisfaction 2.0 through AI

AI is becoming indispensable across industries, and utilities are not immune. Back in 2012, the Aberdeen group reported that merely 18% of utility industry businesses believed that customer satisfaction was important. Since then, several well-documented market factors have…

Expedite Energy Transformation by Adopting Proven Practices

5 Precepts That Promote Effective Power System Planning and Operations In November 2018, the European Commission adopted a strategic long-term vision for a prosperous, modern, competitive, and climate neutral economy by 2050. Wide-scale energy transformation is central to…

Operational Analytics: Avoid “Get Rich Quick” Schemes

Defined in the negative, operational analytics are not about those precious “aha” moments or dramatic storytelling; they are about making better decisions in the moment. While there are many popular press stories generated about the beneficial returns from…

Customer Data Analytics Part 1: Inventing on Behalf of your Customers

Customer Analytics will help utilities provide better service and identify new opportunities, but not without adopting a new perspective on customers. From the 13th century until the early 19th century, roughly 600 years, people connected pieces of paper…

Enhancing Analytics Success with Data Governance and Integration: Common Mistakes and Best Practices

Most utility executives and upper-level management cannot go a day without hearing from a vendor about how machine learning and artificial intelligence (AI) will revolutionize the utility industry. The truth is, these technologies are already revolutionizing operations and...

On-Demand: The Future of Reliability Planning

Customers and regulators have expectations that reliability levels should continue to improve without any substantial costs to themselves. Utilities want to provide continual reliability improvements for their customers, but need to do it in the most efficient and...

Protecting the grid in a time of increasing complexity

Grid reliability cannot be maintained in a silo. The North American bulk power system is a highly complex machine. It is also one of the most critical infrastructures to society and as electrification expands into every aspect of…

It’s twelve o’clock, do you know where your unhealthy transformers are?

Let’s face it. The utility industry is asset-intensive. Even with disruptions to centralized supply and delivery models, there will still be physical assets to maintain. Over the last three decades, asset management practices have evolved from routine maintenance…

Is R Shiny the Holy Grail for publishing analytics?

UAI’s Analytics Architecture & Technologies group is exploring strategies for publishing analytics models. R Shiny has recently risen to the top at many organizations. Data visualization tools have brought many benefits to the utility industry, making it easier…

Ask utilities about their data challenges, and they will come

How to create data solutions for utilities that they actually need Most people who were around circa 1990 know the quote from the Field of Dreams: “If you build it, they will come.” While this approach worked out…

The Value of Utility Data: Sunshine or Oil?

Utilities need to take a few things into account before they can extract value out of their data. We’ve all heard it; data is the new oil. It’s valuable. It’s a differentiator. Like crude oil, it needs to…

Valuable new data sources for utilities

New data sources for power utilities continue to emerge, a trend that is likely to continue in the digital age. Whether these new data sources can and will be harnessed by utilities for significant value, however, remains an…

How the utility can do more than just light up the town

The best way to your customers may be through the front doors of City Hall. In the late 1990s, I was working with a cable company that was deeply invested in selling high speed data services to the…

Do you really want your utility to be data-centric?

It is absurd to think that there is a single modernized utility that doesn’t derive some significant value from analyzing data. Without data and its analysis, it’s impossible to improve customer segmentation for improved demand-response targeting, revenue protection,…

Predictive maintenance improves asset efficiency for the energy industry

Predictive maintenance growth in North American markets a result of high potential for ROI and operational benefits. Equipment manufacturers, engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) companies, and power and process plant owners and operators for the energy industry commonly…

Analytics are at core of non-wires alternatives projects

Analytics are essential from the get-go for non-wires alternatives (NWA) projects to succeed. NWA are gaining popularity in utilities, so much so that E4theFuture funded a study by the Smart Electric Power Alliance (SEPA) and the Peak Load…

The Future of Artificial Intelligence for Utilities (on demand)

Artificial intelligence (AI) is changing the way that many industries operate, and has huge potential to transform the utilities industry. Today, many utilities are in the early stages of investigating applications and adopting AI. In this webinar, hear...

Smarter Grid, Smarter City

Smart grid will be the leading edge of revolutionary new electric grid capabilities soon to be launched to achieve a set of key environmental and sustainability goals. Next year PGE will begin building three smart grid test beds…

Xcel Energy and Google collaboration indicates a shift in how utilities are serving customers

Brett Carter, executive vice president and Chief Customer & Innovation Officer at Xcel Energy discusses the company’s partnership with Google. The internet has changed many things about how people purchase goods and do business, but one thing stands…

A good utility data scientist? More than some experience required

A background in data science versus a background in utilities? How can utilities hire the right people for their analytics initiatives? Nearly every utility has a data analytics initiative today, or at least the beginnings of one. Like…

The transition from power-line carrier

Comanche Electric Cooperative moves to the next generation of advanced metering infrastructure communications with real-time visibility into the grid. Nov 26, 2018 As technology companies pioneered new mobile applications such as email and web browsing on phones and…

New uses of smart meter data are coming to utilities

It is that time again. FERC just published a paper that has been on my night stand every year at this time since 2006: the Assessment of Demand Response and Advanced Metering. The original economic justification for smart…

Advanced grid analytics program integrates energy theft

The “adapter-free” integration feature found in the new software version eliminates the need for most custom adapters to deploy metering analytics ATLANTA, GA. – Nov. 15, 2018 – Landis+Gyr (LAND.SW) has released version 5.1 of its Advanced Grid…

Arrowhead Cooperative Uses Data Analytics to Pinpoint Meter Issues

Arrowhead Cooperative combined data from three grid modernization technologies to pinpoint and prioritize load control receivers that need maintenance. Like many electric cooperatives in the United States, Arrowhead Electric Cooperative Inc. employees have at their fingertips the power of…

Visualizing utility data analytics: making the point

The brightest person in the room might also be the worst one at telling a story. In the early years of in-home energy display technology, there was an ongoing and often heated debate over how to drive behavior…

State of the Market: Trends in the Use of Utility Analytics

Overview Together with Utility Analytics Institute (UAI), Sensus surveyed utilities across the board (water, gas and electric) and found some common ground around their biggest business and operating challenges today, and how data and analytics can help them…

State of the Market: Trends in the Use of Utility Analytics (on demand)

Hot off the press – the latest market research from UAI and Sensus provides a timely, accurate analysis of the utility industry’s use of analytics. We’ll cover key findings about industry trends and you’ll gain knowledgeable insights for...

Municipals face new challenges in managing the risk in energy procurement

Municipal utilities have the reputation of being dedicated to the customer and dedicated they are, especially when it comes to meeting customers’ desires for sustainability. Municipal utilities and cooperatives like Georgetown Utilities (TX), the City of Austin, the…

How TVA weathers storms

The resilience matrix has provided TVA methodologies to understand severe storms and plan for future events. The Tennessee Valley Authority has transmission facilities in seven states in the mid-south region of the United States. The climate in general is mild…

Analytics experts converge in Orlando

There’s little doubt that today’s utilities have entered the age of Big Data — and Big Analytics. From customer experience ratings to SAIDI and CAIDI numbers, from equipment operations data to weather metrics, most if not all utilities…

Utilities are getting nimble with analytics start-up investments and partnerships

Demanding times call for innovation and utilities have responded by getting involved. Traditionally risk averse, utilities now recognize that they can learn from companies that are born of a culture of fail fast, learn and move on. Active…

Eyes on the grid – the sensor revolution

The New York Power Authority Is In The Vanguard Of Utilities Turning To Sophisticated Sensors To Better Understand Their Billions Of Dollars Of Grid Equipment – And Provide For More Resilient Electric Service. A vast multiplication of sensors…

Utilities’ staff can focus on high-value activity with digital monitoring & diagnostics

Organizations such as utilities that manage complex assets often become aware of problems only after significant damage or failures occur on those assets. This reactive approach to asset management leads to avoidable productivity loss, downtime and expensive repairs….

Delivering Utility Customer Value with Analytics and the Digital Grid (on demand)

Utilities have historically had a very distinct wall between the siloes of customer operations and grid operations. Within each of these siloes were systems, data, processes, and people that never cross paths. Today, with the advent of energy...

States increase efficiency investments and power savings: ACEEE Scorecard

NJ, CT, CO, SD improve most; MA and CA lead. As the U.S. government loosens environmental rules, states are investing more in energy efficiency and delivering increased power savings, according to the 2018 State Energy Efficiency Scorecard. This…

Data Privacy: A Secret Ingredient for Aspirational Energy Innovators

Data privacy is bubbling up across markets as a major issue to be faced. The DataGuard Initiative is aiming to be a source of support for utilities. When widespread furor erupted over FaceBook and Cambridge Analytica’s unauthorized uses…

Optimizing Energy Asset Lifecycles with Predictive Analytics (on demand)

Wednesday, October 03, 2018, 2:00 PM EDT The utility sector faces ever-shrinking revenue streams and an on-going battle to manage CapEx and OpEx efficiency; predictive maintenance, risk assessment and capital planning have never been more important.  Using advanced analytics...

Situational awareness depends on weather forecasting for utilities

The phrase, “you don’t have to be a weatherman to know which way the wind is blowing,” applies less and less these days. Between wildfires in California and flooding in the Carolina’s, utilities have been on high alert….

Using an analytics platform to build a bridge between grid and customer data

As many Utility Analytics Institute members are aware, and indeed are experiencing, utilities have historically had a very distinct wall between the siloes of customer operations and grid operations. Within each of these siloes were systems, data, processes,…

The City of Austin wants to be zero-net-energy by 2050…here’s how

Recently I had the opportunity to speak with Karl Popham, Manager of electric Vehicles & Emerging Technologies at Austin Energy. At the heart of one of the most progressive smart cities in North America, Karl is a nationally recognized…

Are DER-heavy utilities being held captive by technology limitations? 

The penetration of distributed energy resources (DERs) is growing rapidly. Forward looking utilities are engaged in planning exercises to learn how DERs will impact their business. Concerned utilities want to understand the impact of DERs on revenue (minus…

Delivering Utility Customer Value with Analytics and the Digital Grid

Wednesday, October 10th @1pm Central Time Utilities have historically had a very distinct wall between the siloes of customer operations and grid operations. Within each of these siloes were systems, data, processes, and people that never cross paths....

Hurricane Florence: storm social media snapshot

As mutual assistance crews hit the road for the Carolinas, many companies tracked their progress on social media. Not that long ago, when linemen were deployed out on storms, they didn’t have smart phones or social media at…

Webinar: Optimizing energy asset lifecycles with predictive analytics

Wednesday, October 03, 2018, 2:00 PM EDT The utility sector faces ever-shrinking revenue streams and an on-going battle to manage CapEx and OpEx efficiency; predictive maintenance, risk assessment and capital planning have never been more important.  Using advanced analytics...

Three areas that should not be overlooked in prepping for this year’s storm season

Nothing can make or break a utility like a storm. The 2017 Atlantic hurricane season that devastated Texas, Florida, Georgia, the Caribbean and Puerto Rico, was a sobering experience. Many lessons were learned that are guiding efforts to…

Gas leaks are a massive headache for utilities—but analytics can help

With the gas explosion in San Bruno in 2010 came an uptick in public attention to the hazards of pipeline leaks. Regulators in several states are mandating more regular inspections and reporting, and penalties for incidents can be…

Doing data science right in Excel-pervasive utilities (on demand)

Tuesday, September 25th, 11:00am-12:00pm Eastern Clutter created by years of Excel usage is inescapable in the utility industry, as are its associated bad consequences. A few years ago The Energy Authority (TEA) decided to utilize R to break...

The future of power delivery

One word sums up all discussion of what the future grid will be — flexible. There is a great deal of speculation about what the electric power grid will look like in the next 10 to 20 years….

Getting the pulse of your customers

T&D World’s Rick Bush ponders the changing utility business since his time at Georgia Power. I once had the privilege of serving as the chairman of a Georgia Power committee to see how we might better serve our…

JD Powers Customer Satisfaction leaders – what’s analytics have to do with it? Part 2 – outages

As we reported recently, the new JD Power’s J.D. Power 2018 Electric Utility Residential Customer Satisfaction Study is out and it is good news for utilities. For the seventh consecutive year, customer satisfaction is up, which JD Powers believes…

Five lessons learned about change management

Raiford Smith, VP of Energy Technologies and Analytics at Entergy, shares insights based on his experiences with analytics and change management.  One of my favorite childhood songs was Elmo & Patsy’s Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer….

De-risking analytics: things you may not know

Deploying analytics has become a top priority for utilities and is driving significant investments. By now, most utilities know that there’s a slew of well-documented analytics use cases with proven value. Analytics technology can provide answers to complex problems…

Revolutionizing Substation Maintenance Practices to Optimize Reliability

For both utilities and industrial facilities, substations are keystone assets. When there’s an issue at a substation, the resulting problems can be widespread and significant. In the quest for greater reliability and more efficient operations, traditional approaches to…

Ensuring Success in Analytics: A Playbook for Utility Executives

Utilities today are recognizing the value of becoming data driven. The workforce is retiring, leaving utilities with a dearth of knowledge. At the same time, the rise in data from smart meters and new sensing devices is offering...

Enabling self-service at City of Tallahassee Utilities

City of Tallahassee Utilities is undergoing an enormous transformation, and is working to put analytics into the hands of its employees through a self-service campaign using Alteryx/Tableau solutions. David Carnes, Mobile Systems Data Coordinator, shares some insights from…

Real-time customer sentiment for public services…this is a thing now

The cities of New York, Los Angeles, and Grand Rapids, Michigan have each turned to a new technology to track customer sentiment of their police forces. The technology is called Elucd, and the goal is to monitor public…

Using Data is Key to Grid Development

Information Can Heighten Grid Security, Top Government And Utility Leaders Tell Icons Of Infrastructure Washington Conference. The public and private sectors are increasingly focused on using analytics to make the nation’s electrical grid more secure. “We’re looking at…

JD Powers Customer Satisfaction Leaders – What’s Analytics Have to Do with It?

The new JD Power’s J.D. Power 2018 Electric Utility Residential Customer Satisfaction Study.SM is out and it is good news for utilities. For the seventh consecutive year, customer satisfaction is up. Many in the industry are curious about what…

Enabling Rapid Analytics Evolution at Tacoma Public Utilities

While many utilities understand that the analytics discipline offers heaps of benefits, crafting an actionable analytics strategy has proven much more difficult. In less than two years, Tacoma Public Utilities (TPU) has engaged in a rapid transformation effort…

Self-Service for Utilities: What’s Holding People Back?

The Analytics Architecture & Technology Advancement Group at UAI meets to share insights and experience on the use of customer segmentation. This is a report out of the discussion. In an ideal working environment, we have no barriers. We can…

Deploying Analytics as EV Penetration Increases

There is no question that the pace of EV adoption is quickening, and analytics are more important than ever for utilities to accommodate that growth. Once a niche product, EVs are coming into the mainstream. In the United…

Integrating Artificial Intelligence into Outage Management Systems at Florida Power & Light

Thursday, August 16th at 1:00pm EDT Over 50,000 times a year, Florida Power & Light’s field crew is deployed to respond to customer-reported outages. Beginning in 2016, FPL began building systems that analyze smart grid data for active...

Optimizing Utility Segmentation with Predictive and Qualitative Insights

The Customer Analytics Advancement Group at UAI meets to share insights and experience on the use of customer segmentation. This is a report out of the discussion. Knowing your customer is the key to business success for nearly…

Advancing Risk-Based Posture through Platform Alignment: NERC’s ERO Enterprise CMEP Technology Project

Stan Hoptroff, VP, CTO, and Director of Information Technology at the North American Electric Reliability Council, discusses the use of NERC’s ERO Enterprise CMEP technology to streamline compliance monitoring and reduce risk. Maintaining reliability across the bulk power system…

Technology to Culture: Evergy’s Enterprise Analytics Toolset

Andy Kapp, lead enterprise architect at Evergy, discusses how the right approach to technology can help to create an analytics culture.  What types of benefits and ROI has your utility observed from adopting analytics? A data driven culture,…

PG&E’s Agile Asset Analytics Teamwork  

Jen Owens of Pacific Gas & Electric’s Digital Catalyst Group discusses how agile product development teams at PG&E have developed tools to optimize asset management via data science and advanced analytics. How did your agile product development team…

Data: The Renewable Resource for Digital Reinvention

It’s undeniable - analytics provide utilities with opportunities to realize significant cost savings in work and asset functions.  Additionally, improvements in network reliability, regulatory compliance, customer satisfaction and safety can be achieved.  Obtaining these benefits requires a focused...

Optimizing Your Grid of the Future Means Optimizing Your Data

Each month, UAI members gather to discuss the role of data analytics in grid optimization. This is a report out of recent discussions. It’s not 2008 anymore, but there is something in the air in terms of utilities…

The Future of Utility Analytics: Insights from Leading Utility Companies

The energy industry is evolving at a rapid speed, and utilities are embracing data and analytics to counter challenges and create new opportunities. But, with their unique regulatory structure and the complexity of managing energy resources, utilities have...

AMI Transforms Business and Benefits Customers

Modern utilities are challenged to do more with less. Today, utilities must meet the ever-growing expectations of consumers while maintaining or reducing operational costs and, most importantly, keeping the lights on, despite heavy electricity demand. To support each…

Aligning the Business: Salt River Project’s Analytics Organization

SRP has a thriving Analytics Community. Last year we formally established a community of people with an interest in data and analytics together to share success stories, discuss tools, show best practices, and encourage collaboration. This group meets…

Using Analytics to Enable Successful IT/OT Convergence

There is a new mindset coming to the forefront for utility leadership, a mindset that says: “Data must be considered a vital asset to the enterprise.”  Without this statement, grid modernization efforts will only go so far. Distribution…

Assuring Reliability in an Evolving Utility Landscape

The electric grid as we know it is changing. The generating resource mix is shifting with the retirement of natural gas, coal and nuclear plants combined with the introduction of renewable energy resources, such as wind and solar…

Road-mapping for Artificial Intelligence: Are Utilities Already There?

Earlier this month, Department of Energy Under Secretary for Science Paul Dabbar participated in a cross-industry White House Summit on Artificial Intelligence (AI). There were no identifiable outcomes of the meeting, but AI for utilities and power generators…