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Article # 0044
In-House vs.
Contractor Considerations for GPS Based Field Inventories on Electric
Distribution Systems
Kevin Perry, PE
Background and
Overview
Prior to the personal computer many electric utility mapping and plant records
were managed with large hard copy books and storage rooms full of file
cabinets. With the advent of the digital age these treasuries of data began
slowly making their way into bits and bytes. The realization that much of what
was stored was geographically and quantitatively incorrect became a very common
reaction to the process of "going digital".
In the last twenty years many companies have sought to correct the inaccuracies
through field inventories and verification counts. One problem with these
inventories was the poor quality of the underlying base map. Many of them came
from county section, township, and range maps that themselves were incorrect by
hundreds, if not thousands, of feet in some places. Other base maps had been
hand drawn based on a road or USGS map and then manually updated as new plant
was added. These methods really did not cause a problem as the maps were seldom
compared to any other sources and were used only as referential and not exact
placements.
Unfortunately, verifying the location of a particular facility on an inaccurate
base map only corrected the quantities and many times compounded the spatial
errors. With the arrival of public global positioning satellite (GPS)
information the flaws in maps from all entities became glaringly apparent.
Today the equipment for GPS locations is relatively inexpensive and the level of
accuracy is high. To address a myriad of problems associated with inter-entity
cooperation many companies are now redoing their inventories and requiring their
employees or the contractors doing the work to provide GPS accurate locations
for all facilities inventoried.
If a particular company has made the decision to do a GPS based inventory the
question of whether to do it with in-house personnel or hire a contractor will
be one of the first decisions. This paper will seek to outline some of the
considerations that electrical distribution companies should complete before
choosing to do the work themselves or hire a contractor.
Inventorying an electric system is not rocket science but it does require a
solid understanding of the facilities being collected and attention to detail.
GPS position acquisition is not rocket science either but it requires a solid
understanding of the GPS equipment being used and the proper methods for spatial
adjustments and accuracy verification.
Contemplating
In-House Projects
Company employees will excel at recognizing the facilities and understanding the
connectivity of the system and can successfully perform a field inventory as
long as they are properly trained in the use of the equipment. Some of the
common pitfalls in using in-house personnel are actually unrelated to the
difficulty of GPS software and equipment. Ask some of these questions when
considering using in-house resources:
How long do we want the project last? Stretching out the
project will make the impact on the expense sheet more palatable but projects
that run too long run afoul of the changing nature of an electric distribution
system and will heavily complicate the collection process.
Is our company committed to letting the assigned employees
focus on the inventory or will they be expected to work it around their normal
duties? If you have employees that have some available time between duties it
may be attractive to utilize them and avoid hiring or contracting but constantly
starting and having to pull off to address daily operations will wreak havoc
with the timeliness and accuracy of the inventory.
Are we going to need GPS trained employees for the ongoing
addition of plant and maintenance on the GIS system? If you anticipate hiring
new employees or changing the responsibilities of specific employees to input
new data and correct flawed information as it is revealed then it might make
sense to use the inventory process to train the employees.
Will we be buying our own GPS equipment and will it be of
sufficient accuracy to collect the data? GPS equipment can cost a few hundred
dollars up to many thousands of dollars depending on the level of accuracy you
have chosen to require. The method you will be using for adding new plant to
the GIS will play heavily here. If you have a lot of work and plan on using
your GPS equipment in the design stages then you are committed to purchase
equipment capable of meeting your specification on accuracy. If you choose to
collect it after completion the option of having a contractor come in on a
monthly or quarterly basis and catch up the GIS can be attractive.
Have we shown the ability to stay focused on special projects
in the past? Face this one honestly and decide if you want to follow past
success, correct past practice, or choose a different route.
What are the anticipated savings or extra expenses and are
they worth it? The unique situation of your company will determine whether you
think you will save money or actually have to spend more than hiring a
contractor. Make sure pros and cons are compared to the monetary value.
Contemplating
Using a Contractor
Contractors have been used extensively by electric distribution companies and
may be well suited to your project. Some considerations and research will
definitely be worth your time prior to contacting contractors so think through
the following with your staff:
How long do we want the project to last? The contractors'
rates can be significantly different depending on what timetable you specify and
can swing either way based on the market at the time of your inventory. If you
can be flexible within a broad window then more contractors will be interested
in your work.
How will this affect relations with our bargaining unit?
Although GPS work generally does not require any association with your
facilities beyond what a pedestrian observer has the freedom to do this question
is best handled beforehand.
What level of oversight are we prepared to provide? This
will be of special interest to the prospective vendors. An excessive amount of
administrative overhead will quickly drive up the cost but a lack of assistance
to the contractor can also adversely affect your cost and quality of data. An
experienced contractor will want a commitment, sometimes even contractually, of
company personnel and response time if they are to meet your schedule.
What are the specifications on the project? The more
technical you require the contractor to be the fewer you will have to choose
from and the higher the cost. Many of the attributes you would like to have
collected can be populated in mass by in-house personnel after the contractor
finishes. Wire size is of special interest. Accurately judging sizes from the
ground can be tough even for your own employees. You will want to agree before
contacting prospects on just how strict you plan to be.
Do we really want to require insurance and bonding similar to
what we require from line construction contractors? This might even require
special permission from your own superiors. Keep in mind that contractor
personnel will usually not be doing anything that the public can't do. There
are many smaller companies who can offer excellent quality and very reasonable
pricing but may not be able to quote because of major overkill in your bonding
and insurance requirements.
Have we planned to proactively notify our customers that they
will be seeing the contractors on our system and have we established procedures
for dealing with accidents, complaints, and calls to the local authorities?
This will eventually have to be addressed and is much more pleasant when done
beforehand.
Should we buy the GPS equipment or have the contractor supply
it? Depending on the size and, more importantly, the length of your project you
may want to work out an arrangement to purchase the equipment, have the
contractor use it for the project, and then use it in-house once the project is
done. You will essentially pay for it either way but you could end up getting
some very inexpensive training if you're willing to be creative.
Final Comments
There is an endless list of details that could be addressed but quite often the
technical details overshadow the big picture considerations. If you think you
want to go in-house contact some similar electric distributors who have done it
themselves. If you are leaning towards a contractor do the same. In either
case have your employees take the time to visit with those companies and develop
a list of questions and possible pitfalls to be avoided before you begin your
own work or get embroiled in sales pitch, promise everything meetings.
Biography
Kevin Perry is a registered professional engineer in the states of Georgia and
Alabama. He obtained a Bachelors of Electrical Engineering from Auburn
University and worked for over ten years in engineering departments with
electrical distributors before moving into utility GIS software development and
implementations with a leading vendor. He now does free lance engineering work
with distributors and vendors from his home in Madison, AL.
Article # 0044 TEST QUESTIONS: Coming Soon
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