How Technology Can Decode Sustainability in the Utilities Sector

From focusing on improving environmental impact to identifying ways to support key social and economic factors, like community development and affordable energy access, sustainability has a broad definition for those in the utilities sector.

Beyond the broader definitions, sustainability starts right at the core of power delivery: infrastructure.

In fact, data from the U.S. Department of Energy found that over 70% of U.S. transmission lines are more than 25 years old – and some components, like large power transformers, are even closer to 40 years old. There are estimates that some infrastructure components may be even be double that – closer to a century in age.

This aging equipment results in several issues – from the risk of more widespread outages to challenging the ability to modernize the infrastructure. Meeting widespread challenges like climate change and a stronger renewable network starts by making today’s power grid more sustainable.

To get your field crews ready, there are a few initial areas of focus with your data, technology, and overall asset management strategies.

Get Better Data

It all starts with data. Knowing the current condition of your infrastructure serves as a starting point for your field to understand what needs to be addressed and why.

Quality data that you can trust is critical for effective condition-based asset management. Accurate asset health, performance, and risk assessments focus concentration on the most critical assets in need of attention, helping to prioritize maintenance and corrective actions.

Beyond the maintenance of your assets, better data can help inform planning for future capital needs.

For the committees making key decisions around where to invest capital funds, this data can give them the insight they require to ensure they are prioritizing the right infrastructure updates at the right time.

Using a solution like ENGAGE from Endevor bridges your data from your key systems into a single platform that focuses on opportunities to engage with the data to fuel critical decisions.

This is crucial for addressing the challenges of gathering and analyzing large volumes of data with limited resources.

Digitize Asset Management Plan

The majority of asset management plans live in static documentation, such as a word processing program. These documents are time consuming to maintain and update, and their value is limited to those who take the time to thoroughly read them. Leveraging a software solution that turns this information into a dynamic and actionable record provides significant benefits.

Digitizing asset management plans in a system that makes them actionable can be a game changer. In particular, this can help asset managers who are driving sustainability initiatives forward and seeking to elevate the effectiveness of their asset management program. It is extremely helpful when aligning with industry standards like ISO 55000 in a resource-constrained environment.

Such a system means that engineers can spend time doing quality work – like analyzing data and making decisions – opposed to formatting documents and creating charts and graphs.

And, with a single solution that holds all information, asset management leaders can have all the tools they need to make critical decisions and act on what’s most important.

Today’s more advanced software solutions include data science technologies to take system data, as well as actionable asset management plans, one step further. This could include ways to optimize project plans, or even help inform how to prioritize capital planning needs.

For both of these, using machine learning can create “what if” and ranking scenarios to help inform decisions to ensure resources are being spent in the appropriate areas.

Fill in the Gaps

Enterprise asset management (EAM) solutions are designed to house a lot of information – and often times, getting to this information can be challenging (if not impossible).

This means that while there may be information that can support sustainability initiatives and goals, it often can’t be easily accessed to drive asset management programs forward.

Layering a system of engagement on top of your EAM can make this data more readily accessible. Because a solution like ENGAGE from Endevor easily integrates with industry-leading solutions in the utilities industry, it can pull all data to build a single source of truth.

This provides a comprehensive view of what’s happening across infrastructure, and can help inform key scheduling and resource decisions. These decisions can also be based upon capital planning strategies and project management plans for a comprehensive view into what’s happening and why.

The Core of It: Sustainability

While many sustainability initiatives first focus on how to address macroeconomic issues, like climate change, wildfires, or even modernizing the grid, it’s best to start at the core – with your data and technology.

In doing so, it can uncover issues that may arise – while helping to identify those that may be forthcoming. All of this can inform capital expenditures, helping to optimize how to plan for future projects and maximize the results of existing ones.

With the right technology stack, digitizing your asset management plans can serve as an important first step – both aligning your organization with important standards like ISO 55000, but turning them into action plans that help to inform day-to-day maintenance. They can also be leveraged to optimize longer-term capital initiatives, as well as help fuel sustainability initiatives.

Ready to see how Endevor can support your sustainability goals? Schedule a demo with our team.