Company among the first in the industry to
develop technology to prevent power outages caused by
trees
AKRON,
Ohio, Sept. 30, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- FirstEnergy
Corp. (NYSE: FE) is among the first in the electric utility
industry to deploy a new program that helps predict and reduce
tree-related outages before they occur across the company's
six-state service area. The company's vegetation management team
engineered the AI-driven program to calculate where trees pose the
most risk to the electric system, particularly ahead of winter and
summer storm seasons.
Known as the Advanced Vegetation Analytics Tool (AVAT), the
prediction model pulls data – including soil, weather, roadway,
historical outage data, geographical typography and high-resolution
aerial patrol photos – from several internal and external
databases. The data sets work together to identify patterns and
calculate the likelihood of a tree coming down on a power line or
equipment to ensure problematic trees are swiftly addressed.
FirstEnergy explains the new AVAT tool and how it's being
used across the company's footprint in a video clip on the
company's YouTube channel.
Trees are the leading cause of power outages across the entire
electric utility industry. FirstEnergy's service territory in
Ohio, Pennsylvania, New
Jersey, Maryland,
West Virginia and a small portion
of New York encompasses some of
the most densely forested areas in the country, with terrain
varying from urban areas and flat agricultural land to rugged
mountainous conditions more than 3,000 feet in elevation. These
widely varying conditions can make vegetation management a
challenge.
Tyler Woody, General Manager
of Distribution Vegetation Management Operations at
FirstEnergy: "Not only is this tool helping us to keep the
electricity flowing safely and reliably to our customers, but it is
also helping us manage crews and our budget more efficiently. By
using this data tool to study the type of vegetation conditions in
each area and the proximity to our power lines, we can better
recommend the right type of equipment crews and contractors will
need to bring with them to trim the first time they go out."
The new AVAT tool complements FirstEnergy's comprehensive annual
vegetation management methods, which involve professional tree
crews assessing vegetation across the service area to determine the
best approach to prevent trees from interfering with electrical
facilities. In addition, the company conducts proactive aerial
inspections of transmission and distribution lines using
helicopters equipped with infrared and ultraviolet technology. This
work helps ensure that high-voltage power lines and equipment
remain clear of trees and vegetation that cannot be observed from
the ground inspections.
Based on inspection findings, the company may use aerial saws,
mechanical equipment or a combination of methods to control the
vegetation. Crews also trim trees along FirstEnergy's rights-of-way
on a four-year cycle.
Follow FirstEnergy and its electric companies on X and Facebook
all year long for tips and resources to stay safe when using
electricity in and around your home.
FirstEnergy is dedicated to integrity, safety, reliability and
operational excellence. Its electric distribution companies form
one of the nation's largest investor-owned electric systems,
serving six million customers in Ohio, Pennsylvania, New
Jersey, West Virginia,
Maryland and New York. The company's transmission
subsidiaries operate approximately 24,000 miles of transmission
lines that connect the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic regions.
Follow FirstEnergy online at firstenergycorp.com. Follow
FirstEnergy on X: @FirstEnergyCorp.
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SOURCE FirstEnergy Corp.