Ray Fletcher, a distribution manager for Appalachian Power, and line servicer Bobby Thornton review some data. Fletcher identified a West Virginia customer’s chronic power disruption issue, and Thornton proactively provided the fix.
Ray Fletcher is new to the emerging pursuit of “blinks.” But he admits it’s a great feeling being able to solve problems before customers realize they have one.
Fletcher is a distribution manager for Appalachian Power in West Virginia. He recently started using a new performance tracking tool that helped him find one residence where power blinked off and on 39 times in one week, often for just a second or two.
It was only the second time Fletcher had logged into his SparkHub blink module. The new technology collects data using advanced AMI metering technology, enabling a more data-driven approach to system maintenance, down to the individual customer level.
“We’re still in our infancy in using the data we receive and sorting out these chronic blink issues,” Fletcher said. “It’s not something we’ve historically done, but I can see that changing significantly with results like this one.”
Jason Baker, APCo operations vice president, has championed the proactive approach.
In SparkHub, Fletcher figured out the individual residence affected, and sent a line servicer to investigate. Troubleshooting identified a bad connection at the pole – an easy fix.
In just 45 minutes, a new connector was installed, and the problem was resolved.
“Once our servicer was there making the fix, the customer did say he noticed something, some dimming now and again, but never called about it,” Fletcher said. “Perhaps he never fully identified it as a problem, but if he’s noticing it, even if it’s a second or two, it is a problem.”
“This is very important to the customer experience. We’re pretty excited about this approach and getting to other opportunities.”
Baker said this is an exciting time for improving reliability and the customer experience.
“Doing it this way, as this success shows, the blinks get done on our terms. We address an issue as part of our everyday schedule before it requires an after-hours outage call and becomes a larger problem that inconveniences and disappoints our customer,” Baker said. “You want satisfied customers? Tell them they have a problem they may not have been aware of and that you’re there to fix it for them.
“To the customer, this is the ultimate in being proactive.”