Substations are an integral component of all electric utility transmission and distribution systems. They represent a substantial investment for their owners. They also present a significant exposure to injury when unauthorized persons enter and make contact with lines, bus work or energized equipment parts. Regrettably, some of these incidents have resulted in young children being seriously injured and permanently disabled after contacting energized conductors inside substations.
Proper substation design, construction and maintenance programs may reduce the likelihood of similar incidents occurring in the future. Unfortunately, experience has shown that electric utility employees have a tendency to focus on the technical aspects of substations and, consequently, may not always recognize public safety and physical security deficiencies. Effective inspection programs can help insure that substations are safe and secure. This webinar will discuss the items which should be inspected on a regular basis, including entrance gates, fences/walls, safety signs, grounding, climbing hazards and attractive nuisances. Strategies being employed to thwart facility damage, prevent unauthorized entry and aid in the apprehension of attackers will also be discussed.
Annie Wong and Dan Gudleski, Senior Utility Consultants in the AEGIS Loss Control Division, will present this webinar. Annie has more than 20 years of experience in the electric utility industry and held numerous management positions with Public Service Electric and Gas and Consolidated Edison, including Manager for Energy Services, Senior Analyst in Asset Management, Operating Supervisor in the Underground Network Group, Engineering Supervisor in Overhead and Underground Systems, and Project Engineer for Substations. Annie’s last position was as a Project Manager with Eaton Corporation for various substation projects. She holds a B.S. in Electrical Engineering from Pratt Institute of New York.
Dan brings more than 22 years of experience in electric utility distribution system operation and maintenance, and he was part of a committee that developed PPL Electric Utilities’ overhead and underground inspection programs. He co-chaired the OSHA Voluntary Protection Program and, as a result, PPL Electric Utilities became the first electric utility in the country to qualify all of its field worksites for the “STAR” status under the rigorous standards of the US Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s Voluntary Protection Program. Dan began his engineering career with Metropolitan Edison Company, a FirstEnergy company, and prior to joining AEGIS, he was the Parsons Engineering Manager for the Hurricane Katrina Insurance Recovery Project at the Northrop Grumman Ship Systems located in Pascagoula, MS.. He is a licensed Professional Engineer and holds a B.S. in Electrical Engineering from Bucknell University.
