DTE purchases advanced sensors to help predict power outages
June 25, 2014 4:30 PM
DTE Energy Co.'s "smart grid" is getting smarter with the installation of at least 150 power line sensors that can detect potential power outages on its electric distribution lines in Southeast Michigan.
Announced today in Denver at the Clinton Global Initiative, DTE spent $300,000 to purchase Tollgrade Communications Inc.'s LightHouse MV smart grid sensors and its predictive grid analytics software system.
A smart grid is the transmission of electricity though distribution lines using remote line sensors, smart meters and information technology to manage the system more effectively. The smart grid can more accurately predict power outages and direct repair crews to more quickly resolve problems before they occur or to bring power online sooner.
DTE hopes to reduce nearly 500,000 customer outage minutes over the next three years in the service territory where Tollgrade's system is installed.
U.S. businesses lose up to $200 billion in business annually when their power goes out, said Ed Kennedy, Tollgrade's CEO. The figure is based on estimates that an average business loses $15,709 every 30 minutes during a power outage.
"It allows us to pinpoint problems before they begin to occur," said Kennedy, who said the 5-pound, bread loaf-sized sensors are clamped onto the line and individually communicate with utility information systems.
"The cost savings for DTE is measurable and large, and to the end users, it is quite large," he said.
Haukur Asgeirsson, DTE's manager of power systems technologies, said about 60 percent of DTE's distribution system is modern, with a variety of sensors on the lines and in substations to detect potential outages.
The Tollgrade sensors expands DTE's smart grid and ability to predict power outages, Asgeirsson said. "This will cover our legacy infrastructure and help us restore service faster to customers," he said.