We would like to thank you for 30 plus years of your confidence in Powertech Associates/UPSC. We have strived to bring solutions that are the latest in our industry. We truly feel that we are partners with you, our customers.
At this special time of the year, we would like to wish everyone and their families a wonderful holiday season!
Sincerely,
Bill Campbell
Chris Halm
Ryan Campbell
Mike Costello
Justin Rogers
Scott DeWeese
Lisa Langdon
Terri Keevers
Ed Cowan
Ray Cowan
Dave Morgan
The Rope Guru
Servicing & Supplying Synthetic Rope Solutions for Applications Specific to Electrical Utility Industry
The Rope Guru team, located in Westbrook, ME, makes and splices the world's best tools out of rope. They make winch lines for utility trucks, eye splices for transmission and distribution pulling lines, stringing lines, YaleGrips and more!
UPSC is now a distributor for these items and more.
For more information or any questions about The Rope Guru's offerings, please contact Ryan Campbell at rcampbell@powertech-upsc.com
Also, stay tuned for their products available for sale on our website SOON!
Every 3-phase auto recloser needs Wildlife & Asset Protection
The 3-phase auto recloser business is booming in the US and Canada. As utilities work to automate more of their systems to increase reliability and resiliency, billions of dollars are being invested by utilities of all sizes to integrate this equipment within their distribution systems.
A standard 3 phase auto recloser is a CAPITAL investment of $50 ––$65K , and based on their geometry, the proximity of the phases and ground, these expensive pieces of equipment are highly susceptible to wildlife outages. A few hundred dollars in covers is the best insurance policy a recloser can have!
When it’s necessary to measure phase rotation and determine accurate application connections and proper installation, SNC’s phase rotation detector provides clear, reliable results. It’s utilized for measuring phase rotation in industrial applications and three-phase power sources, such as generators, motors and compressors.
Phase Rotation Tester Applications
Providing a power-saving performance, with a maximum rated power of 100mVA, SNC’s phase rotation meter is utilized for:
Detection of live wires
Simple power
Hands-free operation
Breakpoint location
D/C line break
Line maintenance
Ability to reading through sheaths
SNC’s phase rotation meter is also utilized for 3-phase rotation detection: normal phase, reverse phase and phase deficiency.
Specifications
Power Supply: 2 AA batteries
Clamp Wire Size: Diameter Ø.06-Ø.63″ (Ø1.6-Ø16mm)
Live Voltage Range: AC70~1000V
Auto Power Off: Meter automatically powers off after 5 minutes of inactivity
Working Temperature: -10~50°C (14~122°F); below 80%rh
Any utility providing power to rural areas faces unique challenges. So too do utilities serving areas that experience regular, extreme weather events. One Maine utility had to address both.
The utility faced several challenges: Customers in rural Maine were geographically dispersed with harsh, unpaved terrain often in between customers and power hubs. And the area is hit hard each year by deep freezes, thick snow and ice and heavy rainfall. Any one of these factors would be a big challenge, and the utility company knew they needed to invest in utility poles that could overcome all of it.
The utility contacted Creative Composites Group to discuss StormStrong®, our new line of utility poles. Made of pultruded Fiber Reinforced Polymer (FRP), StormStrong poles had the qualities the utility needed to serve rural Maine – and then some.
Resilient in the Toughest Conditions
Being so far north and with large areas of coastline, Maine is no stranger to precipitation. In a regular year, Maine will see an average of 43 inches of precipitation, and over the last decade, Maine has experienced five disaster-level weather events. Maine’s weather includes hurricane-force winds and rain as well as blizzards and deep freezes resulting in heavy ice loads that severely task infrastructure. In good weather, Maine faces a different infrastructural problem: woodpeckers. These birds are a heavy burden on wood poles, reducing the poles’ strength with each new hole pecked.
StormStrong poles are equal to Maine’s toughest conditions. They hold up in the extreme cold – performing reliably in the even colder conditions of Alaska. Because they are made of FRP, StormStrong poles in fact increase in rigidity in the cold and with minimal or no uptake of water. This avoids a common problem with wood: Any time wood poles absorb water, they weaken. And Maine gets a lot of water. StormStrong® poles are also inhospitable to woodpeckers.
FRP poles are also strong in manmade conditions: FRP has a very low coefficient of variation (5%) compared to wood (around 20%). Where wood automatically takes a strength reduction, per the National Electric Safety Code, of .85 or .65 depending on the grade of construction to account for the unknowns of wood, StormStrong poles are consistent and predictable. Because of this, these FRP poles can handle both transmissions of high voltage power from powerhouse to substation and distribution from substation to customers. Their strength makes them more reliable for higher-risk transmission and avoids the risk of fire associated with failing wood poles.
Safer Over Roads
Placing powerline poles in developed areas is relatively straightforward. But this Maine utility had to provide power to rural customers across lots of undeveloped land. This means limited road access across rough terrain. StormStrong FRP poles helped here too: They are so lightweight that they can be hand-carried or dropped off by helicopter, something impossible for heavier materials.
And installing StormStrong poles along roads is much faster and safer. FRP poles are more flexible than steel, so if, for example, a tree falls on a wire in an extreme wind event, FRP poles will absorb 10 times more impact energy than a steel pole and two times more than a wood pole of similar cross section. This not only makes for a more resilient grid but also helps keep live wires off roadways.
Even the process of road crossings for the grid is simpler with StormStrong poles. When a utility needs to cross a road, the state’s Department of Transportation must give permission to temporarily close the road. No one wants to extend the necessary level of coordination and disruption – but not uncommonly with some wood pole installations, the process repeats every 10 years as the pole weakens or fails inspection. FRP poles break the cycle with a long service life of consistent performance even in harsh conditions.
Protects Environmentally Sensitive Areas
Part of serving any community is keeping residents safe. Another reason this Maine utility chose StormStrong FRP poles is their excellent performance in environmentally sensitive areas. Residents relying on well water cannot have their water tainted by the chemicals often added to treat and strengthen wooden poles, like Penta. By using non-leaching FRP, the Maine utility could avoid the logistical problem of keeping treated wooden poles at least 75 feet away from wells. Choosing StormStrong meant doing right by their customers and the environment.
StormStrong poles stand up to the most extreme weather, terrain and environmental conditions to help create a resilient grid and to protect utility customers. Contact us today to discuss how FRP poles as the resilient solution you nee
The Richards PROLink is designed to isolate the network protector from the secondary network, reducing potential arc-flash hazard.
The PROLink features a handle-operated rugged contact assembly molded within a fully submersible fiberglass enclosure. The device is designed and qualified for use on all 125/216, 277/480 and 347/600V network protectors up to 4500A.
Features:
Submersible to 25 ft.
Visible break
Pad lockable
Available with standard latching device or kirk key
Multiple mounting configurations - wall mountable or directly on network protector
For more information or a quote on any of the products featured in this newsletter, please reach out to Ryan Campbell at rcampbell@powertech-upsc.com or (860) 678-8772.
Powertech Associates and Utility Power Supply offer the latest products and solutions available in the Utility Industry. We are committed to meet the needs of our customers through quality product solutions and proven customer service.
![Powerlines-Header-December-2022[Recovered]](https://powertech-upsc-20717464.hs-sites.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Powerlines-Header-December-2022%5BRecovered%5D.png?upscale=true&width=1120&upscale=true&name=Powerlines-Header-December-2022%5BRecovered%5D.png)
.jpg?upscale=true&width=1120&upscale=true&name=FRP-Pole-Install_0636_ec%20(1).jpg)
