Mapping sciences in power sector (part 3)

Conclusion
Like any other business, power companies are also faced to take various decisions vital to the operations, growth, and management of its business. To take proper decisions, information must be collected and analyzed to its full extent. Knowledge about the physical assets of the enterprise is necessary to make strategic and operational decisions. Information on the facilities, what condition they are in, how they are connected together, is important in taking even a simple decision. With the use of GIS, power companies can collect and store a large amount of data that can be readily accessed and analysed. Strength of GIS is integrating data and preparing it for analysis or modeling apart from tying together data from various sources makes it an important tool for the planning and decision making.

Here are some examples from UNESCO Training Module on the Applications of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) for power sector.

Database Maitenance

Using a GIS you can enter new data or modify existing data. This example shows a GIS interface that allows easy editing of geographic data and the display of related scanned documents.

Trouble Calls Analysis

Trouble call analysis is crucial for effectively maintaining adequate services to all the customers. A GIS can help to locate trouble spots and reroute the services without overloading the system.

Model Power Flow

This product provides GIS users with an interface tool for network analysis for power flow. Key concepts in any network-modeling interface include minimizing data redundancy and simplifying the model/management process.

Inventory and Manage Entire Systems

GIS can keep track of the conditions and locations for all the components in a system. The City of Denton’s GIS database contains location and descriptive information for all the different components of their electric system. City Operations and Electric Engineering departments use this information to manage entire system.

Manage Distribution

The Energy Company of Bogota uses a GIS to manage the distribution and supply of electricity for Bogota, Colombia. GIS helps them manage over 600 feeders, 36 substations, and thousands of transformers, poles, and switches.

Manage Meter Reaing Routes

Seattle City Light is considering using their GIS to manage their monthly electric meter reading routes. The routes are created using customer addresses and City streets contained in the GIS database. Routes are then color coded and labeled for easier identification. Using the up-to-date information in GIS ensures that the routes will reflect the most recent customer locations.

Source : http://www.gisdevelopment.net

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