Articles Archive

Transitioning to Summer Load Management

Whether your community’s load management programs use switches, generators, or both, if you haven’t already prepared for the summer heat, it’s time. Details may differ for each community, but the goal is the same: Reduce your wholesale power costs by decreasing the demand on your electric system when demand for electricity is highest.

Residential Load Management

Participating in a residential load management program involves having a remotely controlled switch attached to customers’ appliances that have the most impact on peak demand.

“Now is a good time to inform those customers who aren’t participating in load management about how your program works and the value of it—especially with the extreme heat North Carolina summers can bring,” says ElectriCities Field Operations Manager, Jason Thigpen.

NCEMPA Members can use our Load Management Switch Program bill insert to educate customers. These and other bill inserts are free for ElectriCities members.

Customers already participating in residential load management need a different message. Transitioning from winter to summer means:

Different appliances are affected. Water heaters are typically controlled year-round, but air conditioners replace heat strips in the summer months.
Load management time of day changes. In winter, peak demand is usually 6-8 a.m. Summer peak periods are longer and typically in the afternoon—about 2-7 p.m., with most occurring 3-6 p.m.

Utility, Commercial, and Industrial Load Management

Much of non-residential load management involves generators on both sides of the meter. Whether your program involves generators the city or town owns or the customer owns, take time now to get them ready for summer.

Jack Yox, Lead Generator Specialist at ElectriCities, advises:

Walk around the generator to check for leaks, puddles, or other issues that need attention.
Top off the radiator coolant.
Inspect fan belts for condition and proper tension.
Inspect fluid hoses for leaks and possible defects.
Ensure battery chargers are working properly and batteries are fully charged.
Ensure enclosure louvers operate correctly.
Top off storage fuel tanks to prevent condensation.
Treat fuel with anti-gel/antimicrobial additives.
Polish stored fuels to extract contaminants, including microbials, particulates, and water, that can cause significant engine problems.

No matter the season, Yox recommends these ongoing practices to ensure generators are in top shape and ready when you need them—whether for load management or emergency operation:

Change oil regularly and replace fuel, oil, and air filters.
Perform periodic switchgear maintenance.
Regularly lubricate breakers.
Calibrate DOC equipment annually and ensure it works.
Complete monthly above-ground fuel tank inspections in accordance with the SP001 AST Inspection Standard.

“Almost every member in North Carolina participates in load management in some form, which collectively saves members millions of dollars each year,” says Jason. “Taking steps now to prepare to manage the summer demand peaks ensures your utility and your customers don’t miss out on those savings.”

Sharing information about load management is another way to show your customers that their hometown public power utility is working to help them reduce energy use and save money.
For more information about load management or transitioning to summer load management, contact Jason Thigpen.

49 ElectriCities Members Recognized for Excellent Safety Records in 2022

Congratulations to the 49 ElectriCities member utilities that had no lost workday cases due to accidents or injuries in 2022.

North Carolina members that received 2022 ElectriCities Municipal Electric Safety Awards are:

Albemarle
Belhaven
Dallas
Edenton
Farmville
Granite Falls
High Point
Kings Mountain
Lincolnton
New River Light & Power
Pineville
Scotland Neck
Wake Forest
Waynesville

Apex
Benson
Drexel
Elizabeth City
Fountain
Hamilton
Hobgood
Landis
Maiden
Newton
Red Springs
Shelby
Walstonburg
Western Carolina University

Ayden
Cherryville
East Carolina University
Enfield
Fremont
Hertford
Hookerton
Laurinburg
New Bern
N.C. State University
Rocky Mount
Smithfield
Washington
Wilson

South Carolina members that received 2022 ElectriCities Municipal Electric Safety Awards are

Easley
McCormick Public Works

Greer Public Works
Newberry

Laurens
Seneca Light & Power

ElectriCities Senior Safety & Training Specialist Mark Todd, CUSP, recognized each member for their perfect records and safe operating practices at the NCAMES conference on May 17.

Though reporting on-the-job accidents and injuries is required by OSHA, Mark says it’s not just for record-keeping and awards. The reports provide an opportunity for utility employees to revisit safe work practices, often with the help of the ElectriCities Safety & Training team.

The team uses the information to tweak training classes or to ensure they emphasize certain safety practices. “If, for example, we’re seeing a lot of lineworkers with hand lacerations, that tells us we need to review the importance of wearing proper personal protective equipment,” he said.

“Creating a culture of safety requires everyone’s buy-in, and even with that, an accident or injury can still occur,” Mark said. “Thank you to each member utility employee who is committed to safety and who completed 2022 with no accidents or injuries—whether or not your city or town received an award.”

For more information about the ElectriCities Municipal Electric Safety Awards, contact Mark Todd. And you can find out about upcoming ElectriCities safety training classes here.

Warm Weather Resources

It’s summertime, and the heat is on!

This time of year, it’s normal to want to turn the air conditioning down. We all want to be cool! However, no one wants a high electric bill.

To see how the summer heat affects your energy use—and your monthly energy bill, use TempTracker 365™. It records daily high and low temperatures in ElectriCities member communities. You can use it to find out which days, weeks, or months were extremely hot, causing your cooling system to run longer. You can also see which days had milder temperatures and didn’t result in as much energy use.

Whatever the temperature extremes are in your community, these simple, no-cost and low-cost tips from the U.S. Department of Energy can help you save money and keep cool this summer.

Use your windows to keep out heat

Install window coverings to prevent heat from coming through your windows during the day.

Operate your thermostat efficiently

Set your thermostat at a temperature that you find comfortable and that provides humidity control, if needed.
When you’re away, set your thermostat a few degrees higher than normal. Lower the thermostat setting when you return home and need cooling.
Avoid setting your thermostat at a colder setting than normal when you first turn on your air conditioner.

Use fans and ventilation strategies to cool your home

Turn off ceiling fans when you leave the room. Remember that fans cool people, not rooms, by creating a windchill effect.
When you shower or take a bath, use the bathroom fan to remove heat and humidity from your home.

Keep your cooling system running efficiently

Schedule regular maintenance for your cooling equipment.
Avoid placing lamps or TV sets near your thermostat. The thermostat senses heat from these appliances, which can cause the air conditioner to run longer than necessary.
Vacuum your air intake vents regularly to remove any dust buildup. Ensure that furniture and other objects aren’t blocking the airflow through your registers.
Change the filter for your HVAC system monthly.

Consider a range of appliances and lighting options

Consider lighting options that operate at cooler temperatures.
- Learn more about your options for efficient lighting.
- Find out when to turn off your lights.
If convenient, take advantage of daylight instead of artificial lighting, but avoid direct sunlight.
- Learn more about strategies for efficient daylighting.
Wash full loads of dishes and clothes for better efficiency.
- Learn more about efficient dishwashing and laundry.

Keep hot air from leaking into your home

Seal cracks and openings to prevent warm air from leaking into your home.
Add caulk or weatherstripping to seal air leaks around doors and windows.

Lowe your water heating costs

Water heating accounts for about 18% of the energy consumed in your home.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission recommends setting your water heater at no more than 120˚F to prevent scalding. The lower setting will also conserve energy and save money.

For more ways to save money and keep cool this summer, check out https://www.energy.gov/energysaver/spring-and-summer-energy-saving-tips.

Reporting Outages Using the ElectriCities Outage Map

Communicating with customers when you experience outages is critical to maintaining customer satisfaction. But when it comes to major weather events, it’s also important to keep ElectriCities informed on how your community has been impacted. That’s key in helping the ElectriCities Emergency Assistance Program (EAP) operate smoothly, quickly coordinating mutual aid for the communities that need it.

Incorporating your community’s outages on the ElectriCities Outage Map is a simple process.

The map populates using information from members who:

Submit your outages via a link you receive from ElectriCities

Have your outage map integrated to the ElectriCities map.

When a major event is forecast, if your outage map isn’t integrated with the ElectriCities map, our EAP team will request outages from you at pre-announced times—usually in the morning and afternoon. Those times are based on the schedule determined by North Carolina’s State Emergency Response Team, or SERT.

When it’s time to report outages, you’ll receive a text and email from the EAP team. The notification provides a link to a form you can use to submit your outages.

You will:

Click on the link.
Confirm your utility from the dropdown.
Enter number of outages.
Click “Submit.”

“It’s very important to respond with accurate outages—even if you don’t have any,” says PJ Rehm, Vice President of Grid Innovation & Safety at ElectriCities. “Not only do we want our outage numbers to match what you’re telling your customers, many entities, including SERT, view our map for statewide outage numbers. Accurate numbers help SERT and the ElectriCities EAP determine which areas are most impacted.”

If your outage map is integrated with the ElectriCities outage map, this process happens automatically, so you can skip the steps above. If you have questions about reporting outages, or if you’d like to integrate your outage map with ElectriCities’ map, please contact PJ Rehm.

ElectriCities Apprenticeship Program Participants Eligible for GI Bill Benefits

Military veterans who are enrolled in the ElectriCities Apprenticeship Program in North Carolina can now receive GI Bill benefits.

That’s thanks, in part, to Jared Auman, an Apprentice Lineworker II who helps power the towns of Huntersville and Cornelius in North Carolina.

Jared joined ElectriCities in 2021 after serving four years with the U.S. Army’s 82^nd Airborne Division, including a combat tour in Afghanistan.

When he discovered that the ElectriCities Apprentice Lineworker Program was state-approved, he knew it could be eligible for on-the-job training reimbursement through the GI Bill.

Jared Aumen during his service in the U.S. Army’s 82nd Airborne Division

He was right.

He contacted ElectriCities Manager of Safety and Training, Craig Batchelor, who ran with it.

Turns out, ElectriCities Vice President of Human Resources, Melissa Miranda, had been working with the state and the U.S. Dept. of Veterans Affairs (VA) to get the ElectriCities apprenticeship program VA-approved.

Craig helped get things moving and became a School Certifying Official (SCO) through the VA. Being an SCO enables him to submit all the documentation required to help apprentice lineworkers get their GI Bill benefits. To provide backup and ensure efficiency, two more ElectriCities employees are on their way to becoming SCOs: Safety and Training Specialist Jeff Freeman and Learning and Development Specialist Susanne Taylor.

With Jared officially receiving his benefits, Craig is working with a few other lineworkers to get theirs going. And he’s looking for more.

If you or anyone on your team is enrolled in the ElectriCities Apprentice Lineworker Program in North Carolina and is eligible to receive GI Bill benefits, contact Craig.

Craig’s message to South Carolina veterans in the ElectriCities apprenticeship program: Hold tight. “We’re working on getting our apprenticeship program approved for VA benefits in South Carolina,” he said. “We hope to have that done by the end of the year.”

Discover the Power of Retail Billing Assessments

Could your utility be missing out on hundreds of thousands of dollars in annual revenue?

While performing a recent Retail Billing Assessment, ElectriCities’ Senior Utility Systems Analyst, Sherri Callery, discovered that could have happened to an ElectriCities member utility.

A Retail Billing Assessment is a thorough analysis and process review of a utility’s electric retail billing system. It identifies unbilled revenue sources and opportunities to improve accuracy and efficiency.

Sherri recommends conducting an assessment every two to five years, before major system conversions, and immediately following any significant rate, technology, or staff changes.

One of the many details Sherri examines during an assessment is billed demand and energy consumption before and after meter exchanges. During that recent assessment, Sherri discovered that demand decreased by a factor of 100 after each new meter was installed.

At that point, the utility had already lost $75,000 in revenue for the billing year.

Sherri worked with the member utility’s billing team to track down the source of the problem. Turns out, the metering vendor’s data transfer file setup parameters were based on incorrect demand units.

The team collaborated with the vendor to correct and validate the file transfer parameters.

Had the problem not been corrected all year, it would have cost the utility $133,000 in lost revenue. And, if all the utility’s meters had been exchanged without that correction, that lost revenue would have jumped to $582,000 per year.

The potential losses don’t stop there.

Another member utility was having a similar issue, so Sherri worked with that member and the vendor to get the problem corrected. Two other much larger member utilities are preparing to deploy that vendor’s metering system. With the file transfer parameters corrected, they avoided lost revenue that could have reached $2.4 million per utility.

“Utility billing operations are complex, and that complexity increases the potential for errors,” Sherri says. And those errors can happen to anyone.

Even a teeny tiny mistake can have a significant impact, she says. That’s why it’s important to regularly analyze and review your billing system parameters, meter data inputs, and processes.

“During a Retail Billing Assessment, we look at everything from the smallest details to the overall processes to deliver big value for your utility.”

To learn more about the process and determine whether a Retail Billing Assessment should be on your utility’s to-do list, contact Sherri Callery.

And, if you’d like to learn more about other common Retail Billing Assessment findings and how this service can benefit your utility, be sure to catch Sherri’s breakout session on the topic at the ElectriCities Annual Conference in August.

12 ElectriCities Members Earn National Award for Outstanding Safety Practices

Twelve ElectriCities of North Carolina member utilities have earned the American Public Power Association (APPA) Safety Award of Excellence for safe operating practices in 2022.

The award recognizes a utility’s incident rate and the state of its safety program and culture.

Recipients of the 2022 Safety Award of Excellence are:

Group B (systems with 15,000 to 29,999 worker-hours of exposure)

First place: City of Monroe, N.C.
First place: Town of Granite Falls, N.C.

Group C (systems with 30,000-59,999 worker-hours of exposure)

First place: Gaffney Board of Public Works (S.C.)
Third place: New River Light & Power (N.C.)
Honorable Mention: City of Rocky Mount, N.C.

Group D (systems with 60,000-109,999 worker-hours of exposure)

First place: Town of Apex, N.C.
Third place: City of Statesville, N.C.
Honorable Mention: City of Lumberton, N.C.

Group E (systems with 110,000-249,999 worker-hours of exposure)

Second place: Greenwood Commissioners of Public Works (S.C.)
Third place: City of Concord, N.C.
Honorable mention: City of Rock Hill, S.C.
Honorable mention: Wilson Energy (N.C.)

“Safety is the top priority for ElectriCities and for our members,” said Craig Batchelor, ElectriCities Manager of Safety and Training. “It takes a lot of hard work to create and maintain an exceptional safety program. I commend these public power providers for their dedication.”

According to an APPA news release, 166 utilities nationwide earned Safety Awards of Excellence in 2022 out of the 283 utilities that entered.

To determine award winners, APPA first categorized entrants according to their number of worker-hours. Then APPA ranked them based on their incident-free records and overall state of their safety programs and culture during 2022.

The incidence rate, used to judge entries, is based on the number of work-related reportable injuries or illnesses and the number of worker-hours during 2022, as defined by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

“Safety needs to be the first thing on every utility employee’s mind as they go about their work,” said Jim Boyd, Chair of APPA’s Safety Committee and Electric Operations Safety Manager at Tacoma Power in Washington. “The utilities honored by APPA for excellence in this area should be proud of the culture they have instilled in serving their communities.”

Review the national list of 2022 Safety Awards of Excellence honorees at www.PublicPower.org.

For a list of awards ElectriCities member utilities have won since 2020, visit the Awards and Accolades page on the ElectriCities website.

11 ElectriCities Members Earn RP3 Designation

Eleven ElectriCities of North Carolina member utilities have earned the Reliable Public Power Provider (RP3) designation from the American Public Power Association for providing reliable and safe electric service.

The RP3 designation, which lasts for three years, recognizes public power utilities that demonstrate proficiency in four key disciplines:

Reliability
Safety
Workforce development
System improvement

Receiving it demonstrates a utility’s sound business practices and a utility-wide commitment to its employees, customers, and community to deliver electricity safely and reliably.

RP3 designations are awarded in three levels based on the number of points a utility earns in each of the four disciplines. Diamond is for 98-100 points, Platinum is for 90-<98 points, and Gold is for 80-<90 points.

Congratulations to these 2023 RP3 designees:

Diamond Level

City of Monroe, N.C.
City of Rocky Mount, N.C.
City of Statesville, N.C.
Wilson Energy (N.C.)

Platinum Level

Town of Apex, N.C.
New River Light & Power (N.C.)

Gold Level

Gaffney Board of Public Works (S.C.)
Town of Cornelius, N.C.
Town of Huntersville, N.C.
Town of Pineville, N.C.
Town of Tarboro, N.C.

“I’m proud of these public power providers for reinforcing their commitment to their customers and their communities by earning the RP3 designation,” said ElectriCities CEO Roy Jones. “The RP3 program enables them to confirm that they have the sound business practices in place to safely deliver reliable electricity to their customers now and into the future.”

“Receiving an RP3 designation is a great honor signifying a utility has demonstrated commitment to industry best practices,” said Troy Adams, Chair of APPA’s RP3 Review Panel and General Manager at Manitowoc Public Utilities, Wisconsin. “And ultimately, the culture developed from this pursuit of excellence and continued improvement through the RP3 program results in measurable value delivered to the local community.”

These 11 ElectriCities member utilities are part of the 109 utilities nationwide that earned the designation in 2023.

In North Carolina, 26 public power communities hold RP3 designations—more than in any other state, and 32 ElectriCities members are RP3 designees.

A full list of the ElectriCities member utilities with RP3 designation is available on the Awards and Accolades page on the ElectriCities website. A national list of designees is available at www.PublicPower.org.

Hurricane Preparedness

Be prepared before, during, and after the storm.

Nobody looks forward to hurricane season and the destruction storms can bring to our communities. But rest assured, our experienced, locally based electric crews are prepared to respond and restore power quickly and safely. Here are some tips to help you and your family prepare in the event a hurricane hits our community.

BEFORE the storm:

Gather emergency supplies such as flashlights, battery-operated radios, and batteries.
Move yard items and furniture inside.
Monitor official weather bulletins.
Charge your devices, like your phone or external backup batteries.

DURING the storm:

Turn off and unplug electrical appliances and equipment, such as televisions and computers.
Stay indoors in an interior room, away from windows.

AFTER the storm:

Watch for downed power lines. Stay back and consider them energized. Energized lines can conduct electricity through the ground up to 35 feet away from the line.
Check for electrical damage inside your home, such as frayed wires, sparks, or the smell of burning insulation. If you find damage to your meter box or weatherhead, don’t turn your power on until an electrician inspects your system and makes necessary repairs.
Do not connect your generator directly to your home’s electrical system. It is dangerous to you, your neighbors, and utility workers.

Wilson’s John Maclaga Addresses Bipartisan Supply Chain Caucus

John Maclaga, Assistant Director for Wilson Energy, recently participated in a roundtable led by members of the bipartisan Supply Chain Caucus.

Invited by U.S. Rep. David Rouzer, R-N.C., to represent North Carolina public power, John joined key stakeholders from various industries to discuss the state of the supply chain and provide recommendations to help alleviate supply chain constraints.

John, who also represents the American Public Power Association (APPA) on the Electric Sector Coordinating Committee Supply Chain Tiger Team, said supply chain constraints threaten grid reliability and security and stifle economic development. They also jeopardize the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)’s goals of reducing carbon emissions by getting more renewables, electric vehicles, battery storage systems, and more energy efficient buildings online.

“The reliability and security of the electric grid is at stake if we don’t take action to address the supply chain crisis we’re seeing today,” John said. “Lead times and prices for transformers, utility poles, bucket trucks, and other critical equipment have increased exponentially since the start of the pandemic, with lead times for trucks, for example, jumping from 12 to 60 months and prices increasing four-to-five fold.”

He said the federal government should support developing more robust supply chains and onshoring manufacturing of critical infrastructure components.

He recommended three ways Congress and regulators can help:

Encourage the DOE to stop the proposed rule on transformer efficiency standards.
Appropriate $1 billion through the Defense Production Act to increase all forms of distribution and substation transformer manufacturing in the U.S.
Direct FEMA to invest in a national stockpile of distribution transformers when/if demand for distribution transformers falls below 2019 levels.

“Finding ways to alleviate the supply chain crisis is a priority for ElectriCities and for public power,” said ElectriCities CEO Roy Jones. “When ElectriCities board members and I met with Rep. Rouzer’s staff during APPA’s Legislative Rally in March, it was clear that it’s a priority for him too. We thank him for inviting us to participate in the conversation, and we thank the caucus members for working to address this critical issue.”

While in Washington, John also met with Rep. Don Davis, D-N.C., and a staff member for Rep. Richard Hudson, R-N.C., to enlighten them on the impact supply chain constraints are having on public power communities in North Carolina.

“I appreciate the opportunity to provide an electric utility perspective and offer Congress long-term solutions as we do our very best to keep the lights on for families and businesses.” John said.