Louisiana, USA – Case Study 2
Times of crisis distinguish the professionals from the pretenders. When Hurricane Ida hit Louisiana in 2021, Hitachi’s outage management system took charge.
DEMCO electric co-operative
Hurricane Ida hit the Gulf Coast of the US in 2021. Louisiana bore the brunt of its devastation; Ida was the second-most destructive tropical cyclone on record.
For DEMCO, a not-for-profit, member-owned electric-distribution co-operative, it was an unprecedented crisis. In these moments, an outage management system (OMS) is critical. During the hurricane, Hitachi Energy’s OMS, working in tandem with DEMCO’s other reporting systems, filled in vital gaps, spotting outages before they had been reported so that DEMCO knew exactly where its linemen were needed. Chief engineering and operations officer, Mark Phillips, estimates that without the OMS it would have taken “double, possibly triple” the time to bring power back after the hurricane. Hitachi Energy’s OMS is “state of the art”, he says. “It gives our systems operators full visibility of our grid. There are no blind spots.” Today, the Hitachi Energy OMS delivers insights that DEMCO uses to refine its operations. When it comes to extreme weather, Phillips is phlegmatic: “It’s not a matter of if but when.” Keeping the grid operational demands unceasing courage and hard work. With Hitachi Energy’s OMS, DEMCO’s heroic team has a handy ace up its sleeve.
Wood for the trees
The woods of Louisiana are serene when the sun shines – but during extreme weather events, the trees become a hazard, blowing onto power lines and disrupting electricity supply.
Keeping power flowing
DEMCO’s linemen relied on Hitachi Energy’s OMS software during Hurricane Ida – but it’s essential even when the sun shines, providing feedback to avert potential catastrophes.
