SP Energy Networks has opened a new support room equipped to identify potential faults on the electricity network before they happen.
The LV (Low Voltage) Support Room has been set up at the power network provider’s Cambuslang depot on the outskirts of Glasgow, Scotland, and uses monitoring technology to provide real-time information on supplies across its operating area.
It analyses data from right across central and southern Scotland – covering areas like Ayrshire, Dumfries, Edinburgh and the Borders, Glasgow and Lanarkshire.
Data produced by smart meters and electricity substations highlight where a potential fault may occur on the electricity network, helping engineers find exact locations where repairs are required, sometimes before power drops and customers are even aware of an issue.
Previously, engineers have relied on customers identifying problems and calling the 105 hotline to report an outage and often it could mean digging holes in roads to locate the precise location of the fault and carry out a repair.
It also supports future plans for the power network by providing a comprehensive picture of the potential impacts the predicted increase in electricity demand will bring as more and more people make the move to electric vehicles and heat pumps in the march to net zero and also as more variable clean energy generation is integrated into the grid.
This will allow SP Energy Networks to maximise the existing network and identify areas where network upgrades would have the biggest impact.