Bentley Case Studies EPCOR's Digital Transformation: Risk-based Asset Management for Electric Distribution Network

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	EPCOR's Digital Transformation: Risk-based Asset Management for Electric Distribution Network Bentley

EPCOR's Digital Transformation: Risk-based Asset Management for Electric Distribution Network

Bentley

Technology Category	Functional Applications - Enterprise Asset Management Systems (EAM) Sensors - Utility Meters
Applicable Industries	Electrical Grids Utilities
Applicable Functions	Logistics & Transportation Maintenance
Use Cases	Asset Health Management (AHM) Asset Lifecycle Management
Services	System Integration Testing & Certification
Challenge	EPCOR Utilities, a company that owns and operates electric, water, and natural gas utilities across Canada and the southern United States, was facing a significant challenge with its aging infrastructure. The company's electric distribution system, which provides power to over 400,000 Edmonton customers, was experiencing frequent outages due to the degradation of its assets, including circuits, poles, and transformers. A demographic analysis predicted a 74% increase in the number of assets that would reach end of life over the next 10 years, compared to the previous 10 years. This meant that EPCOR would need to replace 10,000 more assets over the next decade. Furthermore, EPCOR’s capital spending was effectively capped due to a new performance-based rate structure to be implemented in 2018. To maintain system reliability with current resources, despite the forecasted asset failure, EPCOR recognized the need for a new asset management strategy and sought a digital solution to quantify asset health and prioritize assets for proactive intervention and lifecycle replacement. Read More
About Customer	EPCOR Utilities is a utility company headquartered in Edmonton, Alberta. The company owns and operates electric, water, and natural gas utilities in municipalities across Canada and the southern United States. EPCOR’s electric distribution system provides power to over 400,000 Edmonton customers and has over 200,000 assets, including 5,580 kilometers of circuits, 50,000 poles, and 30,000 transformers. These assets degrade due to weathering and electrical loading, with typical life expectancies ranging between 35 and 45 years. Over the past two decades, EPCOR’s system average interruption duration index (SAIDI) peaked at just below the regulated threshold. Some areas of the city experienced outages 10 times more frequently than the rest of the city. Read More
Solution	EPCOR decided to shift to a risk-based asset management process aligned to the emerging ISO 55000 standard. The company used AssetWise to conduct a health assessment of their geographically dispersed assets. By statistically analyzing 10 years of data, EPCOR developed failure probability curves and defined the statistical relationship between asset condition and asset failure. The company established an asset health index, scoring the assets out of 100%, so that each individual asset could be more accurately placed on that failure probability curve. EPCOR evaluated asset data for 117,000 assets, including data integrated from their SCADA system to provide electrical loading information in near real-time, 19,000 outage records, and more than 1 million inspection records. By combining the health scores with the failure probability curves, EPCOR derived a more accurate probability of failure to identify assets at risk. The company also calculated the annual risk cost for each asset necessary to meet capital spending budgets. Using Bentley’s interoperable AssetWise software, EPCOR integrated data from multiple sources related to full costing on work orders and work requests, materials, supply chains, and vehicles to deliver a streamlined view of asset information. Read More Log in to view content
Contents

Technology Category

Functional Applications - Enterprise Asset Management Systems (EAM)

Sensors - Utility Meters

Applicable Industries

Electrical Grids

Utilities

Applicable Functions

Logistics & Transportation

Maintenance

Use Cases

Asset Health Management (AHM)

Asset Lifecycle Management

Services

System Integration

Testing & Certification

Challenge

EPCOR Utilities, a company that owns and operates electric, water, and natural gas utilities across Canada and the southern United States, was facing a significant challenge with its aging infrastructure. The company's electric distribution system, which provides power to over 400,000 Edmonton customers, was experiencing frequent outages due to the degradation of its assets, including circuits, poles, and transformers. A demographic analysis predicted a 74% increase in the number of assets that would reach end of life over the next 10 years, compared to the previous 10 years. This meant that EPCOR would need to replace 10,000 more assets over the next decade. Furthermore, EPCOR’s capital spending was effectively capped due to a new performance-based rate structure to be implemented in 2018. To maintain system reliability with current resources, despite the forecasted asset failure, EPCOR recognized the need for a new asset management strategy and sought a digital solution to quantify asset health and prioritize assets for proactive intervention and lifecycle replacement.

About Customer

EPCOR Utilities is a utility company headquartered in Edmonton, Alberta. The company owns and operates electric, water, and natural gas utilities in municipalities across Canada and the southern United States. EPCOR’s electric distribution system provides power to over 400,000 Edmonton customers and has over 200,000 assets, including 5,580 kilometers of circuits, 50,000 poles, and 30,000 transformers. These assets degrade due to weathering and electrical loading, with typical life expectancies ranging between 35 and 45 years. Over the past two decades, EPCOR’s system average interruption duration index (SAIDI) peaked at just below the regulated threshold. Some areas of the city experienced outages 10 times more frequently than the rest of the city.

Solution

EPCOR decided to shift to a risk-based asset management process aligned to the emerging ISO 55000 standard. The company used AssetWise to conduct a health assessment of their geographically dispersed assets. By statistically analyzing 10 years of data, EPCOR developed failure probability curves and defined the statistical relationship between asset condition and asset failure. The company established an asset health index, scoring the assets out of 100%, so that each individual asset could be more accurately placed on that failure probability curve. EPCOR evaluated asset data for 117,000 assets, including data integrated from their SCADA system to provide electrical loading information in near real-time, 19,000 outage records, and more than 1 million inspection records. By combining the health scores with the failure probability curves, EPCOR derived a more accurate probability of failure to identify assets at risk. The company also calculated the annual risk cost for each asset necessary to meet capital spending budgets. Using Bentley’s interoperable AssetWise software, EPCOR integrated data from multiple sources related to full costing on work orders and work requests, materials, supply chains, and vehicles to deliver a streamlined view of asset information.

Impact #1	The implementation of the risk-based asset management process has significantly improved EPCOR's operational efficiency. The company has been able to optimize its lifecycle asset management, improving its power distribution system reliability by 15%, despite the aging asset population. The increased granularity of asset data supported in AssetWise now allows EPCOR to assign a probability of failure, criticality, and risk cost to each of the assets. This information helps EPCOR identify the right actions or interventions to be applied, improving overall value of the services delivered to customers. The data also facilitates long-term planning of capital investments, enabling EPCOR to sustain electric system reliability despite increasing cost pressures and an unprecedented wave of aging infrastructure. The analysis work and its tangible results helped create opportunities for further cost savings through the use of stable, enduring contracts and improved bargaining power.

Impact #1

The implementation of the risk-based asset management process has significantly improved EPCOR's operational efficiency. The company has been able to optimize its lifecycle asset management, improving its power distribution system reliability by 15%, despite the aging asset population. The increased granularity of asset data supported in AssetWise now allows EPCOR to assign a probability of failure, criticality, and risk cost to each of the assets. This information helps EPCOR identify the right actions or interventions to be applied, improving overall value of the services delivered to customers. The data also facilitates long-term planning of capital investments, enabling EPCOR to sustain electric system reliability despite increasing cost pressures and an unprecedented wave of aging infrastructure. The analysis work and its tangible results helped create opportunities for further cost savings through the use of stable, enduring contracts and improved bargaining power.

Benefit #1	EPCOR calculated asset health for over 74,000 assets, representing 77% of the target population, with an average confidence factor of 86%.
Benefit #2	The utility reduced defective equipment outages by 43% within the first two years of developing the asset health index and risk-based asset management program.
Benefit #3	EPCOR’s asset performance has leveled and now falls within the acceptable regulated threshold. The total SAIDI was 0.833, well below the regulated threshold of 1.15 hours per customer.

Benefit #1

EPCOR calculated asset health for over 74,000 assets, representing 77% of the target population, with an average confidence factor of 86%.

Benefit #2

The utility reduced defective equipment outages by 43% within the first two years of developing the asset health index and risk-based asset management program.

Benefit #3

EPCOR’s asset performance has leveled and now falls within the acceptable regulated threshold. The total SAIDI was 0.833, well below the regulated threshold of 1.15 hours per customer.

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Overview

EPCOR's Digital Transformation: Risk-based Asset Management for Electric Distribution Network

Operational Impact

Quantitative Benefit