W W W. G O TO U A A . O R G | T H E O F F I C I A L N E W S L E T T E R O F T H E U T I L I T Y A R B O R I S T A S S O C I AT I O N
MAR/APR 2019
VOLUME 10
NUMBER 2
INSIDEExec. Director Comments........3UAA Officers List ......................4President’s Message ................4Member Profile............................7Research Committee Update...8Spotlight on the Environment:
WOW Program ................10Regional Reports ....................38
FOCUS ON TECHNOLOGY
Key Technology Initiatives......1The Case for Data Integration..12How Necessity Transformed
an Outdated VM Platforminto a New Goal-BreakingSoftware Solution............17
A Layered Look at LandManagement....................22
Aware Devices........................25Acquiring and Deploying
Key TechnologyInitiatives That ShouldBe on Everyone’s Radarin 2019
By Michlen Robinson, Manager of InformationSecurity, Lewis Tree Service
What would you do differently if youknew you were going to be robbed?
Michael Sentonas, Chief Technology andStrategy Officer, APAC for Intel Security,
famously asked that cyber security questionin 2015—and responded with high-level ad-vice on prevention, protection, detection,and rapid response (e.g., surveillancetechniques, sensors, indicators, alerts).
In today’s ever-shifting landscape, a dedi-cated focus on cyber security is more criti-cal than ever. In the past few years, manyof us in the vegetation management (VM)industry have been encrypting laptops, im-plementing laptop security tools to protectconfidential and personally identifiable in-formation, completing cyber securityawareness training, sending weekly cybersecurity tips, and ensuring compli-ance with customer cybersecuritybreach insurance requirements.
So what’s on the docket for2019? Continuous adherence toour Cyber Security programwith heightened focus on thefollowing items.
Third-Party Vendor Compliance
When examining therecent, high-profilesecurity breaches atcompanies like UnderArmour, Delta Air-lines, Best Buy, andso on (companies per-ceived to have signifi-cant technologyinvestments), what comes most heavilyunder scrutiny is third-party breaches.Clearly, this is an issue for companies inall industries. At Lewis, we are workingdiligently to ensure our vendors are meet-ing industry standards to protect ourdata—and then some. We’re validatingcurrent processes, designing stronger pro-cedures, incorporating more tools, andeducating vendors and employees accord-ingly. Our utility customers and our teammembers are depending on us and ourpartners to be at our best when managingthird-party interactions and this is a criti-cal focus area for us.
Employee Education
The phrase “You are the Weak-est Link; Good-bye” makes forgreat television, yet it’s thelast thing anyone wants to hearat work. For the past few
years, as part of our standardeducational offering, we have
F O C U S O N T E C H N O L O G Y
Utility Arborist NewslinePage 2
SAFETY IS MORE THAN JUST A NUMBER. BUT IF WE STRIVE FOR ONE, IT’S 0.
Programs like Davey Performance Excellence and The Road to Zero focus on holistic training, team goal setting and encouraging our industry professionals to proactively identify and correct unsafe behaviors and conditions towards achieving annual injury-free workplace goals.
daveyutilitysolutions.com/safety
SAFETY IN NUMBERS
ASSET MANAGEMENT
ENVIRONMENTAL CONSULTING
LINE CLEARANCE
STORM RESPONSE
VEGETATION MANAGEMENT
TELECOM CONSTRUCTION
ExecutiveDirectorComments
By Phil Charlton
If you were to research thedefinition for technology,you may be frustrated with therather broad simplicity of the an-swer. According to Merriam-Webster,it is “the practical application ofknowledge.” You may not considerall the tools used for your daily tasks“technology,” but at one point, thattool was a groundbreaking discovery.
This issue of the Newsline gives agreat look at the variety of ways in-dustry leaders and early adopters areapplying our ever-growing knowledgebase into practical processes, meth-ods, and tools for managing vegeta-tion. Technology is helping ourmembers as they work to createsafer and more reliable energy deliv-ery while giving greater care to our
environmental, social, andcultural resources.
Considering how far tech-nology has come and howit continues to improve,many agree that this is anexciting time to be in-volved in the utility vege-tation management (UVM)
industry. It is too bad so few of ourschools are preparing students—oreven making them aware of—UVM. Tothis end, the UAA executive teamwould like to develop a task force (ashort-term, focused working group)specifically to build student aware-ness. If the UAA can get the messageto graduating students and entry-level professionals, everyone willbenefit.
We need the next generation to pre-pare for the future, to bring newideas, and new energy. Students thatfind their careers in UVM will be wellrewarded too. Students today are mo-tivated by the impact they can makein a career field. Those interests align
well with what we do—managingmore than 14 million acres of rights-of-way (ROWs), and caring for morethan 500 million trees in the urbanforest. Students looking at a careerin the natural resource field will notfind opportunity like that elsewhere.Our members are shaping the urbanforest, creating wildlife habitat, andyes, working with emerging tech-nologies. We just need to get theword out.
I will admit that we have been talk-ing about this task force for sometime. It is time to quit talking aboutit and start doing something! We arelooking for a few committed mem-bers to offer just a little bit of time.If you are interested, just contact usthrough the UAA website. In themeantime, reach out to your almamater and put in a good word withtoday’s students.
As always, thanks are in order forthe Editorial Committee and to themany contributors to this issue ontechnology and UVM.
March–April 2019 Page 3
been working with all team members—includingthose most at-risk—on the dangers of sharingpasswords, opening bogus e-mails, clicking onunknown links, using public Wi-Fi, leaving devices un-secured, copying company data to USB drives and personale-mail, and downloading unknown or untested apps. Thisyear, we are encouraging all employees to share this infor-mation with their family members to improve their cyberbehaviors as well. We all need to take ownership, secureour data and devices, and report any cyber incidents asmission-critical events to ensure the company has fulltransparency and the ability to act quickly.
Disaster Recovery and Business Continuity
Residents of Buffalo Bills country live with a constant re-minder of the value of disaster recovery. In 2018, with oneof the highest percentages of career interceptions in theNFL (9.2 percent), Nathan Peterman was benched. Whotook his place? A 35-year-old quarterback recently broughtback into the NFL, who arguably should not have been onthe field. While some fans scratch their heads in regardsto some personnel decisions with our favorite sports
teams, we also imagine that teams like the Pa-triots have much stronger back-up plans inplace. They also seem to have the right player
for the right moment. At Lewis, we’re workingdiligently to make sure we’re prepared and have
a solid business continuity plan in place for all of ourunexpected twists and turns. We’re deep diving into vari-ous scenarios and possible catastrophic events while ask-ing questions like: Who can work? From where? How doesthis impact our employees and customers? What criticalsteps must be taken? Are we tested in particular scenarios?What is required to ensure continuity of services and ourbusiness?
As Tom Rogers, President and CEO of Lewis, has repeatedlyemphasized, “Our effective use of technology has becomea crucial part of delivering great value for our customers,protecting the interests of our employees, and our busi-ness assets. We must use technology responsibly at alltimes, and vigilantly safeguard the confidential informa-tion of our customers and team members.”
We look forward to meeting the continued technologychallenges of 2019 and pushing our company to be moreresilient and responsive—and hope that you are as well.
Greetings! You are in store for another in-formative issue of the UAA Newsline.
As I reviewed the articles in this technologyissue, I couldn’t help but reflect on the tech-nological advances I have personally used in
the utility vegetation management (UVM) industry in the last 25 yearsand how far we have come.
In the early 1990s, I was introduced to an IBM desktop computerequipped with internal company e-mail and a program called “dbase” totrack budgets and contractor invoicing. It was quite an improvementfrom the paper systems it replaced. At that time, we still had big two-way radios in our utility company vehicles for communications; cellphones were not standard issue. We looked up easement documentsstored in metal filing cabinets.
Then, a few years later, we were introduced to the laptop personal com-puter and the internet. By the late 1990s, we started using geographicinformation system (GIS) software in the field to collect vegetation infor-mation and plan work. It was extraordinary.
Since then, technological advances have often moved faster than manycompanies who try to build their business case in justifying total cost ofownership (TCO) or the return on investment (ROI) needed to purchaseand deploy new, hi-tech advances. Today, it is exciting to see all the in-novation still evolving with new ways to get our work done better, faster,safer, and most of the time, with the value required in calculating ROI.
One of the most exciting technology accomplishments I am seeing now isrelated to mobile devices and applications with planning prescriptionsfor the crews who perform VM work. The ability to assign work to a crewremotely, and for them to close the work out as completed, has arrived.
From a safety improvement aspect, current equipment technology is en-abling the removal of dead and decayed trees at much lower risk toworkers with the use of crane-mounted grapple saws. Climbing equip-ment technology has improved as well, reducing the number of injuriesascending, working, and descending the trees that must be climbed.
On the VM front, new herbicides and application techniques, coupledwith closed chain-of-custody management, has improved the precisionand efficacy of integrated vegetation management (IVM); It has the po-tential to turn millions of acres of rights-of-way (ROWs) into improvedhabitat for pollinators and other wildlife.
The point of all of this is to improve the safety, efficiency, and effective-ness of our operations, while also improving environmental sustainabilityand stewardship and providing the public with a higher level of service.
When you attend the upcoming UAA conferences this year, you will hearspeakers, meet vendors, and network with your peers willing to sharehow all the evolving technologies can help you achieve your personalgoals as well as the company’s.
Anand Persad, PhD; BCEManager Arboriculture and Plant Sci-ences/ Entomologist, The Davey Institute
Member Profile
By Jenna Paul, Davey Resource Group
Anand Persad, Ph.D., BCE has been a researchscientist with the Davey Institute for more than 15years, applying his expertise in entomology and thebiomechanics of trees to combat the effects ofinvasive pests, improve safety, and developpollinator friendly rights-of-way (ROWs) in theutility vegetation management (UVM) industry.
Dr. Persad recalled a Saman tree (Samaneasaman)—one of his favorites—as inspiration for
his career. He found this tree while growing up in thebeautiful Caribbean islands of Trinidad and Tobago.The Samaan soon fell victim to the pink hibiscusmealybug (Maconellicoccus hirsutus), a pest that af-fects many plants in tropical and subtropical regions.When that tree died, he acquired an interest in thegrowing concern around such destructive pests.
He later received a Bachelor’s of science degree, fol-lowed by a Master’s degree, and then his Doctoratefrom the University of West Indies, employing addi-tional knowledge gained at the Slimbridge WetlandCentre in Gloucestershire, England. He was later re-cruited by the United States Department of Agricul-ture (USDA) Research Service in Orlando, Florida toaid in researching the pink hibiscus mealybug andconducting research jointly with the University ofFlorida, Gainesville. Dr. Persad then transitioned towork with the Davey Tree Expert Company as a tech-nical advisor, intrigued by how he could apply hisknowledge in a commercial environment.
At Davey, Dr. Persad said that he found his niche in“listening to the field.” When pest treatment predic-tions using the old calendar system became an issue,he began to work on a daily temperature and phenol-ogy-based system, colloquially known as the “NatureClock,” which he would develop and patent. Dr. Per-sad said, “With new and emerging trends and variableweather patterns, more dynamic systems need to beemployed in managing trees and green spaces.”
Dr. Persad was also involved in the research on theEmerald Ash Borer (EAB) (Agrilus planipennis) and thisgrew into an interest in tree biomechanics and safety.When the threat of the EAB came into the spotlight,most scientists were focusing on eradication and man-agement. Dr. Persad decided to look at the situationfrom a different angle. He thought, “Let’s assume wecan’t manage the pest—what’s next?” Instead, hebegan to research how they could manage the effectsthis insect caused.
The research around EABled Dr. Persad into a deeperinterest of tree biomechan-ics and finding ways to re-late science to issues in thefield in meaningful, im-pactful ways. He was sur-prised that there were somany incidents, and, insome cases, hospitaliza-tions, of utility workers as-sociated with EAB, as thepests’ impact led to ashtree failure on job sites.This led to further studies centered on how and whytrees break and the formulation of the first safetyguidelines for the industry. He presented his data tothe Tree Care Industry Association (TCIA) nationalconferences in Baltimore and Pittsburgh, as well asseveral International Society of Arboriculture (ISA)and utility meetings and was well received. His workcontinues to have emphasis on improving safety pro-tocols and applied solutions to issues in the fieldaround tree failure and worker safety.
With the emergence of a greater appreciation forutility corridors as a habitat, Dr. Persad has focusedhis expertise on research that compares the pollina-tor values of vegetation in ROWs. This includesweighing the effects of different management tac-tics and accounting for changing weather patterns.These pollinator habitat quality (PHQ) evaluations,coupled with compatibility ratios of plant material,will ultimately contribute to advancing integratedvegetation management (IVM) standards in our indus-try. Dr. Persad said, “As we advance IVM and planahead, one must consider what the utility ROWs willlook like in the future. As fuel reduction efforts,habitat quality needs, regulatory compliance, etc.all emerge in greater importance, our research ef-forts often provide innovations and may guide theimplementation of new processes.”
As a chair of the UAA Research Committee, Dr. Persadacknowledges the importance of collaboration anddynamic change in an ever-growing industry. To him,the UAA is an important resource for growing thecommunication and collaboration needed in an indus-try that is anything but static. Moving forward, Dr.Persad said, “I believe that utility science needs,more than ever, to strive to be more of a behavior-based entity.” He continues to be interested in holis-tic approaches to current UVM issues and applying hisfindings to further train those in the industry.
Research Leads from Our Members: Technology and Innovation
By Dr. Anand Persad, Manager of Arboriculture and Entomology, The Davey Institute, andChuck Anderson, Executive Vice President and Chief Strategy Officer, ECI Consulting
Technological advancements and innovation work closely with scientificprogress and in the utility industry. They help guide our continuous ef-
forts for safer and more efficient work practices. The UAA Research Com-mittee understands that as we advance right-of-way (ROW) and utilitysciences, both technological advances and innovation should center uponrelevancy and successful implementation within the industry.
Our membership consists of experts with many years of in-depth knowl-edge about what works and what does not in the “real world.” We thushave access to one of the best sounding boards for what is relevant andwhat more is needed to enhance our research efforts and advance ROWscience. In this light, the Research Committee initiated a survey poll con-ducted in late 2018 that focused on ranking several tenets of our industry,including Employee, Contractor, and Public Safety; Service Reliability; andRegulatory Compliance.
The objective of the exercise was to help us prioritize our research focusand introduce various subcategories that our members prioritize. Analyz-ing the results from 89 member responses, we identified the followingcategories and subcategories (ranked 1-5) as member priorities:
Employee, Contractor, and Public Safety: (1) Training Relevance and Quality (2) Training Frequency
Service Reliability: (3) Tree Failure (4) Tree Worker Experience
Regulatory Compliance: (5) Training and Process Improvement
While this data from our membership is revealing of our times today andimportant to ROW science overall, we also recognize that social, ex-ploratory, and other research questions may arise from time to time andprovide additional scope for evaluation. We remain dynamic as a result ofthe emerging trends and many detailed questions on implementation; ourpartnerships and funding opportunities must reflect this. Through our maininternal funding source, the utility arborists research fund (UARF), in part-nership with the TREE Fund, seeks quality proposals annually. This allowsfor some level of work to get done on the science, technology, and innova-tion fronts—not through a static set of questioning, but through a living,breathing assemblage representing an evolving industry. We cannot do italone, however. Our membership, the industry at large, as well as new al-liances and collaborations between us and like-minded organizations willcontinue to drive innovative thinking and help us realize our implementa-tion goals to meet the needs of a growing, dynamic industry.
www.ARBORMETRICS .com • 1 . 866 .685 .1880 to l l f ree
To see ARBORLINE® in action call today for a demonstration!
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our ARBORLINE® technology allows easy access to data including tree species, location, notification notes, action to be taken, crew type and electronic signatures for permits. That means you are up to date throughout the entire process. That’s real power.
A
Page 10 Utility Arborist Newsline
SPOTLIGHTon the Environment
............................................................Winning with WOW ProgramBy Jason Grossman, Manager of Transmission and Distribution, Liberty Utilities
Vegetation management (VM) isessential for maintaining the
electric system’s reliability. Conven-tional means of managing vegetationcan upset some customers, espe-cially those who are environmentallyminded. Due to urban sprawl andfragmentation of land, finding acompromise between VM and prop-erty owners has led Liberty Utilities’Empire District to think outside ofconventional means and implement aWires Over Wildlife (WOW) Program.
Partnering with the Missouri Depart-ment of Conservation (MDC) andlandowners, WOW offers a solutionthat protects, restores, and en-hances wildlife habitat while main-taining the utility’s functionality ofthe right-of-way (ROW). Wildlifemanagement (WM) and VM comple-ment each other, so it should be nosurprise that the two practices haveoverlapping management principles.For conservation-minded propertyowners who enjoy the benefits na-ture offers, VM and WM can bewoven together to achieve positive,desired results for both parties.
WOW encourages propertyowners to manage their
own ROW for wildlifewhile averting the
need for utilityvegetation
management (UVM) maintenance.The solution is a cost-sharing pro-gram that re-allocates maintenancefunds directly to property owners forthe purpose of investing in their spe-cific wildlife goals. The goals foreach project are unique and typi-cally staggered throughout severalyears, with Liberty Utilities’ onlycaveat being the removal of tall-growing, woody vegetation from theROW.
Once the property owner has regis-tered for the program, a plan is cre-ated, which includes target dates. Insome cases, Liberty Utilities helpswith the initial clearing; however,most of the property owners are leftto complete the work on their sched-ule. The cost-sharing funds can beused for any part of the project(e.g., seeds, equipment purchase,fuel, etc.). WOW signs are posted atthe ROW entrances on the propertyfor utility workers’ awareness andfor conscientiousness about access.The typical agreement lasts for a sin-gle maintenance cycle (typically sixyears), and then the property owneris offered the option to re-enroll inthe program.
Managing the ROW for deer hasbeen the most popularchoice of propertyowners. In
NASA IMAGE
March–April 2019 Page 11
............................................................................southwest Missouri, deer hunting isnot just a hobby—it is a lifestyle.Monday mornings at the office arespent telling stories of close encoun-ters with them the previous weekendor sharing pictures of the harvest.Aerial patrol reports ROW lined withdeer stands and blinds as coworkersand neighbors vie for the year’s tro-phy. Several WOW participants areenticed to participate in the programwith the hope that this year, theirstory will be the one that is retold byothers.
Pollinator plots are another popularfunction of WOW resources. They arequite appealing to sensitive propertyowners. Pollinators have been a hottopic of discussion in the VM industrywith the emergence of Colony Col-lapse Disorder and the potential fed-eral listing of the monarch butterflyextinction. Wildflowers offer beautyand functionality to a ROW that mayotherwise be underutilized. If biolog-ical control is the ultimate goal forintegrated vegetation management(IVM) programs, then seeding ROWwith wildflowers pushes the pro-gram closer to that goal.
Some property owners prefer theutilitarian approach to maintainingtheir ROW by trying to attract asmany species as possible. One of Lib-erty Utilities’ WOW program partici-pants elected to plant a food plot ofbuckwheat on the ROW. She was im-pressed with the number of pollina-tors that were drawn to the site, aswell as the deer and turkey. Havinglived on the property the majority ofher life, she was also surprised at thepotential to hunt dove in the fall, anactivity which she had never doneprior to her enrollment in the WOWProgram due to lack of fowl to hunt.
When WOW projects become com-plex—to the point that it may bebeyond Liberty Utilities’ expertise—MDC is consulted. MDC has a staff ofprivate land consultants who special-ize in WM, and who have a wealth ofknowledge that adds multiple bene-fits to the WOW program. The vali-dation and credibility built with theorganization helps developa synergistic
relationship and another advocatefor Liberty Utilities’ VM program.
The property owner likewise be-comes an advocate. When value canbe added to someone’s property andthe utility can agree to assist themwith a project about which they arepassionate, all can benefit. Sharingpositive experiences with friends andneighbors is more powerful than ad-vertising with a thousand commer-cials. The relationships LibertyUtilities builds with its customers,the positive impact the company hason the surrounding wildlife, and theoverall reduction in VM maintenancemakes the WOW Program a win-win-win.
If you would like to share environ-mental stewardship projects takingplace on your ROW, send an e-mailto [email protected].
By Joe Purohit, President, EcoLayers, LLC;Justin Stratton, Production Manager ofSoftware Development, and Vince Mikula-nis, Market Manager, Davey ResourceGroup, Inc.
Utilities have traditionally usedsome combination of technolo-
gies, tools, and processes for utilityvegetation management (UVM). Thisincludes manual, paper-based ap-proaches, basic desktop or onlinedata and mapping tools, and high-end, custom-developed systemswhich cost millions of dollars. Whileit’s rare to find two utilities withidentical VM programs, they are allbut guaranteed to share one commoncharacteristic. They are driven pri-marily by the current state of utilitytechnology adoption. Almost everyaspect of UVM is being forced tofunction in highly fragmented silos of
data. This isolates analysis, organiza-tions, decision-making, and work-flows. The issue is that these are nottypically integrated holistically intoone system. The pervasiveness ofthese silos has severely affected theefficiency and effectiveness of prac-tically every UVM program.
The solution is to break down thesilos through the “integration” of ex-isting applications and systems. Inte-gration, as defined in this context,means bringing together the sepa-rate applications and systems to per-form a more complex task thatcannot be done by any individual ap-plication or system. There are manyfactors in UVM which drive the needfor integration as UVM shifts awayfrom routine line clearance towardstailored approaches focused on relia-bility and condition-based mainte-nance strategies. One factor is theneed for large, more diverse datasets from different sources likemicro weather stations and remote
sensing data. Another factor is theincreasing demand on the functional-ity and capabilities of what UVMshould deliver, as in the case of thefires in California.
The proper integration of existingtechnologies and business processeswill benefit utilities and improveUVM in many ways. It will improvedata sharing, collaboration, andwork hand-offs between depart-ments and contractors, reducing theneed for the manual handling ofdata. A sharable knowledge basewith a single point of access alsoleads to greater efficiency inprocesses for individual UVMprograms, including herbicide andpruning.
An interesting case study of integra-tion in action is the collaboration ofDavey Resource Group (DRG) andEcoLayers to develop unique solu-tions for integrated UVM. One of theearly implementations will be at the
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City of Palo Alto, California, whichowns and operates its own powerdistribution network. The City’sUrban Forestry Section of the PublicWorks Department is responsible forboth utility vegetation and urbanforestry management.
The dilemma for them is that thesetwo areas, which already struggle tofind an appropriate middle ground ondisparate goals, have been managedas separate programs. Their data waskept entirely in “silos” using paper-based processes and other legacysystems. For many years, the cityused DRG’s TreeKeeper platform tomanage the urban forestry and trackwork on street and park trees. Utilityline clearance used a variety of sys-tems, including pen and paper, todocument and manage the work per-formed.
The city has recently adopted Eco-Layer’s Tree Asset Manager (TreeAM)for its UVM. TreeAM is a softwareplatform for the systemic manage-ment of vegetation as environmentalassets. Its key capabilities includecontent aggregation from diversesources, data and process integra-tion, stakeholder collaboration, so-phisticated modeling and analytics,customizable workflows, and an
enterprise-grade asset managementsystem. This aids in the integrationof UVM with urban forestry, which isan important objective. Now and inthe foreseeable future, urbanforestry programs will continue to bemanaged in TreeKeeper, with utilityprograms managed in TreeAM.
From the City’s perspective, bothstreet trees and utility trees are partof the same urban forest, which sug-gests the need for the integratedmanagement of these two programs.This scenario makes a compellingcase for the integration of TreeAMand TreeKeeper, as conceptuallyillustrated in the figure below.
The primary integration objective isto enable the exchange and sharingof data between TreeKeeper andTreeAM through the use of applica-tion programming interfaces (APIs).The integration will also address thefrequency of data transfers, compat-ibility between the data structuresand organization, and data security,among other issues.
This one-time integration effort willprovide recurring, long-term benefitsto the city from the combined capa-bilities of both systems. Urban forestprograms can continue to be managed
using TreeKeeper. TreeAM will enablethe integration between UVM andurban forestry based on the mostcurrent data, with the ability tobring in new data sets in the future(e.g., LiDAR, weather), improve datasharing and collaboration across theorganization, and apply a new classof analytical and decision supporttools.
As Peter Bollinger, Program Managerat the City of Palo Alto, said, “Theintegration of TreeKeeper andTreeAM is something we here in theCity of Palo Alto Urban Forestry Sec-tion are very excited about. Our citystaff and field crews are very com-fortable working in the TreeKeeperframework. Adding the modeling andanalysis capabilities of TreeAM to theTreeKeeper user interface brings usthe best of both systems withouthaving to train users on a new pro-gram. This increase in functionality,along with a reduction in data silos,will play an important part in ourtransition from a cycle-based UVMprogram to a more risk-focused UVMprogram.”
Integration of existing data and sys-tems can be one of the most cost-ef-fective strategies for many utilitiesto improve their UVM programs.
F O C U S O N T E C H N O L O G Y
Work- Crews- Equip/Mtl- Track TE&M- Audit
Schedule and Assign Activities
Prioritize Activities
(System-wide)
Activities(VM Programs)
– Routine- Unplanned- Conditional
Assess Contition
(Veg & Utility Assets)
Manage Inventory and Data
Inventory,Field, and Sensors
Data
Existing Systems
Knowledge-Base
TREE ASSET MANAGER
Technology Integration: Working with Existing Systems
Modeling and Analytics
Integration
Existing Systems
March–April 2019 Page 15
relentless pursuitit’s our mission
®
At Lewis, our mission is to relentlessly pursue the successof our customers and employees through our commitment
Advances in technology enable us to accomplish more
– all of which
®
F O C U S O N T E C H N O L O G Y
March–April 2019 Page 17
By Lori Jones, Maintenance ServicesManager, Salt River Project (SRP)
Two Decades, Two Challenges, One Solution
For years, the vegetation manage-ment (VM) department at Salt
River Project (SRP) dispatched workto our contracted tree crews byhanding them a folder with one ormore maps. The tree company pre-planner would identify required VMwork and tree crews from the samecompany would execute the pre-scribed tree pruning and removal.Once complete, the tree crewswould turn in the completed folder.
VM staff would record the work com-pleted in our SmallWorld mapped en-vironment in a layer called “Arbor.”Between work assignment and com-pletion, VM had little visibility intowhat was happening in the field and,except for weekly verbal reports, lit-tle knowledge of where crews wereworking. Additionally, the amount ofwork required to map the completedwork orders into the Arbor layer wassimply too inefficient and costly.
Even with the addition of a thirdparty to assist with pre-planning andpermitting, our VM team knew au-tomation and streamlining wereneeded. We also knew that if we had
an inventory of vegetation across ourservice territory, it would be easierto plan work. These were seriousneeds because, as of that time, theVM team had yet to complete a dis-tribution cycle on time. Transmissioncycles always finished on time due toregulatory requirements, but thatoften meant our teams and contrac-tors focused exclusively on transmis-sion lines between November andFebruary—while distribution lineswaited. In a two-year cycle, thatmeant VM was typically six monthsbehind.
This was one part of the challengewe were facing at SRP. The need for
How Necessity Transformed an Outdated VM Platforminto a New Goal-Breaking Software Solution
a new solution became urgent whenour VM team learned that the Arborlayer was no longer going to besupported by Smallworld (and thatwe had less than a year to identifya replacement). A number of out-side vendors and their platformswere considered with respect to ourtimeline and budget, but aftercareful evaluation, we determinedthe most cost-effective solutionwith the shortest time to imple-ment could, in fact, be built by ourown geosgraphic information sys-tem (GIS) team working closely withour VM team.
We successfully configured an appthat allowed the VM team to auto-mate the influx of information, bet-ter capture tree inventory, andaffect a significant change in role-based work dispatch and comple-tion. We were also able to integrateour contracted partners into thenew solution. But what would wename our new automated solution?
Introducing Arbor II
Arbor II was created as a way forthe VM team to catch up to and eradicate the consistentdistribution lag. Using our in-house development team, wesuccessfully completed the Arbor II work management ap-plication in 2016. In keeping with our current work cyclesand processes, SRP identifies a specific region of our serv-ice territory requiring VM work. This area is mapped out inArbor II and released to our third party VM consultant,ACRT, to assess numerous aspects of the area, make treeprescriptions, and input all data into Arbor II.
ACRT pre-planners are equipped with a pictorial represen-tation of our overhead 12kV and 69kV distribution lines. Asvegetation is inspected along rights-of-way and in cus-tomer neighborhoods, trees are marked, quantities andspecies are identified, potentially aggressive dogs orhomeowners are indicated, and dates of when a neighbor-hood or lot was entered are collected. Some informationis captured by ACRT personnel in the field while otherdata, such as dates and line voltage, are captured auto-matically by the tool.
This new process has significantly increased and enhancedour overall productivity and the accuracy of our informa-tion. We are now able to capture data remotely and viewit immediately using WiFi and cellular data sync.
Once the assessment of the mapped region is completed,the required tree prescriptions and any other vegetation-
related work are released to treecrews in their respective layerwithin Arbor II. Work is identified aslift (L) or manual (M), so the typeof work crew needed can be viewedand dispatched up front.
As an aside, the collaborative ef-forts between our pre-planners andtree crews have paid dividends.Thanks to a system of benchmark-ing, prescription testing, and com-parison, both parties jointlyidentified the best path forward to-ward achieving SRP VM goals andare on the same page at all times.An immediate result of this collabo-ration is efficient completion ofwork for each region.
Long-Term Benefits of Arbor II
Arbor II brought many immediateand post-implementation benefits,such as faster data capture and cat-aloging, better visibility into thevegetation and customers through-out our service territory, better de-cision-making via data, andincreased productivity due to col-laboration between our consultants
and work crews. These were a boon to our operations, butthe true value rests in what Arbor II has allowed us to ac-complish with time.
Simply by launching Arbor II and eliminating the need tomap out the different areas on our system that require veg-etation work and customer notifications, we were able torealize a quantifiable savings of five percent in a singleyear. Another long-term benefit with a significant impact onour bottom line rests in the customer satisfaction realm.There are two components to this, the first being thelaunch of Arbor II and the second being an internal decisionto transition to a 100 percent customer notification model.
Prior to the development of Arbor II, work required on cus-tomer streets and alleys was performed without necessar-ily informing residents. This was not a sustainable model,as it led to complaints and pressure on our Consumer Af-fairs Ombudsman Office. With the launch of Arbor II andthe decision to notify all customers near where our teamswould be working, customer complaints have dropped sig-nificantly. All customers are now notified of work to beperformed in advance, and little intervention is neededfrom the Ombudsman Office.
Another benefit tied to the ease of data capture is themanner in which different lines were being worked on.Prior to Arbor II, SRP worked 12kV and 69kV lines in
Utility Arborist NewslinePage 18
SRP Arbor IIT - 115 and 230 kV - green shading isthe ROW and red shading indicates a sensitivearea where only hand cutting is allowed.
F O C U S O N T E C H N O L O G Y
March–April 2019 Page 19
separate cycles, even though 12kV lines are oftenunderbuilt below 69kV lines. Crews would pass throughthe same areas twice—treating the two voltagesseparately as each having a separate budget tied to them.The same was being done for higher voltage transmissionlines. This is no longer the case. Now, we are working linesat the same time and all year long, so as not to end upmonths behind on cycles that were already short induration. As a result, SRP is tracking ahead of schedule forboth distribution and transmission lines at the midyearmark for the first time. While SRP is at midyear, our workisn’t standing still at 50 percent complete. In fact, wehave completed 84 percent of our transmission work forthe year, with the remainder slated for early Q1 of 2019.Completing our two-year distribution cycle on time willafford an additional savings of nearly 25 percent byshaving six months of operational labor from our cycleexpenditures.
The Future of Arbor II
While Arbor II has been up and running for nearly twoyears, the platform won’t stop with distribution and low-voltage transmission. Work is already underway on ArborII-T—a transmission-specific version of Arbor II focusing on115kV, 230Kv, and 500kV transmission lines.
Beyond that, enhanced reporting features are beingdeveloped to indicate lead time. This past year, weeklyproduction metrics were put in place for tree crews andpre-planners. Rather than having crews focus oncompleting geographical regions as their productiontargets, SRP is now asking for crews to complete unit-based, weekly production targets for trees and brushpruning and removal. To ensure crews are able to fulfillthat goal, ACRT pre-planners must identify sufficientrequired work in advance of the tree crews completingthe required VM. This has led to a lag-time metric of 8–10weeks between work identification and completion. Wehave achieved this goal in some areas, while others areclosing in. Once realized system wide, a system ofrobocalls and other advanced customer notifications canbe implemented as an additional touchpoint for ourcustomers.
Additional plans are in the works, but for now, our focusis on fine-tuning and further developing Arbor II andArbor II-T to continue our goal of improving operationalefficiency, lowering tree-related outages (currently twopercent of all outages at SRP), and improving ourservice to our valued customers throughout our serviceterritory.
The Utility Arborist Associationis pleased to have anoutstanding group of utilitysupporters and corporatesponsors. We encourage you tovisit their websites to exploretheir products, services, andmission.
Many creative sponsorship andadvertising opportunities areavailable to reach the 4,700+
vegetation management professionals in NorthAmerica. Onsite, online, or print advertising options canincrease visibility and build brands.
There are also other sponsorship opportunities thatinclude any or all of the following options throughoutthe year:
• Regional Meetings
• Safety Summit
• Webinars
If you are interested in advertising with the UAA, ourMedia Guide includes advertising rates and sponsorshipinformation. The guide is available via a link on thesponsors page at www.gotouaa.org.
If your company is interested in sponsoring the UAA inone of many possibilities, please contact us today.
The Utility Arborist Association isthe leading North Americanorganization for the enhancement ofquality utility arboriculture andright-of-way management. Oursuccess relies on the support wereceive from all of our members,sponsors, and volunteers.
Companies that go above andbeyond to support our mission willbe recognized annually through ourPartners in Excellence (PinE)Program.
Membership, sponsorship,advertising, active committeevolunteerism, and many othermeans have been quantified andassigned a value, all adding up toequal a PinE Score.
All applications and supportingmaterial of qualifying companies arereviewed and selected by the PinECommittee.
We want to take this time tocongratulate and thank our 2018PinE Award Recipients.
Your continued support of the UtilityArborist Association is greatlyappreciated on many levels.
A Layered Look at Land Management—Technology Offers a Clear ViewOpinion Editorial by Chris Kelly,CEO, Clearion
Back in the “olden days” (i.e., the1960s and ‘70s), when people
proudly displayed sets of encyclope-dias on their shelves, curious youngstudents would spend hours flippingthrough the pages of information.Most interesting were the layers oftransparent pages that combined toreveal different views of the humanbody—the outer skin, tissues, muscles,organs, and bones—each page addinga level of detail and specificity. Theprinted tomes are a thing of the past,but the concept of those layeredpages is as relevant as ever in the dig-ital world, and utility vegetation man-agement (UVM) is no exception.
Today, vegetation managers and crewsat major utility companies and otheragencies can use this powerful, digi-tal, layered approach to give them anunparalleled level of information andallow them to control the way theirassets and lands are managed.
In the past few years, the team atClearion has been working with utilitypartners on a number of user-friendlytechnical solutions to layer readilyavailable, third-party data across thevast data sets in their geographic in-formation systems (GIS). This data canreveal targeted views at the touch of ascreen rather than the flip of a page—and we’re happy to share some keyexamples to kick off the New Year.
Property-Level Insights and Location-Based Natural Hazards
How many of you have ever receiveda call that your VM crews “butchered”a property owner’s 100-year-old fam-ily heirloom trees?
In today’s world, where customersatisfaction and crew soft skills areincreasingly more imporant, it iscritical to access granular propertyinformation prior to engaging withcustomers and accessing properties.These insights help prevent avoid-able disputes with valued customers.
Enter CoreLogic. For many of you,CoreLogic is already fairly wellknown. Utilities have partnered withCoreLogic for years, using their par-cel-level information for infrastruc-ture planning, engineering,emergency preparedness, and more.Yet, for nearly a decade, VM has be-come an increased area of focus forCoreLogic and its utility customersdue to the depth, accuracy, and cur-rency of their property data.
In addition to key geospatial informa-tion, such as current property ownerand contact information, CoreLogicoffers acreage, valuation, how theproperties is viewed (e.g., residence,farm, warehouse, commercial,restaurant), land use, water sources,and more. All of this is tied togetherby property boundaries or lots. Core-Logic also offers nine natural hazarddata sets (i.e., flooding, storm surge,hurricane winds, wildfire, earth-quakes, hail, tornados, straight-linewinds, and sinkholes) to heighten de-cision making.
When this data is overlaid with theutility infrastructure, VM teams havethe right information at their finger-tips to best plan and manage cus-tomers on a property-by-propertybasis.
Did a prior crew have a negative in-teraction with a homeowner or anaggressive dog? With parcel-levellayered information, current crewswould know if the property haschanged owners since the last inter-action or to be on high alert if thecontentious homeowner remains.
As any utility that has one or morefull-time employees who focus onproperty-level data can tell you,keeping it up-to-date can be a time-consuming and expensive ordeal. Insome utilities, GIS professionalsspend a lot of time hunting downdata which may not be current. In-stead of working on vital projects,they are up to their ears in cleansingand triaging data instead of simplyaccessing and consuming third-party
data that is current (i.e., updated ona quarterly basis), accurate, andreadily usable.
Sensitive/Specialty Crops and Beehive Layers
How many of you have ever receiveda call that your VM crews sprayeddownwind of an apiary and killedtheir bees? Or harmed their organiccrops?
This January, CropLife magazinenamed the FieldCheck app, fromFieldWatch, one of the “15 Best NewAgriculture Apps for 2019.” This appallows pesticide applicators to locatespecialty crop and beehive locationseasily from their mobile device ortablet by providing access to theDriftWatch Specialty Crop andBeeCheck Apiary Registry data. Usersin the field simply click on the pinsto see the detailed contact and loca-tion information they need. Field-Watch registries are free andvoluntary for crop producers, bee-keepers, and pesticide applicators toutilize and can be layered into any ofClearion’s applications.
These tools were originally devel-oped by a team at Purdue for theagriculture industry, but now servemany non-agriculture industries, in-cluding right-of-way (ROW) stewards,vegetation managers, mosquitosprayers, and state departments oftransportation. At this time, the dataincludes specific fields for 46 chemi-cal-sensitive crops including thosefound at vineyards, orchards, fishhatcheries, organic corn and tomatofarms, apiaries, and more.
Importantly, the data is crowd-sourced with significant growth inthe last few years. Picture the app“Waze” for growers of sensitive andspecialty crops. Users drop pins toidentify their sites and an easy-to-use drawing tool enables them todraw polygons around their sites.The tool currently has 21 states onboard with more states and mapscoming online in 2019.
March–April 2019 Page 23
When scheduling utility spray work,planners may note pins on the map.By clicking to the next layer, theycan zoom in to find further informa-tion, such as contact information andtype of crop (e.g., conventional ororganic). This enables planners orusers in the field to contact theowner and ask, “When is a good timeto spray?” Beekeepers can closetheir hives and organic farmers mayopt-out of spraying. Imagine all thiscrucial operational information atthe fingertips of managers and workplanners at every phase of the workprocess. This allows customer notifi-cation to become more collabora-tive, decreases customer complaints,and heightens satisfaction.
Right Tree, Right Place with LiDAR
As we all know, when fewer treesneed pruning, utilities can delivertheir service more reliably, at alower cost, with fewer VM safetyconcerns, and less customer hassles.
Enter “right tree, right place” or RTRP.
With LiDAR tree detection and speciesidentification, you can identify andmark RTRP trees in your ROW thatyou will not have to maintain for atleast three years. When effective atthe span level, you can eliminateRTRP spans from your maintenancecycle—with biannual checks to ensureaccuracy. With this layer of informa-tion available to VM planning teamsand crews, they just need to markand update any new information ontrees/spans for immediate or futureaction. This includes logging treegrowth regulator locations, whichhold for a three-year cycle.
Layered Information for a Comprehensive View
More data equips decision-makers tomake better decisions. What’s evenbetter is when all teams are collabo-rating, sharing, and modifying thesame information in a single, layered
view as opposed to compiling infor-mation from multiple data sources.
If you are one of those utilities whois utilizing a robust GIS system, butstill find yourselves pushing a lot ofpaper or working from disparate sys-tems, this may be the year when youcommit to saving time, money, andresources by moving beyond the oldencyclopedic way of working andfully embracing the digital space.
At any given moment, a layered ap-proach to data management canoffer a clear view of all informationthat is available and needed in orderto plan the work, notify propertyowners for permissions, execute andaudit the work, and issue reports inreal time.
In 2019, let’s commit to using all thetools and available data to know howto be good stewards—and be better,smarter, and more customer-centric.Your team will thank you.
YOUR RESULTS DEPEND ON OURSYour customers rely on you to provide the energy that powers their lives. You rely on Davey to improve the reliability of your grid and enhance the safety of your communities. We rely on data, technology, our people and proven solutions to impact your reliability metrics.
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Utility Arborist NewslinePage 24
F O C U S O N T E C H N O L O G Y
It would probably be a safe bet thatthe average citizen is much more
susceptible to tree growth or treesfalling into an overhead powerlinethan a homeowner who is also a util-ity arborist by training and vocation.As a population, members of the UAAare less likely to have a tree-relatedoutage, fire, or accident result fromtheir own tree. One would furtherexpect that, as utility arborists, wewould not plant trees geneticallypre-disposed to grow to 100 feet di-rectly underneath powerlines. Thatshould all make intuitive sense,right?
As utility arborists, we routinely in-spect our own landscaping and askourselves the following questions: • Are our trees growing near the
high-voltage lines? • Could they become a climbing
hazard due to their proximity to
the lines? • Are they overhanging or leaning
towards the electric facilities? • Are they pressing heavy on our
service drop or secondary lines? • Are they displaying any new
evidence of decline or disease?
As a utility arborist, it could andshould be embarrassing to have anavoidable outage caused by one ofour own trees. It’s our job to pre-identify those conditions and preventthose issues from happening. If wedo encounter an issue, we wouldlikely get it fixed before it causes aproblem.
So, if we know how to identify andprevent most of the tree-relatedoutages, fires, and accidents, whycan’t we do that for all the trees wemanage? Why are tree-related out-ages still the number one cause of
the lights going out? Why are we ex-periencing more tree and power line-related fires? And why iselectrocution still a major killer inthe green industry?
While the most common answer tothose questions is that we don’t havethe money or resources (at leastbased on industry benchmarking), wewould offer up a different twist onthe actual problem. We believe thatthe more often tree and power lineinspections are done, the less likelywe will have problems. Let’s unpackthat statement.
Utility arborists probably examinetheir own trees every day as theywalk by them. However, they likelydo not pay much attention to theirneighbors’ apart from once or twiceduring a typical three- to seven-yeardistribution cycle (note: NERC trees
March–April 2019 Page 25
Aware Devices for Monitoring as a Service forBuilt Environment and InfrastructureBy Stephen Cieslewicz, CRO, and Tero Heinonen, CEO, Aware
How a newdevice willdramaticallyreduce tree-relatedoutages, fires,and accidentsin the verynear future.
Utility Arborist NewslinePage 26
are inspected once a year by man-date and California utilities do theseinspections at least once a year forevery foot of their transmission anddistribution lines).
Lack of money and resources aside,how much of an impact on reliabilityand public safety could you make ifyou could inspect everyone’s treesevery day?
That one critical question is whatlead to the development of Awaredevices for Monitoring-as-a-Servicefor Built Environment and Infrastruc-ture.
An Aware network is a scalable end-to-end sensor system for infrastruc-ture monitoring. It incorporates 3Dimaging, secure mesh networking,cloud processing, and machine learn-ing to enable real-time situationalawareness across an entire electricsystem. In layman’s terms, thatmeans we can actually inspect everytree condition every day.
Aware devices are mounted on poles,towers, or others structures and theyprovide daily information that willbe effective in preventing a goodportion of our tree-related outages,fires, and accidents. One mounteddevice can provide real-time im-agery, take a daily LiDAR scan, moni-tor real-time wind speed and wind
direction, and of course, reliablymeasure ambient temperature andconditions. When these proprietarydevices are connected via a securemesh network, the accumulated datais processed and the utility is “auto-matically” notified of changing orchanged conditions. The utility canthen remotely view the conditionsand, when necessary, send appropri-ate resources to fix the threats be-fore they manifest into actualaccidents.
While only a short list of actual ca-pabilities, here is what they can do:
• Aware sensors automaticallymeasure actual distances betweenvegetation and powerlines, andwhen a pre-determined clearanceis breached, the utility is notified.
• Aware sensors can detect newleans of trees adjacent to powerlines, and when a pre-determinedtolerance is violated, the utility isautomatically notified.
• Aware sensors can detect newlyplanted trees adjacent to powerlines, and automatically notify theutility.
• Aware sensors can continuallytrack wind speeds and winddirections and then automaticallynotify the utility when a breach oftolerances is imminent. (Forexample, we know, based on theBeaufort Scale, that trees start tobreak apart at 39 miles per hour.)
• Aware sensors can monitor andalert the utility of a change inlocalized fire conditions. (Forexample, high winds, lowhumidity, and high temperatureshave been contributors to many ofthe major tree- and power line-related fires in the west.)
Aware sensors track real-time envi-ronmental conditions on a daily basisand then utilize a robust back-end,cloud-based processing system toperform automatic change detectionto identify irregularities. Theseanomalies could include newly bro-ken overhanging limbs, trees startingto lean towards the lines, fast grow-ing trees encroaching into estab-lished clearances, and of course,
newly planted trees under or nearthe electric facilities.
A couple other features include:• The devices can be powered by a
solar panel or hard-wired like atypical street light.
• They have back-up battery powerthat will be functional for fivedays without power, and they alsowork in areas that do not havereliable cellular networks.
This is all possible because Awarewas founded by experienced andsuccessful technologists who are ex-perts in remote sensing, UAV/UAS,and in the development of cost-ef-fective miniaturized sensors for au-tonomous vehicles. Aware foundersalso have an extensive background inutility vegetation management(UVM) and in critical infrastructureprotection.
Other potential UVM programs prob-ably come to mind too. Aware pro-vides the ability to accuratelymeasure distances between vegeta-tion and powerlines along a com-plete electric system, which meansit could be used to identify andquantify all of the actual UVM workthat needs to be done in the field—remotely. That also means it couldquantify and audit completed workremotely and automatically. If Awarecan provide remote visual access toreal-time conditions on your system,couldn’t it also significantly reducethe time it takes to restore powerafter a major event? For example,Aware can provide real time visualaccess to what is on the ground, orstill up in the air.
We should also be clear on whatAware devices will not do. Awaredoes not replace the arborist expertsin assessing a specific situation. In-stead, it provides an alarm to look atthe situation at the right time, andthe tools and information to analyzethe matter quickly, efficiently and,in many cases, entirely remotely.This will better inform what workneeds to be done and where, butsomeone still has to notify customersand agencies and, of course, fix the
F O C U S O N T E C H N O L O G Y
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www.isa-arbor.com/TRAQ
problem. Aware will give us a better ability to scheduleand complete our UVM work in record time. That may beimportant to those interested in SAIDI.
So, how much will it cost? That’s a question that is cur-rently being evaluated with the pilot projects. Right now,we can say it will be a lot less expensive than simply in-creasing foot, LiDAR, or aerial patrols to a more frequentbasis during the year. We recognize this wouldn’t work ifwe had to pay the cost of performing daily inspections onour lines. It has to be cost effective in relation to its value.Current estimates suggest the device and installation costwill be similar to installing a new street light, with aboutthe same installation costs.
This is not a “pie-in-the-sky” proposition. These devicesare currently being evaluated and piloted at two majorutility companies in the West. We expect to complete ourpilots this year and be fully prepared to scale and deploycircuit- and grid-wide solutions for other utilities begin-ning in 2020.
Given the implications of this new technology, we will beupdating the UVM community as we progress through ourpilots. Until then, feel free to contact us or track ourprogress at www.aware.us.
Utility Arborist NewslinePage 28
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Utility Arborist Newsline
F O C U S O N D E V E L O P I N G R E L AT I O N S H I P S W I T H A G E N C I E S
Page 30
Deploying software to assist in your vegetationmanagement (VM) operations can be a
challenging endeavor, but there are a few tools youcan use from the project management world thatwill allow you to ensure a quality end productdelivered on time, in budget, and within scope.
Project management is a science and disciplinedeveloped in the 1950s to codify the process ofmanaging projects across all disciplines. It can bedefined as the application of processes, methods,knowledge, skills, and experience to achieve projectobjectives (association for project management).
You may have staff within your organization thathelp manage software acquisition and deploymentprojects; however, you—as the primarystakeholder—have a responsibility to understandand guide their efforts to achieve the bestoutcome. You are the subject matter expert on theprocesses and operational goals you would like thesoftware to address, and the more input you havein the process, the better the outcome will be.
The Software Acquisition and Deployment Project
While every organization follows different steps and mayuse differing terminology, in general, a software acquisi-tion and deployment project will have the following steps:
Needs Assessment and Joint ApplicationDesign (JAD)
Ideally, this takes place before acquiring any software.This is the time to sit down and map out the processes andoperations you would like the software to address in de-tail, and be sure to include all the operational roles thatwill have a stake in using the software or its outputs. Thiscan include planning staff, line clearance contractors,foresters, and management. These meetings can be con-ducted in face-to-face meetings (ideal), or via electroniccommunication, like video web conference. What is im-portant is that all stakeholders have an opportunity toprovide input on what they would like to see out of theproposed deployment. Two primary documents can be cre-ated from a thorough needs assessment:
1. Functional Requirements Document (FRD). A goodFRD will list in detail the things you want the softwareto accomplish, and require potential vendors to list ex-ceptions to meeting any of the requirements. The more
Requirement Number Description Notes
WORK PLANNING REQUIREMENTS
Functional Requirement 1.1 Ability to collect tree removalagreements in approved format
Provide vendor with current papertree removal agreement
Functional Requirement 1.2
Ability to modify planning work types Provide vendor with XLS of currentwork types
TREE CREW REQUIREMENTS
Functional Requirement 2.1 Ability to enter hours worked andcrew complement at each worklocation
Functional Requirement 2.2 Routing of crew from current worklocation to next work location
MANAGEMENT CONSOLE
Functional Requirement 3.1 Ability to create reports on circuitstatus
Functional Requirement 3.2 Map-based views depicting circuitwork completion status
Provide GIS infrastructure data
Figure 1: A completed FRD can be as simple as a list of expected program functionality.
Acquiring and Deploying Software Technology Solutions Using a ProjectManagement Framework By Tim Rowell, IT Program Manager, ArborMetrics Solutions, Inc.
STEP 1
March–April 2019 Page 31
specific you can bein these require-ments, the better.Be sure to includeany requirementsaround technicalsupport, hardware,application docu-mentation, and anyapplication outputs(printed or elec-tronic) like re-moval forms, workmanifests, maps,etc. (Figure 1).
Don’t worry about this list being too long. Themore detailed you are, the fewer questions aboutdesired functionality you are likely to receivefrom the vendor, the fewer changes down theroad in the deployment phase, and the morelikely you will be to get the quality-end productyou are seeking.
2. Project Scope Document. “Scope” refers to aprojects (or products) boundaries, what will becompleted (and maybe what won’t be com-pleted), what the project or product will de-liver, what happens when the inevitable changesoccur, project deadlines—in short, everythingrequired to ensure a project comes in on time,in budget, with the appropriate deliverables.
If you have project managers on staff, the cre-ation of a comprehensive scope document willmost likely be their task to complete. Againthough, you are the stakeholder with the most“skin in the game,” and the more information youcan provide regarding desired functioning, opera-tional deadlines, budgetary constraints, etc., thebetter outcome you can expect.
This document provides your input into the com-pleted project scope document. This is vital to in-sure that your interests, as a primary projectstakeholder, are addressed.
Request for Proposals (RFP)
Creating the RFP will likely fall to someone inyour procurement department, but you will needto provide the critical information about whatorganizational needs you have determined arerelated to the software functioning. If you con-ducted a thorough needs assessment, you havethis information ready to go in the form of yourFRD and scope input documents.
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Applying theseconcepts from projectmanagement can helpto ensure thesoftware acquisitionand deployment tasksrun as smoothly aspossible and result ina focused and qualityproduct that meet allorganizationalrequirements, andare deployed inbudget, in scope, andon time.
(Continued on page 32)
Utility Arborist NewslinePage 32
F O C U S O N D E V E L O P I N G R E L AT I O N S H I P S W I T H A G E N C I E S
It probably goes without saying, but you need to be an inte-gral part of the RFP review process. One of your most criti-cal tasks will be to review how closely each RFP submittalmeets the functional requirements you created in yourneeds assessment.
Software or Vendor Assessment
Part of the decision-making process should be an opportu-nity for select software vendors to demonstrate softwarefunctioning in person or via a web meeting. This is thetime to ask any questions you may have had after the RFPreview, and to get a feel not only for the software, butthe vendor themselves. Some aspects to consider duringdemos and vendor assessments from the project manage-ment level:
• How well does the software meet your desired func-tional requirements? Have your requirements documentin front of you, and check off each requirement as it isaddressed. Realize as well that some customization andconfiguration may be necessary by the vendor to meetall of your requirements, so you can ask how a particu-lar requirement will be met in the completed software.
• How will changes be handled? In a software deploymentproject, a change can be defined as any desired func-tionality outside of the currently defined project orproduct scope. This may be addressed in your RFP al-ready, but it’s never too early to start the discussionabout how the inevitable change requests will be han-dled, and you can prepare for a potential vendor’s abilityto handle these changes by directly asking the question.
• Change often comes with additional cost or impacts toproject timeline. We’ll talk a little more about changemanagement in the next section.
Managing the Software Deployment
Once you have awarded the contract to a vendor, the test-ing and deployment phase of the project begins. There area few tools here in the project management toolbox thatcan help you in this testing and deployment period. If youhave a comprehensive project scope document, these con-cepts will already be defined and in place, but it’s a goodidea for you to be familiar with the terms and your role inguiding the project to a successful completion.
In general, a software deployment will go through one ormore rounds of on-site testing in your operational environ-ment in order to work out any issues with the software orintegrations with your current systems. While not in thescope of this document, it is helpful to understand anddiscuss with your vendor the potential interruptions toyour ongoing operations and contingency plans for mini-mizing impact to daily operations during this period.
The following are steps you can look for to assist in thetesting and deployment process:
1. Project milestones. Project milestones can give youpausing places within testing and deployment to takestock of project metrics. How is the project proceedingalong the established timeline? Is the project still ontrack to meet budget goals? Some of the establishedmilestones in a software deployment project can in-clude: commencement of a testing phase, delivery of arelease version of software, and a scheduled projectprogress review.
2. Change Tracking. The only sure thing about almost anyproject is that changes will occur, and many of themwill come in the testing phases, as each end-user roleputs the software through its paces. These changes maytake the form of additional requirements from end-users, corrections to program functioning that mayhave been misunderstood by the vendor or your organi-zation, etc. It is important to designate someone tocompile all change requests coming from the end-users,and submit them to the change request process. Yourscope document will have defined the process forchange management, and it will most likely take theform of a formal request from you to have a changeconsidered and accepted or rejected. It is critical tounderstand the impact of any approved changes ontimeline and budget, and these impacts should bequantified in the change request process.
3. Deliverables. During testing and deployment, you willbe provided with project deliverables. These may betesting instances of the software, draft version of docu-mentation, etc. It is important to have defined “accep-tance criteria” for deliverables—most critically, theproduction release. Ideally, acceptance criteria for theproduction release would be that it meets all of the cri-teria in your functional requirements document andproject scope, along with any approved changes at anacceptable level of quality, defined as the degree towhich a product complies with the requirements.
4. Project Closeout. Project closeout is the process of fi-nalizing all project activities, and is an often over-looked step in a project. During this project phase, youwill want review your FRD to ensure all requirementshave been met to your satisfaction. You may also wantto review how the project went, and derive any lessonslearned. This closeout also serves to create a firm end-ing to the project for both your organization and thevendor, and prevents those “never-ending” projectsfrom occurring.
Applying these concepts from project management canhelp to ensure the software acquisition and deploymenttasks run as smoothly as possible and result in a focusedand quality product that meet all organizational require-ments, and are deployed in budget, in scope, and on time.
Townsend Tree Service (TTS) has the experience and capability to provide the high standards of performance that help clients efficiently meet their ever expanding, challenging IVM goals. With over 3,000 equipment assets, a large geographic footprint and a steadfast commitment to safety, TTS is uniquely positioned to perform a broad range of services including tree trimming, T&D line clearance, and other IVM services critical to the maintenance of electric power lines, communication lines, pipelines and roadways.
TTS Services• Vegetation Management• T&D ROW Clearance• Herbicide Spray Application• Line Assessments• Electronic Work Planning
By Deborah Sheeler, Production Managerof GIS services, Davey Resource Group,Inc. and Thomas Barracca, U.S. BusinessDevelopment Manager, ULC Robotics
Aerial mapping and acquiring re-motely sensed data such as light
detection and ranging (LiDAR) hasbecome much more common intoday’s utility vegetation manage-ment (UVM) and environmentalconsulting practices. There are sev-eral key benefits for using smallunmanned aerial vehicles (UAV), ordrones, as opposed to conventionalmethods such as manned aerialacquisitions:
• Decreased cost. Unmanned air-craft can be deployed rapidly andgather data in a matter of hours.
• Faster data delivery. Currentdata acquired can be processedand delivered in a matter of days.
• Improved safety. Small UAVs sup-plement the ground, vehicle, andmanned aerials inspections whileremoving workers from risks ofhazardous terrain and other chal-lenging environments.
The Challenge
Energy companies face many reali-ties for system disruptions, includingequipment failures, vegetation,weather, and wildlife as the mostcommon examples. One of the lead-ing causes of power outages are dueto vegetation encroachment,wherein vegetation comes into con-tact with electric conductors. Tradi-tionally, manned aerial acquisitionshave been used to acquire LiDARdata system wide to accurately maputility features and the surroundingvegetation within the utility corri-dors. Although manned acquisitionsare great for capturing system-wideinformation for large regions, thesheer amount of data takes weeks ormonths to schedule, weeks to ac-quire, months to process, and be-comes outdated in certain locations
by the time the data isdelivered.
Since ground conditionsrequire constant moni-toring when it comes tovegetation health andgrowth, as well asweather- and human-related disturbances,manned acquisition can-
not account for all environmentalchanges within the timeframe ofeach acquisition. The use of a drone,on the other hand, provides a wealthof benefits to energy companies. Itis more cost efficient to deploy,
acquire, process, and deliver datawithin hours/days in comparison tothe conventional methods ofweeks/months. It also supplementstraditional ground inspections tohelp decrease inspection costs by de-termining areas that are clear and donot require foot patrols, improveworker safety due to avoidance ofchallenging terrain and heights, andenhance system reliability with theability to quickly deploy a drone tocapture current ground conditions.
The Solution
Davey Resource Group, Inc. and ULCRobotics had an opportunity to part-ner on a pilot project for a utilitycompany in the state of New York.Using LiDAR and high-resolution cam-era sensors mounted on a custom-de-veloped small UAV platform, ULCRobotics conducted an aerial inspec-tion on multiple sections of a utilityright-of-way (ROW) approximately2.5 miles, acquiring remotely senseddatasets. FAA-Certified commercialdrone pilots captured LiDAR pointcloud data, current high-resolutionimages, and ground control points(GCP) with multiple flights alongboth sides of the corridor and a sub-station at a specified elevation anddistance. All LiDAR and imagery datacaptured were provided to Davey Re-source Group, Inc. for processing andanalysis.
Derived from the point cloud data, veg-etation elevations were transformed
The Value of LiDAR Acquired by Drone Versus Conventional Methods
Sample result of tree canopy layerclassified by height from processed LiDARdata and possible infraction locationsidentified within a specified bufferdistance of the conductors.
In an industry wheremitigating risks is a toppriority, remote sensingtechnology not only providesan important analysis tool,but can help lead the way tosolving challenging problems.
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into raster grids through geoprocess-ing operations by a certified geospa-tial analyst. Elevation models weregenerated from the processed LiDARdata to associate heights to the cur-rent ground features. Furthergeospatial, imagery analysis, andautomated feature extractionprocesses were conducted to gener-ate the final vegetation layer thatdetermines possible infraction loca-tions where canopy encroachmentwas identified to be within a speci-fied buffer distance of the conduc-tors. Supplemental three-inchresolution imagery was also utilizedas a visual reference for the qualityassurance and quality control(QA/QC) process of the vegetationlayer.
Maps were generated to provide a vi-sual representation of the data andalso aided in routing to specific loca-tions for further ground inspections
to be completed (Figure 1). Thesedata were classified by height and allfinal deliverables were provided tothe client in a GIS format compatiblewith their existing software program,along with a report describing theresults of the detailed findings.
The Results
Key results from this pilot projecthighlighted a more cost-effective ap-proach when utilizing a small UAV tocapture current LiDAR and high-reso-lution imagery to monitor utilityROWs in a much shorter time frame.Data was acquired in a few hours,and can be processed and deliveredwithin a few days when automatedscripts and processes are generated. This data acquisition was focused onimproving operational efficiencies,safety, and reliability. The resultsfrom this assessment provided impor-tant information using an innovative
solution that allows managers tomake informed decisions quickly forbudgeting and prioritizing line in-spections using the most current dataavailable. Because land cover is con-stantly changing due to vegetationgrowth, weather conditions, andhuman activities, the ability toquickly deploy a drone is crucial inorder to accurately acquire, process,and deliver the most current LiDARand imagery data while providing amuch more cost-effective approachfor monitoring change.
Further analysis can be completed bycapturing multispectral and hyper-spectral imagery to determinevegetation health and species identi-fication. In an industry where miti-gating risks is a top priority, remotesensing technology not only providesan important analysis tool, but canhelp lead the way to solving chal-lenging problems.
By Scott Rogers, Senior VicePresident, Technology Integration,Environmental Consultants
In the past few years, a numberof utilities have implemented
various technology solutions to as-sist with their vegetation manage-ment (VM) planning, execution,and reporting. The value thatthese software applications havebrought has convinced many otherutilities that are currently consid-ering similar projects.
The implementation of any newtechnology requires careful plan-ning and thought. Technology canbring enormous benefits to theorganization, but the intendedbenefits are minimized if the tech-nology is implemented withoutconsideration of how the applica-tions will be incorporated and sup-ported by the business. Likewise,great technology with a well-de-signed business process will onlyproduce less-than-adequate resultswhen it is poorly adoptedthroughout the organization.
Therefore, when organizing tech-nology implementation, it’s im-portant to consider all aspects ofthe project from start to finish.To do this, many utilities—andthe consultants that supportthem—have adopted implemen-tation methodologies to helpguide the project to a successfulcompletion. I’ve found this four-step process to be effective:
1. Understand your currentprocesses.
2. Design your futureprocesses with the impactof technology in mind.
3. Choose the right solution4. Implement the solution.
Obviously, this is a simplifiedmodel and there are a number of
subcomponents to each step.Refer to Figure 1 to examine thisin more detail.
Understand Your CurrentProcesses
You cannot solve a problem un-less you understand what theproblem is. This statement defi-nitely applies to technology im-plementation. When starting aproject, it’s important to under-stand your current businessprocess. Areas for considerationinclude, but are not limited to:
• How will work keep movingthrough your process?
• What is the volume of work tobe completed?
• Who will be responsible foreach process step?
• What will be the inputs foreach step and what is theexpected output?
• How long will it take tocomplete each step?
• What data is needed tosupport your process and whatis the source of that data?
• How often will that dataupdated?
In general, prioritize how workwill flow, the volume of work inthe flow, and how long it takes inthe projected timeline. Each ofthese considerations will be help-ful in understanding where po-tential bottlenecks might arise.Also, analyzing these factors canhelp spot where process gaps orweaknesses need to be ad-dressed. Finally, this kind of fore-sight can assist in establishing abaseline of the cost, in terms oftime and dollars, which can thenbe used as a foundation for thedevelopment of both an initialbusiness case and to determine apost-implementation return oninvestment (ROI).
The determinations for each ofthese considerations act as in-puts into the next project phase,which is designing futureprocesses.
Designing Future Processes
It’s important to be aware ofyour destination before starting atrip. This is equally true for tech-nology implementations. As inthe first phase, there are a num-ber of points that must be con-sidered in advance. For example,what are the current, and—ifpossible—future key business ob-jectives that need to be sup-ported? How will theeffectiveness or success of thoseprocesses be measured? How longwill it take to complete eachprocess step? And, most impor-tantly, how will technology sup-port or improve these processes?
In some cases, there’s a ten-dency to adapt technology to“automate” existing businessprocesses. Unless the currentprocess is functioning at a highlevel and is designed to meetcurrent and future businessneeds, merely adding technologywill not return maximum bene-fits. When ready to take advan-tage of the newly developedbusiness process, make sure youidentify key provisions of thetechnology.
To do this effectively, considerthe benefits of the technologythat you are installing, includingwhat benefits peers haveachieved, how the various tech-nology providers have providedsuccessful solutions, and whatthe “art of the possible” of theuse of the technology is. Thisdoesn’t mean that you have toimplement every function thata solution provides, but it is
Best Practices for Selecting and Implementing VegetationTechnology Solutions
Utility Arborist NewslinePage 36
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important to realize what’s possi-ble so you can have a full view intothe benefits that can be achievedthrough an optimized implementa-tion of new business processes sup-ported by new technology.
Often, this phase can also includethe development of a formal busi-ness case and ROI model. By com-paring metrics gathered fromPhase 1 to metrics from this laterphase—in addition to gatheringestimates of the cost of the tech-nology solution—a business casecan be developed, an implemen-tation budget formulated, andapprovals gained.
Once a new process is designed,the next step is to take an in-depthlook at the technology solutions.
Choosing the Right Solution
This is the fun part! With the fu-ture process in hand, it’s now timeto find a solution that best fitsyour business objectives. Thereare many solutions available andeach have their own benefits anddrawbacks. Consider each solutionand spend time with the provider.Understand what their current ap-plication provides, what it doesnot, what’s in the future develop-ment roadmap, what functionalityothers use, and what functionalityothers want. Understanding howthe application is supported andhow requests for new functionality
is funneled into future productreleases is also key.
Build a relationship with your so-lution provider. This relationshipwill be critically importantthrough the implementationphase of the project and for long-term support of the application.The bottom line is that theirsuccess AND your success is de-pendent on your successful imple-mentation of the solution.
To evaluate the solutions effec-tively, it’s often helpful to developa list of solution requirements.This matrix of requirements canbe used to objectively evaluateeach solution, which can help leadto the best technical fit.
Consider other requirements, likecyber security, procurement, ITgovernance, and others. Engage theappropriate stakeholders early inthe evaluation process to ensurethat any concerns are addressed.
Implement the Solution
The last phase is to finalize thesolution. This is where the rubbermeets the road. Throughout thisphase, focus on those that willuse the technology. Incorporate agroup of end users into your proj-ect team throughout this phase.Gain their input and acceptanceearly by making sure their voicesare heard.
Implement the solution in smallincrements, aligned with thebusiness process. Ensure each setof functionality considerations areproperly tested and that an ap-propriate training and changemanagement program is insti-tuted. Change management inparticular is often the key to asuccessful implementation. Inmost cases, users will be transi-tioning from a largely paper-dri-ven process, depending on theiryears of experience and familiar-ity with the process. The imple-mentation of technology is a bigmodification and can take someadjustment. Address this projectrisk through the adoption of aformal change managementprogram.
Summary
Implementing technology to sup-port your VM business can providetremendous benefits to your or-ganization. To achieve the maxi-mum business benefit, it must bedone using a thoughtful, methodi-cal process. This four-step processis a methodology that has beensuccessfully used. Pick themethodology that best matchesyour business needs. Consultantswith deep VM domain experiencecan help ensure a successfulbusiness process design, solutionselection, and solution implemen-tation to deliver the benefit thatyou expect.
ProjectStart
Business Case Development
As-isProcess
Modeling
Bid Document Creation
Vendor FitAnalysis
Technical Security
Evaluation
DataIntegration
Select Vendor
Project Management
Support
To-beProcess
Development
Security Integration
Testing Support
Training
Change Management
ProjectComplete
Figure 1 - Lifecycle of a Technology Implementation Project
Every two months, UAA Regional Representatives canprovide a report for the Utility Arborist Newsline. Let themknow what is going in your company or in your region.
� Southwest RegionBy Eric Brown; Special Response by Krassimir Piperkov, Co-founder & COO, Enview
A Special Message from Enview:Industry Leaders Look to Technologyto Prevent Wildfires
As record-breaking wildfires rage,utilities and regulators alike are look-ing to technology to assist with utilityvegetation management (UVM) andwildfire prevention. At the 2018 CEATIVM Conference in December, atten-dees saw first-hand that remote sensing and advanced an-alytics technologies have reached a tipping point. Utilitiescan now leverage automated and accurate analytics—atscale. Several major technology players were testing theircapabilities and the promise of preventing threats beforethey become incidents. Many of the established sensorand data collection companies were present: Dielmo 3D,EagleView, Fugro, Geodigital, Harris, Leading Edge Geo-matics, Leidos, Quantum Spatial, and Terra Remote.
Aware is a new venture offering real-time monitoringfor infrastructure by using sensors that utilize 3D imaging,mesh networking, and weather data to provide real-timeinformation on asset health, VM, and wildfire threats. Onthe data analytics side, Enview demonstrated their re-cently released artificial intelligence solution to automati-cally detect encroaching vegetation that threatens power.While experts at the conference agreed that technologycan’t replace humans, it can transform UVM programs,enable risk-based UVM approach, and ultimately helpprevent wildfires.
Krassimir Piperkov
growwithtrees.com
Looking for a Holistic
ROW Manager?
March–April 2019 Page 39
AN EXPERT APPROACH TO BEST-IN-CLASS PERFORMANCE.We have expanded our team of experts to bring you the next generation of consulting and field services for utility vegetation management that have made ECI the industry leader for the past 45 years.
OPERATIONS › Program development and optimization
› Insect infestations (emerald ash borer, western bark beetles)
› Professional field personnel
– Contractor safety
– Work planning
– Customer notification
– Work auditing
› Federal and state regulatory compliance
Environmental Consultants
eci-consulting.com
TECHNOLOGY › Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) program development
› Remote sensing (LiDAR, imagery) program analysis
› Software selection and implementation
› Geospatial and statistical analysis
Since 1972 ECI has helped hundreds of clients in North America realize dramatic improvements in public & employee safety, service reliability, cost savings, risk, regulatory compliance, and overall operational e�ectiveness while improving the public’s perception of utility vegetation management.
Asplundh manages the unexpected and safely helps restore access and services.
We’re there when you need us most with the resources that make even the worst storms manageable, including:
Logistics Support Damage Assessment Pre-Event Planning
ASPLUNDH.COM 1-800-248-TREE
UTILITY ARBORIST ASSOCIATIONA Professional Affiliation of theInternational Society of Arboriculture
2009 W. Broadway Avenue, Suite 400, PMB 315 Forest Lake, MN 55025
