TCEC Crews Bring Improvement to Transmission Line
TCEC crews planned their work and then worked their plan to make upgrades to the Cross City to Steinhatchee transmission line.
“A transmission line carries electric energy from a generating site, such as a power plant, to an electric substation and operates at a relatively high voltage, this one at 69kV,” VP of Operations Darrell Tuten explains. “This multi-phase project consists of the replacement of 265 damaged and/or aging wooden poles on the transmission line that has been in service since 1979. We’re adding new structures that are taller to allow for better ground clearance.”
Phase I of the plan commenced on October 28, 2019 and included TCEC crews along with a crew from Musgrove Construction. Scheduled over three days, the project called for the replacement of 40 poles with new steel structures. All of the work was performed without interruption of service to TCEC members.
The work has been planned for some time. With the arrival of the new poles, crewman worked to frame the steel poles with hardware making sure they would be ready for installation.
Twenty-five linemen and over two-dozen pieces of equipment were used to perform the work. Shortly after sunrise, the power from the Steinhatchee substation was re-routed (or back fed) to the Perry substation, then the transmission line was de-energized. The wooden structures were cut and removed and steel poles were placed back in the same location to avoid any disturbance to existing utilities.
It was a highly coordinated effort, and all aspects of the project were discussed: switching assignments, job tasks and the full scope of work to be done, including traffic hazards, crew make up and special equipment assignments as well as the location of the nearest medical aid facility.
Phase II of the project was completed in October 2020, which included replacing 60 aged wooden poles with steel poles.