Report on Reliability of ComEd Electrical Service within Downers Grove Prepared September 1, 2013 1
Executive Summary Since 2011, the Village of Downers Grove has worked closely with ComEd to improve electrical reliability for residents and businesses. Over the past two years, Village staff has coordinated with ComEd to ensure the most problematic areas see upgrades to equipment and vegetation management to reduce the frequency and severity of outages. The Village has two goals: 1) achieve measurable improvements in reliability, measured by the frequency and duration of outages and 2) encourage improved communications between ComEd customers and ComEd. This report summarizes the reliability improvement work that ComEd has completed since January 1, 2012. It also identifies the circuits that continue to see the highest frequency of power outages. Finally, the report makes recommendations for improved communications directly between ComEd and its customers. Key Findings: The summer of 2011, during which the Village was severely affected by power outages, was not indicative of the typical number of outages in Downers Grove. However, based on outage data from 2012 and 2013, the frequency of outages has not decreased significantly over the past two years. Since January 2012, ComEd completed equipment upgrades in 13 circuits, completed enhanced tree trimming in 9 circuits and has several equipment upgrades in progress. Equipment failures continued to be the most frequent cause of outages (47% of all outages in 2012); however, the percentage has decreased YTD in 2013 (38%). Weather continues to cause approximately 30 35% of all outages annually (excluding 2011). Weather causes outages of the longest duration. Based on resident and business contact with Village staff, there is growing frustration with momentary outages that are not recorded in ComEd outage data. ComEd has not made substantial improvements to its customer service that reduce the Village s need to act as an advocate for ComEd s own customers. Conclusions ComEd completed planned equipment upgrades and tree trimming. ComEd has restored power more promptly in the case of outages, resulting in fewer outages of extended duration. There is additional work necessary in circuits that continue to experience a higher than normal number of outages. ComEd s customer service improvements have not measurably improved communication in non emergency situations. 2
Actions Requested by Village of Downers Grove Based on a review of the reliability data provided by ComEd, as well as the on going requests by residents and businesses to improve ComEd s performance, the Village requests the following of ComEd: Make improvements to the 10 worst performing circuits in Downers Grove Track, reduce and prevent momentary outages that are not currently addressed in ComEd s reliability improvement plans Enhance communication with customers Improve system for tracking and providing follow up for known problems reported by customers, such as leaning or damaged poles or overgrown vegetation Improve communications to customers when work is planned or underway, such as the proposed start and finish dates and anticipated duration of planned outages Section 1: Summary of ComEd Reliability Upgrades ComEd completed reliability improvements to improve reliability in the Village s priority circuits, as well as in other circuits. Below is a summary of the work completed in 2012 and planned for 2013. Table 1: Planned Improvements in Priority Circuits Identified by the Village Circuit Number Circuit Location Reliability Work Completed and Planned for 2013 W8017 West of Main Street on the north and south side of Maple - Enhanced Tree Trimming - Overhead Cable Installation (2,600 feet) W4572 Near intersection of Fairview and Ogden W031 Located between Ogden and Maple from I-355 to Main Street W039 Area to the northwest of Downers Grove South HIgh School W455Y Northern end of Village, west of Highland to I-88 - Overhead Cable Installation (3,600 feet in 2012) - Refurbished underground cable (4,600 feet in 2012) W036 Area south of Burlington to 59th Street, between I-355 3
and Fairview W8011 Area near intersection of 63rd and Main Street -Overhead cable installation (813 feet) W8013 Far south side, east of Main Street - Overhead cable installation (5,868 in 2012 and 2013) W458X North of Ogden between Washington and Fairview W577X Near intersection of Finley and Butterfield - Installed new overhead equipment (2012) W0322 North of Ogden Ave, East of I-88 - Refurbished underground cable (834 feet) - Replacement of 5,000 feet of underground cable (Planned in 2013) W803 Area northwest of the intersection of Lemont Road and 75th Street - Refurbished underground cable (500 feet in 2012) W808 Area northeast of the corner of 75th Street and Lemont Road - Refurbished 4,200 feet of underground cable - Planned replacement of 2,500 feet of underground cable in 2013 W4101 Area west of Highland, near 39th Street - Planned replacement of 6,900 feet of underground cable in 2013 W4522 Area north of Butterfield, East of Finley - Planned replacement of 4,100 feet of underground cable in 2013 W579 Near Finley and Butterfield - Planned replacement of 4,700 feet of underground cable W591 Near 63rd Street and Belmont Ave. - Planned replacement of 5,300 feet of underground cable (2013) W5910 Near 63rd Street and Woodward Ave. - Planned replacement of 3,000 feet of underground cable (2013) Section 2: Updated Reliability Data Frequency and Causes of Power Outages In the 2011 reliability report, the Village concluded that equipment failure was the most common cause of power outages, while weather and tree related issues caused most outages of extended duration. In 4
2012 and year to date in 2013, this continued to be the case. In 2012, as a percentage of total outages, weather/tree related issues caused fewer outages than in previous years. Still, while the total number of outages was less than in 2011, there were more outages in 2012 than in 2008, 2009 or 2010. Table 2: Total Outages from 2007 2012 Grouped by Major Cause Categories Outage Category 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 TOTAL Weather/Tree Related 84 88 98 92 211 76 649 (33%) Equipment Related 175 115 112 122 161 154 839 (42%) Other 76 88 79 60 96 93 492 (25%) TOTAL 335 291 289 274 468 323 1,980 2013 Year to Date ComEd provided data regarding outages through July 31, 2013. This year, there have been 253 outages, compared to 211 during the same period in 2012. This appears to be primarily due to a higher number of weather or tree related outages. In 2013, staff also analyzed the outage data to differentiate outages that were planned for maintenance or repairs from outages that were unplanned (i.e. equipment failure or storm related outages). All but two of the planned or intentional outages were less than three hours long. Table 3: Total Outages (2013 YTD) Outage Category 2013 YTD Weather/Tree Related 76 (30%) Equipment Related 97 (38%) Intentional (Planned for Maintenance or for Emergency Work) 57 (23%) Other 23 (9%) TOTAL 253 Duration of Outages Of the outages between 2007 and 2011, there were 636 of a duration greater than four hours, nearly 38% of all outages. In 2012, there 92 outages (28% of total outages) of greater than four hours. Through July 31, 2013, both the number of outages longer than four hours and longer than 24 hours increased over 2012. Most outages longer than 24 hours (22 of 23) took place during or around two 5
major storms on April 18 and June 24. Table 4: Number and Causes of Outages of Duration of Four Hours or Longer (2007 2012) Outage Category 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 TOTAL Weather/Tree Related 43 38 66 62 173 42 425 (58%) Equipment Related 43 25 32 35 57 31 223 (31%) Other 14 11 11 8 18 18 80 (11%) TOTAL 100 74 109 105 248 92 728 Table 5: Outages of Four Hours or Longer (2013 YTD) Outage Category 2013 YTD Weather/Tree Related 51 (50%) Equipment Related 38 (37%) Other 13 (13%) TOTAL 102 Table 6: Number and Causes of Outages of Duration of 24 Hours or Longer (2007 2012) Outage Category 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 TOTAL Weather/Tree Related 3 8 26 17 100 4 158 (93%) Equipment Related 0 2 0 3 4 0 9 (5%) Other 0 0 1 0 3 0 4 (2%) TOTAL 3 10 27 20 107 4 171 6
Table 7: Outages of 24 Hours or Longer (2013 YTD) Outage Category 2012 Weather/Tree Related 18 (78%) Equipment Related 5 (22%) Other 0 (0%) TOTAL 23 Key Findings Year to date in 2013, the frequency of outages has been similar to the years prior to 2011. Equipment related outages continue to be the most frequent type of outage. Weather and tree related issues caused fewer outages as percentage of total outages in 2012 than in previous years The Village saw an improvement in outages of an extended duration in 2012 when weather was mild. The two major storms caused extended outages. Circuits Experiencing Highest Frequency of Outages Staff reviewed outage data for 2012 and 2013 (YTD) to determine which circuits have seen the highest number of unplanned outages in the past 18 months. The seven circuits with the highest number of outages have been among the ten worst circuits since the Village started reviewing the data in 2011. Staff recommends that ComEd review the circuits listed below to determine where additional work will lead to measurable improvements. Table 8: Circuits Ranked by Highest Frequency of Outages 2013 Outages Circuit Location 2012 Outages (YTD) TOTAL W8017 West of Main Street on the north and south side of Maple 35 14 49 W039 Area to the northwest of Downers Grove South HIgh School 16 19 35 W031 Located between Ogden and 16 9 25 7
Maple from I-355 to Main Street W0325 Between Chicago and Ogden Ave 17 8 25 W803 Area northwest of the intersection of Lemont Road and 75th Street 12 10 22 W808 Area northeast of the corner of 75th Street and Lemont Road 13 7 20 W8011 Area near intersection of 63rd and Main Street 13 7 20 W8012 Area near Deer Creek subdivision 17 3 20 W8013 Far south side, east of Main Street 9 9 18 W0306 Along Belmont, north of Maple 11 7 18 Table 9: Causes of Outages in 2012 and 2013 in Top 10 Circuits Outage Category W8017 W039 W031 W0325 W803 W808 W8011 W8012 W8013 W0306 Weather/Tree Related 14 11 8 14 2 5 6 5 6 6 Equipment Related 16 21 12 6 18 12 13 8 10 7 Other 19 3 5 5 2 3 1 7 2 5 Total 49 35 25 25 22 20 20 20 18 18 Key Findings The circuits with the most frequent outages did not see measurable improvement in total outages and should be reviewed for additional upgrades. Equipment upgrades should be continued to reduce non weather related outages, which cause significant frustration to customers. 8
Section 3: ComEd Communications to Customers After the summer of 2011, ComEd instituted new outage related communications to improve how customers report outages and receive restoration estimates. Similar efforts should be focused to improve methods of everyday communication between ComEd and its customers regarding problem conditions (leaning poles, overgrown vegetation, etc.). Below are examples typical of the complaints from residents and businesses: Difficulty reporting problem conditions: Village staff receives on going complaints about difficulty in reporting conditions that could lead to outages, such as broken/degraded poles and overgrown vegetation. Residents complain to Village staff that they have called the general ComEd customer service line and do not receive a satisfactory response to their concerns. ComEd could consider other methods, such as online forms, mobile reporting or online chat services to make the process more convenient for customers. Inconsistent messages from field employees and external affairs/reliability: Residents speak with ComEd workers in the field, who do not provide the same information that the Village is given from ComEd officials. For example, in the Deer Creek neighborhood, residents have been told by field employees that the underground cable needs to be replaced; however, this information is contradictory to external affairs/reliability statements. Village staff members should not be expected to act as a liaison in cases such as this. Communication of planned outages/workers in the area: The Village receives complaints from residents who do not receive adequate notice when workers, including ComEd s contractors, are performing work in their neighborhoods that may cause interruptions. 9