Santee Cooper Elevates Its Emergency Response with GIS

In 1934, the state legislature established the South Carolina Public Service Authority, known today as Santee Cooper, to bring electricity to rural parts of the state. Today, Santee Cooper serves more than 2 million people, is one of the nation’s largest public power utilities, and is the only large electric utility headquartered in South Carolina. Santee Cooper recognized the critical need to modernize its operations in a rapidly evolving technological landscape. 

In today’s highly interconnected world, utility companies find themselves at the intersection of technological advancements and the imperative to enhance operational efficiency, improve customer service, and guarantee the reliability of their services.

Historically, Santee Cooper relied on an aging relational database management system (RDBMS) for emergency response and field activities. Despite its effectiveness in the 1990s and early 2000s, this system became increasingly inadequate due to its lack of offline capability and the need for virtual private network (VPN) connectivity. This inhibited Santee Cooper’s commitment to superior customer service. “While the tabular database system had served us well, we knew there was a better way,” said Chris Berryman, GIS professional and senior application analyst with Santee Cooper.

Recognizing the limitations of their current system, Santee Cooper staff sought a comprehensive solution to address these issues and embarked on a transformative journey by integrating geographic information system (GIS) technology across the enterprise. A strategic focus on emergency response and field service management was pivotal in meeting current demands and positioning the utility for future innovations. This adoption of GIS extended its reach across various crucial areas, including distribution, transmission, and environmental stewardship.

Santee Cooper’s approach to revamping its capabilities was multifaceted and strategic. Partnering with Esri, the utility developed an enterprise agreement, establishing the groundwork for cost-effective enterprise adoption through a shared mapping environment. At the core, ArcGIS Enterprise served as the system of record, providing robust support for the outage management system (OMS) with an up-to-date electrical network model. End users reaped the benefits of dedicated solutions produced by ArcGIS Experience Builder and hosted in ArcGIS Online. Moreover, the exchange of data between GIS and OMS ensured seamless synchronization.

A significant facet of Santee Cooper’s transformation was the upgrade of its emergency response capabilities. The implementation of ArcGIS Field Maps replaced the outdated solution, addressing the crucial need for offline access and mobile compatibility. This upgrade empowered field crews to access and update systems directly from their smartphones and tablets. The impact was tangible, leading to a substantial improvement in operational efficiency and responsiveness during emergencies. Rigorously tested to support 800 simultaneous users, the new system was designed for use by Santee Cooper crews, contractors, and mutual aid personnel.

Santee Cooper’s GIS extended well beyond emergency response. The utility harnessed the technology to develop various dashboards and applications, catering to critical aspects such as:

• Damage assessment and response.
• Vegetation management.
• Hot line work permit management.
• Inspections and resolution of transmission infrastructure.

The new enterprise GIS yielded several positive outcomes, significantly impacting Santee Cooper’s internal and external communication. Integrating GIS and OMS data facilitated the creation of public-facing maps, offering customers real-time updates on outages and service restoration efforts. This transparent communication and improved service response significantly enhanced Santee Cooper’s reputation for reliability and customer service excellence.

Beyond communication, the utility’s field operations underwent substantial enhancements through load testing, system adjustments, and continuous improvement. The system now seamlessly supports 200 active field users (of the maximum capacity of 800 during severe emergencies), facilitating more effective management of work orders and emergency response.

The utility’s journey in integrating GIS into its operations is a leading example of leveraging technology for operational excellence. By addressing the challenges of an outdated system with an enterprise GIS solution, Santee Cooper improved its emergency response and field service management and set a standard for innovation and customer service within the industry. Some of the key benefits include:

• Improved operational efficiency: Integrating GIS and OMS streamlined safety awareness, emergency response, and field service management, reducing response times and elevating overall service reliability to lower the system average interruption index (SAIDI) and frequency index (SAIFI).
• Enhanced communication: Real-time data sharing and mobile access significantly improved coordination among field crews and between the utility and its customers, increasing service satisfaction.
• Increased scalability: The new GIS environment, built to handle increased loads, ensures system reliability during critical periods such as storms and high-demand seasons.

The GIS environment is not just a solution for the present but is poised for future enhancements. Plans include integrating machine learning models for predictive maintenance and operational improvements. As Santee Cooper continues to explore new applications and improvements within its GIS framework, it serves as a model for other utilities seeking to harness the power of technology to meet the demands of the modern world. The utility’s story is one of continuous evolution, adaptation, and a commitment to delivering reliable and efficient services in an ever-changing landscape.