Davey Tree : Asset Management Portfolio : Mishawaka Utilities: GPS Inventory


Mishawaka Utilities: GPS Inventory

Davey Resource Group (DRG) inventoried poles, meters and underground facilities to assist Mishawaka Utilities in northern Indiana in switching its system from paper maps to electronic data. The project is one of many developed as a result of the partnership with UAI, Inc.

Work began in July 2005 and ended in February 2006. Four data collection teams, who used UAI’s UtilityCenter® 2.5 software, finished five months ahead of schedule. The software is designed to help utility companies of all sizes operate more efficiently through Geographic Information System-based workflow automation.

After doing a pilot area themselves, utility officials realized DRG could perform the inventory more quickly and cost effectively. DRG collected nearly 43,000 GPS locations, including more than 10,000 poles, about 6,200 underground facilities, and just fewer than 26,000 meter locations throughout 16 square miles. We also collected details on the construction of the pole, overhead equipment hanging on the poles, the power wires and how they are connected from pole to pole. This provided details of the electrical distribution system from substation to end user.

UAI installed the software and delivered the data to Mishawaka Utilities, which is owned and operated by the city of Mishawaka, located near South Bend, to provide utility services to its 48,000 residents.

For more information, contact Brent Repenning at (330) 673-5685 or David Terry at (636) 448-2018.