Transmission System Management

Regional Transmission Operator (RTO)

THE CHALLENGE

How can we improve situational awareness and informed decision making for Transmission System Operators?

OUR INSIGHT

When working with a Regional Transmission/Utilities Organization tasked with ensuring a reliable transmission system, security and efficiency are paramount and require creative solutions. In this instance, to maintain security, the application would run in a near air-gapped environment (without access to the internet) which added to the challenge of integrating third-party data, such as weather overlays, into the application.

OUR APPROACH

Integral worked closely with the Texas RTO, lending our expertise with React, JavaScript and GIS technologies, converting all their assets into geospatial representations that would ultimately be used within the GIS infrastructure. We wanted to provide a solution that would be flexible enough to allow the user to decide what information they want to display and where.

Categories

Data
Geodatabase
GIS
React

As operators of a large transmission system filtering the view into important details for individual workflows is paramount. The substation filters offer the operators a visual tool for selecting which types of stations to highlight.

Operators can view an animated overlay of weather radar to run analysis after an event and to predict and prepare for potential weather events.

The application utilizes a digital twin of substation schematics to show every piece of equipment and their status, as well as all connections to other stations.

Tropical cyclones are of specific concern to the operators in this area, the weather overly indicates the forecasted path of the storm with data pop ups for more detailed information.

Operators utilize pi data charts that show the parameters of acceptable levels for various energy factors, in order to keep the system within safe thresholds.

Storm details and lightning threat indicators offer the electric grid operators important insight as to what is happening near the equipment they are monitoring.

The Results

Integral delivered the Texas RTO Dispatchers a powerful tool for real-time situational awareness. The RTO continues to invest in new features and functionalities, like the ability to recall specific past scenarios (study data) for training purposes. Some of the application features include Transmission Line and Substation locations, contingencies, real-time EMS data and on-demand weather overlays. Dispatchers are now able to quickly identify and address potential problems faster and more effectively.