What We See: Winter Storm T-Line Failure

Winter weather brings a whole host of troubles. Roads are more difficult and dangerous to traverse, cold weather brings on illness, and even walking along the sidewalk can become a hazard.

There are all kinds of risk elements brought on by winter and your transmission poles and towers are certainly not exempt. Damage to structures, the hazards of downed lines, and the economic and safety consequences of unplanned and extended outages are all frequent occurrences from storm damage.

What We See

This image shows what can happen to a seemingly robust and well designed line under extreme wind and ice events.

While it may not be clear from the images, it wasn’t just the storm that brought these towers down. There was evidence of other contributing factors that likely played a part in this cascading failure. With the documented wind speeds recorded by meteorological services in the area, along with the measured ice build up, the poles look to have failed prematurely.

Despite the reasons for the failure, the consequences remain the same. The downed lines became a safety hazard for the public and roads needed to be closed. The nearby wind farm was shuttered due to the outage and the line owner incurred significant cost in repairs.

Repairs and Prevention

The combination of excessive wind and ice loads on poles and towers can result in catastrophic and cascading failure of the system.

It is critical that the owner or operator of these assets specify them correctly, design them to withstand these extreme scenarios, pick a qualified vendor to fabricate them properly, require robust Quality Assurance measures to prevent manufacturing defects, ensure that they are installed correctly and then deploy a proactive maintenance strategy.

While all of that may sound like an overwhelming laundry list of tasks just to keep a pole from falling, ignoring any of those steps is likely what led to the horrible accident featured in this image.

That same list of requirements for maintaining the health and safety of assets is what is known as a full lifecycle approach and it is precisely the type of asset management program in which Exo specializes.

This full life cycle approach is what Exo refers to as Ex-Tend and it is the most effective strategy in lengthening the life span of critical infrastructure while reducing and levelizing annual maintenance costs.

Trust the Exo Difference

Ultimately, the best approach to asset management is a proactive strategy.

With services like Exo’s Ex-Tend asset management program, we strategize the best ways to approach lifecycle management and ensure the full lifecycle of all your assets.

Whether it is through lifecycle management, field service and repair, or plant maintenance, Exo is uniquely prepared to serve your company’s needs.

At Exo, we don’t wait for problems to arise before we take action. Stop problems like the ones in this photo before they occur by calling today to talk with the Exo experts.

Phone us at 281- 259-7000 or contact us online for a free consultation to see how Exo can protect your assets.

Get Started with Exo

Ready to Work With Us?