System Control Has the Power

By Katie Luckett, Manager of Marketing, Communications and Education

Choptank Electric Co-op’s Control Room is the only desk that’s staffed around the clock, 24/7, 365 days a year. Referred to as our System Control Operators, these eight dedicated employees monitor our electric grid, all 40 substations and proactively prevent outages. The Operators are highly specialized and trained professionals with proficiency in a wide variety of tasks and functions, certified as System Operators through the Northwest Lineman’s College.

Choptank’s System Control Operators receive your outage calls, texts and SmartHub alerts and remotely operate electronic equipment in the field to assist linemen in outage restoration. Direct communication between the control room and lineworkers is essential for both safety and efficiency. They repeat all orders with crews in the field three times before making any changes to the electric grid.

Operators are responsible for dispatching servicemen and linemen during an outage, provide those in the field with specific details and real-time updates about the outage and track the progress made. They also update our public outage map online, text updates to members who have opted in to receive outage alerts and input information into our internal Outage Management System.

Aside from outages, our Operators assist all other departments at the Cooperative, monitor gate traffic and security at our buildings and handle contractor requests for tagging poles, logging data, etc. If you step inside our Control Room, you will see each Operator has 10 desktop screens in front of them open with various programs and cameras to monitor systems, radios, maps and storm channels. They work closely with local and state police, fire, EMS, SHA, and other utilities to communicate how emergencies may affect our powerlines.

If you get the chance, don’t forget to thank our System Control Operators who work 24/7 to keep your lights on alongside our linemen!