13 November 2003 00:00 East Midlands Electricity successfully sniffs out cable faults
East Midlands Electricity has taken a new bloodhound on its staff – only this bloodhound is electronic and it only sniffs out faults on underground electricity cables.
EME’s new bloodhound – called the Cable-Fault Sniffer – has been developed to ‘sniff’ out the gases released by faults on underground electricity cables. The Sniffer allows engineers to pinpoint the precise point where they need to dig to fix the cable, so helping bring customers on more quickly and also reducing disruption caused by the digging.
The new system was developed after EME helped fund a research project designed to identify gases released by faults on underground electricity cables.
Of the 92 gases that are given off by various faulty electrical cables, the research identified nine which were common to all and so the Sniffer was developed to track down those nine gases.
The Sniffer, which consists of a 20mm sensor and portable electronic meter, was tested on 15 low voltage faults and successfully pinpointed all of them.
After that successful trial, EME has now purchased its first eight Cable-Fault Sniffers, with all company engineers undergoing extensive training on the use of the machinery.
Graham Coles, Environmental and Proximity Manager, said: “We’re very pleased with the trial results and are confident the Sniffers will speed up the fault location process and improve the quality of service to our customers by getting people affected by power cuts back on supply quicker than ever.”
In addition, by using the Sniffer wherever possible, EME will be able to avoid digging up the road, footpath or grass verge to identify the location of the faulty cable.
As an alternative, engineers investigating a fault can now make a 20mm hole into the tarmac and drop the sensor into it. The small holes can then be easily and quickly filled, avoiding disruption to pedestrians and road users.
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For more information and pictures contact:
Jonathan Smith on 024 7642 5741