Technology on the Move

Deck: 

Military and telecom expertise create high-tech utility solution

Fortnightly Magazine - February 2016
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Remember when you had to walk across the room to adjust the rabbit ear antenna to get a better TV signal? Now, imagine trying to hold a 120-foot antenna in 90 mile-per-hour winds...an antenna that if moved more than an inch, would lose its signal.

That was just one of the challenges facing Xcel Energy as it strategized creating a temporary microwave connection to secure vital communications for a new substation in New Mexico in order to meet contractual requirements. Without sufficient time to obtain federal and municipal approvals for a new fixed tower, Xcel Energy's Business Systems team had to find a fast, reliable and accurate solution that could be designed, built and deployed in six months.

After a wind farm went into commission west of Dora, N.M., Xcel Energy needed communications for a new nearby substation on a 345-kilovolt transmission line to start receiving 300 megawatts of wind energy. The company faced penalties for every megawatt of production not accepted onto its system once the third-party wind farm went into production.

Due to lengthy permitting requirements for permanent licensed communication towers, penalties were looking like a real possibility. Without sufficient time to obtain necessary approvals for a new fixed tower, the company needed a reliable and secure temporary solution.

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