Tohoku Electric Power Network and IBM
Tohoku Electric Power Network has a mission as a general power transmission and distribution company to provide a stable supply of electricity in the six prefectures of the Tohoku region, as well as Niigata Prefecture. The company's power distribution department had been managing the felling of trees using paper ledgers and Excel, but improving efficiency became an issue. To fulfill the accountability required by the newly launched revenue cap system, there was an urgent need to standardize management and tree logging methods that differ by site throughout the company and improve the accuracy of tree logging plans. To this end, the company decided to introduce a platform integrating the customer management tool Salesforce and the geographic information management software ArcGIS. Together with IBM, the company has been engaged in DX initiatives for tree logging management operations, achieving operational efficiency and sophistication through a mobile-compatible tree logging management system that centrally manages equipment and tree information on a map.
Tohoku Electric Power Network was facing issues in managing the felling of trees along approximately 600,000 km of distribution lines and 3.1 million utility poles across its vast electric power supply area. Although each prefectural office had been managing information on facilities and trees using paper maps, ledgers and Excel, it was difficult to grasp the details of trees growing in each area and respond quickly in the event of an emergency, such as a fallen tree. In addition, under the revenue cap system that began in FY2023, the company wanted to standardize company-wide management and tree logging methods to create a tree logging plan, and there were also issues in terms of efficient budget use, including cases when low-priority trees were cut down during felling work. To this end, the company wanted to be able to provide an objective, concrete basis regarding costs. To address these issues, the company decided it was necessary to quickly establish a unified management system based on their company-wide tree logging management, and began considering the introduction of a system to this end.
The ultimate goal of the TEPCO network was to be able to check all information on facilities, trees, damage to facilities and locations where power outages and lightning strikes have occurred on a single map. As a first step toward this goal, they aimed to centrally manage information on facilities and trees on a map using a tree logging management system. After consulting with SIer companies on how to achieve this, they adopted IBM's proposal to realize the system on a platform integrating the customer information management tool Salesforce and the geographic information management software ArcGIS. The proposal was to integrate power distribution-related operations and data in stages and continuously upgrade operations so that everything could be managed centrally on ArcGIS maps. Salesforce would allow for low-code development over a short period, and changes and additions to functions could be made quickly and flexibly. With IBM's support, the company created sample screens quickly and showed them to employees in charge at respective sites.
With the introduction of the tree logging management system, operations have been greatly streamlined. In the past, after conducting a preliminary survey of tree logging work in the field, forms needed for the work were created in the office, but with the new system, employees can specify the location of trees through a smartphone app from the field, complete documentation and deliver instructions with the tap of a button. The system provides a seamless experience for employees by linking maps and data to each task. Trees that need to be considered for felling based on objective data such as field survey information and growth forecasts are flagged, allowing budgets for tree felling work to be used more effectively. In the future, Tohoku Electric Power Network is considering opening some functions of the tree logging management system to logging contractors so that a series of tasks, from ordering work to reporting of completion and acceptance after inspection, can all be completed on the system, making it entirely paperless.
Tohoku Electric Power Network was established in April 2019 (business commenced April 2020) after the power transmission and distribution division of Tohoku Electric Power was spun off in accordance with the revision of the Electricity Business Act. Under the Group slogan "Yori, Sou, Chikara (The Strength to Work Alongside)" they contribute to the safety, security and comfortable lives of customers and local communities by fulfilling their mission to provide a stable supply of electricity in the six prefectures of the Tohoku region and Niigata Prefecture.
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