One of the benefits of the program being available at their work location is that linemen can use their downtime for training. When linemen leave the classroom and return home, they can pull up the program from any company computer with access to AEP's Intranet.
“If they make a mistake, the program will let them know when they try to energize the bank of transformers online.”ĪEP offers the simulator as a training aid both inside and outside of the classroom. “They don't feel the pressure of a dozen eyes staring at them when they work on it,” Thompson said. Now that the linemen can learn through the computer program, they can build their transformer bank on their desktop at their own pace in a less-stressful learning environment. The students would wire the bank up like they would in the field, which could be very time consuming.Īnother disadvantage to this type of traditional training was that AEP could also only offer the hands-on training to a few students at a time.
POWER WORLD SIMULATOR 2010 HOW TO
While AEP linemen still attend in-person training sessions on transformers, they can use the simulator in conjunction with training or student experimentation.īefore the AEP linemen had access to the simulator, they would learn how to troubleshoot a transformer bank by working on three small transformers designed for training purposes. “It allows them to be safe without jeopardizing our system,” said Larry Thompson, a senior training specialist for AEP and a former line mechanic with 34 years of experience.ĪEP has offered transformer classes for many years, and this is the company's entry into the high-tech age. AEP is also aiming to safeguard its field workers, who can put themselves in harm's way if they aren't able to recognize the proper installations or troubleshoot a problem correctly.
POWER WORLD SIMULATOR 2010 TRIAL
Through a combination of both traditional classroom and online training, the utility is sharpening its linemen's skill sets.įor the last three months, AEP linemen have tested their knowledge of transformer banks through a virtual simulation designed by 3DInternet ( The utility has had the program in a trial period for about a year and is now making it available on its company Intranet and rolling it out to its 2,500 linemen in the field.īy investing in the technology, the utility is trying to ensure quality customer service, minimize outage times and reduce damage to the equipment. American Electric Power (Columbus, Ohio), however, is striving to make this knowledge second nature to its field workforce. When linemen get called out in the middle of the night to work on a complex transformer bank, some pull out a book or a card for reference.