Jersey Central Power & Light (JCP&L) has completed numerous projects and inspections across its 13-county service area to enhance service reliability.
Locally, a 230-kilovolt automatic switching device was installed at a substation in Red Bank to enhance transmission reliability in Monmouth County.
“Targeting the completion of significant enhancements, upgrades and repairs each year prior to the start of the summer season provides a robust electrical system and delivers quality service,” said James Fakult, president of JCP&L. “The projects we have completed increase the reliability and flexibility of our system as the summer season arrives and customers use more electricity.” In addition, cost-effective helicopter patrols are completing inspections on more than 757 miles of transmission lines located in the JCP&L area to look for damaged wires, broken cross arms, failed insulators and other hardware problems not easily detected from the ground, according to the power company.
On the ground, the summer readiness inspections include using “thermovision” cameras to capture infrared images that can detect potential problems with substation equipment such as transformers and capacitors.
By identifying hot spots, maintenance and repairs can be conducted prior to a power outage.