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Top of the Class The Southeastern Electric Exchange (SEE) has honored Alabama Power employees with a trio of 2015 Industry Excellence Awards, the most of any of the more than 60 member utilities. The winning projects were "Alabama Power Integrated Distribution Management System (IDMS)," "Alabama Power Engineering Checklist" and "P.O.W.E.R. (Powering Our Work with Electronic Resources)." Alabama Power organizations receiving recognition for the IDMS project are Power Delivery Distribution Management Systems and SCS Information Technology. IDMS is the first system to combine all of the critical functions in a single-user interface, including the industry's first distribution operator training simulator, said DMS Manager Bill Mintz. Operators have everything they need to make swift and sure decisions about switching for routine maintenance or outage restoration. "It really is a revolutionary system," said Mintz. "IDMS provides the platform for the next generation in distribution operations. It is a system and a strategy that will support all electric utilities in meeting the future challenges within distribution operations, and Alabama Power Company is leading the industry." Receiving awards for the engineering checklist were Power Delivery- Distribution Engineer David Boyd and Trussville Crew Headquarters Engineer Stephen Wolbach. The checklist is a computer application used by more than 300 employees statewide. It has 22 tools and documents that let engineers generate supporting documentation for internal audits. The main objective is to ensure Sarbanes-Oxley Act requirements are met in the work order process. "The engineering checklist is a tool that allows engineers to be more efficient and productive in their daily tasks," Boyd said. "This not only adds value to the company, but it also improves customer satisfaction by enabling the engineer to provide prompt, consistent and accurate information. More importantly, this application provides engineers with one central tool to generate supporting documentation needed for internal audits and SOX compliance." The P.O.W.E.R. project was a joint effort of Power Delivery and the Montgomery job briefing safety committee, said Auburn Engineering Supervisor Carey Holland. It evolved from an idea to use the increasing popularity of smartphones to improve safety and efficiency for field personnel. P.O.W.E.R. was developed by workers for workers and contains the important information needed to perform their work safely. With a seemingly endless supply of manuals and specifications at their fingertips, P.O.W.E.R. brings a renewed commitment to safety, which resulted in zero Occupational Safety and Health Administration recordable injuries in Southern Division during 2014. "By having an iPad on each crew and engineering truck in Southern Division, our employees are much better informed in all aspects, from current weather conditions, up-to-date maps and manuals, PDF drawings of jobs and electronic forms, video conferencing and all safety materials," Holland said. "I'm so proud of the way everyone in Southern Division worked together to make this successful." By Nancy Prater HONORS 3 SOUTHEASTERN ELECTRIC EXCHANGE AWARDS ALABAMA POWER EMPLOYEES Power Delivery Distribution Operations Supervisor Jay Price at controls. Selma Apprentice Lineman John Armstead with stack of manuals.