When Hurricane Irma tore through Florida in 2017 and cut power to more than six million people, it took Florida Power & Light (FPL) 10 days to restore power to businesses and residents. This was a big improvement from Hurricane Wilma in 2005 when it took FPL 18 days to get the lights back on for Floridians. Now, FPL is looking to further reduce recovery time by utilizing artificial intelligence in sensors and drones to pinpoint outages and determine how to fix them.
New technological advancements are sweeping across the country’s power grids as utility companies utilize high-tech methods in eliminating outages and to save money. Antiquated is the old way of power plants feeding one-way electrical lines to homes and business. Now, power companies turn to Artificial Intelligence (AI) to determine where and when power is available; and automation to ensure it is delivered where and when it’s needed.
Building a better, more reliable grid is challenging when you consider that utilities can be slow to implement new technologies in trying to keep costs down. Companies like FPL invest in their grid by installing analytical tools that can take historical data to determine the location of outages to smaller areas, which ultimately saves time and money.
Currently, FPL utilizes a fleet of drones, which can be increased in the event of a storm, along with other technologies such as piloting tilt sensors that can detect pole damage. Discover how FPL drones make it possible by clicking here.