La Plata Electric Association Joint-Use Pole Attachment Support
Project Description
Customer Challenge
Although requests from communications companies to use electric utility poles are common, LPEA received an unusually high volume of applications within a limited timeframe. Its internal employees had the expertise to manage joint-use attachment projects, but the additional and potentially temporary workload would have quickly overwhelmed the team and diverted attention from traditional electric utility customers and members. At the same time, the projects presented opportunities for LPEA to complete system improvements and generate additional annual attachment fees funded by the broadband applicants.
Our Solution
HGA has supported LPEA with electrical design, staking, and right-of-way services since 2005. This longstanding relationship gave the team a strong understanding of LPEA’s service territory, specifications, and procedures. HGA assumed responsibility for power make-ready design and staking while also providing construction observation, post-construction fiber inspection, and documentation of deficiencies.
HGA served as a liaison between LPEA and the broadband companies, answering routine design questions without requiring additional involvement from LPEA’s staff. The team also reviewed the broadband companies’ designs and recommended alternative solutions that improved the final product for both LPEA and the applicants. HGA identified numerous rejected poles that LPEA would eventually need to replace. To improve efficiency, HGA recommended completing those LPEA-funded replacements as part of the joint-use projects, including poles that did not require replacement for the fiber installation itself. Coordinating these efforts under HGA streamlined the work and improved overall project efficiency.
Value Delivered
HGA provided the flexible resources and specialized expertise LPEA needed to manage a high volume of complex and constantly changing pole attachment work without hiring additional staff or disrupting normal operations. This allowed LPEA’s internal design employees to maintain a steady and consistent process for serving its electric utility customers and members.
“When we started seeing a wave of joint-use requests, the volume was more than our internal team could take on without pulling focus from our core electric utility work. HGA stepped in seamlessly, thanks to the relationship we’ve built with them since 2005. They handled everything from make-ready design to construction observation and post-construction fiber inspection and even flagged pole changeouts we’d otherwise have missed. It’s let us keep serving our members without missing a beat, while still capturing system improvements along the way.”
— Ryne Waggoner, Senior Director of Engineering, La Plata Electric Association
Although the work remains ongoing, the projects are expected to result in thousands of new fiber attachments installed through a more modern, organized, and thoroughly documented process. LPEA will also benefit from pole replacements and other system improvements completed as part of the broadband expansion. By combining design, coordination, construction observation, inspection, and deficiency documentation, HGA reduced pressure on LPEA’s employees and delivered a more efficient approach to joint-use project execution.
“HGA provides the resources and expertise necessary to support LPEA in fulfilling our responsibilities to our membership while managing high volumes of variable and complex work. In this instance, LPEA did not need to divert internal staff to address a surge in pole attachment requests. Instead, we relied heavily on our partnership with HGA to manage the increased workload, allowing LPEA staff to remain focused on the ongoing needs of our members and applicants.”
— Clifford Field, Director of Distribution Engineering, La Plata Electric Association