Challenge
Gaining access to asset condition
Finland’s transmission system operator, Fingrid, wanted to get more knowledge and access to the condition of different assets. This change required new measurement methods and practices in maintenance operations.
Maintenance in remote power grids can be expensive and time-consuming. Also, shutdowns caused by broken assets can cost a lot of money and, in some cases, result in power distribution interruptions.
Approach
Haltian chosen as a partner after winning an innovation challenge
In 2018, Fingrid held several innovation challenges together with innovation consulting company Spinverse, to find the best partners for industrial digitalization. Haltian won one of these challenges in Spring 2018 and the project started with a pilot study based on Thingsee ENVIRONMENT sensor technology. It was clear from the start that the sensors needed to operate in harsh conditions with high voltages and cold temperatures.
A parallel path was also launched to verify whether already existing Haltian Thingsee ENVIRONMENT sensor technology could be used for monitoring the conditions in control buildings. In the first stage, the solution included temperature and humidity measurements of the control building rooms. The need for water leakage detection was also pointed and a prototype solution for that use case was developed and tested.
Results
Creation of multipurpose sensor for harsh conditions
This was the starting point for Thingsee ENVIRONMENT RUGGED – a wireless IoT sensor that can be used to measure environmental conditions or monitor machine usage in harsh environments, such as factories, industries, or outdoors. At Fingrid, ENVIRONMENT RUGGED is under evaluation to measure temperatures in high-voltage components. From this data, the components could be changed or maintained before they break. Rising temperatures mean increasing electrical resistance caused by, for example, dirt or corrosion.
In addition, Haltian Thingsee sensors are used to monitor temperature, humidity, and water leakages in control building rooms.
Fingrid is Finland’s transmission system operator. They secure reliable electricity for their customers and society and shape the clean, market-oriented power system of the future. Electricity is transmitted through substations and power grid lines. From an asset management perspective, Fingrid’s task is to secure that the critical grid components serve in proper condition 24/7.
We asked Fingrid’s IoT-project Manager, Tuomas Laitinen, and Haltian Director of Smart Production Solutions, Pertti Kujala, about the co-operation of Fingrid and Haltian. Here’s what they told about the ongoing project of efficient maintenance in Finnish power grids.
Transition in industrial maintenance models
According to Laitinen, maintenance is moving towards condition- and risk-based maintenance model, where the objective is to ensure high operational reliability, more efficient usability of the power grid, and optimal allocation of the maintenance work. This transition led Fingrid to have several innovation challenges, where different companies got to showcase their digitalization solutions.
“Due to the change to condition-based asset management the need for better visibility for assets increases. In thermography analysis use case the changes within the substation and within one bay can be however notable, so the traditional camera inspections once in a year can result in only limited information of the assets’ condition.”
Haltian’s sensor-based IoT solutions enable this kind of predictive maintenance where problems can be prevented before they happen. Pertti Kujala comments that “Fingrid’s case is a great example of organizations finding digital solutions to develop their operations and maintenance.”
Haltian’s solution makes constant and practically real-time monitoring possible remotely. Haltian sensors use very little power, so their batteries last for years. This, in consequence, means very little maintenance for the sensors themselves.
Co-operation with Haltian
Co-operation between Fingrid and Haltian started with pilots that were meant to discover the best possible solutions for Fingrid’s use case. Laitinen comments that “Haltian’s approach for this was positive and solution oriented in general which created a good starting point for the pilot to succeed.”
Haltian is thorough in its development and submitted the prototype for temperature simulation calculations. This process included, for example, temperature simulation calculations and lots of testing in the real network environment.
Crossing over challenges and learning something new
Laitinen points out that learnings have been made with each development step. These learnings have then made way for the next phases in the project that have gone forward in an agile manner.
“In the innovation challenges, we have proceeded into a new area from the perspective of a somewhat conservative industry. The results from the IoT challenges have been merely positive. In general, we have learned more agile ways of seeking development.”
Like in any innovative project, both parties agree that close co-operation with open communication is the key to success. According to Laitinen, both parties need to be very trusted, open and persistent. You also need to accept the possible obstacles as learning points in the development path.
In Fingrid’s case, both parties were eager to solve the challenges that came with creating something new.
The future holds a lot more results on the Fingrid case as the solution continues to develop.
“In addition for pointed use cases there could be possibilities to use the same sensor as well for monitoring of the specific assets vibration and also humidity in other use case for air ventilation system. These are also under further studies.”
Secure and reliable IoT data for better maintenance
Haltian Thingsee enables large scale IoT solutions with Wirepas Mesh network running between the devices.
Every sensor is specified according to its location. This way the client can see from which asset and where the data is coming from.
All the sensors are connected to a Thingsee GATEWAY that sends data to Thingsee operations cloud. From there, the data goes to the client’s own system for their own analysis.
