Friday, September 22, 2006
After Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast last summer, one utility faced trying to restore service without any customer information or equipment data. The utility's home office, and the computers there, were flooded. The server at its local office was zapped by lightning during the storm.
But one service technician had a laptop loaded with all the data needed to begin rebuilding, thanks to software provided by Madison-based Graphic Technologies Inc.
"Suddenly, he was king," said Charlie Marlin, a consultant with Graphic Technologies. The data provided maps showing where power lines were located, and drawings and schematics that enabled crews - many of which came from out of town - to rebuild transformers.
Graphic Technologies products allow utility crews to view geospatial data, or information relating to the location of, and relationships between, geographical features in the field. The company takes data compiled by utility companies' geographic information services departments and puts it in digital form on a database.
That means technicians looking for the location of a power outage or gas leak can determine not only the location of the problem, but also details on equipment in that location.
The company's viewing software can be used with any type of geographical information system, or GIS, said Michael Stokes, president of Graphic Technologies. Field staff can access maps and diagrams of utility lines, gas lines, cables and fiber optics from a laptop or handheld computer, without having to print out a large map, and without having to go back to the office to get another map because the damaged transformer or cable or valve wasn't where they thought it was.
A touch of a screen also lets the user see data about the power lines, fiber-optic cables and other features. The software can be password-protected and allow users to see whatever level of data the owners want. The system also allows for instant data correction as crews find things in the field that may not have been recorded properly on older maps.
One customer, Philadelphia Electric Co., had roughly 600,000 customer diagram cards that technicians had to rifle through before going out on calls. If a service technician pulled the wrong card, he or she had to drive back to the office and look for the correct one.
These days, drivers can download the data they need for the day's calls at Wi-Fi hot spots in their neighborhoods while ordering coffee, and head out to the first call, saving both time and gasoline, said Michael Rogers, also a consultant with Graphic Technologies.
Graphic Technologies founders Michael Stokes and Jim Saunders worked for Intergraph Corp. before starting the company in 1996 as consultants for Intergraph. In the early days, the business focused on consulting work in the Middle East. That work included helping Saudi Electric Co. assess its utility systems. Gradually, the company began developing its software products and moving out of the consulting realm.
The company's other employees, Marlin and Rogers, are also former Intergraph employees. Saunders left the firm last January to launch a consulting business.
Graphic Technologies has sold about 3,500 copies of its software products to customers mainly in the United States, but it also has overseas customers, Stokes said.
He said the company expects to have about $800,000 in sales this year. He said the challenge of getting the company's own product to market has been offset by the freedom of not being a subcontractor.
"We're not tied to other people's performance anymore," he said.
Rogers said the biggest challenge of being a small firm is getting its message to prospective customers.
"If we can get there, we can sell them," he said, "but we can't always get there."
© 2006 The Huntsville Times
© 2006 al.com All Rights Reserved.