Copenhagen utility services company Hofor has reduced the amount of time that its staff spends on data collection during water line maintenance by nearly 40 percent, by using an ultrahigh-frequency (UHF) radio frequency identification solution. The RFID system allows the firm to automatically identify a valve, access its history and input any work employees perform on it while in the field. Hofor has so far decided to equip about half of its 160,000 water line stop valves with RFID tags, for the purpose of tracking maintenance and repair work.
The use of RFID makes valve maintenance work easier and more accurate for Hofor’s staff, says Ole Skytte, the company’s section head. “We wanted our workers in the field to have correct data for maintenance.” Skytte explains. “It was difficult for them to get historic data out in the field before we put RFID tags on all components.” Once the valves are all tagged, the company will also use the technology to track tools and supplies at its aboveground facility. Tagging tools so that they can be tracked within the firm’s main facility, he reports, will begin later this year.
Since 2009, Hofor has been using cloud-based software provided by Danish company Pernexus Systems that manages maintenance records for utility companies. Pernexus and RFID firm Beta Technic have recently created a joint venture known as Veriloc Automation (derived from “locos,” for location, and “veritas,” the Latin term for truth) to provide RFID hardware and location-based software management.
Hofor is Veriloc’s first RFID-based solutions customer within the utility sector, says Veriloc partner Peter Greenfort, the company’s sales and marketing director. However, he notes, the technology company is currently in discussions with other utility firms regarding the possibility of installing the same solution on their utility lines and at their facilities.
Veriloc provides UHF RFID tags from multiple vendors, according to Christian Almskou, the company’s managing director. It also supplies workers with a handheld RFID reader with a Bluetooth connection to a mobile phone or tablet. The tablet or phone runs Veriloc’s iOS or Android app, enabling maintenance workers to access and input data regarding the work being carried out on specific valves in the field. The app then forwards that data to Veriloc’s content-management software, hosted on a cloud-based server.
Hofor’s underground water pipe valves can be accessed by opening valve caps at the street level. When maintenance workers lift a valve cap, they can access the pipe and valve located beneath. Each tag is attached to the underside of the valve cap via an epoxy. The tag is encoded with a unique ID number stored in Veriloc’s cloud-based software, along with the tag’s GPS location. In that way, a record is stored regarding what ID is linked to each valve in the field.
As employees begin their maintenance work, they can access the Veriloc software to view which valves require maintenance or repair, as well as where they are located. They can then drive to that location.
In the past, personnel carried a binder in their vehicle that listed any valves requiring maintenance and repair, in which they manually wrote the details of what services they provided, along with each valve’s handwritten serial number. Now, they simply use the handheld reader to capture each tag ID, view that valve’s details and thereby ensure that they are about to work on the correct valve. By accessing the history, they can also be sure that they are providing the appropriate maintenance services. Their instructions—such as regular inspection or servicing—are listed in the app. They complete their work and input information into the tablet, which forwards that data to the software, along with the tag ID, thereby updating the valve’s history.
Approximately 10,000 valves have been tagged to date, and Hofor’s maintenance staff is currently using those tags in the field. “We are saving a lot of time and frustration over not finding data. With the scanner, it’s easier to find each valve on the streets,” Skytte states.
“We believed so much in the system that we didn’t perform a test, but started with about 30,000 tags,” Skytte recalls. When tools at the facility, as well as the remaining valves, are tagged, he says, “I think we will end [with] around 500,000 tags in the future.” The company has employed students to install the valve tags at night and on weekends, while maintenance workers are installing tags as they conduct work in the field on some valves.