It serves 1.8 million people across parts of Norfolk and Suffolk, Essex and Greater London. We provide inspection and maintenance services for all of Essex and Suffolk Water’s high voltage (HV) assets starting in 2018.

Challenge

In addition to providing inspection and maintenance activities, we also deliver:

• Full asset management and scheduled asset replacement including transformers, LV and HV switchgear, HV pumps, batteries and chargers
• Electrical infrastructure design, security of supply audits and contingency planning, protection studies, earthing studies, harmonic surveys
• HV and LV cable installation and jointing, HV proficiency training and HV protection training
• Supply and connection of emergency generation including ongoing monitoring of assets

Approach and innovation

Our approach to performance management and continuous improvement is delivered through our systems and processes certified to ISO 44001 (collaborative working) with a shared ambition to ensure the safe, resilient and efficient operation of their business. This also includes optimising the maintenance programme to minimise outages and any disruption.

As part of our engagement, we introduced a condition-based monitoring regime that defers the maintenance cycle where the non-evasive condition of the asset dictates. This approach reduces the overall maintenance costs and reduces the risk of asset failure after evasive maintenance.

We support Essex and Suffolk Water in their aim to provide excellent customer service to their customers. We recognise our activities can have a serious impact on Essex and Suffolk Water’s residential and business customers and offer continuous assistance in order to ensure that excellent customer service is upheld. We take immediate action to ensure that issues are rectified quickly in instances where customer service has fallen short of Essex and Suffolk Water’s expectations.

Outcomes

Essex and Suffolk Water’s HV assets are operating optimally. We have also been providing Essex and Suffolk Water with knowledge exchanges, drawing on our extensive experience in operating some of the UK’s most critical private networks. This has helped Essex and Suffolk Water improve the level of resilience across their electrical networks and implement best practices.