Avangrid National Control Center gets major upgrade
At any given time, there is a group of highly trained experts responsible for remotely monitoring and controlling Avangrid’s fleet of energy generating projects. About 80 facilities stretch from coast to coast with a total capacity of over 10 Gigawatts. This vital work is handled inside the Avangrid National Control Center (NCC) in Vancouver, Washington. Now, these experts have a new tool at their disposal to ensure the safety, reliability, and resiliency of Avangrid’s fleet.
Avangrid recently completed installation of an enormous, high-definition LED wall panel inside the NCC. At 50 feet wide by 10 feet high, it’s the same width as an NBA basketball court. Key operational information is shared across the panel for all operators to easily see, which is crucial to helping maintain situational awareness in quickly evolving scenarios.
“We need to have as many tools as possible to make operators aware of possible emergencies, faults, and alarms. It’s important to augment the sources of information at the operator’s disposal. This new panel allows everyone in the room to have a general awareness of what is going on with the fleet,” said Ty Kristensen, director of the NCC.
There are 25 operators who work in shifts 24×7 to remotely manage Avangrid’s nationwide fleet of energy generating assets. All of them are specially certified by the North American Electric Reliability Corporation. They perform critical work to ensure the performance and growth of Avangrid’s portfolio of power projects that stretches from coast to coast.
“This is the nerve center of our fleet,” said Kristensen. “The NCC is a dynamic environment to work in with a steep learning curve. Having tools like this new panel help us be better at our jobs.”
This 500 square foot panel was custom built and installed by companies in the Pacific Northwest, close to the NCC and Avangrid’s Oregon business office in Portland, Oregon.
Take a quick look inside:
By: Keaton Thomas, Communications Manager
