The installation of FLISR enhances grid reliability.
OUC – The Reliable One recently completed electric distribution system upgrades that will improve grid reliability for 8,295 customers in two areas of Orlando as the 2023 summer storm season gets underway.
Five underperforming circuits serving communities near Conroy Road by the Mall at Millenia and the Azalea Park community have been outfitted with a self-healing, Smart Grid technology called FLISR (Fault Location, Isolation, Service Restoration). FLISR automatically reconfigures the flow of electricity after a service interruption, or fault, occurs so fewer customers are impacted by an outage. The system also locates the area of a fault, which helps crews save time in finding and repairing damaged power lines. Trees interacting with overhead power lines often cause power outages, although sometimes only momentarily.
FLISR project managers Steve Casios and Carlos Davila, both Sr. Distribution Engineers, led teams working on the recent FLISR installations. Two circuits serving 4,044 customers in MetroWest will be equipped with the system later this year.
FLISR was first installed as a test project in 2019 on some circuits in the Rosemont community north of Orlando. The results were so impressive, with a 94% reduction in the number of customers affected by outages, that OUC decided to install FLISR in other areas where reliability concerns persisted.
“FLISR has proven itself to be a tremendous tool for enhancing distribution reliability,” said Casios, adding that OUC plans to install the system on some circuits serving Pershing, Holden Heights, Orwin Manor and northwest St. Cloud in 2024.
