Plan a transmission tower climbing inspection and hardware replacement

What is going on

The client has confirmed a two day outage of the Morwell to Hazelwood 220 kV line on 22 and 23 September for work order WO-26-4388. A ground inspection in July found corroded suspension hardware on phase A of structure 47 and missing cotter pins on phase C. The client's transmission control will perform the terminal switching; Gridworks must write the program for its own portable earths at structures 44 and 52 and request the access authority. The crew of six includes two climbers whose tower rescue currency expires on 20 September. A parallel 220 kV line on the same easement remains live throughout, and the structures are 42 metres high in open farmland with a farm access track.

Your brief

Plan the climbing inspection and hardware replacement safely: prepare the job risk assessment with the tower rescue plan and the induced voltage controls from the live parallel line, confirm every climber's authorisation and rescue currency, complete the switching program for the portable earths, submit the access request and schedule the rescue drill so that the job can proceed on 22 September.

Work through it

You do not need to do it all. Doing a few of these will show you what the work is like. Your ticks and notes stay on this device.

• Read the elevated work platform, pole and tower rescue procedure and the network safety rules policy, and review WO-26-4388, draft switching program SP-26-0925 and the asset inspection register entry for structure 47.
• Prepare the job risk assessment covering climbing, twin lanyard use, weather limits, induced voltage from the parallel live line, portable earthing at the work structure, farm access, and the tower rescue plan with equipment and two rescue competent climbers.
• Check the authorised persons register for every crew member's transmission access, climbing and tower rescue currency, and arrange the rescue drill before 20 September for the two climbers whose currency expires.
• Complete switching program SP-26-0925 on the template for the portable earths at structures 44 and 52 and the working earths at structure 47, coordinated with the client's terminal switching, and submit it for checking.
• Submit the access authority request in the access and permit register for the line section between the earths, naming the access recipient and the live parallel line.
• Plan the climbing inspection of structure 47 and the hardware replacement sequence on phase A, including how the conductor will be supported while the suspension hardware is changed.
• Prepare the materials list for the suspension hardware and cotter pins and record it on the work order with the crew, plant and timing for the two days.
• Update the work order status and write the pre-job briefing for the crew.

What someone in this role would produce

• Job risk assessment with tower rescue plan and induced voltage controls
• Authorised persons check and rescue drill booking
• Completed switching program SP-26-0925 submitted for checking
• Access authority request in the register
• Work plan and materials list on the work order