Smart Meters Help Improve Reliability Across the State

AEP Ohio is constantly working to provide our customers with the safe, reliable electric service they expect. We take that responsibility seriously, and that’s why we’ve launched a plan to reduce power outages and improve reliability for parts of our service territory where smart meter data has shown interruptions are more frequent.

Using data collected from smart meters, our team pinpointed circuits with the highest number of momentary and sustained outages over the past 12 months. Data analysts also found that within that group, there are specific locations that our teams can focus on to greatly improve the experience of the most affected customers. A circuit can serve as many as 5,000 homes and businesses, and we know an outage is never convenient.

While our field personnel continue their regular inspections and maintenance work across the state, we’ve deployed additional crews to inspect the poles and equipment along these circuits. If they find issues, they’re making repairs on the spot or returning later to address them. That work may include:

• Replacing poles or equipment
• Trimming or removing trees and brush around power lines
• Adding animal protection devices to our equipment

If your home is powered by one of these circuits, you should have received an email from us late last month letting you know what to expect. You can ensure you receive these kinds of updates from us by checking that your contact information is correct at AEPOhio.com/Account.

These inspections are important — they help us provide reliable power to our customers and prevent future outages in the communities we’re proud to serve. As smart meters keep rolling out across the state, we’ll continue to use the information they provide to find more areas to target in our goal of improving reliability for all our customers.