NetMotion Mobility® Connectivity Software Keeps the Internet On for Utility Workers
Company Size
200-1,000
Region
- America
Country
- United States
Product
- NetMotion Mobility
Tech Stack
- Windows 7
Implementation Scale
- Enterprise-wide Deployment
Impact Metrics
- Cost Savings
- Productivity Improvements
Technology Category
- Networks & Connectivity - Cellular
Applicable Industries
- Utilities
Applicable Functions
- Field Services
Use Cases
- Remote Asset Management
Services
- System Integration
About The Customer
4-County Electric Power Association is a not-for-profit electrical distribution cooperative serving 50,000 members in Northeastern Mississippi that has been providing affordable and reliable electricity since 1939. The more than 70 field employees employed by 4-County Electric drive vehicles equipped with everything they need to serve customers, including Internet-connected laptops that are critical to their productivity. However, cellular dead zones throughout the cooperative’s rural territory would frequently cause employees to lose connections to critical applications. The utility selected NetMotion Mobility to keep employees productive regardless of the strength of the cellular signal. Linemen and other field workers now only need to start up their laptop once to get a connection that will last all day.
The Challenge
4-County Cooperative includes a main office and five district offices spread out across 9 counties in Mississippi. Field teams rely on Internet connections to access the utility’s core work order system that creates efficient work scheduling around events such as storm repair. Workers are armed with Windows 7 laptops and Windows software. Relying on a cellular connection to access work applications, the laptops would often be unable to connect due to poor network coverage, bringing work order progress to a halt. Some linemen grew so frustrated that they abandoned their crippled laptops, resorting to pen and paper until they had time to open an IT ticket. Faced with unhappy employees and a system that often could not serve its intended purpose, Critcher and his team realized they needed a more reliable approach to keeping teams connected to the Internet while in the field.
The Solution
4-county talked with other local agencies about how they combat connectivity challenges in the rural areas of Mississippi. From the state’s highway patrol they learned that Mobility was keeping troopers connected by creating a secure and reliable mobile VPN tunnel. Applications would pause but not disconnect as the troopers roamed. “This sounded like the ultimate fix, so we ran a trial to be sure,” said Critcher. From a user standpoint, the transition to Mobility was seamless. Lineman didn’t have to learn new steps to use it; in fact, they didn’t even know it was there. They would just log in and their applications would work flawlessly. “All they noticed was connections were there every time they logged on,” added Critcher. “This quieted our help desk phones immediately.”
Operational Impact
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