Driving Improved Asset Reliability and Operator Safety with Predictive AI
Utility fleets are tough on equipment, sometimes in ways that can be difficult to see. A bucket truck running uneven loads on unpaved roads during storm restoration efforts, for example, will not exp…
Confronting Data Bias to Improve Safety Outcomes
In safety management, data is often treated as objective truth. Leaders use incident rates, near-miss reports, injury trends and predictive models to guide them as they prioritize risk and allocate o…
Built In, Not Bolted On: Using Safety to Drive Operational Excellence
Employers in the electric utility industry are currently working on initiatives in various areas of their businesses, including safety, quality, production, leadership, and human and organizational p…
Inside EUFMC 2026: Addressing the Pressures Reshaping Utility Fleets
Coinciding with the country’s 250th anniversary and the 100th anniversary of The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, the 73rd annual Electric Utility Fleet Managers Conference will take place May 31 to…
Connecting the Dots
There’s no shortage of innovation in fleet. The challenge isn’t finding new tools – it’s leveraging them in ways that deliver real impact.
That idea is a common thread throughout this issue of Utilit…
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iPi Monthly Forum for Utility Professionals
The iPi monthly forum is where you can get answers to questions you have from subject matter experts like David McPeak, Jim Vaughn, Danny Raines and other utility safety and ops professionals like yourself. Forums will include industry specific topics, challenges, trends, and solutions along with best practices in leadership, operations, and safety.
Smarts Fleets & Technology
Beyond EVs: What ‘Sustainable’ Really Means for Utility Fleets
Fleet electrification can make a big impact on emissions reductions.
Yet the journey can be long and arduous – and it’s just one piece of the larger sustainability puzzle.
To gain a deeper understanding of how today’s utilities are truly defining fleet sustainability – and the work they’re do…
Confronting Cybersecurity Risks in Connected Vehicles
With the continued proliferation of global business technology, most utility fleet managers are familiar with common digital security protocols like multifactor authentication, data protection policies and training to avoid phishing attacks.
However, it’s not just laptops, tablets and cellphones…
The Latest Developments in Aerial Equipment Safety
Efforts to improve aerial work platform safety have fueled multiple recent technological innovations now available for use by utility organizations.
Among the critical features found in modern bucket trucks are collision-mitigation systems and reverse sensors and camera systems, according to Chr…
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Fleet Profiles
Women in Utility Fleet: Ann Brown-Hailey
As director of administration for the Electric Utility Fleet Managers Conference (https://eufmc.com), Ann Brown-Hailey has guided the event through decades of growth and change while preserving its unique qualities. Utility fleet-specific educational sessions, equipment demonstrations and displays…
What’s Your Bucket IQ?
I know a lot about buckets, but it wasn’t until after I hung up my tools that I learned much of what I’m going to share with you in this article.
Background I was lucky to work as a lineman when I did. The buckets we used at Florida Power & Light through the 1970s were unlined, simple fiberglas…
Q&A: From Farm to Fleet and Beyond With Matt Gilliland
Matt Gilliland didn’t plan on a career in fleet management. Growing up on a Nebraska farm and later working in his father’s repair shop, he developed mechanical skills that would prove invaluable in fleet. But his initial path led elsewhere, from political science studies to social services work.
T…
Q&A: Inside ComEd’s Long-Running Biodiesel Program
In 2001, ComEd – a Chicago-based utility serving over 4 million customers across northern Illinois – became one of the first utilities in the Midwest to adopt biodiesel. Today, approximately 1,900 company vehicles run on biodiesel blends, ranging from B20 (for most of the year) to B11 (during the w…
What’s Your Bucket IQ?
I know a lot about buckets, but it wasn’t until after I hung up my tools that I learned much of what I’m going to share with you in this article.
Background
I was lucky to work as a lineman when I did. The buckets we used at Florida Power & Light through the 1970s were unlined, simple fiber…
Q&A: From Farm to Fleet and Beyond With Matt Gilliland
Matt Gilliland didn’t plan on a career in fleet management. Growing up on a Nebraska farm and later working in his father’s repair shop, he developed mechanical skills that would prove invaluable in fleet. But his initial path led elsewhere, from political science studies to social services work…