Power outages are frustrating and damaging for anyone, but can be life-threatening for particularly vulnerable people.
People relying on life-saving equipment, or who are in hospitals and aged care homes, are especially vulnerable in the event of power outages, and transparency and communication is key in ensuring none of the risks eventuate.
Western Australian state government regional and remote energy provider Horizon Power was recently tasked with transforming and modernising its outage notification system.
Following some system failures in 2021, the organisation set out to make sure this didn’t happen again.
“It became evident that we needed to modernise, automate and streamline our outage management system processes and procedures to improve outage notifications for customers, including for our most vulnerable customers to keep them safe,” Horizon Power program manager Daniel Cooper said.
“A key driver was the need to eliminate the human error component by reducing manual processes.
“This incorporated improving identification of impacted customers, reducing manual processes and rectifying gaps in network connectivity data and addressing the lack of integration between core systems.”
To do this, the team transformed the existing Operational Technology systems used for monitoring the electricity network to build a fully integrated and automated outage notification service that ensures customers, particularly vulnerable ones on life support, are informed and prepared for any potential outages across the network.
This is particularly relevant for Horizon Power, which is responsible for the delivery of power to 170 remote or town-based communities, and multiple power systems unique to the needs of some of the most isolated communities in the world.
The new system allows for real-time network monitoring and planning, including instant visibility of any faults on the network, accurate down to the specific customer metre. This is a measure that no other utility in Australia has been able to achieve.
The platform’s alert system provides advance warning to life support and critical load customers, and an automated outage notification system reduces the need to call or visit customers.
Horizon Power is a finalist in the InnovationAus 2025 Awards for Excellence in the GovTech Project, Product or Service category. The InnovationAus 2025 Awards for Excellence winners and finalists will be celebrated at a black-tie gala dinner at Sydney Town Hall on Thursday, November 27. You can book your tickets here.
The GovTech Project, Product or Service category is proudly sponsored by TechnologyOne.
The category celebrates outstanding achievements in digital transformation, cloud-based platforms, automation, cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, blockchain and other emerging technologies aimed at enhancing government operations and citizen engagement.
The nomination is a “profound honour” for Horizon Power and a “powerful recognition” of the solution developed and the team behind it, Mr Cooper said.
“This nomination reflects their passion, commitment and unwavering belief in making a real difference for our customers and communities,” he said.
“We are absolutely thrilled to be nominated for this award. It is a tribute to the tireless efforts of our team and a moment of pride for everyone who has contributed to bringing this initiative to life.
“The dedication and commitment shown by all involved cannot be overstated — and they are thoroughly deserving of this recognition.”
Horizon Power is a state government organisation, and vertically-integrated electricity generator, transmitter, distributor and retailer.
The new system has allowed the team to plan all outages in a singular system, meaning it can seamlessly link to the customer notification process, and automate as many steps as possible.
The automation of outage notifications reduces the need to call, visit or perform letter drops or door knocks in order to inform thousands of customers of the outages.
The 2025 InnovationAus Awards for Excellence will be held on November 27 at the magnificent Sydney Town Hall. You can secure individual seats or book a table here. Purchase a table of 10 and have your logo displayed on screens across the venue and in the event programme as a ‘Table Sponsor’.
The InnovationAus 2025 Awards for Excellence are proudly supported by ACS, PEXA Group, the CSIRO ON Program, Griffith Hack, TechnologyOne, Q-CTRL, National AI Centre, University of New South Wales, KPMG, AgriFutures Australia, Investment NSW and IP Australia.
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