Lights out for base improvement

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Thomas Trower
  • 100th Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs
RAF MILDENHALL, England --  The number of power outages across base has been on the rise this year due to the 100th Civil Engineering Squadron and its local counterparts intentionally cutting power for repairs to the base power grid.

The 100th CES and Defence Estates are teaming to decrease the need for future outages by upgrading high-voltage switch gears and performing preventative maintenance on transformers.

"Converting the British power supply for our uses is a necessity for [RAF] Mildenhall," said Master Sgt. Joseph Lamberti, 100th CES electrical superintendant. "The power comes into the base at 11,000 volts and flows underground in a loop around the base."

When repairs are needed on the power system, the current must be turned off to safely work around the lines. This can conflict with base operations if the entire power grid must be pulled offline.

"To minimize mission impact, we divide the loop into intervals," said Sergeant Lamberti. "Then, we can cut the power to only a fraction of offices."

The growing problem with this practice is the aging high-voltage switch gears buried underground. Up until recently, all of the base's switches used oil to control the power's arc, according to the sergeant.

"We're installing newer smaller eco-friendly switches that require less maintenance," said Gary Hodson, 100th CES project coordinator. "Gas is being used in place of the oil."

Because these outages can be a burden for customers, the 100th CES has ordered preventative maintenance checks on transformers while the power is down.

"We decided on getting two birds with one stone," said Sergeant Lamberti. "This pays off in the long run because it means we shouldn't have to kill the power as much in the future."

The customer service section tries to coordinate these outages about three weeks out. Preparations must be made for mission critical facilities to have generator support during the outage. But a limited supply of generators urges the squadron to effectively manage these requests.

"A lot of customers want generator support, but unforutnately we're restricted by [Air Force Instruction] on who we can provide this to," said Sergeant Lamberti. "Not all facilities are authorized, and a priority system based on job criticality determines whose requests are filled."

The 100th CES completed phase one of the project to cover half of the switches across base and phase two is scheduled for 2010. Mr. Hodson is charged with keeping the project on time and budget.

"Phase one cost about $415,000," he said. "We expect to spend the same amount on phase two."