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Utilities recognized with Chartwell’s 2025 Outage Best Practices Awards

LUMA Energy, PG&E, and SDG&E have received top honors in Chartwell’s 2025 Outage Best Practices Awards. Each utility initiative demonstrates unique and deliberate approaches designed to strengthen operations as well as enhance the customer experience.

Gold Award winners will discuss their initiatives during PowerUp: Chartwell’s Outage Conference, Oct. 6-8 in Dallas, Texas.

The conference features content focused on outage-related issues facing the utility industry, including improving emergency preparedness, building stronger resilience, using AI to enhance outage communications and restoration, and much more. A special rate is available to attendees who register by September 5, 2025. This year’s winners and finalists include:

 

Emergency Management

  • LUMA received the Gold Emergency Management Award for its transformative journey designed to strengthen its emergency preparedness and response capabilities. In the wake of multiple system threats over the past several years, the utility initiated a thoughtful and methodical approach to revitalize its Emergency Response Plan. Through combining systems integration with a unified “one voice” communications approach, LUMA has reinforced its organizational agility and improved its ability to respond to challenges including natural disasters, cybersecurity incidents, and equipment failures.
  • Hydro One received the Silver Emergency Management Award for its project launched in 2024 to improve its emergency management strategy through the cultivation of mutually beneficial relationships with community partners. Throughout the initiative, the utility uncovered a communication gap that it addressed through hosting regional workshops to detail the importance of mutuality during emergencies. As a result, stronger working relationships and enhanced reliability have been achieved due to the collaborative effort.
  • ComEd received the Bronze Emergency Management Award. In preparation for the Democratic National Convention held in Chicago in August 2024, ComEd Emergency Preparedness partnered with the U.S. Secret Service, Democratic National Convention Committee, and other key partners to design a plan to successfully power venues associated with the event. ComEd also created a risk mitigation and response strategy to safeguard its most vulnerable substations and maximize the safety of utility personnel.


Outage Communications

  • PG&E received the Gold Outage Communications Award. The utility’s Outage Journey Team recently developed a machine learning algorithm, SmartETOR, to automatically generate estimated times of restoration (ETR or ETOR). SmartETOR was designed to learn and adapt in order to continuously improve ETR accuracy. To strengthen outage communications, PG&E launched SMARTComms, a centralized notification delivery platform crafted to expedite delivery time and facilitate consistent and transparent information across all customer-facing channels.
  • San Diego Gas and Electric received the Silver Outage Communications Award. Experiencing multiple waves of unprecedented Public Safety Power Shutoff events in December 2024 and January 2025 due to historic Santa Ana winds, San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E) successfully prioritized customer safety, communications transparency, and infrastructure resilience. During the events, SDG&E notified nearly 275,000 customers, supported vulnerable populations, and maintained trust in affected communities.
  • Tampa Electric received the Bronze Outage Communications Award for improvements made ahead of the 2024 hurricane season to strengthen how the utility communicates during power outages. The company upgraded its outage map to make sure it stays online all the time, streamlined its communication processes, and used AI to monitor social media and respond more effectively to customer concerns. These changes helped Tampa Electric provide a better experience for customers while also reducing the workload for its support staff

 

Outage Operations

  • San Diego Gas & Electric received the Gold Outage Operations Award for its development of a suite of technologies to mitigate wildfires and reduce the need for public safety power shutoffs (PSPS). SDG&E launched its Wildfire Next Generation System (WiNGS) to model climate scenarios, estimate potential outcomes, and prioritize communities and assets. In 2024, SDG&E added a new layer to WiNGS to assess risks associated with temporary construction and compliance assets. Through its efforts, SDG&E has expedited risk analysis and effectively reduced PSPS events.
  • Duke Energy received the Silver Outage Operations Award. The utility has launched a Hotline Tag tool to relieve field personnel from waiting in lengthy phone queues to receive tag requests from the utility’s Distribution Control Center (DCC). The two-way Web-based tool, accessible via smartphone, provides real-time data access to field personnel. Field-based teams can also update their crew’s status and leave comments within the tool, providing key insights to Duke Energy’s DCC.
  • Alabama Power received the Bronze Outage Operations Award for its creation of a cohesive link between its IDMS (Information and Data Monitoring System) Dashboard and the utility’s ADMS (Advanced Distribution Management System) Viewer to augment the utility’s outage management and restoration response. The Dashboard can now toggle from a Customer Focus (Customers Affected) view to an Incident Focus (Work Management) view. Through this project, Alabama Power has improved operational efficiency and the situational awareness of organizational leadership, as well as customers’ experience.

 

If you have any questions about the awards or the upcoming conference, please email Keith Pierce, Senior Research Manager.

 

ABOUT CHARTWELL

Based in Atlanta, Chartwell, Inc. is a specialized information provider for the utility industry. We provide strategic research and facilitate issue-targeted forums for collaboration among industry peers. Our wide range of services ensures that our members have access to the best, most timely information available to make their business decisions. For more information, visit www.chartwellinc.com.