Connected Street Lighting improves Highway Maintenance for Local Authorities
Bath & North East Somerset (B&NES) Council is now managing its entire stock of 22,271 lighting assets, comprising streetlights, bollards, bellisa beacons; illuminated signs and feeder pillars, through an advanced connected asset management software solution called Causeway Alloy.
This includes shifting its entire street lighting and highway electrical asset management process to a mobile app-based system. By so doing, the council has gained full visibility and control over their operations, from issuing a job all the way through to invoicing.
In the field, engineers are now able to receive job orders within minutes, saving precious time in the event of emergencies. Staff can send and receive messages in real-time through one integrated platform and see detailed statistics against jobs in real-time. Causeway Alloy’s paperless system has also helped the council to use its time more effectively, as they no longer have to manually create invoices or go through the process of closing a job down.
Stephen Burrell, Principal Engineer for Street Lighting at B&NES, explained: “The flexibility and speed offered by Causeway Alloy has been a gamechanger for our mobile workforce. We can now get a job to the right person in minutes, and we really benefit from having all information at our fingertips, as we can monitor feedback in real time. Causeway Alloy’s software is also much more configurable than the previous system, so we can clearly visualise the data generated by our assets and streamline operational workflows.”
As both the council and its street lighting contractor, Volker Highways, use the same asset management system, processes are more integrated and streamlined, meaning that all queries can be resolved quickly. Instead of taking a reactive approach to street lighting and highway electrical asset management, Causeway Alloy enables teams to proactively inspect and fix assets with greater levels of efficiency.
Crucially, Causeway Alloy has also helped the Council to support more sustainable ways of working by allowing for photos to be uploaded instantaneously, reducing the need for senior engineers to travel to site to provide in-person assistance. Going paperless has also helped to reduce the team’s carbon footprint and lessen its impact on forests.
Simon Phillips, Director of Major Accounts, Causeway Technologies said: “We are excited to see B&NES Council really reaping the rewards of using Causeway Alloy across a wide range of areas. We are looking forward to working with them long into the future, helping them to manage their street lighting operations more efficiently, drive sustainability and further enhance the service they offer to the public.”
The local authority has already raised 8,874 jobs in the Causeway Alloy system and logged 5,527 defects. The news follows on from the council’s original decision to enter into a three-year agreement with Yotta (acquired by Causeway Technologies in June 2022) to deploy the software.
The next step for B&NES Council is to plot CCTV cameras on the Causeway Alloy system. This new service area will not only enhance administrative visibility but will also improve the safety and security of B&NES residents.
