Improving Reliability with Outage Prevention Technology

At Alabama Power, we’re focused on making sure your service is reliable, and one of the ways we do this is with our outage prevention technology. Since 2019, we’ve been using a smart technology called Fault Isolation and Service Restoration (FISR) to reduce the number of outages and make them shorter.

Here’s how it works: when weather events like strong winds or heavy rain cause tree branches or debris to hit our poles or power lines, our outage prevention technology (i.e. FISR) quickly detects the issue and isolates the problem. It can then redirect power during outages and restore service to customers in areas not directly affected. Most of the time, it takes about 20 seconds to fix the issue, which means your power might go out for just a moment.

With this technology, we can solve problems faster, save time for our crews and get the lights back on quickly. And the best part is, our outage prevention technology keeps getting better. It took us four years to restore our first 1 million customers using FISR, and only a year and a half to achieve the next million. To date, we have successfully restored power for over 2,017,282 customers using this technology.

"FISR is a great example of what can happen when many departments within Alabama Power come together to improve the lives of our customers," says Melanie Miller, general manager of Power Delivery Data & Technology. "I’m very honored to work for a company that focuses on collaboration and innovation to keep the lights on."

As an industry leader in new technology solutions, we’re excited about the continued progress we’re making with this technology and remain committed to finding new ways to keep your service even more reliable. Thanks to the hard work of our team and the power of innovation, we’re making sure you stay connected, no matter the weather.