Manager's Moment
by TEC Manager Steve Foshee

Posted: May 2008
by: Web Staff

I learned a new term the other day that applies to our business. It may be one of those terms that has come out of California, I am not sure. It’s called Vampire Power and it refers to the electric power consumed by electronic appliances while they are switched off or in a standby mode. This power leakage usually happens at night. A common culprit are power adapters since they typically have no power-off switch.
This type of power usage goes on all the time in your home or business and most of you do not know it. Generally, vampire power doesn’t use enough power to justify a concern over it. But with power bills on the rise this may become a large enough issue that we may need to start being more aware and diligent. Now, if you happen to be the type who does not like knowing about problems that otherwise have not been a concern, then perhaps you should now read another article and stop reading mine for this month.
However, for those of you, who want to know... please read on!

Vampire Power is consumed by your TV’s, DVD players, clocks, computers, microwave, remote control receivers, or any other appliance in the house that has electronics. It is being consumed even though they are not being used. Perhaps that is how the term was developed, these devises look dead but in fact are very much alive and draining your wallet. Scared you yet? Well, I hope not.

You might be wondering how energy is consumed when these appliances are off? Well, remember the days when a TV would have to “warm up” for a minute or two before the screen was fully on and watchable? (I do, which shows my age).
Perhaps you have noticed that your TV comes on in seconds with a bright color screen? Here’s why: Your TV is always warming up, even when it is off. This allows you to have it come on instantly. It takes electricity to achieve that and you are consuming power even when you are not actively involved. Your TV may look “dead” but it is very much “alive”! And some of the wonderful large flat screen TV’s use as power as a refrigerator. If you count up how many electronic devises you have in your home, we bet you’ll be surprised, as most of us have more than one TV around the house these days.

So what do you do about it? If you are going to be gone for a few days or a day or so then consider unplugging these “vampires”. Be aware that there are also some devices like the Intellipanel, SmartSwitch, or Watt Stopper, on the market that allow you to flip a switch that will turn off all of these silent energy consumers. Then, when you come home, you simply flip the switch back on. It works off a radio wave.

We are trying to get all the latest information to you so you know how and where to use electric energy wisely. We do not want you to have a bill any higher than is necessary.
Many of you are telling me you appreciate us being so aggressive in this area. As we get time and money, we have several ideas to help you more with the use of energy in general, and specifically in regards to electricity. Call or come see us and we can give you more information now.

Please remember, electricity is still, by far, the best energy source out there and the best way to heat and cool a home. It is still the most affordable.

It is hard to believe that 2008 will mark my tenth year at Tombigbee. It has been ten years that have been marked by some successes and some not-so successes, and I would like to reflect on those now.
From a success stand point there are many new and greatly beneficial improvements at Tombigbee EC.

We have an excellent control system on operating costs which we look at everyday. This control system has enabled us to reduce operating costs over the years. This system involves a very delicate balancing act which we realize shows up in your bills every month, so we are very motivated in this area.
Keeping the lights on is another area of success that we have worked hard to improve. There are over 2,000 miles of line we maintain that goes in many directions with lots of trees along the way and we track these numbers every day. I’m happy to report that, overall, the power is staying on! Of course, in some areas that is not the case and we are working on those improvements. As we all know, when we are faced with strong storms, trees are going to fall and some will hit our power lines. This is one reason that we stress Right-of-Way Maintenance, because cutting and trimming trees is a top priority for the continued success of keeping those lights on.

Our communication skills have increased and many of you tell me that you appreciate our efforts. We have made an increased push to provide good, solid information to you on how to use energy wisely. We’re glad you are reading and using these tips!

Success has been met in our quests for improvement of the quality of life - beyond electricity. We are much more involved in every community and hope that you appreciate our team effort to be involved and interested.
And one final success I would like to mention is the acceptance by you, our member-owners, to let your voice be heard by casting your votes by mail. In our busy world, time-savers like Mail-in Ballots and Online Payments are practical and beneficial to everyone.

But in the areas in which we have had a lack of success two things come to mind. First is job creation. We have been like the farmer who plants a crop year after year with very little harvest. The longer he farms the harder he toils. The farm looks a lot better and it has what it needs to be productive, but there is no harvest...yet. A famous quote reminds us to “Work smarter, not harder.” Perhaps that applies to us.
Secondly is the lack of success in

controlling wholesale power
costs. While there is very little we can do here, we regret that we must pass these costs along to you. Coal costs are way up, which tracks the cost of crude oil. So we’re seeing all time records in regards to price. And, with no rain to speak of last year, hydro-power, the lowest cost power, was just about non-existent. Fortunately, droughts like ours come once every one-hundred years.
Additionally, the environmental costs are growing and causing a rise in power costs. While we are all for the environment it is troublesome when billions of dollars have to be spent on the coal power plants. I worry with all this talk about global warming, the government is going to over react to this problem. Some areas that have lots of sun or wind, want the whole industry to convert to that form of production. Their costs are twice what ours are and if they force us to go that way it won’t be good. You should know that the power producers and distributors here in the South - like Southern Company, TVA, the Cooperatives, and Municipals - are working together to fight this.

I am pleased that our relationship with Alabama Power has gotten stronger over the past decade. Recently I met with their representative and we are going to look for ways to work closer together to help our area. That is good news, and we are very happy about that.

Lastly we have purchased SouthNet which will provide a opportunity to merge our Internet department with theirs to provide additional opportunities to help our communities. We are looking forward to that!

Recently, I went with my wife to her high school class reunion. I will not say which year the reunion celebrated or she would likely give me a cold look. I watched as she got reacquainted with her former class mates. It was as if things went back in time.
We are all older, have kids, lives, and issues that wasn’t in our lives back in those days, but on that night all was forgotten and they were almost like teenagers again. Perhaps you have experienced the same thing.

In a way, your cooperative family is like that. Time has marched on. Many of you have told me about the day you first received electricity and typically, it was just a single bulb. REA would come and show at the annual meetings how to use an electric refrigerator, washer, or some piece of farm equipment. It’s hard to believe now, with all the electronic TV’s, DVD players, computers and other high-tech electronics, how much the use of electricy has expanded in our daily lives. Many of you may not recall REA or how we got here. To many of you, we have always been here and you trust us to provide the elctricity that you need in your everyday life. But in fact we are still relatively young. We were incorporated in 1941 and, due to the war, it took until 1947 before electricity became available. Tombigbee did not get here by chance. It took a number of hard working men and women coming together to form this cooperative with the goal of making a better life for their families. It worked, too. They accomplished their goal, and Tombigbee has gone where the other electric utility did not want to go.

It is very important that we, as a cooperative, not forget those lessons. Yes, we all have gotten older, perhaps a little wiser, or perhaps not. But like a good class reunion we should never forget where we came from. Tombigbee is here to make your life better. We are not here just to sell electricity. For more on the beginnings of our cooperative please read the reprinted article on page 6-7, titled “The History of Tombigbee Electric”, from 2004.

We continue to talk about the wise use of electricity. Many of you are telling me you’re taking our advice. You have undoubtably noticed how things have gone up in cost across the board, including electricity. From a wholesale power standpoint there is no way to avoid the increases. Also adding to the mix is the lack of rain, which has prevented the production of power from dams. Additionally, environmental costs, which I have written about previously, are staggering. I had an opportunity to speak to Senator Sessions about this a couple of months ago, and while we all have great concern for the environment, we all need to be wise about how these issues are addressed. Senator Sessions serves on the committee in Washington and I believe he will look after your interests, as it is you, the member-owner, who ultimately pays for these increases.

It has been colder than last year. We have used more electricity. Bills will be somewhat higher. If you have any questions about your bill, call us..

We are here to help.

sfoshee@tombigbee.net

Safety in the electric business is of the utmost importance. It is important to the general public as well as to the employees of electric cooperatives across this country. Certainly, it is important to us here at Tombigbee.
I could not be more proud of our employees. For the sixth year in a row they have worked without a loss time accident, and this year they had no disabling injury at all! What that means is no one got hurt enough to go to the doctor or lose any time at work. That is an accomplishment that has been achieved over time and not by chance.

Each employee has dedicated themselves to working safely, and the management team has aided them in that effort. Let’s face it, ours is a very dangerous business. Just the day to day activities of the large poles and equipment they have to install can be quite hazardous. This does not account for the fact that many times they install equipment while the lines are energized at over 7,000 volts! Most of them work in rural areas where there can be lots of hazards just on the land by way of rocks, debris, holes to trip in, streams to cross, and the like. Not many times do they work off the road where it is nicely paved and with a nice sidewalk. No, they have a difficult job, and they have done it with extreme professionalism.

Even the office can be a challenge for the office workers in that we are trying to conduct business in the most modern way with modern equipment in a building that was not designed for it. This building was constructed in 1950, and while it is very well built - as the storm in 1974 could attest - this building does not allow for easy placement of cables or for much of the equipment that is so needed. It gets in the way much of the time so they have to watch carefully.
We endeavor to train our employees constantly. We talk about safety all the time. It is this approach, and the dedication of everyone here, that has resulted in the remarkable record they have accomplished!

Tombigbee spends a great deal of time to make sure you, the general public, are safe as well. Electricity is a wonderful thing, for it does so much for us in our homes and businesses. Life would not be nearly as good as it is without it. In fact, much of what we take for granted would disappear. But it can be dangerous if precautions are not taken. To help prevent potentially dangerous situations we do a number of things to protect you. We are inspecting our poles on a ten-year cycle and replacing the bad ones. We have set up protection equipment and fuses on our lines in case a line falls, due to a tree or other problem, and the power goes off. We go into the schools to educate children how to be safe - and we do this for fire departments. As the saying goes, no matter what, stay away from downed power lines and always respect electricity in your home as well. Never take a chance. Open your breakers if you are going to do work in your home wiring.

If you see one of our employees congratulate them on a job well done, and let them know you are proud of their safety record and safety attitude. Who knows, your encouragement might just be the thing help them continue to come home safely. Till next month.

Let us know how we are doing!

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