Asian Surveying & Mapping
Breaking News
Astranis clinches $115 million Taiwan deal despite satellite setback
TAMPA, Fla. — Astranis has signed a $115 million...
UAE and Egypt Strengthen Space Collaboration with New MoU
In a milestone development for Arab space collaboration, the...
Seoul launches 4th spy satellite to boost North Korea surveillance
South Korea’s military now operates an increasingly integrated cluster...
Indonesia seeks space defense cooperation with Japan’s military
Jakarta (ANTARA) - The Ministry of Defense of Indonesia...
China Launches 3 Astronauts To Its Space Station
The spacecraft Shenzhou-20 and the crew lifted off atop...
Former Isro chairman K Kasturirangan dies in Bengaluru at 84
Dr. Kasturirangan led the Isro, the Space Commission, and...
South Korea is converting an abandoned coal mine into a moon exploration testing ground
South Korea is transforming abandoned coal mines into testing...
ISRO to Launch Chandrayaan-5 With Japan, Plans Space Station
Dr. V. Narayanan, Chairman of the Indian Space Research...
Russia and China are threatening SpaceX’s Starlink satellite constellation, new report finds
SpaceX's Starlink satellite constellation is facing threats from Russia...
China and Pakistan agree to fly 1st foreign astronaut to Chinese space station
For the first time, the Chinese space program will train...

September 7th, 2016
UTGIS Launches Mobile Electrical Safety Testing for IEEE 1695™ Contact Voltage Programs

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla., —   Utility Testing and Geographic Information Systems (UTGIS) announced today the launch of their Mobile Electrical Safety Testing (MEST) program.  The MEST program is designed for utilities and municipalities interested in identifying and resolving contact voltages on their electrical infrastructure assets.  “Contact voltage” defined by the new IEEE 1695 Guide to Understanding, Diagnosing and Mitigating Stray and Contact Voltage, is any fault voltage potential between two conductive surfaces on a publicly accessible object- most frequently street light poles and traffic signals as the primary sources.  These two items represent over 95% of all contact voltage source objects.

Unchecked, contact voltages can present shock or electrocution hazards to humans and animals.  IEEE 1695 recommends documenting all findings of 1 volt or greater; the UTGIS MEST system is capable of detecting millivolts, making it one of the most sensitive means available to locate energized objects.  To reliably identify 1 volt, a device must be capable of detecting less than 1 volt- a function built into the MEST system.

Injurious and fatal contact voltages in North America have been reported in 33 States, Washington DC, and 3 Canadian Provinces.  It is very probable that every State, Province, city, town or community has these electrical faults- they have just not yet been sought out or identified.  The majority of all contact voltages are found along roadways. With close to 10 million highway, street, road and lane miles in North America, Mobile Electrical Safety Testing represents one of the most efficient, cost effective and asset inclusive methods to quickly identify these electrical faults.  On average, 1 contact voltage electrical fault occurs per-year/per-lane mile in an urban setting.

MEST program surveys are performed at night when street lighting systems and circuits are energized.  Data is collected by an externally mounted antenna and displayed on a tablet computer inside the vehicle cab.  All fault detections are confirmed using IEEE 1695 procedures and Appendix flow charts.