System operators who are subject to CFR § 192.614 Damage Prevention Programs know they must have a written plan to prevent pipeline damage during excavation activities.  Excavation damage to the system is consistently the number-one threat to public safety, as measured by the Distribution Integrity Management, CFR § 192 Subpart P,  a process that is reviewed during an AEGIS Loss Control Risk Assessment.  To educate, train and decrease the damage done to their systems, utilities are looking at innovative ways to manage the risks associated with excavation activities.  

This webinar focuses on the concept of Roving Damage Prevention Coordinators, which one utility uses to help reduce excavation damage.  The presenter will discuss the components and implementation of a Roving Damage Prevention Coordinators program as a means to provide effective oversight in the field and prevent damages before they happen.  Spot checks in the field while the excavator is working is the first line of defense in preventing damage.  Contractors may be excavating when they should be hand-digging, or homeowners are digging on “private property,” unaware of One-Call rules and the need to call 811 for a mark-out.

The webinar will be presented Anna Caron, who is the Supervisor of Damage Prevention in Gas Operations for New York State Electric & Gas Corporation and Rochester Gas & Electric, both part of AVANGRID Networks.  She has been in her current position since 2017 and she began her career reading meters at Central Maine Power, another AVANGRID company, 14 years ago.  Anna has held various clerical and administrative positions in different areas of the business.  She has worked on several internal corporate projects leading various teams.  Anna assumed her first supervisory role at NYSEG in a newly formed Electric Planning & Scheduling group before moving to her current position.  She has an MBA with an emphasis on Project Management from Southern New Hampshire University.