黑料福利社

Irby Attends FMEA Energy Connections Conference & Trade Show

Irby Attends FMEA Energy Connections Conference & Trade Show

Irby Attends FMEA Energy Connections Conference & Trade Show

In early November, 黑料福利社 attended the Florida Municipal Electric Association (FMEA) Energy Connections Conference and Trade Show. Every year, electric utility, safety, and utility construction companies from across the U.S. meet in Orlando to network, present, and learn from energy industry professionals.听

Emma Workman, Project Manager; TJ Ridgeway, Distribution Design Manager; and John Thompson, Customer Outreach Specialist Supervisor, from Irby鈥檚 Tampa office represented Irby at the FMEA conference. Specifically, the team talked about Irby鈥檚 new turnkey storm hardening solution. This offering packages customer outreach with construction services to replace overhead neighborhood power lines with resilient underground infrastructure.听

Irby is proud to offer this new service and has been working with Florida Power and Light on various hardening projects all over Florida.听

Learn more about Irby鈥檚 Distribution Services HERE.

Read an industry article about Florida鈥檚 Grid Hardening Investments HERE.

T-Line Work in Bastrop, Texas

T-Line Work in Bastrop, Texas

T-Line Work in Bastrop, Texas

Just off of Lovers Lane, not far from the Colorado River in Bastrop, Texas, you鈥檒l find one of Bo Barfield鈥檚 crews working on job #3042. This transmission job involves upgrading wood poles to steel structures for the Lower Colorado River Authority (LCRA), an Irby customer for more than 17 years.


Specifically, Irby is taking down and rebuilding T-410 from Bastrop West to Structure 27 as well as T-648 from Tahitian Village to Structure 27, with Legend Foundation Services installing foundations on T-410 and T-648 from Sim Gideon to Structure 27. There are 4.4 miles of double circuit and 3.1 miles of single circuit.

 

On this particular day in mid-October, Foreman Glenn Gagne and his four-man crew were installing a guard structure before pulling in new conductor. As always, this crew hit the ground with one thing in mind鈥etting the job done safely. They went through their pre-job checklist like clockwork from inspecting the equipment, meeting for the job briefing, and setting the safety parameters for the drop zone to rigging, hoisting, and attaching the cross arm.

This team works like a well-oiled machine making Irby proud. Great job, guys! Thank you to all Irby crews out there for working hard and staying safe!
Irby Comes Together in the Wake of Hurricane Ian

Irby Comes Together in the Wake of Hurricane Ian

Irby Comes Together in the Wake of Hurricane Ian

Hurricane Ian made landfall in southwest Florida as a category 4 hurricane on the afternoon of Wednesday, September 28th, 2022. Ian tied for the fifth-strongest hurricane to make landfall in United States history, and caused around $60 billion in damage. There are at least 120 deaths because of Hurricane Ian, a harrowing number that speaks to the severity of the storm.

Irby crews began to assemble well before the hurricane made landfall, in order to be readily available when it was safe to get to work. Irby assigned more than 600 linemen across the state of Florida to join in assisting power restoration efforts. Crews worked 16-hour rotating shifts around the clock. Away from their families, our brave linemen even slept in their trucks the first few nights following the storm, as hotels didn鈥檛 have working power.听

Over 2 million people were without power when the storm blew through, and by October 4, just a week later, that number had been reduced to below 1 million. Storm restoration efforts will be ongoing for the next several months. We are proud of the way our Irby family has come together to serve the people of Florida.听听

鈥淥ur group has pulled together as a family to do everything we can to not only restore power, but also to help others impacted the greatest by this storm,鈥 said Tim Halsey, Vice President of Operations for Irby. 鈥淲e are committed to doing whatever it takes to support our employees, their families, and the community,鈥 Halsey said.

As always, 黑料福利社 is taking every safety precaution in our storm restoration efforts. We will continue to be our brother鈥檚 keeper and work safely to restore power to those affected by Hurricane Ian, as the last thing these victims should worry about is their access to power.

Irby & Entergy: Mud Lake to Big Lake Transmission Project

Irby & Entergy: Mud Lake to Big Lake Transmission Project

Irby & Entergy: Mud Lake to Big Lake Transmission Project

Irby is proud to contract with Entergy Louisiana on the Mud Lake to Big Lake transmission project.
Scheduled for completion in summer of 2023, this project includes construction of nearly 15 miles of 230kV and 69kV transmission lines, the new Big Lake substation, upgrades to three existing substations, and installation of approximately 150 poles.
Mud Lake to Big Lake will build听resilience and reliability in southwest Louisiana’s听power grid, and positively impact large communities听like Lake Charles.
You can read more about the project

Irby Leaders Come Together to Learn, Grow, and Continue the Company鈥檚 Legacy

Irby Leaders Come Together to Learn, Grow, and Continue the Company鈥檚 Legacy

Irby Leaders Come Together to Learn, Grow, and Continue the Company鈥檚 Legacy

黑料福利社 Company hosted its annual Superintendents鈥 Meeting on August 12-13 in Biloxi, MS, where more than 120 leaders from across the organization attended.

鈥淔rom battery energy storage to critical transmission line river crossings, substations, and more, it is an exciting time to work at Irby and in our industry,鈥 said Jason Clayton, President of 黑料福利社. 鈥淏ringing our superintendents, foremen, supervisors, and other leaders together in one location to provide updates and share information is crucial to our continued growth and success.鈥

The theme for the meeting was 鈥Leading Change. Reaching New Heights.鈥 Topics included safety, recruiting, fleet and equipment, operations support, panel discussions on field operations, project management, corporate services, and business development. The keynote speaker was Chad Hymas, a world-class wheelchair athlete, best-selling author, and, as noted by the Wall Street Journal, one of the 10 Most Inspirational People in the World.

Working with Irby鈥檚 parent company, Quanta Services, Hymas helped develop the Capacity Model, which drives the company鈥檚 safety culture. The Capacity Model provides guidelines and critical focus areas deeply-rooted in and driven from the highest levels of Irby to the crews on the job to ensure the safety of employees, subcontractors, and the community.

鈥淥ur culture and success are built on safety, forward-thinking, innovation, a sense of adventure, a cooperative spirit, a desire to perform, and a lot of hard work,鈥 said Rick Shouse, Irby Executive Vice President. 鈥淥ur leaders in the field continue these qualities at every job site generation after generation. That鈥檚 what keeps Irby strong and prosperous.鈥

Billion Dollar Disasters: The Rise of Summer Storms

Billion Dollar Disasters: The Rise of Summer Storms

Billion Dollar Disasters: The Rise of Summer Storms

Billion dollar disasters, as they are now coined, seem to be an all too frequent event during US summers.
When听temperatures听rise, these costly natural disasters are statistically larger, and more catastrophic. Not only in regards to infrastructure and power, but at the cost of American’s lives.
The article below explores a small North Carolina community and the lasting impact that these summer storms bring. Time and time again, Irby has mobilized to help communities like these when a major storm hits. It is important that we are educated on the impacts, patterns, and undeniable growth of these storms as we work directly in the eye of them.
Click to learn more.
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