dataVoice International

During our training classes over the past few years, we have had many open discussions regarding methods used by utilities in preparation for disasters. After the ice storms of 2000 and then Hurricane Katrina, we felt it would be a good idea to add a disaster preparation class to the schedule.

Each utility typically has storm seasons that affect them more than others, such as ice storms, thunderstorms, or hurricanes. The following plan can help you to properly prepare prior to the disasters and help you to maintain better control during emergency situations.

We have divided the plan into 4 phases:
Pre-Season Activities,
Condition Yellow (5 days prior),
Condition Red (48 hours prior), and
Disaster Management

Lets begin with Pre-Season Activities. We suggest that you make sure the Outage Management and call handling software is updated and on the vendors most current release. You also need to run data integrity reports to verify the network connectivity, phasing, customer phone numbers, etc. and make any necessary changes to the data so you are beginning with a good foundation. This is also a good time to verify your standby or back up system is fully operational and ready if needed. dataVoice is now providing training and/or standby systems for utilities that are hosted at our offices in Allen, TX and ready at all times in the event of an emergency. Within the OMS software, check all user IDs, verify passwords and access levels. You also need to review your IVR system and procedures for putting the system in Storm Mode and for changing the system message in the event of a disaster.

During condition yellow, which is generally 5 days prior to the expect event, we suggest providing re-training on the OMS for all utility employees. During these classes you can review internal policies and procedures for setting up storm teams, hourly schedules, crew assignments, etc. This is also a good time to review with managers where they can access important information for media or FEMA.

The 48 hours prior to the disaster are considered condition RED. During this time, begin breaking down the shifts and sending folks home to get some much needed rest, you may however want to keep your formen on-hand. This is also the time to perform a full system backup to an off-site location and review switch over procedures in the event you need to move to the back up system. You may want to take a trip to the store and purchase food, ice and bottled water. Sack lunches are an easy way to provide meals to crews and employees. Divide your phone shifts into two 12 hour shifts and begin setting up temporary workstations. This is also the time to begin getting commitments from contract crews and other utilities. It is also a good idea to go ahead and reserve hotel rooms for employees and contract crews.

During the disaster, it is important to remember to send crews out after the disaster, not after the first phase. If you must put crews out during the disaster make sure to bring them back in before the next phase hits. Trust the outage management system and be sure to keep all communication open from the field to the operations/dispatch department. Be sure to update the status of devices as they occur so the system is always up to date and provides pertinent information to all departments. Utilize public relations and FEMA reports from the system to keep media and if necessary FEMA informed during the disaster. Always use the IVR as your main tool for communication. Change the message every few hours and provide the date and time of the update so customers know you are continually providing the most recent information during the storm.

If service is torn down to a home, put the ticket on hold in the OMS so they are not accidently assigned to a part of an outage. As the repairs and restorations occur, use the automated system to make the necessary call backs to customers to verify their power is restored.

It is our sincere hope that your utility will never need the information given above, however if you do know that we are here to weather the storm with you.

10/26/2007	Spring Training
	dataVoice International, Inc. is pleased once again to offer our Spring Users Group/Training seminar. We will provide two days of valuable training and information on all of our new and existing systems. Basic classes for the beginner and advanced classes for the experienced user will be available. We are also looking forward to open discussions forums and receiving input from you on our current and future direction and integrations. Classes will again be in Frisco Texas at the Embassy Suite Hotel. Dates have been reserved for May 29 and 30, 2008. In addition dataVoice International, Inc will be your host for the evening of the 29th at The Dr. Pepper Baseball Park to watch the minor league Frisco Rough Riders, dinner and drinks are included. Watch for more information soon. Should you have any questions or would like to register early please call Jeri Kopp at 972-390-8808 x100

7/17/2007	Welcome Delaware Electric Cooperative
	datavoice international would like to welcome Delaware Electric Cooperative. Delaware Electic has been providing electricity to consumers in Kent and Sussex counties since 1938 and they currently serve over 78,000 meters. Welcome to the family.

6/22/2007	The City of Edmond Oklahoma
	dataVoice International would like to welcome The City of Edmond Oklahoma. Edmond provides electricity to over 70,000 customers and was established in 1908.

6/4/2007	Lakeview Light and Power
	dataVoice International would like to welcome Lakeview Light and Power. Lakeview Light and Power was invorporated in 1922 and provides electricity to over 3,122 customers and serves in excess of 9,023 meteres in the Lakewood Washinton area.

5/30/2007	How prepared are you for an emergency?
	During our training classes over the past few years, we have had many open discussions regarding methods used by utilities in preparation for disasters. After the ice storms of 2000 and then Hurricane Katrina, we felt it would be a good idea to add a disaster preparation class to the schedule. Each utility typically has storm seasons that affect them more than others, such as ice storms, thunderstorms, or hurricanes. The following plan can help you to properly prepare prior to the disasters and help you to maintain better control during emergency situations. We have divided the plan into 4 phases: Pre-Season Activities, Condition Yellow (5 days prior), Condition Red (48 hours prior), and Disaster Management Lets begin with Pre-Season Activities. We suggest that you make sure the Outage Management and call handling software is updated and on the vendors most current release. You also need to run data integrity reports to verify the network connectivity, phasing, customer phone numbers, etc. and make any necessary changes to the data so you are beginning with a good foundation. This is also a good time to verify your standby or back up system is fully operational and ready if needed. dataVoice is now providing training and/or standby systems for utilities that are hosted at our offices in Allen, TX and ready at all times in the event of an emergency. Within the OMS software, check all user IDs, verify passwords and access levels. You also need to review your IVR system and procedures for putting the system in Storm Mode and for changing the system message in the event of a disaster. During condition yellow, which is generally 5 days prior to the expect event, we suggest providing re-training on the OMS for all utility employees. During these classes you can review internal policies and procedures for setting up storm teams, hourly schedules, crew assignments, etc. This is also a good time to review with managers where they can access important information for media or FEMA. The 48 hours prior to the disaster are considered condition RED. During this time, begin breaking down the shifts and sending folks home to get some much needed rest, you may however want to keep your formen on-hand. This is also the time to perform a full system backup to an off-site location and review switch over procedures in the event you need to move to the back up system. You may want to take a trip to the store and purchase food, ice and bottled water. Sack lunches are an easy way to provide meals to crews and employees. Divide your phone shifts into two 12 hour shifts and begin setting up temporary workstations. This is also the time to begin getting commitments from contract crews and other utilities. It is also a good idea to go ahead and reserve hotel rooms for employees and contract crews. During the disaster, it is important to remember to send crews out after the disaster, not after the first phase. If you must put crews out during the disaster make sure to bring them back in before the next phase hits. Trust the outage management system and be sure to keep all communication open from the field to the operations/dispatch department. Be sure to update the status of devices as they occur so the system is always up to date and provides pertinent information to all departments. Utilize public relations and FEMA reports from the system to keep media and if necessary FEMA informed during the disaster. Always use the IVR as your main tool for communication. Change the message every few hours and provide the date and time of the update so customers know you are continually providing the most recent information during the storm. If service is torn down to a home, put the ticket on hold in the OMS so they are not accidently assigned to a part of an outage. As the repairs and restorations occur, use the automated system to make the necessary call backs to customers to verify their power is restored. It is our sincere hope that your utility will never need the information given above, however if you do know that we are here to weather the storm with you.

5/22/2007	Welcome Inland Power and Light
	dataVoice International would like to welcome Inland Power and Light. Inland Power and light provides electricity to over 35,000 customers in Washington and northern Idaho. Inland Power serves at the largest electirc cooperative in Washington.

4/2/2007	When Old Man Winter Came Calling. . . dataVoice International helped keep the home front warm.
	Maquoketa Valley Electric Cooperative (MVEC) installed dataVoices outage management system in the spring of 2004 as part of a total overhaul of our computer software systems. This past February we were finally fortunate or unfortunate enough to really test the system in storm mode due to an ice/snow storm that passed through Iowa. We are pleased to report dataVoices OMS system was invaluable and more than exceeded our expectations. MVEC has 14,751 member consumers spread over four counties and 3,180 miles of line in East Central Iowa. The ice storm entered our service area around noon on Saturday the 24th and wreaked havoc on our system for about a 24 hour period. Throughout the course of the storm we had 3,390 members without service at some point in time; several members were out of power more than once during the weekend. With the help of dataVoices OMS, the outages caused by the storm were handled in a very efficient and timely matter. Tickets were entered directly into the outage system by our member service staff and after hours call center and were instantly available to staff in the operations center and displayed on the system map using the interface between the OMS and our map viewer. DataVoices outage prediction routine helped us quickly analyze incoming tickets and declare device outages as needed. Once device outages were declared, new tickets entered into the system that were fed from these devices were automatically added to the device outage group and did not need to be individually analyzed. This proved very beneficial as it let us focus our time on new areas experiencing outages. We were also able to easily monitor crew locations using the OMS. Having the outages displayed graphically on the map viewer along with crew locations saved time, miles, and outage hours as we were able to dispatch crews in the most efficient manner possible. As outages were restored, the OMS allowed us to restore the outage in real time and dispatch crews to their next locations. This task was usually completed in less than 60 seconds. Real time restoral is much easier and definitely more accurate than days past when paper outage tickets were restored in the days following the storm. When it was all said and done MVEC restored power to all members in just under 36 hours and we cant say enough good things about the benefits of dataVoices OMS system. We were always aware of the benefits of having an automated OMS, but they really stood out when managing an outage that affected nearly 3,500 member consumers. I dont know how we would have managed without it! Written by Jeremy Richert, P.E. Director of Engineering Maquoketa Valley Electric Cooperative

2/10/2006	Daffron iXP to integrate dataVoice Outage Management and IVR System
	dataVoice International, a leading outage management and interactive voice response company, and Daffron & Associates, developer of industry-leading Customer Information Systems, today announced a multi-year agreement that will make dataVoices IVR and OMS solutions available to both current and future Daffron customers. Under the agreement, dataVoice International will begin powering the IVR and OMS solutions integrated into Daffrons iXp line of products. By joining Daffrons industry-leading platform with dataVoices extensive knowledge and reliability of IVR and OMS Solutions, Daffrons clients can now experience a full suite of solutions in one integrated platform. Roy Rooker, President of dataVoice International said: Daffron is one of dataVoices longest standing partners and we are thrilled to strengthen and expand our relationship. Todays agreement leverages technologies from both companies to provide Daffron customers with a wealth of new possibilities. We cant think of a more natural partnership than this one. Their company is synonymous with open architecture and customer service, as well as being an innovator in technology. This agreement expands the market reach for both of us and drives more seamless integrations for our mutual customers, delivering more robust and unified solutions. Carl Daffron, CEO of Daffron, said: dataVoice has been a trusted friend to Daffron over the years and we have always recommended their quality products to our customers. This new strategic alliance helps us extend our iXp solution and takes our business relationship with dataVoice to a whole new level. We are both very excited about the value it will bring to our respective organizations and to our customers. Daffron customers will be able to license IVR and OMS software and purchase support/upgrade packages directly from Daffron. Information on this licensing opportunity is available from Daffron sales representatives or by e-mailing marketing@daffron.com.

1/17/2006	No More 2:00AM Drives To The Office!
	It sure beats those 2:00 AM drives into the office. Thats the feeling at Oconee EMC in Dudley, Georgia. Until July, Oconee relied upon a national answering service to field after hour calls from its 12,000 customer base. The answering service simply took messages and called whoever was on duty. That person then had to decide between piecing together details from these calls or driving to the office to access the information needed to start restoration efforts. Everything is much easier now. They installed an automated dataVoice Outage Management System (OMS) that answers calls from customers reporting outages. After verifying the customers location, the automated system asks them to leave any other pertinent information and then offers a callback after service is restored. Their automated system then calls the duty person with details on the calls it has received. Thanks to the OMSs internet capability, all the information that a dispatcher needs is as close as a home computer. Over a secure internet connection, the dispatcher can pull up all information needed to manage the outage customer details, priority account status, voice messages, outage locations, maps, and on-call crew rosters, just to name a few. IMS gives them the same tools to manage the outage that they would have at their office computer confirming outages, calling or paging crews, recording new outgoing announcements to future callers, clearing outages, initiating customer callbacks and more. Customers are happier. They get acknowledgment from the dataVoice OMS that their outage has been reported. Dispatchers are happier a walk from the bed to the computer beats a drive to the office every time!

1/17/2006	What Good Are Automated Outage Systems In Force 5 Hurricane Conditions?
	Conventional wisdom says that an automated outage prediction and management system wont be of much help when a hurricane knocks out nearly the entire distribution system. All automation would do is confirm the obvious. Conventional wisdom is wrong. Utilities using an automated outage management system can return power to their service areas in a fraction of the time needed by non-automated utilities - if they follow some simple guidelines. East Mississippi Electric Power Association in Meridian, MS demonstrated how their dataVoice system helped maintain peak efficiency in repairing damage caused by a major storm, get customers back in service, get revenues flowing again, and keep paper shufflers at FEMA satisfied. Hurricane Katrinas destruction of their distribution grid was nearly complete. Eighty two crews from other parts of the country were called in to help in restoration efforts. Procedures for restoration were finalized well before the hurricane blew through. Fifty crews from other areas of the country were on stand-by. EMEPA finalized plans to use their dataVoice Outage Management System (OMS) to prioritize crews, record activities, clear outages and confirm restoration; they would not revert to paper. Recognizing that outside crews would not be familiar with their terminology and that clear communications were critical to the repair efforts, EMEPA created materials to standardize communications. Physical maps with service area coordinates, pole numbers, and customer locations were generated by OMS and loaded to crew laptop computers. Methodologies for taking 911 calls, placing outage tickets on hold status, preliminary clearing of outages, and confirmation of service restoration were established. They were ready for what they knew would be major restoration efforts. Within hours, the hurricanes winds brought down nearly the entire distribution system. Outside crews were called in. Each outside crew was assigned to an EMEPA damage assessment team member. Using customer counts, locations and priority account information, dispatch sent crews out to drive, look, fix and report. Each fix was reported and entered into the dataVoice OMS. Depending on the location of the fix, outages down line from a restored device were conditionally cleared or the crew was sent farther down line to search for other outage sources. After service restoration was verified, hold tickets were cleared and, in some circumstances, courtesy calls were attempted to customers. Managing restoration efforts took more than just dealing with crews, 911 emergency operations and FEMA made more demands on dispatch personnel. 911 calls often identified dangerous situations and needed to be entered and addressed as quickly as possible. Dispatch responded by entering special 911 tickets into the OMS for these locations, which flagged these reports and allowed dispatch to follow them through the system. 911 responses werent demanding FEMA was. They demanded reports 2-3 times each day with details on how many customers were still out of service by county. EMEPA called dataVoice and asked if they could create this customized report. dataVoice responded with the on demand report within a few hours and added it to their standard OMS system. Pushpins, note pads, a map and a stack of scrawled updates isnt organization. EMEPA found that there are three main ingredients to effectively managing a major disaster connectivity modeling, automated tools to analyze outage information and an automated means of verifying service restoration. Their schematic and geographic model of the distribution grid provided the connectivity information. Their dataVoice OMS system gave them the power to quickly analyze outage information to prioritize crews. As Charles White, IT Manager for EMEPA says, Put the data in and stay on top of the situation. Trust the system. It works.