InformationWeek

November 10, 1997

Va. Power Signs Logica

Integrator will convert utility's paper maps, link with management apps

s part of plans to gear up for increased competition, Virginia Power has signed a unit of systems integrator Logica Inc. to overhaul its geographic information system and work-management systems.

The electric utility hopes the $18 million contract with Logica Energy & Utilities, the Houston division of Logica, will give its field-service personnel faster access to more detailed geographic information, and ultimately improve customer service.

It's one of several major IT projects the utility has planned, says Marvin Walker, a Virginia Power project manager. "We are getting ourselves ready for heightened competition in the increasingly deregulated energy industry," he says. The Richmond, Va., utility serves 2 million customers in Virginia and North Carolina.

Logica's system is being implemented over 18 months. It will convert paper-based maps to an electronic format and integrate them with new workflow and wo rk-management applications, Logica's Integrated Geographic Information/ Work Management software solution.

Logica will also integrate the GIS and work-management applications with SAP's financial applications, which are being implemented at Virginia Power in a separate project.

Virginia Power also plans to issue a request for proposals in December for a mobile dispatch solution in which the company's nearly 800 service trucks will be able to access the GIS information remotely through notebook computers or other devices, says Walker.

The deal with Virginia Power is Logica Energy & Utilities' largest contract to date, says the Logica unit's VP of marketing, Jim Cypert. Logica is working on or has completed 25 utility-industry contracts and is bidding on contracts in Puerto Rico and Ontario, Canada, he says.

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