Absolute Secure Access Keeps the Internet on for Utility Workers

4-County Electric Power Association, which serves more than 48,000 consumers/members in parts of nine counties in Mississippi, faced a serious problem. Cellular dead zones throughout the cooperative’s rural territory would frequently cause employees to lose connections to critical applications. Field teams rely on Internet connections to access the utility’s core work order system, which creates efficient work scheduling around events such as storm repair. Relying on a cellular connection to access work applications, the Windows 7 laptops workers were armed with, would often be unable to connect due to poor network coverage, bringing work order progress to a halt.

Some linemen grew so frustrated that they abandoned their crippled laptops, resorting to pen and paper until they had time to open an IT ticket. Faced with unhappy employees and a system that often could not serve its intended purpose, IT Administrator Harold Critcher and his team realized they needed a more reliable approach to keeping teams connected to the Internet while in the field.

Seamless Connectivity Improves Productivity for Linesmen

The utility selected Absolute Secure Access to keep employees productive regardless of the strength of the cellular signal. Linemen and other field workers now only need to start up their laptops once to get a connection that will last all day. From a user standpoint, the transition to Absolute Secure Access was seamless. Linemen didn’t have to learn new steps to use it; in fact, they didn’t even know it was there. They would just log in, and their applications would work flawlessly.

One Central Control Point Allows IT To Optimize, Manage, and Secure Connectivity

As 4-County proceeded with the Absolute Secure Access implementation, they also gained a central control point from which they could secure, manage, and optimize connectivity for the organization’s critical work teams. Moreover, the client-server software was rolled out quickly and seamlessly. Absolute Secure Access has transformed 4-County service vehicles into fully functioning offices. Staff no longer come into the office in the morning to grab a clipboard and paper for fear of their electronic systems going down.

Secure Remote Access = More Time in the Field

Linemen also no longer need to come into the brick-and-mortar offices every day but just a couple of times a week to gather materials or attend safety meetings. “Absolute Secure Access enables our field workers to complete more maintenance items and more jobs, helping us better serve our members,” said Critcher. That mobility has given the 4-County Electric Power Association more flexibility when planning for the future. “Absolute Secure Access really lets us explore possibilities we didn’t have before. From reducing our offices to holding less inventory, we can look at many ways to save and provide better value and member service,” added Critcher.