INNOVATION January-February 2013

“You really need the software to make sense of the data,” tells Steiner-Jovic, adding that writing the code was one of the more complex challenges of the product design. The USB wireless data collector connects to any Windows-based personal computer or tablet running the senseNET field software. Field crews, using the data collec- tor, simply drive by and synchronize with the network and begin a wireless download. The senseNET software is designed to be user friendly as the development team wanted a product with a fast learn- ing curve, but also realized that the international appeal of the product required a simple system that could be easily implemented. Its suite of functions allowed the company to monitor flow of electricity through lines, see immediately where losses were occurring and generate reports using the senseNET analyzer, which also could send out alerts when irregularities were noted within any of the utility company’s areas, including billing. Innovation as the Way Forward Professional engineers play a key role in helping entrepre- neurs bring new products to market by being a “stabilizing force” and lending their expertise, Slamka maintains. “I do believe that Canada must become a larger player in the innovation arena if we are to thrive, and innovation will provide the best long-term prospects for skilled labour for the next generation.” Today, the electrical panel boards for the monitors are assembled in a Delta plant, and Slamka’s company Questek Research & Development Corporation in Richmond then assembles the components that go into the Raptors. Once assembled, the units go to Burnaby’s Miller Instruments for calibration with the software. “The Awesense system is mainly a diagnostic tool,” Slamka explains, adding that it identifies where energy losses are occurring. After that it is the utility company’s role to determine why the loss is happening, “But,” he says, “you can’t fix it, if you can’t measure it. v

that Steiner-Jovic didn’t feel challenged by the work he was undertaking. He encouraged the younger man to complete an engineering degree. Steiner-Jovic enrolled in the University of Victoria, finishing with a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering. He moved to the BC Okanagan to work during 2007–2008 for a research and development company before taking a second post with an incubator organization, near Penticton. As Steiner-Jovic admits, “It was not the right role for me.” He was looking for something else. Steiner-Jovic had been involved in his first start-up at age 19. He wanted to develop his own product; Slamka became mentor, consultant, and general problem-solver as they tackled the problem of power loss from transmission lines. In 2009, they made a presentation to FortisBC. It was a crude mock-up of the device and far from a slick PowerPoint presentation, but there was enough there to show the utility company that real potential existed to cut losses with the new generation of a device that could wirelessly communi- cate as part of a smart system. It was the needed opportunity and it set the project into greater motion. “It was not a small problem to solve,” said Steiner-Jovic, as there was a valid reason why remote wire- less devices had not worked on high voltage transmission lines. But, having FortisBC on side provided a partner to help with the prototype testing as the various models went through debugging. It took 30 months to develop the current product. The Raptor portable amperage monitor, with its take-no-pris- oners name, was actually named for a stealth fighter plane. Steiner-Jovic and Slamka used input from utility linemen and revenue recovery teams to come up with a portable unit that could be easily put in place by a lineman using a hot stick or in a bucket lift to gather the needed information. The Raptor can be hooked onto overhead lines or electrical boxes at ground level, and the software calculates the power flowing through the line in real time. The system also had to evolve software to capture the data and Boone, a software designer, was pulled into help.

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