About Evergy
- In 2018, Westar and Great Plains Energy, the parent company of Kansas City Power & Light, merged to create Evergy.
- Serving 1.6 million customers, the company creates sustainable energy and solutions that meet residential and business needs in both Kansas and Missouri.
- With headquarters in both Topeka, Kansas, and Kansas City, Missouri, Evergy employs nearly 5,000 people across its service area.
Editor's note — November, 19 2020: FORTÉ completed two additional projects with Evergy. Read about the completion of the Evergy Emergency Operations Center and the Technical Control Center.
THE CHALLENGE
Following a merger of two large energy companies, the new organization, Evergy, needed to replace a large wall monitor display, the mapboard, in its Transmission Control Center (TCC) located in Topeka, Kansas.
Technicians in the TCC use the mapboard to closely monitor the company's energy transmission system for outages as well as other vital information. The system, which runs continuously, was outdated and experiencing ongoing problems including display panel failures. And, because the system was six years old, securing parts to fix the displays proved a constant challenge.
THE SOLUTION
Evergy called on FORTÉ for recommendations to replace its entire 45-foot by 9-foot video display wall (40 displays), along with the technology used to power and run the system. After an initial meeting to clearly understand Evergy's needs, FORTÉ used the company's PRO Design process to develop a proposal.
The Barco UniSee LCD video wall platform was selected to guarantee the thinnest possible borders between adjacent screens. This platform provides exceptional brightness and color uniformity across the entire wall and easy access to any panel for maintenance due to a unique gas-assisted modular mounting system.
In addition, the solution provides an uninterrupted canvas for Evergy's EMS application as well as optimized brightness levels that help prevent user fatigue.
The 55-inch displays are connected in a 10 across by four high configuration. Barco's Linux-based Transform N display wall content management solution ensures the entire video wall stays up and running day in and day out. Crestron panels with advanced, tablet-style wireless touch screens were also deployed to give technicians an easy control mechanism to manage the display panels with ease.
THE RESULT
"FORTÉ had 12 years of experience working with KCP&L, but we were a new entity to Westar, so it was important to secure this important project and create confidence with the consolidated team," said Mike Scott, FORTÉ Senior Account Manager.
Once the installation was complete, Evergy technicians were able to monitor the entire energy system connecting cities across Missouri and Kansas with confidence. FORTÉ and Evergy also entered into a PRO Support agreement, enabling the team tasked with monitoring the system to call on FORTÉ support techs whenever an issue occurs with the technology. Under this agreement, FORTÉ also provides biannual maintenance, training and recertification to ensure Evergy's team can efficiently operate the display system.
"Working with the FORTÉ team was a rewarding experience," said Steven Bouzianis, Sr. System Operations Engineer, Transmission Operations at Evergy. "The TCC Mapboard was in need of updating. FORTÉ collaborated with our team by listening to our needs and then delivering a solution and support mechanism that will keep my team functioning at a high level. I highly recommend working with FORTÉ to develop, integrate and support a specialized solution that delivers great performance and value for the money."
