ENERGO-PRO invited its customers to visit for the user's day
An open day at the company gave 50 customers the opportunity to take a look at the high-voltage laboratory and training ground, where the company's specialists are trained
Today, March 15, 2014, for the first time in the electricity distribution and supply company ENERGO-PRO “Open Day” was held for citizens. “In most cases, customers think of us when they have to pay their bills or when for some reason they do not have electricity and rarely ask themselves the question of how many people work and what activities they carry out daily so that it can be bright and warm when they press a button at home.”, says Maria Dimitrova, Director of Customer Service, about the idea of the holiday. “Therefore, we decided to give them the opportunity to look “behind the fence”, to see where we train our electricians and network specialists, where safety devices and materials are tested and where much of Varna is powered from. We believe that today was an extraordinary and interesting day for all of us.”
The interest in the event was indicated by the fact that all the seats were occupied very quickly and some of those wishing to be disappointed had to be disappointed, but certainly this will not be the last such opportunity to get acquainted with the work of the company from the inside. Among the visitors there were also many young people who were curious to learn more about the work of the employees in the company and to become part of the atmosphere in which they work. Some of them have already linked their professional lives to the power industry and this visit has expanded their knowledge. Others (schoolchildren and students) are still preparing for this profession, and this is one of their first contacts with working on the electricity distribution network in real conditions. Quite a few of the visitors were driven by pure curiosity to find out what path electricity takes to reach us and create convenience and coziness in our daily lives.
The start of the tour was given by the customer service center in Varna. The center serves more than 150,000 people a year, and since the company's privatization in 2005, its services have been used by just over 1 million customers. Mrs. Dimitrova took on the role of a tour guide and described to her guests the path of energy or in other words — how electricity reaches our homes. She introduced her guests to the structure of the company, told them how the work of customer service centers was organized, and of course did not fail to reveal some curious details from the “kitchen”.
The story of the creation of the telephone center (TC) of the company in 2006 aroused the interest of everyone. Before the launch of TC, the company had done a thorough research and, according to initial analyzes, the number of calls required 32 operators to be appointed, which would be enough to serve customers. However, it turns out that these operators manage to take only 60% of calls. “We began to look for the reason why “on paper” it turns out that the total number of calls corresponds to the number of operators, and in practice it is not enough.Again we did a survey and found out a lot of interesting facts. We looked at what time of day and day there are peaks and lows in the work of the TC and noticed that the load in the morning hours begins sharply at 08:15. After analysis, we found that this is due to the place where early in the morning, and then in the late afternoon, when it is the next peak in the TC, many people have the opportunity for social contact - this is public transport. There they are informed about what is happening in the city, in the neighborhood where they live or just hear how people discuss different cases and this provokes them to ask their questions to us. “, said Mrs. Maria Dimitrova.” The goal of our company is to remain “inconspicuous”, that is, that our customers do not have problems and are calm. They usually start noticing us when a problem arises and they need to contact us to solve it.”, she added. The statistics from the ENERGO-PRO TC show that 98 out of every 100 customers are served on the 24-hour telephone number 0700 161 61 on the first call. For comparison, the European norm is to receive 80 calls from the first call for every 100 customers.
The second stop in the program was the training center of ENERGO-PRO Networks. In the training halls on the installation of cable heads and couplings, switching equipment, electric meter replacement, height installation and troubleshooting, the visitors were able to get acquainted with one of the instructors and see the training facilities up close, but not before they had passed the mandatory specialized safety briefing. In the educational substation, everything is quite real, but it is open to visitors. Guests, equipped with helmets, saw up close the place where energy was transformed from medium to low voltage before safely reaching their homes. Everyone curiously looked at the so-called “baby line”, which is a copy of a real power line, but lowered just 2 meters above the ground, instead of the standard 10.
Exciting for all the guests was the outdoor demonstration, during which they observed what actions the electromonitors took to fix damage on an iron lattice pole. An obligatory condition for them to comply with all safety measures, which include a shoulder-thigh belt, Y-rope for safety, special insulating (dielectric) gloves, a helmet, safety glasses and any other equipment that will ensure that the electrician will return home alive and well. The maximum safe distance that a person can approach to a live wire is 2m and therefore, before starting any action, the technical teams must make sure that there is no voltage on the wires with a test with an indicator of average voltage. During the ascent, it is forbidden to carry any tools and materials both in hands and in a backpack on the back. For this reason, all tools and materials (such as the test pointer) are fed by a rope from a second electrician. Here, even some of the visitors compared the electrician, who climbed the ladder, with the famous character of the children “spiderman”. The reaction of most of the guests was also interesting. “Can you imagine in winter, in strong wind and snow, how these installers work? How about when it's icy?!” one of them shared his amazement. Amazement was also caused by the ease with which the electromonitor explained from a height of 6 meters that this was his workplace.
The high-voltage lab was undoubtedly the most attractive part of the tour. Firstly, the building in which it is located is part of the living history of the electrification of Varna, because the first diesel generator supplying energy to the city was built there a hundred years ago. The original facade of the building is still preserved and reminds of those bygone times, but everything except it is completely contemporary. The high voltage laboratory of ENERGO-PRO Networks is the only licensed laboratory in Bulgaria and it conducts tests of cables and insulators from different manufacturers and all kinds of specialized and personal protective equipment, such as dielectric gloves, voltage indicator bars, shoes, etc. The culmination of the visit in it was the demonstration of a volt arc and a breakthrough of insulators, which although very beautiful, surprised some of the more unprepared visitors with their loud sound. Small visitors among the guests were delighted with what they saw.
The last stop of the tour was the South Substation. Since this is an operating facility, it is not possible to be freely examined by citizens, but one part of it was still possible for the guests of the ENERGO-PRO open day to see — the new and ultra-modern transformer, which lowers the voltage level from high to medium, so that the electricity can then be directed to the substations. where to convert to low voltage and deliver to consumers.
“The delivery of this transformer was a serious logistical challenge, since in addition to its impressive dimensions, it weighed over 84 tons and a route had to be foreseen to withstand its enormous weight. He arrived at the port in Ruse by water on the Danube River.”, says Nedko Asenov, manager of substations and interchange stations. This investment of 1.2 million leva guarantees stability and a significant improvement in the quality of electricity supplied to thousands of customers in the central part of Varna. We also installed such transformers in Varna East substation and Veliko Tarnovo substation.
At the end of the tour Mrs. Maria Dimitrova presented the guests with a practical surprise - a gift - an individual report on the consumption of each participant for the last 36 months. “The main influence on how much electricity we pay is the way we use electricity — our choice of appliances, what hours of the day they work and how efficiently they are loaded. By receiving this reference, each customer can make their own quick personal analysis of consumption, and our energy specialists could advise them on how to further reduce their bills without investment and expensive repairs.”, she added.
The unwavering interest of guests during the tours arounddozens of questions. For example, whether an additional premium is levied on electricians for boarding and troubleshooting the railings, whether all electricians have these skills, etc. The safety work instructor explained to them that it was part of their daily work.
Of course, at the end of the peculiar electric “excursion”, everyone had the opportunity to take a photo for themselves as a souvenir.
The open day was part of the campaign dedicated to the international consumer day “At the service of the customer”, which was launched back in February and included meetings of the management with representatives of the local government, an office in smaller settlements, a reception day of the customer guide and an energy consultant.
Management meetings with representatives of the local government and reception day for clients
“With these two initiatives we want to shorten the distance between us, our customers and the representatives of the local government, so that we can hear each other.”, says Stefan Abadzhiev, manager of ENERGO-PRO Varna. “The maintenance of the entire energy system involves tens of thousands of people and annual multimillion-dollar investments and costs. Every year we have to add new customers, expand the network to take on the growing loads, replace that part of it that is “peer” to us, because unlike people, it does not “grow wiser” over time. It is important for us to explain to our clients the specific role of our company and the challenges we have faced in recent years, due to the greatly reduced funds. So we can directly hear both criticism and recommendations and praise, to be truly useful to our customers”.
Within the series of meetings with representatives of the local government, the manager of ENERGO-PRO Mr. Stefan Abadzhiev and his team of managers of the company met and spoke with representatives of more than 40 municipalities and municipal councils.
The management reception day gave 41clients the opportunity to present their individual case and seek its solution, together with managers and experts of the company, or simply ask their questions about electricity prices, the complex tangle of laws and regulations in the energy sector, etc.
Exported office
“We realize that customers do not always have the opportunity to visit our customer service centers and while we have provided them with opportunities to contact us by phone or email, this cannot replace live contact with them. Therefore, we decided to create a “mobile office”, which instead of waiting for customers to visit it, goes to them”, says Mrs. Maria Dimitrova, Director of Customer Service, about the idea of the exported office. The success of the outgoing office is indisputable and proof of this are the numerous letters of thanks received from mayors and deputy mayors of small settlements, whose residents have benefited from the new service. The clients served are over 300. Here's what some of them shared about their visit to an out-of-office:
“It is very convenient, since people in more remote settlements do not have the opportunity to travel to the cities, to the centers of ENERGO-PRO and this is a good alternative for them to take advantage of the services offered by the company.”
Energy consultant
Energy efficiency is one of the most fashionable topics in recent years. The reason it is so popular is that energy is used in absolutely everything — in production, in services, in households, and the efficiency of its use is directly related to our economic efficiency. Studies have shown that people follow a relatively constant life routine that causes them to repeat the same actions. When it comes to energy efficiency, however, seemingly small changes in our habits can seriously affect the family budget and the ecology of the country and our planet.
The energy consultant helps ENERGO-PRO clients detect these small changes in their daily lifestyle that would reduce their energy consumption without requiring expensive investments and complex repairs. In addition, trained specialists are ready to help with an explanation of the regulatory base in energy, clarify regulations and laws, additionally clarify the bill for consumed electricity or tell who and how determines the price of electricity.
With the passing of the International Consumer Day — March 15, the initiatives of the campaign “At the service of the customer” do not stop. The schedule of planned events and meetings, as well as up-to-date information about them, can be found on the website of ENERGO-PRO www.energo-pro.bg.
Since 2006, the company has invested nearly BGN 500 million in the maintenance and development of the electricity distribution network in the territory of North-Eastern Bulgaria. As a result, the quality of deliveries for our customers has improved significantly. In the period from privatization to this point, the company replaced high-voltage cables, medium-voltage cable lines, built substations and installed remote controls, which made it possible to reduce the duration of interruptions. In one settlement in our territory, there are an average of 94 substations, and the average number of substations serving one district is 3. Thanks to the funds invested, the average number of unplanned interruptions (in general due to accidents) per customer per year in the area we serve is 87% less and interruptions 6.7 times shorter compared to 2006. Since September 2013, one of the most important activities in the company is already carried out by 343 trained specialists of ENERGO-PRO.
Further information on World Consumer Day:
For the first time, the holiday was celebrated on March 15, 1983, and since then it has become an important date for consumer organizations around the world. Two years later, on April 9, 1985, the United Nations General Assembly approved the idea of making it World Consumer Protection Day. It has been celebrated in Bulgaria since 1991.
The date of celebration was set in memory, the speech of US President John F. Kennedy, who on March 15, 1963, announced to the Senate the idea of the Consumer Protection Act. Kennedy referred to the “four fundamental rights of the consumer”: the right to safety; the right to information; the right to choose; the right to be heard. Subsequently, four more were added: the right to meet basic needs; the right to compensation; the right to education; the right to a healthy environment. It is these eight rights that are enshrined in the Consumer Protection Regulations adopted by the United Nations.
Video “ENERGO-PRO celebrates the International Consumer Day”
