Tri-State Expedites Energized Line Rebuild

Across America, lineworkers are rebuilding sections of the grid and strengthening infrastructure to power the electrical demands of tomorrow. For example, in Burlington, Colorado, Tri-State Generation and Transmission crews were tasked with rebuilding two short section of 115 kV radial line stretching over four miles. This line, which includes 22 structures, provides power to K.C. Electric, which services the Hugo, Colorado, area.

As a generation and transmission cooperative providing electricity for 40 distribution cooperatives and public power districts across the rural west, Tri-State provides reliable, cost-effective power to its owner-members. The mission to improve reliability has led to an increase in energized work each year, resulting in fewer outages for customers.

While the cooperative’s experienced lineworkers are well qualified in barehand and hot stick work, these methods can be time consuming and labor intensive with many safety precautions involved. Therefore, when planning a recent thermal upgrade project under a tight schedule, a five-member line crew in Brush, Colorado, grabbed the opportunity to rent a new piece of equipment to try to improve productivity and safety on the energized job.

Testing Out the Equipment

To get more work done in less time in a safe manner, line crews nationwide are relying on the latest tools, equipment and technology. One such piece of equipment—the TLL-1300 triple line lifter from LineWise—allows lineworkers to save time during live line work. The insulated crane attachment is designed to support up to three energized lines weighing a maximum of 1,300 lbs per phase for a total capacity of 3,900 lbs.

The equipment comes with a hydraulic power unit and handheld radio remote to articulate, extend and retract the arm. This allows the attachment to fit various conductor spacings, and after the conductors are lifted, they can be moved a safe distance from the pole. The unit also has quick attach wire holders that easily and securely grasp onto the lines.

Previously only available for purchase, the TLL-300 recently became available for rental options. As such, Tri-State’s line crew was able to rent it for the job in Burlington, Colorado to gain hands-on experience and test how well it would work within its operation. While the Burlington job consisted of horizontal construction, the attachment can support vertical construction, too.

After the decision was made to rent the equipment, the LineWise team flew to Burlington on short notice to provide training, which included a presentation of the manual, maintenance information, troubleshooting and guidance on mounting the attachment to the crew’s Elliott 30105 boom truck.

Saving Time in the Field

On the job, the operation of the equipment was straightforward. Many of Tri-State’s lineworkers had the opportunity to manipulate the arm, run the crane or be up in a bucket with the triple line lifter in use.

As expected, the TLL-1300 helped the line crew work faster. In fact, it increased production by an estimated 50 to 100 percent, and at times, the lineworkers were able to double the amount of work they could get done in a day. The Burlington job was started on June 2, 2025, and ended on June 15. Without delays from inclement weather and other distractions that pulled lineworkers away from the job at times, it likely could have been completed several days earlier. Such a timeline would have been much more challenging to meet using traditional approaches.

Some of the biggest time savings stemmed from less time moving equipment. Tri-State’s traditional method requires two cranes and two buckets, which are constantly being repositioned to support the conductors. In contrast, the triple line lifter eliminated much of that maneuvering. It can support all conductors while the old structure is taken out and the new one is built. This efficient approach wouldn’t be possible when using hot sticks.

The equipment also provides enhanced safety and added convenience for the line crews. It keeps the energized conductors spaced farther apart from each other, giving lineworkers more room to comfortably work. Furthermore, it eliminates concerns of encroaching on the ground and phase-to-phase encroachment. Not having to use roller links and tag lines to try to control the conductors in the air was a significant benefit.

Although the lineworkers still used climbers while testing out the equipment, they relied on them much less frequently to scale the old structures. This further helped reduce risk, while minimizing the overall labor intensity of the work.

Taking on Future Projects

With the Burlington project in hindsight and the equipment rental completed, Tri-State decided to purchase its own TLL-1300 for future projects. The cooperative has recently completed a significant number of transmission upgrades with plenty more on the horizon. It services roughly 6,000 miles of line throughout four states, and the Brush crew alone is responsible for nearly 700 miles in eastern Colorado. The triple line lifter will help the crews to maintain such a large area.

By taking fewer outages, combined with cost savings from increased efficiency, the cooperative can achieve its mission of providing affordable, reliable energy to members. At the same time, it can enhance safety and reduce the labor intensity for the lineworkers.