Based in Brighton, CO, United Power Inc. is the second-largest electric cooperative in the state, serving over 200,000 customers across 5,000 miles of lines and nearly 83,000 meters. Part of their service territory reaches deep into Colorado’s rugged Golden Gate Canyon State Park, where more than 5,500 remote homes are nestled among dense forest and steep terrain.
When it came time to upgrade a 50-year-old single-phase distribution line in this challenging environment, United Power’s leadership team knew the solution needed to address more than just aging infrastructure. Reliability, fire mitigation, wildlife protection, and long-term storm hardening were all at the forefront.
“With the dense forest coverage in the park and the winds that are constantly blowing, we have a significant amount of fire potential up in the hills,” said Bryant Robbins, COO of United Power. “It’s all about risk management and reliability to our members, so whatever we could do to minimize that fire potential is what we needed to consider.”
Undergrounding the line wasn’t feasible due to terrain and cost, and bare wire posed too many fire risks. In 2016, United Power selected the Hendrix Aerial Spacer Cable System (ACS)—a reliable and fire-conscious solution engineered for tough environments. With its covered conductors, grounded messenger, and strategic spacer design, ACS reduces vegetation trimming, eliminates momentary faults, and minimizes ignition risks during weather or wildlife events.
The initial 2.8-mile, 7.2 kV installation was energized in late 2016. Encouraged by its performance, United Power completed a second 3.5-mile extension in 2017—strengthening system resilience and lowering maintenance requirements in wildfire-prone zones.
Learn about the Hendrix ACS products and engineering services that help utilities like United Power meet growing reliability and fire mitigation demands. Visit marmonutility.com/wildfire-mitigation/
