MISSION

To facilitate and promote the progress of engineering and the international exchange of in­formation and knowledge in the field of overhead lines.  To add value to this information and knowledge by means of synthesising state of the art practices and developing recommenda­tions.

SCOPE

The field of study includes:

• conductors, earth wires, optical cables, and their associated insulators, joints, hardware and accessories;
• towers including accessories;  and
• tower foundations and earthing systems.

The studies (electrical and mechanical) cover the individual items, the subsystems formed from those items, such as conductor bundles, and the interactions between the components comprising the subsystems.

The important parameters describing the environment experienced by overhead lines are covered, together with the effects of the environment on the line’s components with regard to design specifications and loading, electrical and mechanical performance, service life and deterioration mechanisms.  In addition, the Committee studies the effects of the line on the environment (including life cycle assessment) both in terms of its individual components, as well as the line as a whole.  The scope includes the study of activities such as design, route selection, construction, operation, and asset management items such as maintenance, refur­bishment, uprating, upgrading, restoration and dismantling of the line.

Each Study Committee oversees a number of Working Groups.