Valley Rural Electric Cooperative, Inc.

10700 Fairgrounds RoadP.O. Box 477

Huntingdon, PA 16652-0477814/643-2650

1-800-432-0680www.valleyrec.com

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MAY IS designated asNational Electrical SafetyMonth. It’s a time when wefocus on raising consumerawareness about electricalsafety issues. It’s also atime when we reflect onwhat the cooperative isdoing to keep safety as atop priority.

In 2005, Valley RuralElectric earned certificationfrom the Rural Electric

Safety Accreditation Program (RESAP),a service of the National Rural ElectricCooperative Association. This year, weplan to seek re-certification fromRESAP.

The safety accreditation program pro-motes the highest standards of safetyamong electric co-ops nationwide. Ourgoal is “zero injury — zero loss.”

Rigorous preparationElectric co-ops seeking accreditation

must complete a rigorous preparationand evaluation process. Co-op staff mustsubmit an application that includes docu-mentation covering a three-year period.These records relate to 22 aspects of thesystem’s safety policies and procedures(from accident investigation andemployee education to job supervisionand public hazard recognition) as well asfacilities (administration buildings, ware-housing, substations) and equipment(vehicles, protective gear and personaltools).

The co-op must then undergo ademanding peer review and audit.Regional safety professionals form anon-site inspection team. The four to six-

member group observes and evaluatesthe co-op in various categories. Theinformation gathered is used by thenational accreditation committee duringits final review process.

Rewarding resultsSuccessful applicants earn a certificate

of excellence in recognition of their safetyaccreditation. More importantly, they getan impartial evaluation of their efforts tosafeguard employees, consumers and thegeneral public. They also receive anassessment of their vulnerabilities, sothey can make any necessary changes.And they gather invaluable informationfrom experts in security and loss control.

The purpose of safety accreditation isnot to obtain a piece of paper to hang onthe wall. The goal is to preserve life andprevent injuries. Safety accreditation rec-ognizes the endeavors of our employeeswho resolve every day to maintain a safeworking environment.

Of course, by achieving safety accred-itation, we also reap the benefits of lowerinsurance premiums. If accidents areprevented, financial losses are decreased.So, accreditation ultimately saves ourconsumers money.

In 2005, we proudly joined the 465electric cooperatives nationwide thatearned this coveted certification. Andnow, through the leadership of our safe-ty committee, we want to prove that wehave stayed the course and remainedvigilant in our pursuit of a safe work-place and community.

We believe that safety should driveevery action within our organization,and we’re willing to put that convictionto the test. l

M A Y 2 0 0 8 • P E N N L I N E S 12a

One of 14 electriccooperatives servingPennsylvania and

New Jersey

COOPERATIVEconnection

F R O M T H E P R E S I D E N T & C E O

Co-op seeks safety re-certification

by Edward A. DezichPresident & CEO

ValleyRural Electric

Cooperative, Inc.

FUEL IS EXPENSIVE. Used restau-rant cooking oil is free. Vehicles can runon either. That’s why Valley Rural Elec-tric members Tony and Paula Seguin ofMiller Township, Huntingdon County,decided two years ago to convert theirdiesel Jettas into deep fryers on wheels.

The couple’s interest in using alterna-tive fuel in their cars was piqued afterTony read the book “From the Fryer to theFuel Tank” by Joshua Tickell. At thetime, the Seguins were paying to disposeof the old cooking oil from their cafe onPenn Street in Huntingdon.

Tony says he originally intended toconvert the oil to biodiesel fuel but dis-covered it was more feasible to modifytheir Volkswagens instead.

Cooking with greaseAfter vehicle conversion kits were

purchased online for about $850 apiece,the couple’s mechanic, Chris Fisher ofCar Tunes in Huntingdon, went towork.

He added a fuel tank in the trunk tohold the vegetable oil and installed fuellines, a filter and valve set, and toggle

switches so the driver can switchbetween vegetable oil or conventionaldiesel fuel. The car must start on dieseluntil the veggie oil is preheated to atleast 160 degrees.

Barring some added parts, thereseems to be no difference in the look ordrive of the Seguins’ veggie oil-run vehi-cles versus ordinary diesel-guzzlers. Infact, they can still operate strictly ondiesel if vegetable oil is not readily avail-able.

“You will need to replace a $15 fuelfilter at least every 5,000 miles,” Chrisnotes. “But other than that, there is nochange in the performance or economyof the car.”

Since the Seguins’ project, Chris andhis son Isaac have installed three morevegetable fuel systems for local folks.

Hold the fries A fill-up for Tony and Paula’s two

converted Jettas involves first filteringthe restaurant’s used oil through a sus-pended cheesecloth-like contraption.This removes any food particles thatcould wreak havoc on the engines. Thefiltered goop then collects in 5-gallonbuckets, ready to be poured directly intothe gas tanks.

The minor inconvenience of collect-ing and filtering the oil seems well

12b P E N N L I N E S • M A Y 2 0 0 8

Valley Rural Electric Cooperative, Inc.

B y S u s a n R . P e n n i n g

Communications Specialist,Member Services Department

GETTING A FILL-UP FROM THE FRYER

Local couple converts to veggie-oil vehicles

LIQUID GOLD: Boxers employee Steve King pre-pares to use the fryer at the cafe.

M A Y 2 0 0 8 • P E N N L I N E S 12c

Valley Rural Electric Cooperative, Inc.

LEFT: Tony and Paula Seguin own and operateBoxers Cafe on Penn Street in Huntingdon. Forthe past two years, they have been using the oldvegetable oil from their fryer to fuel their dieselVolkswagen Jettas.

ABOVE: Filtered vegetable oil is poured into asecond fuel tank located in the car’s trunk.

RIGHT: Before the oil can be put in the cars, itmust be filtered to remove food particles.

worth it, considering the fuel savings.Tony estimates that $10 worth of dieselnow lasts him a couple of weeks.

In addition to having more money intheir pockets, Tony and Paula are reap-ing the benefits of driving greener “car-bon-neutral” automobiles. They consid-er themselves avid environmentalists.

“We recycle as much as we can,”Paula says.

They use earth-friendly takeout con-tainers at the cafe and purchase organicproduce, paper products and clothingwhenever possible. They also take alltheir food waste to a local farmer whofeeds the scraps to his livestock.

At home, they use energy-efficientcompact fluorescent lightbulbs, hangtheir clothes outside to dry and haveinstalled an on-demand water-heatingunit.

They’ve also helped others make

environmentally responsible decisions.The vegetable oil from their cafe fuelsadditional converted cars in the area.

“We’re trying to do our part to makegood choices,” Paula notes. “We do whatmakes sense and what we can afford.”

For more information on vegetable fuelsystems, visit www.greasecar.com. l

Rudolf Diesel: Pioneer ofproduce-run vehiclesWHEN RUDOLF DIESEL introducedhis claim-to-fame at the 1900 Paris Expo-sition, he said two words as he startedhis signature engine: “Peanut Oil.”

He’d designed his engine so thatfarmers could essentially grow theirown fuel. Most diesel engines wereindeed run on vegetable oil until the1920s, when the petroleum industryproduced the gasoline byproduct nowknown as diesel fuel. At the time, itwas the cheaper alternative.

12d P E N N L I N E S • M A Y 2 0 0 8

Valley Rural Electric Cooperative, Inc.

The cooperative has scheduled pole inspec-tions beginning this month in the follow-

ing areas: Huntingdon County: Penn, Walker,Juniata, Dublin and Tell townshipsJuniata County: Lack Township

Crews from Osmose Wood Pre-serving Co. of Buffalo, N.Y., inspect

and treat about 3,000 of the co-op’spoles annually. Typically, only a handful

of them need to be removed and replaced. The procedure for inspecting poles involves digging a

hole around each pole and checking the wood for visibledecay or ground rot. To test for internal damage, workers“sound” and “bore” the pole (hammering and listening forhollow noises and drilling to extract a sample of wood).Crews also repair ground wires, replace guy guards andreport pole-top problems.

At an average price of $150 each, utility poles comprise alarge portion of the co-op’s physical plant. Routine inspec-tion and treatment help extend the useful lives of poles byyears or even decades.

As the system approaches 70 years of operation, it is vitalfor the co-op to take care of its aging equipment. Poleinspection is one way to ensure that Valley can continue toprovide superior service.

Field inventory project will soonbring crews to your neighborhood

Call before you dig!Safe digging should begin with a call to the Pennsylvania

One Call System (POCS). This service relays information onyour specific project to all local utility companies, so that anyunderground lines on your property can be marked. Available24/7, POCS is free for homeowners having excavation workdone at their residences.

If you are planning to dig: k Call POCS 3-10 working days before the project is scheduled

to begin. This is the timeframe required by law. k Be ready with all important information: the county, munic-

ipality, street address, extent and type of work,excavator/contact person and phone number.

k Wait for the site to be clearly marked. Marking could bedone with paint, flags or stakes.

k Dig with care. Always hand dig within 18inches on either side of any marked line. By not calling POCS, you risk personal injury

or even death, legal problems, and environmen-tal and property damage. You also risk costlydestruction of utility routes including cable, tele-phone, electric, gas, sewer and water lines aswell as emergency communication equipmentand traffic signals.

Digging soon? Call 811Pennsylvania One Call System, Inc.

Pole inspections scheduled

VALLEY RURAL ELECTRIC Cooper-ative is in the process of implementing acomplete system inventory to betterserve our members.

The new digital mapping system willgive us detailed information about ourdistribution network.

We have contracted SoutheasternReprographics, Inc. (SRI) of Alpharetta,Ga., to help us record the precise loca-tion of every piece of equipment on ournearly 2,900-mile distribution system.

Technicians from SRI will be travel-ing throughout the cooperative’s serviceterritory with global positioning system(GPS) devices. Their equipment is basedon technology developed by the U.S.Department of Defense that is nowavailable for public use at an affordableprice. It essentially uses satellite signals

to compute map coordinates for a specif-ic location.

Of course, this data collection projectwill be no small feat. The work isexpected to take up to two years to com-plete.

However, once it is done, the facilitymapping system will provide big bene-fits to Valley members. For example, itwill help crews get lights back on morequickly. The mapping system willinclude information about all equipmentassociated with a particular pole, suchas any transformers it may carry. Whencrews head out to fix a problem, theywill know they have the right equipmentwith them to fix the issue and do the jobright.

In June, SRI technicians will begin a pilot project in the Centre Union

Substation area in Huntingdon County.You may notice them slowly drivingdown the road in their white truckswith flashing yellow lights. They alsomay be riding four-wheelers or travelingon foot. They will probably be sportingbackpacks with antennas and carryinghand-held GPS computers. Don’t panicif they point equipment at your house.They’re just using a laser to quickly andaccurately record the location of an elec-tric meter.

SRI vehicles will be plainly markedand technicians will carry a letter thatidentifies them as contractors hired byValley Rural Electric Cooperative.

For more information on this project,call the co-op at 814/643-2650 or800/432-0680. We would be happy toanswer any questions you may have. l