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Vision Statement:
South Texas Electric Cooperative July 2017
Bi-Monthly Newsletter
South Texas Electric Cooperative is a cutting-
edge G&T Cooperative and a leader in providing a
diverse portfolio of affordable energy, a reliable
power delivery system, and services customized
to the needs of the members.
What’s Inside:
» Lineman Appreciation
» Manager’s Message » Board of Director News
» SkySTEC 318 » Accounting & Finance
» Corporate & Member Services » Power Delivery
» Power Supply » Committee Meetings Employee Standing Committee Safety Committee Scholarship Committee
» Service Anniversaries
» Upcoming Meetings
STEC observed National Lineman Appreciation Day on
Monday, April 10, 2017, with a luncheon to show their
appreciation for the efforts that all of our linemen,
operators, and technicians put forth each day,
regardless of the conditions, to help ensure that we
keep power flowing through our communities. They
work 365 days a year to build, maintain and repair the
electric infrastructure. Thank you all for all that you do
for STEC and our members.
The best car safety device is a rear-view mirror with a cop in it.
Dudley Moore
Anyone who has driven an automobile for any period of time has had this
happen. You glance in the rear-view mirror and see a police car behind you.
Be honest – what is the first thing you do? Take your foot off the accelerator!
Why? Because, without even looking, we know that we may well be guilty of
exceeding the speed limit. Why? Why would we knowingly violate a traffic
law? Because we have become accustomed to doing so, and we have gotten
away with it. Seeing the police car in our rear-view mirror brings our
awareness of past behavior to the front of our minds, and we instinctively do
what we know we should have been doing all along. The same is true when we
ignore measures designed to keep us safe on the job. We may get away with it
for a while, but eventually that type of work habit will catch up to us in ways
we may come to regret.
Without looking, see if you can guess who is quoted in the following passage:
“When any one asks me how I can best describe my experiences of nearly forty
years at sea I merely say uneventful. Of course, there have been Winter gales and
storms and fog and the like, but in all my experience I have never been in an
accident of any sort worth speaking about. I have seen but one vessel in distress
in all my years at sea, a brig, the crew of which was taken off in a small boat in
charge of my third officer. I never saw a wreck and have never been wrecked, nor
was I ever in any predicament that threatened to end in disaster of any sort. I
will say that I cannot imagine any condition which could cause a ship to founder.
I cannot conceive of any vital disaster happening to this vessel. Modern ship-
building has gone beyond that.”
These words were spoken by EJ Smith, Captain of the Titanic, shortly before
it began its fateful and final voyage. Captain Smith wrongly assumed that
because he had not experienced any significant problems during his career at
sea up to that point in time, he could rely upon that experience to repeat itself
going forward. We all know that was not the case for Captain Smith or for the
crew and passengers aboard the Titanic. Nor is it true for us when it comes to
safety.
As I write this message, STEC employees are approximately one week away
from achieving a major milestone in our Safety Program – one million man
hours worked without a Lost Time Accident. I want to express my sincere
appreciation to each STEC employee for achieving this accomplishment – one
that would not have been possible without a great deal of hard work, focus,
and attention to safe work practices. My challenge to you is to not let up, but
to maintain your focus on working safely.
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
2016 Capital Credit Certificates, consistent with the allocation of net income, were
presented and approved for issuance.
Don Gray’s recommended approach for the July 1, 2017 insurance policy renewals was
approved.
STEC contributed $1,500 to the CFC Integrity Fund from General Funds to be used for
territorial purposes only, as approved by the Board.
STEC continued support of the NRECA International Program in the amount of
$4,000.
Amy Pratka provided a status report on SkySTEC318, as well as risk assessments and
audits that are currently in progress and completed.
A recommendation to execute a contract with Roth Construction for the Unit 3
Renovation project was approved.
Revised Board Policy No. 241 – Safety Regulations, Authority, and Job Training,
Revised Board Policy No. 201 – Selection and Dismissal, Revised Board Policy No. 202
– Work Schedule and Overtime Policy, and Revised Board Policy No. 109 – Service
Awards for Employees and Directors were approved.
Frances Nitschmann, Clif Lange and Mike Kezar presented a breakdown of STEC
member rate components for 2016 and the major cost drivers behind those rate
components.
Clif Lange gave a presentation on the impact various congestion
scenarios can have on STEC resource power prices.
Lucas Turner presented the ERCOT Capacity, Demand, and Reserves
(CDR) report to the Board.
The Independent Market Monitor (IMM) report was provided by Diana
Liebmann.
Cory Allen presented the 2017 Transmission Cost of Service matrix.
Pete Masiel presented an update on the Federal Motor Carrier Safety
Regulations, STEC’s Driver Vehicle Inspection Form, and STEC’s Com-
pliance, Safety, Accountability (CSA) scores.
Travis Chrest gave a presentation on NERC and TexasRE compliance
activities.
John Packard gave a presentation on a recommendation for the
permanent retirement and removal from service of the Pearsall Steam
Units. The Board approved the recommendation.
John Packard presented a case study of a potential 500 kW solar
installation at the Pearsall plant site. Draft Request for Proposals
(RFP) were provided for the Board to review.
Mike Kezar continues to visit each of the members’ Boards giving an
overview presentation on STEC.
Larry Huesser, STEC Board Vice-President, represented the STEC
Board at the Service Awards Luncheon on June 30th at the Victoria
Community Annex honoring 38 employees.
Gary Raybon
Larry Huesser
Tommy Ermis
Barbara Miller
Bobby Bauch
Brad Bierstedt
Paul Brysch
James Coleman
Bruce Elliott
John Herrera
Ron Hughes
Leroy Kaspar
Trace McCuan
Mark Rollans
Blaine Warzecha
Donald Wehmeyer
President
Vice President
Secretary/
Treasurer
Asst. Secretary/
Treasurer
Director
Director
Director
Director
Director
Director
Director
Director
Director
Director
Director
Director
South Texas Electric Board of Director News:
SkySTEC 318 The SkySTEC project is the implementation of Microsoft Dynamics AX which is a
software package we will begin using across the company in March 2018. This software
will take information/processes we have spread throughout the business and bring that
information into one location. The Project Leaders for STEC are Amy Pratka and Tony
Gigli. We are also working with Erin Kitt of Edisto Resources who is serving as
Consultant for Project Management. The company that will be performing the implemen-
tation is Sopris Systems, and they will also be our contact for support once the system is
in operation.
There are five phases associated with the project, and each phase includes specific
activities and deliverables. The phases (in order) and some examples of the activities in
each phase are as follows:
Plan – Environment Planning, Requirement Workshops/Process Flows, Core Team
Education (current phase)
Design – Environment Building, Data Conversion Workshops/Process Flows
Build – Sprints, Sprint User Acceptance Testing, Functional Testing
Test/Train – Train the Trainer Training, End User Training
Go-Live Transition – Successfully execute Go-Live, Transition to Support, Evaluate
future needs/phases
We have assembled a Steering Team to guide the business process decisions that will be made
throughout the project. The Steering Team members are as follows:
Mike Kezar Wendy Ohrt Amy Pratka
Cory Allen Frances Nitschmann Tony Gigli
John Packard Jane Krause
We should be completing the planning phase in the next couple of weeks. This phase has been long and
intense. We started the planning phase with demos of Microsoft Dynamics AX with STEC’s implementation
team members. Those demos were intended to give a broad overview of the system we are purchasing. The
next step in the planning phase was Requirement Workshops, including discussions about workflows. These
workshops were conducted with the following Teams: Finance/Budgeting, Trade and Logistics (Purchasing/
Warehouse/Inventory), HR/Payroll, EAM (Enterprise Asset Management) and Projects. These meetings were
intended to help Sopris better understand our current process so that they can help design and build the new
system to best suites our needs. Another set of meetings was conducted to develop requirement use cases.
The Planning Phase will end when we receive a Fit/Gap Analysis (a document stating STEC requirements
that are not part of our contract).
While working in the Planning Phase, we simultaneously started the Design Phase. Data Conversion
Workshops were conducted. The purpose of these workshops was for Sopris to walk through the templates
with STEC that we will use for gathering data to upload into the new software.
During the Planning Phase, the Technology Team worked with Sopris to create an Environment Plan, and
during the Design Phase, Sopris is working on Designing the Environment for STEC.
Changes to the Project Team from Sopris are as follows:
Rick Kennedy has taken over the role of Project Manager for the Sopris Team.
Jeannie Cooper has taken over the role of Financial Consultant for the Sopris Team.
Rebeca Coker was added as a Human Resources/PR Consultant for the Sopris Team.
If you have any questions or concerns regarding the project, please contact Amy Pratka or Tony Gigli.
Accounting and Finance:
Accounting Procedure Reminders:
Review the list of open work orders provided monthly to identify any work orders that
are complete and should be closed. Next, submit the work order close form so that it
may be properly closed and reclassified as a finished asset. This is always an
important requirement and is a particularly timely concern as conversion to new
software is being implemented.
When you use a company charge account, such as Home Depot, Lowes, or Wal-Mart,
the receipt should be submitted to the Purchasing department within 24 hours of the
purchase. Before submitting to Purchasing the PO should be created in the PO
database.
When you have a counter sale or repair service and you are given the invoice at the
time of sale, make sure you give that invoice to the designated individual in your area.
This person will need to properly process the invoice and send to Accounts Payable for
payment.
When scanning invoices to Accounts Payable for payment, please make sure the
scanning is done on the highest resolution level for clarity.
All invoices should come to Accounts Payable first then distributed if need be.
When staying in a hotel, the Hotel Tax Exemption Forms should be presented at the
time of check-in to avoid state & local hotel tax being charged for the stay. The form
can be found on the X drive under forms.
The new warehouse is near completion. This warehouse should house bulk items
(i.e. slow movers, and back stock) and will help us store items that we only currently
have room outside to park but will be more safely stored inside. The new warehouse
will help us transition into a new workflow concept as we will now have space to
stage pallets for projects without comingling with stock items that are not ear-
marked.
Mark Kimmey joined the Accounting & Finance Department as the Procurement
Manager on July 10, 2017. Please welcome Mark to the STEC family.
Corporate & Member Services—Competitive Retail:
Spring into Action and Get Ready for the Heat.
Don’t wait until your first high electrical bill to get ready for this South Texas summer heat. What an excellent
time to spring into action to save your hard earned dollars from going to a large electric bill. Here are a couple
tips for electricity conservation during the summer months:
Contact a qualified technician to service your central air-conditioner system. If you want to ward off major
problems with your HVAC unit, it should be serviced every year.
Change your AC filter on a monthly basis. A clogged up filter will cause your AC to work harder and use
more electricity. If you are like most of us with allergies, you will appreciate not having the dust and other
allergens that it has collected getting back into the air.
Use exhaust fans in your bathroom and kitchen to take out humidity. But turn them off after the smoke in
the kitchen or the steam in the bathroom clears.
Open windows when the air is cooler instead of AC. If used along with ceiling fans the breezes will freshen
up your home as well as keeping it cool and you won’t be sweating when time to pay that electric bill. Just
remember, fans only cool your body temperature, not your house, so turn them off when you leave. You can
also save electricity by turning off those lights now because the sunlight is shining in!
Fire up the old BBQ to keep the heat out of the house. Steaks on the BBQ vs. hamburgers on the stove top,
now that’s a win-win.
Pull down the shade or blinds. No there are not spies in your yard; I’m talking sun rays in your windows.
Even with triple pane windows, the heat still finds its way. Just think, if you block that beautiful view now,
you can use the money saved for a beautiful view on vacation.
Install a programmable thermostat and keep it around 78 degrees. It will allow you to set the temp when
you are away from home and lower the temp shortly before you return. Program it for vacation too with all
the money you will be saving on your electric bill.
Lower you water heater temperature. A good summer setting is around 110 to 120 degrees.
Wash clothes and dishes at night and let your dishes air dry. Stay clear of running large electronics between
2 pm and 8 pm.
The NEC’s software billing conversion day has come. STEC’s Victoria retail office has shut
down telephone business starting July 6th at 5:00pm. First was the task of closing out of the
Daffron system Thursday night. Friday spent uploading files to iSigma and STEC’s retail
crew busy learning and training on the new iSigma system. The NEC Robstown office is taking
phone calls during this time to offer information and limited support to NEC Coop Energy
members. Most requests will be held for the new software system to be live or members are
instructed to call back.
iSigma is projected to become the live billing system for NEC Coop Energy July 12th. Prior to
this point our staff that includes Shawndra Chumchal, Connie Hermes, Ina Hohlt, Ginger
Lorance, Jackie Perez, Mary Jane Munoz and Darilyn Barger, will probably be spending some
late nights getting ready for it. Some of the tasks will be validating data in iSigma, data entry
of various items that was not uploaded from Daffron from multiple reports just to name a few.
Even though this new billing system accomplishes the similar results as the Daffron system, the differences in
the steps to get there is greatly different. This made the creation of new procedures necessary as work
assignments have been reassigned between the STEC Retail office, the NEC Robstown office, as well as inner
office personnel. The procedures will assuredly go under multiple changes in the months to follow as we continue
working in the new system and learning the most efficient way to streamline tasks that will benefit both
employees and NEC Coop Energy’s members.
NEC Coop Energy rate plans stay the same, however the members will be facing multiple changes at once. New
account numbers, new online portal for account access, and automated phone payment system are just a few.
Not only have the account numbers changed, the members will be facing new bill formats, disconnect for
non-payment notifications as well as other form changes. NEC Representatives will encourage members to use
the new interactive voice response (IVR) system to make their payments on the accounts and continue to give
members the best customer service.
On April 7, 2017, Dotty DiSanto, Member Services Coordinator,
and Amy Segler, Engineering Assistant, represented STEC’s
technical women at the “Women in Industry” event held at the
Victoria College Emerging Technology Complex. The event
showcased many companies in the area that employed women in
technical fields. Dotty and Amy gave a presentation to VISD
high school girls to expose them to careers in Industrial Trades.
Feedback from the girls was that “the event left everyone feeling
empowered and inspired”.
Corporate & Member Services (continued) —
Competitive Retail & Member Services:
Jacklynn Thormahlen, daughter of Ina Hohlt, graduated
from Victoria East High School on June 2, 2017. She is
ranked in the top 10% of her class and is a member of the
National Honor Society. She has received a scholarship from
Victoria Sembradores Education Foundation to apply to her
future Bachelors of Science Nursing degree program. Best of
luck to Jacklynn on her future endeavors!
Joshua Munoz, son of Mary Jane Munoz, has been awarded
the Star rank in Boy Scouts at the end of April 2017. To earn
the rank of Star, he had to complete numerous camp-outs,
many hours of community service and multiple merit badges.
He has now started working on the Life rank which is the
second highest rank attainable in the Boy Scouting program.
He will concentrate on building his leadership skills for the
next six months. Recently, Joshua was elected by his peers
as a member of the Order of the Arrow, which is the Boy
Scouts National Honor Society. Way to go Joshua!
On May 17, 2017, Dotty DiSanto
presented “Home Arcing
Demonstration for Electrical
Safety” to 2nd through 5th
grade students at the Rowland
Elementary Career Day.
As part of the National and State efforts to protect human health and the environment, Federal and
State laws require companies to submit an annual emissions inventory to their state regulatory
authority. The Environmental Department recently submitted inventories for Sam Rayburn, Red Gate
and Pearsall Power Plants for reporting year 2016 to the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality
(TCEQ). The inventories total the air pollutants emitted by each emission source at that facility.
Additionally, Greenhouse Gas Emissions (GHG) were submitted to the Environmental Protection
Agency’s (EPA) reporting system for all three power plants for 2016. With EPA’s Facility Level
Information GreenHouse gases Tool (FLIGHT), you can quickly and easily filter GHG data in a variety
of ways, including by facility, industry, location, or gas.
May was National Electrical Safety Month
National Electrical Safety Month means it’s time to
check your year-round electrical safety awareness
efforts. Each year, electricity kills nearly 400 people
and injures thousands more. Increasing awareness of
electrical safety could help avoid deaths and injuries.
Power line contact with construction equipment, ladders
and gardening tools are among the leading causes of electrocutions.
National Electrical Safety Month serves as a great reminder for everyone to be careful
around downed power lines during this stormy season.
Stay at least 10-20 feet away from downed or low-hanging power lines at all times.
Moving away from the downed line, shuffle your feet close together and on the
ground.
If your vehicle touches downed power line, stay inside until rescue workers say it
safe to leave.
If you must leave the vehicle due to dangerous situation such as fire, jump away
from the vehicle so that you do not touch the vehicle and the ground at the same
time. Land with feet together and shuffle, keeping the feet close together and on the
ground.
Contact your local electric provider to report the downed or low-hanging lines.
STEC received recognition for operating without a
lost-time work injury for one year from Texas
Electric Cooperatives, Inc. (TEC). Great job STEC!
Corporate & Member Services—Safety & Environmental:
Corporate & Member Services —
Compliance/Information Technology/Security:
These were the most commonly
violated standards between May
2016 and May 2017. They account
for approximately 76% of total new
violations. It’s important that we
review the standards we are
responsible for complying with to
ensure we are still performing tasks
associated with requirements. If
you have any questions on
compliance requirements send an
email to [email protected].
The Security Department in cooperation with Information Technology (IT) work to
install Radio-frequency identification (RFID) systems at the Donna and Red Gate
Power Plant facilities. RFID uses electromagnetic fields to automatically identify
and track tags. This system will play a vital role when accounting for employees/
visitors during an evacuation.
Redgate Security Officers have started visiting STEC substations in the Rio
Grande Valley area. Officers are evaluating the physical security of each
substation. These evaluations include looking at the location of the station, the
perimeter fencing, lighting, video surveillance, and crime statistics for the area.
Physically visiting each station also provides STEC Security with firsthand
knowledge about where each station is located and what is around it.
Eric Mercer joined the IT
Department as an IT Technician
on July 10, 2017. He and his wife
of 15 years, Mandy, have two
sons, Bryce who is 10 years old
and Kasyn who is 3 years old.
Greg has been involved in the
technology field for 20 years.
Please welcome Greg to the
STEC family.
Power Delivery—Engineering & System Operations:
Keith Hastings, System
Operator, is pictured below
performing radio checks with
member cooperatives. Radio
checks are an essential part
of STEC’s Hurricane
Preparedness Plan.
Greg Blank joined the Engineering Department as a
Transmission Engineer on May 8, 2017. He and his wife of
7 years, Brittany, have two sons, Owen who is 3 years old
and Brody who is 10 months old. Greg is from Weatherford,
Texas where he worked at Power Engineers for 8 years.
Please welcome Greg to the STEC family.
Steve Bolle, Chief System Operator, Matt Berhard,
System Operator, Lee Martinez, SCADA Technician
Foreman, and Kathy Keith, SCADA Programmer,
attended the Advanced Control Systems (ACS)
Conference that was held in Atlanta, Georgia on May
7-12, 2017. They participated in a round table
discussion with ACS over switching documents.
Derek Merta joined the Engineering Department as a
Distribution Engineer on July 10, 2017. He and his wife of
6 years, Brooke, have two daughters, Anna who is 3 years
old and Emma who is 11 weeks old. Derek is from Bryan,
Texas where he worked at Bryan Texas Utilities. Please
welcome Derek to the STEC family.
Roger Kurtz and James Stastny, Engineering
Assistants, are pictured on right participating in
training at the Placedo Substation.
The Under-Frequency Load Shedding (UFLS) survey required by the
ERCOT Nodal Operating Guides Section 2.6.1 occurred at 11:00 on May
11, 2017. Steve Bolle compiled the survey data, completed the
necessary forms and submitted to ERCOT on behalf of the Members,
Golden Spread Electric Cooperative (GSEC) and Texas-Louisiana
Electric Cooperative (TexLa).
W.S. Brown, Metering Technician, performed
checkout of the Fowlerton substation revenue
metering circuits. AVO CTER test set is used
to place voltage and current onto the meter
circuits in a test method known as secondary
injection. Voltage and currents provided by
the test set are checked along the circuit
paths as verification of wiring integrity. Along
with secondary injection tests of the circuits,
W.S. checks metering equipment nameplate
data to ensure the correct equipment has
been installed. He also programs and tests
the station meter with calculated parameters
specific to the Fowlerton station transformer.
Jim Smith and Jose Loredo, Relay Techni-
cians, are installing a battery disconnect on
the 14MVA Mobile at Van Vleck substation.
The Mobile was installed in order to upgrade
the transformer
at the station.
Carl Pankartz with Doble Engineering Company,
pictured below, is performing the annual Doble
training to the crews. The training topics help
technicians of all levels be more efficient, effective
and safe in the field.
Power Delivery—Technical Services:
Technicians in the substation mainte-
nance department are adding wildlife
protection devices on equipment in
substations. This is being done to
reduce the number of electrical contact
events that can be caused by various
types of animals in the substations
resulting in power blinks or outages to
our customers.
Power Delivery—Line Crew, Right-of-Way & Construction:
Congrats to Mr. and Mrs. Brent Strickland on the arrival of their daughter,
Ella Daniella Strickland. Ella Daniella was born March 6, 2017 weighing 6
lbs 13 oz, 18 1/2 inches.
Congrats to Mr. and Mrs. Josh Bruno on the arrival of their daughter, Isa-
belle Bruno. Isabelle was born March 21, 2017 weighing 6 lbs 8 oz, 19 1/4
inches.
Line Crew
Performed clean-up at the Van Vleck Substation
and moved the mobile to the Sargent Substation to
repair an oil leak on the main transformer
Performed low side and high side switch
maintenance, regulator change out and insulator
coating at Loyola Substation
Replaced a pole on the West George West Tap
Replaced poles on the Clay West 69kV Tap
Added capacitors to the cap banks at Helena and
Milton Substations
Installed bog shoes on the 69kV H-frames
structures between Ricardo and Rivera
Replaced two blown regulators at the Frio Town
Substation
Repaired damaged 69kV fuse assembly and regulators at the Uvalde
Substation
Assisted with removing the 138kV PT-CT set at Reveille for repair
Unloaded structural steel at North Clemville for the new
transmission terminal.
Repaired down static wire on the Lone Tree to Placedo line
Repaired blown high side fuses and changed out regulators at the
Moore Substation
Clay West Tap—BJ Huff & Traylor Sproles
Construction
Constructed facilities equipment up-grades and installed new fence at
the Salt Dome Substation
Constructed concrete piers for equipment upgrades at the Pearsall
Substation
Constructed piers at the Randado Substation for bus support addition
Installed gates at Weesatch, Fowlerton and Orange Grove Substations Salt Dome substation
Congrats to Andrew Jackson on the arrival of his granddaughter, Brianna
Callis. Brianna was born June 18, 2017 weighing 7 lbs 9 oz, 18 inches.
Repaired broken pole from storm on
the Driscoll to Corpus Christi
Switch
Driscoll to Corpus Christi Switch—repair broken pole
Falcon Dam Power Plant
The technicians worked with Falcon Dam
Power Plant to replace the 138kV arrestors
and jumpers on Unit 3 transformer and
replaced the pressure relief device on Unit
1 transformer.
Power Delivery—Valley Facility:
138kV Arrestor Replacement
The technicians and the Nursery line crew
have been proactive in replacing 138kV pol-
ymer arrestors that have been identified as
near failing throughout the Valley system.
Hi-Line Substation
In June, the technicians dressed out
transformer #2 at the Hi-Line Sub-
station. They are currently in the
process of commissioning the station.
Valverde Substation
In June, the technicians worked to test Mobile David
located at the Valverde Substation after experiencing an
internal fault. The testing revealed a need to remove the
mobile from further service and have an internal
inspection. To temporarily serve the Valverde load, the
technicians worked to install the Pearsall mobile along with
installing a temporary 10 MVA transformer to serve the
Valverde load through August.
Congratulations to Matthew and Ryan Torres,
sons of Margarito Torres, Valley Relay Technician.
They competed in the McAllen Jazz Competition
and received awards as All-Star Performers in
Alto Sax and Trombone. Ryan also received an
Outstanding Performer award in Trombone.
Power Delivery—Valley Facility (continued):
Kailah Serrano, daughter of
Octavio Serrano, graduated
from Los Fresnos High
School in Los Fresnos, TX
on May 27, 2017. She will
be attending UTRGV
pursuing a degree in
criminal justice.
Angelica Gallaga, daughter of
Loretta Gallaga, graduated
from Robert Vela High School
in Edinburg, TX on June 3,
2017.
Priscilla Chavez, daughter
of Edgar Chavez, graduated
from James Pace High
School in Brownsville, TX
on June 10, 2017. She will
be attending UTRGV
pursuing a degree in the
medical field.
Power Supply—Wholesale Marketing / QSE:
In late March, STEC, the Western Area Power Authority, and the
International Boundary and Water Commission (IBWC) met to discuss
budget estimates for the next fiscal year and for future years, including
the work plan for the Amistad and Falcon hydro facilities. This annual
meeting provides IBWC, as the operator of the two facilities, the
chance to present its estimates and work plan, and provides STEC, as
the recipient of the energy generated by Amistad and Falcon, the
chance to give input on the work plans and budgets. STEC and IBWC
also discuss any new changes which affect operation of the facilities in
the ERCOT market. STEC receives the energy produced by the
Amistad and Falcon hydro projects, which is based upon the water
releases requested by consumers on or near the Rio Grande River
downstream of the dams. The energy produced is highly dependent
upon rainfall and agricultural irrigation demands, but in most cases
STEC gets energy from the facilities on regular intervals. The
contract, originally between IBWC and Medina EC, has a term ending
in 2033.
STEC QSE Operators attended the annual ERCOT Region Operator
Training Seminar. This is the thirty-third year for the seminar. The
seminar is a multi-day course focused on providing training and
providing a forum for system-wide operations and problems. This year,
the training topics related to reliability, NERC Standards compliance,
lessons learned, ERCOT systems, and emerging technologies. The
seminar provides the opportunity to get the necessary NERC and
ERCOT required training hours. Since the QSE Operators conduct
business solely by phone, the seminar provides the Operators with the
opportunity to put a face with a name for the various traders and
ERCOT Operators that they regularly speak with.
Power Supply—Wholesale Marketing / QSE (continued):
Over in the QSE, things have been
speeding by since the last newsletter.
The heat in May and June brought
about peak demand records for ERCOT
in each month which followed the peak
demand record set for April in ERCOT.
The more-than-expected demand has
put pressure on the ERCOT grid in a
variety of ways which generally has
the effect of increased prices. STEC
has enough supply to meet its needs
and can avoid most of the high prices,
but the effect of lack of wind and lack
of transmission capacity can cause big
price disparities among STEC
resources. A new price occurs every
five minutes for each resource and
load, and can swing from a high price
(e.g. - $900/MWh) to a low price (e.g. -
$-90/MWh) for the same resource in
that same timeframe. Of course, the
different prices have different
outcomes for settlement so the QSE
operator must adjust the resource to
this fact. Day-ahead operations help
position our units to take advantage of
the volatile real-time market. Things
can be very fluid at the real-time desk.
Along with high school ending, the
college semester ends and some stu-
dents start on plans to move to an-
other school. Jordan Delgado, son of
Kafia Delgado, and Phillip Thamm,
son of Stephen Thamm will both be transferring to
University of Texas at San Antonio to complete
their bachelor’s degree coursework. Jordan has
been attending Victoria College and Phillip has
been attending Texas A&M – Corpus Christi. Both
Jordan and Phillip will study Computer Science
with a specialty in Cybersecurity at UTSA.
Wyatt Andrews, son of Jason
Andrews, graduated from Cuero
High School on May 26, 2017.
Wyatt graduated with honors and
accumulated 18 hours of college
credit before graduation. He will attend Texas
A&M with the plan to major in Nutrition and
then attend a Physician Assistant master’s
program. Wyatt aspires to work as a Physician
Assistant in an emergency room setting. Best of
luck to Wyatt on his future endeavors!
Power Supply —
Sam Rayburn, Pearsall and Red Gate Power Plants:
Sam Rayburn Power Plant
The G3 Building Renovation
project has started. Roth
Construction was awarded
the contract and are sched-
uled to complete the project
at the end of February 2018.
Pearsall Power Plant
The Pearsall Plant has recently completed the 12k overhaul on Engine 12. They have now begun work
on the Engine 6 12k overhaul. During these overhauls plant staff have been performing maintenance
and inspections on the main oil pump, turbochargers, SCR catalyst, pre-lube pump and water spaces.
A site walk down was conducted on June 28th for the prospective bidders on the Hazardous Materials
Survey to be performed at the Steamer Plant upon shutdown of those units.
The demolition subcontractor for the G3
Building Renovation project is nearing
completion. Concrete, Masonry and Steel
subcontractors will begin work in July.
Red Gate Power Plant
The team has been performing inspections on
each of the generators. They are also perform-
ing routine borescope inspections of the en-
gine cylinder heads.
Power Supply — Sam Rayburn, Pearsall and Red Gate Power Plants (continued):
The team has been performing 1,000 hour inspections on each of the engines.
Currently, they have completed the inspections on Engines 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 10, 11
and 12. The tasks of the 1,000 hour maintenance includes inspecting/cleaning
spark plugs, inspecting valve clearances, inspecting exhaust valve seats, and
checking the prechamber torque.
STEC’s 22nd Annual Golf Tournament held on Saturday, April 1, 2017 was a
huge success with many of our own STEC teams winning awards in the event.
Jeremy Buchhorn and David Jaeger landed in the green at The Nitsche Group
sponsored $10,000 Hole-in-One round. The staff of The Club at Colony Creek
were professional and courteous. The club provided wonderful food and golf
services to the players. We would like to thank everyone that helped make
this year’s golf tournament such a success. Mark your calendars; the 2018
STEC Golf Tournament will take place at The Club at Colony Creek on Satur-
day, April 7, 2018.
Employee Standing Committee:
Rayburn, Donna, Red Gate and Pearsall facilities put together Easter Egg
Hunt’s for their local families. Around 30 children and their families gathered
at the Nursery Pavilion for this year’s event. All four Easter Egg Hunt’s
included pizza, cookies or cake, and, of course, many candy filled eggs. A
huge thanks to everyone at each of these facilities that helped make the
Easter Egg Hunts such a success and giving the employees’ children/
grandchildren the opportunity to join us in celebrating the Easter holiday.
The Board approved the following recipients for the 2017 CoBank Sharing
Success Program: International Museum of Art & Science in McAllen, The
Texas Ramp Project in the San Antonio South Region, and The Ark –
Assessment Center and Emergency Shelter for Youth in Corpus Christi.
STEC sent an application to CoBank requesting a matching grant for each of
these organizations through their Sharing Success Program.
Another program offered through CoBank is “No Barriers.” This program
provides outdoor expeditions that help transform the lives of veterans. The
program is available to a total of 50 veterans and nominations are due by
May 1st. STEC made a nomination to this program for 2017. Please keep
veterans in mind for next year’s nomination.
Power Delivery
Employee Standing Committee:
Service Awards Banquet In a joint effort with Human Resources, ESC
helped organize the Employee Service
Awards Luncheon on June 30th. The event
took place at the Victoria Community Annex
with Mike Pozzi catering. Thirty-eight
employees reached milestone anniversaries
in 2016.
Accounting & Finance/Administration/
Corporate & Member Services
Frances Nitschmann 15 year award Kimberly Perry 15 year award Anna Warner 15 year award Maria Dominguez 10 year award
Hector Guerra, Jr. 5 year award
Power Supply
Darrell Klimitchek 30 year award Allen Moeller 25 year award Dwain Garber 20 year award Bradley Graham 20 year award
Steve Bolle 15 year award
Shawn Diebel 15 year award
Lucio Garcia 15 year award
Arthur Gifford 15 year award
Ty Haschke 15 year award
Cynthia Haynes 15 year award
Steven Taylor 15 year award
Brett Temple 15 year award
Terry Vaughn 15 year award
Matthew Farris 10 year award
Travis Gillig 10 year award
Matthew Bernhard 10 year award
Adam Doelle 10 year award
Carlos Barrera 5 year award
Josh Bruno 5 year award
Bobby Fojt 5 year award
Kyle Janak 5 year award
Arturo Martinez 5 year award
Delton Marbach 25 year award David Obregon 20 year award Jason Andrews 15 year award Kafia Delgado 15 year award
Lewis McFadin 15 year award
John Marbach 15 year award
Clayton Schutz 15 year award
Johnny Stacy 15 year award
John Garza 10 year award
Donnie Herrera 5 year award
Noel Martinez 5 year award
Employee Standing Committee (continued):
As of June 24, 2017 STEC has donated more than
$38,510 to qualifying organizations in the areas that
we serve through STEC’s Charitable Giving and
Corporate Support Program. In addition, STEC em-
ployees used 86.8125 days (694.50 hours) of paid
release time giving back to our communities. The
ESC continues to encourage employees to find quali-
fying organizations in the communities that we serve
where you can give back by using your paid release
time.
Remember all employees have 24 hours of paid release time to use for 2017.
On March 27th, Becky Loredo and Amy
Segler volunteered their time with the
Children’s Discovery Museum helping
with the “Change Our Future Cam-
paign”.
Garland Hencerling, Josh Paul, Dennis
Repka and Scott Perry volunteered
their time with Warrior’s Weekend
constructing a spectacular sand
sculpture for wounded soldiers from
military installations across the
country. Warrior’s Weekend is
dedicated to the support of veterans of
The United States of America with an
emphasis on those wounded by
holding an annual fishing event for
wounded military personnel.
Juan Vasquez, James Rhodes,
Carlos Maldonado, Bo Alvarez,
Anthony Maldonado and Joseph
Martinez volunteered their time
with the Texas Ramp Project
building wheelchair ramps in
Devine, Texas.
Donnie Herrera, Ethan Meyers,
Clayt Stacy, Gabe Mainez, John
Coyle, Jacob Carrizales, Tanner
Rice and Lance Yaws volun-
teered their time with the Texas
Ramp Project building wheel-
chair ramps in Dilley, Texas.
Sharon Beahm, Larry Teague, Sam
Hanke, Michael Urban, Ronnie
Malina, Anna Warner, Kathy Bancuch
and Aaron Spears volunteered their
time with the Texas Ramp Project
building wheelchair ramps in Victoria,
Texas.
Employee Standing Committee (continued):
As of June 24, 2017 STEC has donated more than
$38,510 to qualifying organizations in the areas that
we serve through STEC’s Charitable Giving and
Corporate Support Program. In addition, STEC em-
ployees used 86.8125 days (694.50 hours) of paid
release time giving back to our communities. The
ESC continues to encourage employees to find quali-
fying organizations in the communities that we serve
where you can give back by using your paid release
time.
Remember all employees have 24 hours of paid release time to use for 2017.
STEC provided a charitable
donation in the amount of
$500 to Rio Grande Habitat
for Humanity.
Doug Evans, Clayton Rickman,
Anthony Lopez and Aaron Spears
volunteered their time with the
Texas Ramp Project building wheel-
chair ramps in Victoria, Texas.
STEC provided a charitable
donation in the amount of $750 to the
Boys & Girls Club of Victoria.
Pictured left to right are Crystal
Saucedo (Boys & Girls Club), Adam
Sugart (Boys & Girls Club) and Jesse
Welch (STEC).
STEC provided a charitable donation in
the amount of $500 to CASA of South
Texas. Pictured left to right are John
Garza (STEC), Jimmy Allen (CASA
Board Member), Francie Gasch (CASA
Board Member), Peter Salinas (CASA/
Police Cheif), Susan Belding (CASA
Board Member), Dave Richey(CASA
Board Member) and Jose Ramirez
(STEC).
STEC provided a charitable donation
in the amount of $250 to the Wesley
Ritchie Memorial Foundation.
Pictured left to right are Tabatha
Temple (STEC), David Glass (Wesley
Ritchie Foundation) and Michelle
Gloor (STEC).
STEC provided a charitable
donation in the amount of
$500 to the Child Study
Clinic. Pictured left to right
are Amy Zeplin (Child Study
Clinic), Diana Sanchez (STEC)
and Becky Garcia (Child Study
Clinic).
Safety Committee:
STEC employees are encouraged to discuss
any safety concerns or suggestions with any
Safety Committee Member, and the members
will update their departments in a timely
manner of what the Safety Committee
discussed in the past meetings. All STEC
employees can also use the suggestion boxes
around each facility and email concerns and
suggestions to [email protected].
Safety Manual 2017 Additions
The Safety Committee, in conjunction with the Safety Department, completed
the final stages in modifying and enhancing STEC’s Safety Manual which
includes a section specific to Transmission. Additional policies include:
Overhead Transmission Work
Substations
Tree Trimming and Right of Way
Safety Inspections, Surveys, and Audits
The Safety Department distributed the revised safety manual to all STEC
employees during the July safety meetings and any required training will oc-
cur no later than July 1, 2018.
Safety Improvement
The perimeter barricade surrounding the gas line and equipment near where the new
additional warehouse building is being constructed was severely degraded. STEC purchased
concrete barriers as the replacement barricade to prevent contact with any mobile
equipment.
We would like to thank everyone who submitted applications this year through
the STEC Scholarship Program. We received several great applications from
some very talented graduates. This year STEC was able to award scholarships to
5 high school graduates. Thank you to all of the employees that have contributed
to the STEC Scholarship fund and helped make this possible!
Congratulations to the following scholarship recipients:
Cameron Marbach- $1,500
Emily Nixon- $1,000
James Wyatt Andrews- $1,000
Mykaela Jaeger- $750
Jacklynn Thormahlen- $750
We wish all of the applicants the best of luck in their future scholastic endeavors.
Scholarship Committee:
March Service Anniversaries
May Service Anniversaries
Kenneth Montag 38 years Doye Bethke 19 years Spence Fowler 18 years Jane Krause 17 years Jason Mares 17 years David Jaeger 14 years Jay Ohrt 8 years Anthony Maldonado 7 years Jose Ramirez 7 years Monica Bautista 5 years Rene Salazar 5 years Justin Casas 3 years
Jeffrey Brandes 2 years Marcos Banda 1 year Inri Duran 1 year Israel Hernandez 1 year Juventino Hurtado 1 year
Efrain Pena 1 year Gilberto Pena 1 year Michael Pena 1 year
Ismael Quintanilla 1 year
Service Anniversaries:
We look to you
for great
things
You are making
a
difference
We value
your
mentorship
April Service Anniversaries
Jaime Olivarez 38 years Delton Marbach 26 years Allen Moeller 26 years Bo Alvarez 23 years Edgar Chavez 13 years Carlos Yanez 10 years James Hedrick 8 years David Perez 5 years Carl Hermes 4 years Thomas Laza 3 years Jose Mares 2 years
Jacob Elliott 1 year
Christopher Owens 1 year
Coby Schunka 1 year
June Service Anniversaries
A.J. Buchhorn 35 years Larry Teague 28 years Amos Brown 25 years Norm Walters 19 years Keith Hastings 17 years Steve Bolle 16 years Ty Haschke 16 years Roger Bishop 15 years Wendy Ohrt 15 years Wally Summers 15 years Norman Simmang 14 years Jose Loredo 12 years Hank Stall 12 years Lucas Turner 9 years John Coyle 8 years Shawndra Chumchal 7 years David Klimitchek 7 years Arturo Martinez 6 years Rebecca Hauboldt 4 years
Sandra Howard 3 years Matthew Garcia 2 years Amy Segler 1 year
Jesus Serna 1 year
Ronnie Bollom 32 years Lee Martinez 24 years Amy Pratka 18 years Erin Lewis 17 years John Moore 17 years Raul Serna 17 years Brett Temple 16 years Ginger Lorance 12 years John Garza 11 years W.S. Brown 10 years Darilyn Barger 9 years
Doug Evans 8 years
B.J. Huff 7 years
Josh Bruno 6 years Kyle Janak 6 years Mary Jane Munoz 3 years Brent Strickland 3 years
Jared Toles 1 year
August 2017
September 2017
Employee Standing Committee August 3, 2017
Safety Committee August 3, 2017
Safety Meeting (Administration & Power Plant—Nursery Location) August 8, 2017
Safety Meeting (Donna Location) August 8, 2017
Safety Meeting (Red Gate Location) August 9, 2017
Safety Meeting (Pearsall Location) August 10, 2017
Safety Meeting (Transmission & Tech Services—Nursery Location) August 14, 2017
Committee / Board Meeting August 23-24, 2017
Employee Standing Committee September 7, 2017
Safety Committee September 7, 2017
Safety Meeting (Administration & Power Plant—Nursery Location) September 12, 2017
Safety Meeting (Donna Location) September 12, 2017
Safety Meeting (Red Gate Location) September 13, 2017
Safety Meeting (Pearsall Location) September 14, 2017
Safety Meeting (Transmission & Tech Services—Nursery Location) September 18, 2017
Committee / Board Meeting September 27-28, 2017
2849 FM 447 / P.O. Box 119
Nursery, Texas 77976
361.575.6491
www.stec.org
South Texas Electric Cooperative