Operations Advisory Committee – Update

Sher Kirk, Operations Director, Utility Safety Partners 

The Operations Advisory Committee (OAC), formerly the Member Resources Committee, is comprised of 14 operations level representatives from each of our Board Member companies. The purpose of the OAC is to review USP’s operational performance, to accept and consider proposed operational changes, to make recommendations to the USP Board of Directors, or to provide feedback to the Board on strategic direction items which impact operations. The OAC also provides oversight for our industry-led working committees.

The Board Chair and Vice Chair are elected by the members and serve a two-year term. Our current Chair is from FortisAlberta, and the Vice-Chair is from Imperial Oil / Esso. They were elected at the end of 2024.

The OAC held their Q3 meeting in Calgary on September 10. After reviewing USP Performance Metrics and reviewing updates from each of the working committee chairs, the committee considered the following items:

• Pelican NextGen
  Progress report on development and testing. Proposed date for Go or No-Go is October 14, with member testing to start immediately following a “Go” assessment. Proposed date for Go Live Launch is February 6.
• ALP program
  There have been 2 reported damages and more than 33,000 ALP locate requests. There are 259 registered Alternate Locate Service Providers, and a growing number of large excavation companies who wish to register an employee or employees in the program. There appears to be a gap in the process, which was designed for locators, and the consortium and CAPULC are looking for ways to provide appropriate training to make sure ALSP locators are deemed “competent” enough to successfully register.
• Look Up and Live project
  The project is on hold while we look for a path forward. The quote for licensing would double the accepted budget, but there are still some options being investigated to complete the project before Spring 2026.
• CyberSecurity
  Reviewed the results of the latest Penetration Testing.
• Delinquent Members
  Discussed options for handling USP asset owner members who are delinquent in payment while maintaining a safety-first approach
• Mandating homeowners to use online portal
  The committee sees the benefits of mandating homeowners to go online, both for safety and operational efficiency, but want a measured approach and a simple single address ticket to make the process user friendly. It will be important to maintain a phone number and other channels where users can get real-time assistance.  This feedback will go to the Board for their consideration.
• Damage Prevention Professional initiative
  Reviewed the plan to create a certification program for Damage Prevention Professionals in cooperation with the Training Services Committee.

The OAC is representative of the asset owners who are registered with USP and help us to understand the members’ perspective. If you are an asset owner and have a proposed change to bring to the OAC for consideration, don’t hesitate to send your request through to info@utilitysafety.ca