Critical Infrastructure Site Visit to Florida Power Light Sunday, July 14, 2024 (2pm - 5:15pm US/Eastern) Florida Power Light 4255 UpTheGrove Lane [map] West Palm Beach, FL 33407

The registration period for this meeting has ended.

Join the CI and SSCI Committees to go offsite to the Florida Power and Light Command Center, which is located roughly twenty minutes away from the convention center/hotel. The tour will include FPL’s state of the art facility that serves as the logistical hub for the company’s operations in all types of emergencies, including hurricanes and other severe weather events. In addition to the center for dealing with physical and cyber emergencies, we will also see the FPLAir drone command facility and Distribution Control Center. The tour will return by bus to the convention center/hotel by 5:30 pm.

Registration is required. Attendance limited to fifty. Priority will be given to Critical Infrastructure Committee and Subcommittee members.

More information on Florida Power & Light -

FPL is the largest energy company in the U.S, as measured by retail electricity produced and sold, serving. The company serves more than 5.9 million customer accounts, the majority of which are within 20 miles of the coast.

FPL’s system by the numbers
•35,550 square miles
•76,857 miles of distribution lines
•9,048 miles of transmission lines
•million transformers
•1.4 million poles
•809 substations

The FPL Command Center (FPLCC) is a state-of-the-art facility that serves as the logistical hub for the company’s operations in all types of emergencies:
•Hurricanes and other severe weather events
•Capacity shortfalls and grid emergencies
•Cyber and physical security events
•Wildfires
•The 71,000 sq. ft. facility is designed with built-in redundancies to ensure 24-7 readiness and hardened to withstand a Category 5 hurricane.
•Enables coordination across all the company’s business units.
•Has the capacity for up to 100 storm riders during an emergency.

The Distribution Control Center (DCC)
•Houses key Power Delivery operations, including the Distribution Control Center and FPLAir The DCC operates 24-7 as a dispatch and information center, using advanced technologies and working with crews in the field to ensure better everyday reliability and more efficient communication, collaboration, and response during restoration events.
•The DCC monitors 26,000 smart grid devices across Florida and displays the status of FPL’s distribution on state-of-the-art video display walls.
•In total, it comprises 17 video walls, 950 monitors, 350 computers and 120 miles of communications and electrical cables.

FPLAir Command Center
•Also within the FPLCC, the FPLAir Command Center monitors and operates a statewide drone fleet
•Day-to-day drone operations
•FPL conducts thousands of drone flights every year
•Equipped with thermal cameras, the drones can detect changes in heat on equipment help identify potential reliability issues

FPLAir One
•First used to assess damage following Hurricane Ian in 2022, FPLAir One is the first-ever large-scale drone flown for commercial use outside of an FAA test site
•Resembling a small airplane, FPLAir One can fly up to 1,000 miles and capture high-quality images and video of our equipment
•Capable of flying in Tropical Storm force winds
•Drone-in-a-box
•Drones stored in protective boxes at fixed locations, sheltering them from severe weather
•Can autonomously conduct routine flights of power lines

Travel Information:

Shuttle service will be available to and from the NARUC Summer Policy Summit and Florida Power Light.

For more information please contact:

Jessica Diaz
Events Specialist, Center for Partnerships & Innovation
National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners
Phone: (202) 898-2200
Fax: (202) 898-2213
Email: jdiaz@naruc.org