What Is It Like to Experience Life As a Lineman?
What Is It Like to Experience Life as a Lineman?
Linemen are the real superheroes behind our power and communication. They are skilled professionals who set up, fix, and maintain electrical lines. They ensure the lights stay on and our devices stay connected, working on utility poles and towers.
Working with high-voltage lines is no joke. Linemen bravely face tough weather, heights, and live wires every day, with safety as their top concern.
The job is quite rewarding. Linemen undergo intense training, leading to salaries that match their expertise and dedication. They earn around 40 to 50 dollars per hour.
Apart from a good salary, linemen often enjoy a strong sense of community, camaraderie, and the satisfaction of keeping the world powered up.
Next time you see a power line, remember the unsung heroes making it all possible – the linemen!
#lineman #life #professional
Note: "The appearance of U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) visual information does not imply or constitute DoD endorsement."
ADDITIONAL READINGS:
A lineworker (or powerline worker) constructs and maintains the electric transmission and distribution facilities that deliver electrical energy to industrial, commercial, and residential establishments. A lineworker installs, services, and emergency repairs electrical lines in the case of lightning, wind, ice storm, or ground disruptions. Whereas lineworkers generally work at outdoor installations, those who install and maintain electrical wiring inside buildings are electricians.
History
The occupation had begun in 1844 when the first telegraph wires were strung between Washington, D.C., and Baltimore carrying the famous message of Samuel Morse, "What hath God wrought?" The first telegraph station was built in Chicago in 1848, by 1861 a web of lines spanned the United States and in 1868 the first permanent telegraph cable was successfully laid across the Atlantic Ocean. Telegraph lines could be strung on trees, but wooden poles were quickly adopted as the preferred method. The term lineworker was used for those who set wooden poles and strung wire. The term continued in use with the invention of the telephone in the 1870s and the beginning of electrification in the 1890s.
This new electrical power work was more hazardous than telegraph or telephone work because of the risk of electrocution. Between the 1890s and the 1930s, line work was considered one of the most hazardous jobs. This led to the formation of labor organizations to represent the workers and advocate for their safety. This also led to the establishment of apprenticeship programs and the establishment of more stringent safety standards, starting in the late 1930s. The union movement in the United States was led by lineworker Henry Miller, who in 1890 was elected president of the Electrical Wiremen and Linemen's Union, No. 5221 of the American Federation of Labor.
United States
The rural electrification drive during the New Deal led to a wide expansion in the number of jobs in the electric power industry. Many powerline workers during that period traveled around the country following jobs as they became available in tower construction, substation construction, and wire stringing. They often lived in temporary camps set up near the project they were working on, or in boarding houses if the work was in a town or city, and relocating every few weeks or months. The occupation was lucrative at the time,[citation needed] but the hazards and the extensive travel limited its appeal.
A brief drive to electrify some railroads on the East Coast of the US-led to the development of specialization of powerline workers who installed and maintained catenary overhead lines. Growth in this branch of linework declined after most railroads favored diesel over electric engines for replacement of steam engines.
The occupation evolved during the 1940s and 1950s with the expansion of residential electrification. This led to an increase in the number of powerline workers needed to maintain power distribution circuits and provide emergency repairs. Maintenance powerline workers mostly stayed in one place, although sometimes they were called to travel to assist repairs.[citation needed] During the 1950s, some electric lines began to be installed in tunnels, expanding the scope of the work.
Duties
Lineworker replacing a transformer, wearing protective gear, including rubber gloves and sleeves
Powerline workers work on electrically energized (live) and de-energized (dead) power lines. They may perform several tasks associated with power lines, including installation or replacement of distribution equipment such as capacitor banks, distribution transformers on poles, insulators and fuses. These duties include the use of ropes, knots, and lifting equipment. These tasks may have to be performed with primitive manual tools where accessibility is limited.
Смотрите видео What Is It Like to Experience Life As a Lineman? онлайн без регистрации, длительностью часов минут секунд в хорошем качестве. Это видео добавил пользователь Milopax 23 Ноябрь 2023, не забудьте поделиться им ссылкой с друзьями и знакомыми, на нашем сайте его посмотрели 6,09 раз и оно понравилось 12 людям.