{"id":162215,"date":"2025-05-14T10:56:49","date_gmt":"2025-05-14T14:56:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.nmc.edu\/?p=162215"},"modified":"2025-05-16T15:13:27","modified_gmt":"2025-05-16T19:13:27","slug":"success-story-the-partnership-we-have-with-nmc-is-highly-impactful","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.nmc.edu\/?p=162215","title":{"rendered":"Success story: ‘The partnership we have with NMC is highly impactful.’"},"content":{"rendered":"

Cherryland Electric CEO Rachel Johnson<\/h2>\n

\"Carl
<\/strong>May 14, 2025<\/strong><\/p>\n

Anyone who’s weathered a northern Michigan storm knows when the power goes out, the countdown to restoration starts.<\/p>\n

In the aftermath of March’s devastating Gaylord-area ice storm, some 80,000 residential customers were facing a long countdown — nearly three weeks. Using drones and special permission to fly them beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS), NMC worked with local electrical co-ops to make the response more efficient. In one 20-minute stint, for instance, a drone flying BVLOS inspected 75 poles, a task which would have taken a day using traditional methods.<\/p>\n

With the benefit of BVLOS clearly illuminated, NMC this week officially joined the NorthSky Consortium to work towards establishing a BVLOS drone corridor from Camp Grayling to Grand Traverse County.<\/p>\n

The BVLOS corridor is a key focus of the NorthSky Consortium, which also includes regional economic development agency Traverse Connect<\/a> and startup incubator 20Fathoms<\/a>. All three organizations signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) Monday, May 12. Both Camp Grayling and U.S. Coast Guard Air Station Traverse City will support the consortium as well.<\/p>\n

\"RachelNMC, which enters the consortium with 15 years of expertise offering drone, or UAS training<\/a>, currently has an FAA waiver to fly BVLOS for utility pole inspection. That waiver proved vital to the region following the late March storm. Cherryland Electric CEO Rachel Johnson<\/strong> (right) said the storm impacted 8,000 miles of electrical infrastructure owned by Great Lakes Energy and <\/span>Presque Isle Electric and Gas,<\/span> much of it in “deep right of way” inaccessible to vehicles. <\/p>\n

“Accessibility was an incredible challenge. We couldn’t get to things to inspect what was going on,” Johnson said. “When you are having to constantly move to assess, during a storm, it’s highly inefficient.”<\/p>\n

\"TonyEnter NMC with its BVLOS waiver. College UAS coordinator Tony Sauerbrey<\/strong> (left) and Cherryland communications control field engineer Zach Endres<\/strong>, an NMC alumnus, were able to inspect 600 deep right-of-way utility poles in the Onaway-Lewiston area in two days.<\/p>\n

“It was a great opportunity for Cherryland to assist alongside NMC and bring them aboard to help the communities that were in need,” said Endres. (Cherryland customers were not affected but the co-op supported the response of the others.)<\/p>\n

“Being able to know where the damage was and being able to deploy to that location was incredibly impactful,” Johnson agreed. All power was restored by April 18.<\/p>\n

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer<\/strong> declared a state of emergency<\/a> for much of northern Michigan due to the storm.<\/p>\n

 “It’s by far the worst thing I’ve ever seen while working at Cherryland,” Endres said. “Talking with a lot of lineman who have gone on hurricanes, this was by far the worst they’ve ever dealt with in their careers.”<\/p>\n

A dedicated BVLOS corridor would allow for testing and deploying advanced drone technology by multiple users, including the Michigan National Guard and Michigan Department of Transportation.<\/p>\n

“We are very, very grateful for the work NMC has done to get that exemption,” Johnson said. “When it’s critical infrastructure, basic health and human safety, it’s a really good use of that exemption.”<\/p>\n

In addition to the BVLOS corridor, which NMC is co-leading with Camp Grayling, goals of the NorthSky Consortium include:<\/p>\n