Executive Summary
Transelec, Chile's leading electric transmission company, faced a persistent challenge with cable theft and operational incidents across critical transmission corridors. These events directly impacted supply continuity, safety, and maintenance efficiency.
To address this, Transelec deployed SENTRI monitoring devices, locally branded as Centinela, across its transmission network. The solution provided real-time, georeferenced visibility into conductor behavior, enabling faster incident detection, improved coordination with security teams, and stronger preventive maintenance strategies.
Within the first year of operation, the system accurately detected all theft incidents occurring on monitored lines, supporting Transelec's goals of operational continuity, asset protection, and grid resilience.
The Challenge
Transelec needed a monitoring system capable of operating continuously across vast and remote transmission corridors, where access is limited and incidents often occur outside normal inspection windows.
The solution had to provide immediate, actionable alerts, support coordination with police forces, and deliver data that could also be reused for asset health analysis and predictive maintenance.
The Sentrisense Solution
What was deployed
SENTRI devices were installed along transmission lines to continuously monitor conductor behavior. The system measures environmental and mechanical variables such as temperature and vibration, and transmits georeferenced data via cellular connectivity to a centralized dashboard.
The platform allows operators to visualize events in real time, receive alerts when abnormal activity occurs, and analyze historical data to support maintenance planning.
What this meant for Transelec
For Transelec, this meant moving from reactive incident response to proactive monitoring. Theft attempts could be detected immediately, enabling faster activation of repair crews and early notification to police forces.
At the same time, the collected data began supporting broader operational goals, including understanding line health and exploring predictive models to anticipate failures before they occur.
Results
The deployment of SENTRI devices significantly strengthened Transelec's ability to protect its infrastructure and maintain continuity of supply.
The system proved reliable in detecting theft-related incidents, reduced uncertainty during outages, and improved coordination between operational, maintenance, and security teams.
Beyond security, the data collected is now being analyzed to develop predictive maintenance models, expanding the role of the solution beyond monitoring into long-term asset management.
Alejandro Rehbein Oroz Chief Strategy and Innovation Officer"Sentrisense has accurately detected 100% of thefts on lines equipped with this technology."
Transelec S.A.