NJUNS: What is it, and why is it important?

What is NJUNS?

The National Joint Utilities Notification System (NJUNS) is an organization of member utilities created to improve the coordination of ventures between utilities and third parties, such as pole transfers, new construction, joint trenching, and safety/compliance projects.

NJUNS operates as a not-for-profit consortium, funded and managed by utility companies to improve safety, reduce costs, and decrease liability.

Since its inception in 1997, NJUNS has expanded to serve over 13,000 users across 30 states, continuously improving its communication system.

Why was NJUNS created?

NJUNS was created in response to a fatal accident involving a pole transfer, leading Georgia Power and BellSouth to develop a better communication system for utility coordination.

What does the NJUNS system enable?

NJUNS designed a software-based system to promote efficient communication and coordination among utility companies concerning joint-use projects. It enables project stakeholders to communicate and track field workflows and obtain up-to-date information.

NJUNS offers an API to support integration with utilities’ internal systems or databases.

What are some common challenges associated with managing NJUNS tickets?

NJUNS ticket requests can really add up – stemming from active fiber broadband pole attachment programs and continued emphasis on utility infrastructure upgrades. Finding the right data across different systems further complicates the process. Pole owners and attachers are utilizing data from multiple sources to generate notifications, inconsistently populating fields and creating a mess for those responsible for using and maintaining NJUNS tickets.

For many organizations, this leads to a growing backlog of unprocessed or incorrect tickets, putting them at risk with contractual or regulatory obligations.

Are there solutions that help alleviate resource strain and reduce liability?

Solutions that help improve data accuracy and remove bottlenecks in complicated joint-use processes can help alleviate the strain on resources and reduce liabilities.

IKE recently announced a new AI-powered analytics solution to address the challenge: Joint-Use Ticket Automation from IKE Insight transforms the manual process of creating and updating NJUNS tickets using intelligent automation. By applying natural language and pole-specific AI capabilities to existing pole data sets, it normalizes the disparate data into proper ticket structure per utility specifications then creates or updates tickets via API.

Learn more about IKE Insight’s intelligent automation for NJUNS ticketing.

Kathleen (Kat) Szot-Fritz has more than 15 years of experience in PR, communications and marketing across diverse industries. Kat has spent nearly half of her career in the energy industry, including roles with Northern Indiana Public Service Company (NIPSCO) and GE. She holds a BA in economics and art history from the University of Notre Dame.