Learn · Field and asset teams · Lesson 8 of 8
Draw overhead power and telecom lines
You willDraw an overhead line with its poles, add service lines, stays and transformer poles, see them in 3D and audit the poles on site.
Time6 min
Why it mattersOverhead lines shape where you can build, crane and dig, and the poles are assets a network or council audits.
Try it in Plotlay → Opens an example project with this lesson beside it. Nothing to install.
Steps
- Open Library, choose Energy & services, then Overhead services. Pick a line: Overhead power line, LV aerial bundled cable, HV 11, 22 or 33 kV, SWER, Overhead telecom cable or Aerial fibre (NBN).
- Click along the route and finish with Enter. A pole goes in at every point and between them at no more than the span (45 m for LV by default). Underground runs are separate items, dashed and labelled UG.
- Select the line: the inspector sets the network, pole type (timber, concrete, steel or Stobie), pole length, span, sag, ground clearance and owner. The conductors sag between the poles but never below the clearance.
- Place a Transformer pole, Streetlight on a power pole or Pole-top switch pole on one of the line’s poles: it takes that pole’s place in the run. Draw a line along the same route to share the poles (telecom hangs under power).
- Draw a Service line, pole to building from a pole to a house: it lands on a bracket on the fascia, on a raiser when the span needs more height. Draw a Stay wire and anchor from an end pole outwards.
- Choose 3D: the Overhead services switch shows or hides them, and Clearance zones shows a see-through zone round the conductors. On the plan, type OHZONES (or tick Show clearance zones in the inspector) for the band either side.
- Each pole and transformer is in Items with its type, height, voltage, owner and asset number, and its pole inspection form. Export, GIS data gives every pole as a point.
Tips
- Pole lengths are nominal: about a tenth plus 0.6 m is in the ground, so an 11 m pole stands 9.3 m above it.
- Sag is set at the span you give: shorter spans sag less at the same tension, as real conductors do.
- Heights, clearances and zones are typical figures for drawings, reference only: check with the network operator and your state’s rules before any work near overhead lines.
- The connector does the same with add_item (along points), set_3d (sag, span, pole_type, pole_height) and set_overhead_view.
Common mistakes
- Placing a transformer pole a few metres off the line: it only takes the line’s pole within 1.5 m. Drop it on the pole symbol.
- Ending a service line in the middle of a span: start it on a pole, or it gets a private pole of its own.
Words in this lesson
- Library
- Real-sized things to place, by category and subcategory: kitchen, bathroom, furniture, lighting, power, heating, stairs, outdoor, site, commercial, vehicles, plants. Search in your own words (GPO, countertop), filter, and star favourites.
- Reference only
- Checks are simplified from published sources and may be out of date. Verify each rule with the current code and your council or certifier before relying on it; they decide.
- Connector (MCP)
- The way Claude and other AI agents work in your Plotlay projects as you, through the Model Context Protocol at app.plotlay.io/mcp.
Related lessons
Set up asset formsChoose the questions to answer about each kind of asset on site, with required answers and photos.4 minExport to GIS, Excel or Power BIDownload your assets and shapes as GeoJSON, a Shapefile or a CSV, ready for a GIS or a spreadsheet.3 minWork through an asset register on siteVisit each asset in turn, nearest first, and record where it is, its form answers or that it is missing.5 min
Steps checked in the app on 17 October 2026.