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Managing the lifecycle of smart meter from initial planning and process development to installation and to on-going operation and maintenance

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Success Factors for Implementing Change Management

Posted by Utilimetrics on December 21, 2011

Utilities considering smart grid technology recognize that implementation depends on the successful integration of new technologies with legacy system infrastructure. But it also depends on human dynamics, which are essential to effective change management.

This article highlights the Autovation Change Management Education Session from Wednesday, Sept 28.

Speakers:        
Shawn McDonough, Rappahannock Electric Cooperative
Tom Kerestes, West Monroe Partners
Kathy Cowan Sahadath, Hydro One Networks, Inc.
Deb Bradbury, Enspiria Solutions 

Implementing a Program Management Office for What’s Beyond the Smart Grid

Rappahannock Electric Cooperative (REC) is the ninth largest cooperative in the U.S., serving 22 Virginia counties. West Monroe Partners is a full-service business and technology consulting firm working in strategy and execution. West Monroe Partners provided project management solutions to REC as it implemented smart grid technology. The utility and consulting company partnered to oversee strategic development with projects, but executives recognized more was needed including:

  • Coordination and management of projects
  • Formalized project management and prioritization process for all major projects to properly manage resources and investments
  • Business process improvement for business transformation activities resulting from REC’s smart grid implementation

Utilities typically implement Program Management Offices (PMO) focused on IT activities. Under the Smart Grid Investment Grant (SGIG) funding, REC created a PMO to:

  • Monitor progress of multiple projects
  • Enable cross-functional team collaboration
  • Centralize specific financial and operational reporting requirements

By designing the PMO for use beyond the initial three-five year Department of Energy (DOE) SGIG funding period, REC planned to maximize capital investment. Kerestes described the best practices of a PMO:

  • Time management
  • Resource management
  • Risk and issue management
  • Scope and change management
  • Communication management
  • Quality management
  • Integration management
  • Cost management

Some problems may arise with change management, business process redesign and quality assurance. The top obstacle to successful change management is employee resistance. But the “number one success factor to implementing change management is strong sponsorship with an organization,” said Kerestes.

Some of the questions you should ask:

  • What are the requirement specifications for this project and does everyone know what they are?
  • What should a quality assurance plan look like for this project?
  • How do we know that we’ve managed this project to ensure a quality product is delivered?

All suggestions come into the PMO for review and analysis based upon strategically established filters. Projects are then grouped into categories based on whether or not they move forward, and how the PMO will treat them.

Change Management Enables Smart Grid Innovation

Hydro One, a utility that delivers electricity to 1.3 million customers across Ontario, is utilizing change management strategies to foster an environment of innovation. Hydro One’s Advanced Distribution Project (ADS) is one of several initiatives to sustain and modernize Ontario’s electricity grid. It is driven partially by the Ontario Green Energy Act, which mandates the connection of more renewable energy sources.

Hydro One’s ADS project is a multi-year initiative to analyze, identify and deploy applications, equipment and new processes to better serve their customers with the following business objectives:

  • Optimize connection of Distributed Generators
  • Improve distribution reliability and operations
  • Optimize outage restoration
  • Optimize network asset planning

Working with IBM Canada, GE Canada, Telvent Canada and Enspiria Solutions Advisors, Hydro One prepared a project schedule and identified the implementation challenges:

  • Utilizing new tools, technology and business process to make better business decisions
  • Staging a complex implementation
  • Managing an aggressive schedule
  • Securing resources needed for multi-disciplines
  • Managing impact to lines of business
  • Communicating effectively
  • Coordinating 10 project work streams working in parallel
  • Realizing business transformation

To tackle these challenges, a thorough change management strategy was established to provide a shared vision of the future. Through community and training activities, ADS awareness established a network of change leadership, delivering the “right messages to the right people at the right time.”

The team is working toward success by maintaining active and visible executive sponsorship, facilitating frequent and open communications, monitoring performance and leveraging best practices and lessons learned.

Attention utility professionals: please share your change management experiences (challenges and successes) with your peers. There are several ways you can do this:

We look forward to hearing from you!

Posted in Autovation, Change Management, Project Management | Leave a Comment »

Three Critical Factors for Successful AMI Deployment

Posted by Utilimetrics on September 19, 2011

By Jeff Trampleasure, vice president of operations, Metadigm Services

 Today, 25 states have smart metering legislation or policies, and utility companies across the U.S. are updating their infrastructure to adhere by the mandates already in place, or inevitably on the way. There are roughly 150 million electric meters in the U.S. and the total installed base of AMR units in the U.S. is estimated between 75M-80M units, or more than 50 percent of all approximate 150M electric meters. However, only a small fraction are replaced with smart meters.

The investments utilities are making in smart grid services are substantial –$50B in the U.S. alone according to authors Marcy Lowe, Hua Fan and Gery Gereffi’s 2011 report, U.S. Smart Grid.

As utilities upgrade the technology, they seek out masters in advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) deployment. Quite a few firms specialize in meter installation. Some install the meters and move on to other projects while others remain involved after installation to ensure the systems work accurately, safely and successfully—and that’s a big issue. 

Working with the right smart asset solutions company makes the critical difference in post-installation, continuing support for your customers, and cost-efficiency.  In choosing asset management partners for smart grid upgrade projects, keep in mind that each time you change companies—for example, installers vs. maintenance—you can open the door to data errors, billing errors and transactional costs.

For example, just last month Alabama Power, a Southern Company subsidiary, updated 1.4 million meters over a three-year period throughout the state. Southern Company started deploying meters in 2008 and completed deployment in 2010. The utility planned on a 36-month project, but completed it in 33 months, three months ahead of schedule. That’s a story most utilities would like to repeat. In order to achieve successful full deployment, there are three critical factors to keep in mind as you plan AMI deployment and post-AMI operations. 

Critical Factor #1—Tell end users what to expect up front

Communication may not be visible in the “utility belt,” but all utilities agree it is of the utmost importance in customer satisfaction. Smart meter installation is a hot-button issue across the U.S., and utility companies are conscious of the responsibility to ensure customers understand why their bill might seem to be adjusted after the deployment.

A glance at headlines in local papers proves that people can be confused that digital meters are causing their bills to increase because they read the electricity usage incorrectly. Often, what’s really causing the rise is the fact that mechanical meters are so incorrect and newer technologies are far more accurate in measuring consumption. Unfortunately, many utilities have also discovered that wiring technicalities and switching a smart meter from one address to another without proper procedures can also create a billing nightmare. Expelling rumors about what happens with smart meter technology upfront is a good practice before the installation begins.

“People want to blame the utility company,” says Angela Taylor with Metadigm Services. “But what we’ve seen in our work with Cobb EMC, Georgia Power, and others is that a proactive customer communications campaign can help the end user see the benefits from better monitoring.”

But the communication efforts shouldn’t stop with pre-installation outreach. End users have questions or concerns during and after the installation process, too.

“Making yourself available before, during and after the deployment makes a big difference in customer service,” says Steve Hallock, senior vice president of product innovation at Metadigm.  He suggests live person assistance to the utility company’s customers during business hours, and 24/7 assistance via web.

Critical Factor #2—Be rigorous about post-AMI expertise

Installation is more than just a meter-for-meter exchange-it involves pre-planning to post-AMI deployment.  For most utilities, a meter upgrade project is a completely new undertaking.  Look for service companies to support you with a lot of experience not just in installation, but in post-deployment. Going from a labor-intensive manual meter reading system to a high-tech two-way communicating system involves more than just a shift in technology for utilities—it’s a culture shift as well.

Utilities are challenged with how to respond to meters that now convey a stream of information.  How to respond to all this data is beyond the role of data analysts and IT operators. The right firm with a focus on proactive asset management can help make the transition from traditional metering to the new paradigm a smooth transition.   Post-AMI deployment represents a critical phase that involves careful consideration of many variables including compliance to safety, reaction to meter alarms and verification of accuracy to name a few.

Critical Factor #3—Plan for data collection and management

When an installation company is not involved following deployment, the utility often has to figure out how to respond to the stream of data from every meter. Ted Masters, VP of sales for Metadigm suggests selecting a company that is willing to work with you as a long-term partner rather than one that finishes your project and moves on to the next one.

As utilities are aware, preventative strategies must be in place to address safety during a storm, vegetation and other intrusive factors. Utility companies are flooded with customer demands when disaster strikes. And beyond blackouts and severe storms, day-to-day meter readings take manpower and expertise.  The new technologies provide real-time interval data that needs to be monitored and managed properly.

“Now that we have deployed smart meters, we’re better able to take care of our customers and manage our power grid, and that’s what it’s all about,” said Reginald Murchison, Manager-Metering Services at Alabama Power.

Posted in Change Management, customer engagement, Deployment, Project Management, Smart Grid, Smart Meters | Leave a Comment »

Naperville IL Smart Meter Deployment Campaign Hits a Home Run with Customers

Posted by Utilimetrics on September 8, 2011

The city of Naperville, Ill., earns high grades for the educational campaign it’s assembled to accompany the city’s smart meter deployment.

Customer engagement is one of the most critical aspects to consider when deploying a smart meter program. Without customer buy-in, deployments can go wrong quickly, or fail to get off the ground entirely.

The municipal utility of Naperville, Ill., hit a home run when it comes to customer engagement and education. Make that a grand slam. Naperville officials have deployed numerous programs to peak the interest of rate payers as the city prepares for a full rollout this November to its 57,000 customers, which includes 50,000 homeowners.

Naperville, a city of 145,000 residents located 30 minutes west of Chicago, has turned to innovative measures such as recruiting smart meter ambassadors to promote the Naperville Smart Grid Initiative, and measuring RF signals in an effort to alleviate concerns about health issues from the very low levels of RF emitted from smart meters.

According to Nadja P. Lalvani, community relations manager for the city of Naperville, outreach programs like these are groundbreaking when it comes to the electric utility industry.

Autovation attendees will learn first hand about the special customer engagement programs utilized by Naperville, as well as other details regarding its DOE grant and partnership. Dave Tilson, a senior manager with smart grid consultant West Monroe Partners, will join Lalvani at the podium. West Monroe assisted Naperville with its smart grid application, built the business case and also assists with community outreach.

Naperville has installed 80 meters out of a 200-meter pilot that will be completed by September. The city sought customer buy-in for the project immediately upon receiving its $11 million stimulus grant in 2009 and has created an interactive web site where customers can learn about the program.

The utility has relied heavily on three highly successful portions of their community outreach campaign.

  • Recruiting residential and business customers to act as smart meter ambassadors to spread the word about the initiative and its goals.
  • Deploying a Smart Grid Customer Bill of Rights.
  • Including thorough RF emission testing to assure the safety of smart meters

The ambassador program has been highly successful in utilizing an educated customer base to promote the program to fellow rate payers. So far, more than 30 customers have signed up.

“We’re very excited about this program and the benefits that will result,” says Lalvani. “As far as we can tell, no one else has implemented a program like this.”

Tilson notes that having customers promote the benefits of the program allows rate payers to form their own opinion of the smart meter initiative. “This is not just something coming from the city, it’s coming from customers and neighbors,” says Tilson. “There is a culture of not trusting the government, but that element is taken away by having this group of people advocate for us.”

The Smart Grid Customer Bill of Rights spells out the rights of customers in terms of the right to be informed, the right to privacy, and the right to data security.

When it comes to addressing safety concerns, Lalvani says that the city will measure RF emissions from smart meters and collector units, and then isolate those readings from whatever ambient RF emissions are present naturally in each neighborhood. The effort will cost about $25,000, mostly in hardware costs to purchase the measuring meter.

“This is being done in direct response to some concerns expressed by our residents on the safety of smart meters,” says Lalvani. “I have not heard of other utilities that have added this additional step to their projects. But we’ve been contacted by several municipal and investor-owned utilities that are interested to see the results of our testing.”

Naperville’s smart grid initiative benefits from the fact that its customers are very tech-savvy and interested in energy conservation efforts. For example, 25 percent of the utility’s customers have signed up for paperless billing, and 10 percent are enrolled in voluntary renewable energy programs. Additionally, 7 percent of cars registered in Naperville are hybrids.

“As we expected, our residents are very excited about this smart grid project, mainly because it is great for the environment and offers customers more options and tools when it comes to managing their electric usage,” says Lalvani.

Naperville’s city-owned utility was the only electric utility in Illinois to receive a stimulus grant from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, when the U.S. government distributed more than $3 billion to modernize the U.S. electric grid. The $11 million Naperville received represents 50 percent of the expenditure for the initiative.

The smart grid program is funded entirely by the municipality. When the program is fully deployed, the city will offer both flat rates and time-of-use rates, which will allow customers to save money on their energy bill by converting their energy usage to off-peak hours.

The presentation at Autovation is Tuesday, Sept. 27 at 3 p.m.

 

 

Posted in Autovation, customer engagement, Deployment, Education, Pre-Deployment, Project Management, Smart Grid, Smart Meters | 1 Comment »

Wireless Smart Grid on Stage at Autovation 2011

Posted by Utilimetrics on August 31, 2011

Communications technology is a hot topic at Autovation 2011 and Utilimetrics is pleased to have Josh Gerber of San Diego Gas & Electric and Joaquin Silva, president and CEO of On-Ramp Wireless (San Diego, Calif.) present their paper Communication Requirements for Improving Utility Efficiency in Smart Grid in the first education session Monday, Sept. 26 at 10:30 a.m. 

“Our strategy for the presentation is to discuss the segmentation of the applications for the smart grid,” states Silva. For example: From the substation to the meter on the customer premise, what are the data requirements and information requirements? And how do they vary across each of the applications, whether it is transformer automation? whether it is a meter, etc.? “We want to demystify some of this from a requirements perspective, specifically how it relates to the wireless requirements,” he adds.

After discussing the applications and how the wireless requirements vary, they will move on to some of the specific wireless approaches and technologies that can be used to solve the problems. “We plan to emphasize that it takes multiple types of wireless, depending on the application,” continues Silva.

“We will also talk about how to solve some of the very challenging problems of the smart grid,” he states. One example is that a very high percentage of the distribution grid assets are either pad-mounted or below ground, such as transformers and fault detection sensors. “For example, at San Diego Gas & Electric, 60% of distribution grid feeders are below ground,” states Silva.

This makes it challenging for wireless. You have to use multiple radio technologies to solve the problem. In one case, you may have an architecture where you have a low data rate and very high receiver sensitivity, needing a distributed wireless system or repeater-based solution. You need a higher data rate set of wireless solutions for more latency-sensitive applications.

“A good example is that a lot of utilities want to move toward dynamic volt/VAR control,” notes Silva. If you take the volt/VAR control problem from the substation down to the home, you have to collect the data from the volt/VAR information on various grid points, such as distribution feeder transformer and line sensors.

This is a challenging problem from a wireless perspective, because, again, 50% to 60% of the transformers are in pad-mount steel bunkers. “As a result, you have to be able to collect that data,” states Silva. “It’s not too latency-sensitive in terms of data collection.” However, you have to take into account the control loop for the other assets that exist on the distribution grid that are designed to dynamically manage it.

An example: If there is an electric vehicle plugged into a transformer, it impacts the whole VAR level sensor in the transformer connected to a wireless link that is able to penetrate into the pad-mount. It would sense that change and send an upstream alarm to a controller in the substation, or centrally-managed, which would say: “This has exceeded its threshold.” Now a secondary command in the energy management system would send a control message to a cap bank controller or switch that has the capability to dynamically change the volt/VAR configuration, or perhaps even shed load in the electric vehicle charging station if it is going to exceed a power level threshold on the transformer, which would cause it to explode.

“This is an example of where you need the pervasive wide-area sensing layer, and then a control system,” continues Silva. “However, there is a mismatch in the radio requirements for both. You can’t provide a control loop across the entire smart grid. It would bankrupt even the most well heeled utility.” As a result, according to Silva, you have to use a combination of two radio platforms – a more focused high-speed control layer that is managing the volt/VAR dynamic control layer, and a data collection sensing engine that gives you the pervasive wide area, including below-ground coverage.

Overall, what are the benefits of wireless? “Wired is extremely expensive in an already built-out distribution grid, because you have to lay cable or fibers,” replies Silva. “As a result, it’s not practical in many application segments. The substation typically does have fiber. However, between the substation and the consumer’s home, you need wireless.” Digging trenches and laying fiber typically does not work from a cost model, except in a greenfield situation. As a result, wireless is really the only way to have a low-cost sensing and control layer for the distribution feeder network.

There is still a place for wired, though, according to Silva. However, what the smart grid is all about is pushing out the connectivity and control that exists at the substation down the low-voltage feeder network. “As a result, in terms of growth, wireless applications and technologies are going to be far faster than cable,” he concludes.

 

Posted in Autovation, Education, Emerging Technology, Project Management, Smart Grid, Smart Meters | Leave a Comment »

Change Management Enables Smart Grid Innovation

Posted by Utilimetrics on August 25, 2011

The way we produce, distribute, and consume electricity is changing and a paradigm shift has begun. Nowhere is this statement truer than in the Province of Ontario, Canada.  These changes are part of a global trend that Ontario is leading—and propelled by. The province is among several jurisdictions around the world that have recognized the need to modernize their electricity systems to fully capture the economic and environmental benefits of this transition.  These are exciting times.  Ontario’s electricity system is truly in transition.  The pace of change is unprecedented in many ways.

Ontario-based Hydro One is involved in a number of initiatives designed to sustain and modernize Ontario’s electricity grid. These initiatives are bringing substantial changes to the way Hydro One operates the system, including new business processes, skill sets, and opportunities for staff. However, the concept of a “smart grid” is generally not well understood by consumers and utility employees have only recently been introduced to the strategic importance of smart grid development.  Hydro One’s Advanced Distribution System (otherwise known as Smart Grid) Project Team is implementing change management strategies and tactics to build awareness and engage employees so they can contribute to building the solution they will benefit from.           

Kathy Cowan Sahadath is program manager for Hydro One Networks and is a change management professional within the Hydro One Corporate Projects group. “I have the good fortune to be involved in a lot of our major business transformations,” she states. Over the last 10 years or so, she has been involved in an Operating Grid Control Centre amalgamation, major SAP implementations, Smart Meter implementation, and now Smart Grid (which Hydro One calls “Advanced Distribution System”). Cowan Sahadath helped create the change programs for the projects, as well as bring together the teams needed for the projects. 

For the Advanced Distribution System project, Cowan Sahadath recruited Deb Bradbury, a principal consultant with Enspiria Solutions a Black & Veatch Company to be a vendor partner. “We now have a full change team that is working through the different phases that we have designed for this project,” states Cowan Sahadath.

Hydro One started to think about its Smart Grid strategy back in 2008. It began by asking what a roadmap for smart grid would look like for the next five to 10 years. What evolved from this was a Steering Committee that led to the birth of a project team. 

“It has been exciting to see the process evolve over the last three years, as well as to see the enormous scope of what our industry is facing,” continues Cowan Sahadath. “Our Autovation presentation will provide more information on the details of the scope of our project.” Cowan Sahadath and Bradbury will speak Wednesday, Sept. 28 at 10 a.m. on the topic “Change Management Enables Smart Grid Innovation.”

From a change management or business transformation perspective, Cowan Sahadath believes that there is tremendous opportunity to rethink how Hydro One does business. “What the utility industry is facing is an opportunity for major changes in how we do business and how we interact with our customers in the future,” she adds. As a result, she believes, while the technology is very important, there is a huge human element the utility has incorporated into all of its plans and implementations going forward. “This is why I think change management and transformation is so important,” she states. “It is an opportunity for us to start to help influence a change in that mindset with the employees, as well as with our customers and stakeholders outside the company.”

“We will also present information on the unique challenges we are facing with this project,” states Bradbury. “It is very complex. We have a large project team with 10 different work streams, so there are challenges with coordinating and communicating the important decisions that impact the work in progress.” She adds: “We know the tools and data the new technology provides as well as new business processes will offer employees opportunities to make better business decisions and to work more efficiently and ultimately improve operations.”

Another challenge, according to Bradbury, is: How do you get employees to buy into all of this and be willing to change how they work? They want to know how much it will really help them.

As a result, one large part of the initiative involves business process reengineering – taking a fresh look at existing processes to determine how new tools and information will improve the quality and timeliness of business decisions. For example: How will Distribution Engineers do real-time studies? How will the Control Room and Provincial Lines deal with planned and un-planned outages? How will the Control Room deal with new alarms?  How will Distribution Controllers and Dispatchers be able to target where to send crews more accurately? “We are taking a fresh look at all of these things and determining what the future will look like,” adds Bradbury.        

So what is Hydro One doing to facilitate change management? A lot of things. “From a change management perspective, we have involved the key stakeholders right up front,” replies Bradbury. “Even in Phase 0, when we were just planning, we had representatives from lines of business at the table who we expected would be impacted.  Ultimately, they are the ones who have to do the work, so they have to be part of the decisions, and they have to believe in it.”          

Another key has been being sure the utility has very active and visible leadership throughout the process. This includes participating on the Ontario Smart Grid Forum and staying aligned with the Ministry of Energy.           

Communication is also important, according to Cowan Sahadath. “At every step of the process, we need to make sure that there is frequent and open communication,” she states. “It also needs to be two-way, so that there is good opportunity to listen to people and get feedback.”

Bradbury agrees with the importance of communication. “We have developed a very detailed communication strategy and plan for our different stakeholder groups,” she states. “We are currently executing an Awareness Campaign and using many communication vehicles which we will describe during our Autovation presentation.”

According to Cowan Sahadath, because smart grid development is still so new and untested, there are not a lot of “best practices” from which Hydro One can learn. “As a result, along the way, we, as an industry, need to leverage the knowledge and information from our own work as well as other utilities as quickly as possible,” she emphasizes. “In fact, the ideal is to share ‘lessons learned’ in almost a real-time environment.”           

And this, in actuality, is what Utilimetrics and Autovation are all about.

Posted in Autovation, Change Management, Deployment, Pre-Deployment, Project Management, Smart Grid, Smart Meters | Leave a Comment »

Autovation Education Sessions Available Online

Posted by Utilimetrics on August 23, 2011

Autovation Education Sessions are a work-in-progress with changes expected daily until we arrive in DC. But, we know how important it is to keep you up-to-date on the agenda, so we are providing a PDF of the current schedule. The PDF will be updated often. Click here to access the PDF.

 Autovation speakers are among the most respected in the industry. Click here to read their bios.

 Be sure to include at least one workshop in your education experience. Three two-hour workshops are planned to help you develop tangible ideas and plans that you can take back to your utility and put to immediate use.

 A workshop on Smart Grid Business Case Development is offered Monday, Sept. 26, 3-5 p.m. Led by Steve Hadden and Andy Owens from SAIC, this workshop will prepare utility attendees to guide a successful business case analysis at their own utilities. “Successful” means the analysis will produce a reliable result, which may show either that AMI is a productive investment, or that it is not. While there are many paths to this result, only some enable the utility to act on the decision. Attendees will understand the process and content of the AMI business case, and the reasons why the process is important.

Tuesday, Sept. 27, 3-5 p.m. Kevin Cornish, Enspiria Solutions and Mark Day, UISOL will lead a workshop on RFP Development. They will introduce participants to the proposal development process for major initiatives such as smart metering/AMI, MDMS, DR, DMS, and similar smart grid projects. They will present a suggested proposal process outline and the participants as a group will explore key components of the process. Topics include proposal process overview, purpose and intent, schedule, roles and responsibilities, document development, pricing solicitations, timelines, and vendor engagement. Best practices in areas such as requirements evaluation and reference verification will be shared.

 Join Steve Rogers, Capgemini, Wednesday, Sept. 28, 9-11 a.m. for a workshop on AMI Information and System Integration.  Smart meter/grid projects involve business process changes that drive substantial changes to IT landscapes.  Having a structured approach to analyzing and designing solutions for those changes can bring benefits that last beyond the project.  Learn how using an open source architecture framework known as TOGAF9, developed by The Open Group, is helping utility representatives on two projects have a better understanding of the impacts to their IT applications, data stores, infrastructures and online presentment efforts.

Autovation offers the best education in the industry. Register today. We look forward to seeing you in DC.

Important Autovation Links

Preliminary Program (Please note—this is a printed piece that was produced last spring.  Changes will appear in the Final Program which is in production and will be available shortly before Autovation.)

Exhibitor List
Utility Registrants
Register
Hotels
Exhibitor Prospectus
Sponsorship Brochure
Website

Posted in Autovation, Clean Technology, customer engagement, Cybersecurity Issues, Demand Response, Deployment, Education, Electric Vehicles, Emerging Technology, Home Area Networks, Meter Data Management, Pre-Deployment, Project Management, Smart Grid, Smart Meters, Standards, Transmission and Distribution Technologies, Water utilities | Leave a Comment »

Contribute to News Link and Send Us Your Company News

Posted by Utilimetrics on August 17, 2011

Utilimetrics publishes bylined articles from members in News Link, the weekly e-newsletter, provided they are educational. Suggested topics include updates on recent deployments, lessons learned and consumer programs. However, we will consider all topics related to utility automation.

Share your company news with the Utilimetrics community by sending us your press releases. Over 9,000 people receive News Link. Let Utilimetrics help you spread the word about your company. This is another great benefit of utilimetrics membership.

For information about contributing an article, contact Janice Greenberg and jgreenberg@utilimetrics.org or 847.227.0478. And, ask your public relations staff to add Janice to your media list.

Posted in Autovation, Clean Technology, customer engagement, Cybersecurity Issues, Demand Response, Deployment, Education, Electric Vehicles, Emerging Technology, Home Area Networks, Interoperability, Meter Data Management, Pre-Deployment, Project Management, Smart Grid, Smart Meters, Transmission and Distribution Technologies, Water utilities | Tagged: , , | Leave a Comment »

New Technologies and Smart Grid Projects are Top Priorities for Pepco

Posted by Utilimetrics on August 4, 2011

Studying and implementing new technologies, including smart grid projects, as well as major transmission projects is the primary focus of William S. Gausman, senior vice president, Strategic Initiatives, Pepco Holdings (PHI).

“The changes occurring within electric utilities these days are unprecedented,” says Gausman. “Technology is changing the way we do everything.” Gausman will discuss how Pepco is adjusting to these rapid changes and applying new tactics and technologies during his remarks at the Autovation Opening General Session, Monday, September 26, 8:30 – 10 a.m. at the Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center in Washington, DC.

Distribution
One example of change relates to distribution automation (DA). “We are automating the electric system to detect faults and identify the locations of those faults, all automatically, without any human intervention,” he states. Traditionally, this kind of automation has been at the substation level. PHI, however, is building it out to the poles and wires outside the substation, so the entire distribution system can become smarter and perform functions automatically and much faster. “As a result, if an outage occurs, we can restore the majority of the customers very quickly,” he notes. 

While the technology continues to evolve, a particular interest of Gausman’s is the communication required to accompany the changes and ensure the success of the projects. Such communication not only needs to take place with customers, but also with regulatory bodies, such as NERC.

Customers. “We are changing how we communicate with our customers, and how we leverage that communication,” states Gausman. He notes that the electric system was originally designed to deliver electricity to customers. Now, it is part of a more complex system that, at certain points in time, is delivering electricity to customers. However, at other points in time, as is the case with residential renewables, it is delivering it from individual customers back into the grid. “As a result, we need to be able to continually coordinate all of this activity related to customer usage and how hours will be charged,” he explains.

The goal is to integrate all of these different technologies and be able to operate as a single, fully-integrated system. “If you have to go out and build new distribution facilities to manage all of this, you are really defeating the purpose of the technology,” he points out.

Gausman cites three examples of how technology advancements necessitate increased communication with customers:

1 – AMI is transforming the way PHI communicates with customers. “We are transitioning from meter-reading activity to acquiring data and, more importantly, being able to communicate that data in the form of information back to our customers so they can better understand their energy usage,” he states. “Then, they can use that information to drive down not only their peak usage, but their total energy usage.” PHI just completed its AMI implementation in Delaware, and is now implementing it in the District of Columbia and Maryland. To date, it has installed about 300,000 meters in Delaware and 100,000 in the District of Columbia. By the end of this year, PHI plans to have about 600,000 meters installed.

2 – PHI is also getting involved in electric vehicles. This provides another level of interaction with customers in terms of electricity management, such that the utility doesn’t burden the distribution system. It needs to be able to manage how customers charge the vehicles and also monitor the activity and help customers get control, so they don’t have to worry about when they can activate their charging systems.

3 – The third relates to the integration of renewables, primarily solar, at the residential level. “There has been an increase in the number of solar installations in our jurisdiction,” he reports. “In fact, New Jersey has one of the most aggressive deployments of solar across the nation. We have more solar on a per capita basis going in New Jersey than any other state.” This is distributed across the entire distribution system. As noted above, with electricity now traveling in two directions, communication with customers is critical.

NERC. Communication with NERC is also important, according to Gausman. “This area is changing a lot,” he states. “There are always new standards and regulations, including those related to security. Certainly, there is no one who would disagree that physical security and cyber-security are very important.” As PHI continues to look at and implement new technology, it keeps NERC in mind. “We study NERC standards and guidelines not only for the bulk electric system, but throughout the entire system, even down to the metering system,” he states.

Transmission
PHI is in installing the Mid-Atlantic Power Pathway (MAPP), a 500 kV transmission system, which also has a significant high-voltage DC component. “We are using this DC component to cross the Chesapeake Bay,” Gausman states. “It will be one of the highest-capacity DC systems anywhere in the world, and will be the first high-voltage DC system operated in the PJM grid.”

PHI considers this to be a very important project for a number of reasons. The first, of course, is improving reliability. However, there are currently some serious discussions about building large amounts of wind generation off the Atlantic coast. When the MAPP project is completed, it will terminate at a substation along the coast in Delaware. This also happens to be the place where an offshore wind project will be coming on-shore. “Every study I have seen suggests that DC lines are the best way to manage the delivery of that off-shore wind energy back into the grid,” states Gausman. “So, even though this was not the original purpose of our transmission project, it is clearly one of the benefits that will occur.”

Posted in Autovation, Deployment, Education, Electric Vehicles, Emerging Technology, Pre-Deployment, Project Management, Smart Grid, Smart Meters, Standards | Leave a Comment »

PGE Learning Lab Provides Hours of Best Practices and Lessons Learned

Posted by Utilimetrics on August 4, 2011

Utility professionals gathered in Portland, Ore. July 28 and 29 for the Utilimetrics Smart Meter Learning Lab hosted by Portland General Electric (PGE).

PGE is recognized as a leader in smart metering by the utility technology industry. Bruce Carpenter, vice president distribution services and Utilimetrics board member, welcomed the group and provided an overview and timeline of PGE’s completed AMI project. Mass deployment of smart meters began in 2009 and was completed in 2010. About 825,000 meters have been installed and key business process development is complete. PGE is expanding its focus on “beyond the meter” services and staff members are eager to share their stories with other utilities.

Maria Pope, PGE senior vice president of finance, CFO and treasurer greeted the attendees and praised the AMI project team for achieving over $18 million in annual savings and paving the way for future smart grid initiatives.

Eric Spack, AMI project director, summarized the he smart metering project and provided lessons learned. He described the business process changes, IT software development and operational benefits PGE has experienced. Spack also reviewed the planning process, implementation, customer impacts and lessons learned each step of the way. Spack offered insights and advice to the visiting utilities which emphasizing the need to remain flexible and “plan to replan” throughout the process. He also explained many of the benefits and cost-savings PGE has realized as a result of its smart meter deployment.

Members of the PGE Customer Care Team discussed customer communications, customer relations, the PGE call center, regulatory relations and customers who opt-out of smart meters. Stan Sittser, Jan DeMeire, and Garret Saiki provided examples of PGE’s comprehensive, integrated communications strategy with customers, stakeholders, the media and within the company. Communication is a high priority at PGE.

The Learning Lab continued with a presentation from Jamie Swails, manager of network data operations and Elyssia Lawrence, supervisor, CIS billing who led a discussion on how smart metering has affected the system and field operations, as well as billing operations. They described the flow of data from the field through their MDMS and CIS and the challenges and opportunities they encounter.

Learning Lab participants toured three PGE sites and had the opportunity to talk to several industry experts. First the group visited the electric vehicle (EV) charging stations in the PGE garage and one on the street provided a view of PGE’s role in the EV movement. Rick Durst demonstrated how vehicles are charged and discussed plans for additional charging stations across the state.

The next stop was the Distributed Generation Control Center, where PGE employs standby generators in the community to meet peak demand. PGE maintains, upgrades, and covers operational costs for generators in various hospitals, commercial and industrial locations in exchange for the backup power during outages or high demand on the electric grid. Kelly Cox, explained how, with this unique program, up to 125 MW of generation can be added to the system during peak hours.

The last stop included a demonstration of the Meter Data Consolidator developed by PGE in 2001. It delivers up to 99.9 percent of required billing reads daily. David Gundolff, technical lead and product owner and Kirk Page, operations lead in the network data operations center, described the key functionality of the meter data management system and discussed the validation estimation editing (VEE) functions as well. In addition to these demonstrations, the meter shop also hosted some attendees who were very interested in their operation.

Steve Sprague, supervisor of the Energy Recovery Unit, showed a video of his team’s success in investigating marijuana grow facilities and recovering stolen revenues from these illegal operations. Mark Osborn, PGE’s smart grid manager and Conrad Eustis, director of retail technology development, talked about PGE’s future initiatives. Osborn described the Salem smart microgrid project, a federally funded demonstration project in the Pacific Northwest which will test energy storage and facilitate the integration of wind and other renewables. Eustis’ presentation covered implications for smart grid and next steps for Portland General Electric.

A cocktail reception followed the conference and gave everyone the opportunity to network, follow up on areas of interest and continue the dialogue on Portland’s contributions to the utility industry. Several attendees stayed for the “value added” Friday sessions, offered the following morning on specific areas of interest.

Thanks to Portland General Electric for making this Smart Meter Learning Lab a great success. Special thanks to Wellington Energy and Sensus for sponsoring the event.

Posted in Autovation, Deployment, Education, Electric Vehicles, Emerging Technology, Meter Data Management, Project Management, Smart Grid, Smart Meters | Tagged: , , , , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

Intelligent Water Management Systems Usher in a New Age for Water

Posted by Utilimetrics on July 12, 2011

Intelligent Water Management Systems Usher in a New Age for Water

By Doug McCall, director of marketing, Sensus

Water utilities are choosing intelligent water management solutions to maximize the efficiency of the entire water distribution system as global demand for water steadily increases and supplies are strained. Based on the current rate of consumption, a global water shortage of 40 percent is estimated by 2030.

For water utilities trying to strike a balance between consuming and conserving water, the impetus to find more intelligent solutions for water management is great. Many water utilities operate at a financial loss each year, as unaccounted for water usage due to inaccurate meters and aging infrastructure translates to an untold amount of lost revenue.  

One in three utilities is in deployment

A 2010 Oracle study found that one in three water utilities were not only in some phase of implementing a smart water program, but that these respondents viewed early leak detection, supplying customers with tools to monitor and reduce water use and reducing overall water demand as  the most important benefits of these systems.

Water conservation benefits of an intelligent water management system were almost immediately evident in the City of Santa Maria, Calif. Santa Maria began implementation of an intelligent water management system in 2010 with a 45-day pilot program that quickly identified leaks in approximately three percent of test homes. In the first eight months after broader system deployment, city officials estimate they saved more than eight acre feet, or more than two million gallons of water, reducing the amount of water Santa Maria needed to purchase from the state. Santa Maria customers also realized the cost benefits and savings provided by leak detection.

In addition to Santa Maria, water utilities across the country including the Albuquerque-Bernalillo County Water Utility Authority, Garden City, Kan. and the Town of Cary, N.C. are implementing intelligent water management technologies that help maximize resources, conserve water and boost operational efficiency and customer engagement.

Increased operational efficiency

Intelligent water management systems offer utilities benefits such as increased operational efficiency and strengthened customer engagement. Leak detection and building consumer awareness of water usage are two benefits of deploying intelligent water management solutions that will sustain and improve quality of life for communities around the world.

Another California city, Redwood City, sought a more aggressive water conservation solution in 2008. A three-year drought stressed the volume of water Redwood bought annually from the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission for its 83,000 water customers.

In lieu of heavy rationing or overuse penalties, Redwood City officials developed the “Budget-Based Rate Program” to empower landscape customers to make proactive changes in their consumption by creating tiered pricing based on daily conditions and each landscape customer’s anticipated activities for the day. Redwood City deployed a real-time metering solution built upon the Sensus FlexNet communications network to provide customers information on their water usage and rate pricing data to support informed decisions about water usage.

Customer engagement pays off

Redwood City’s program encouraged customers to conserve water and stay in line with water budgets to pay the least of three rate tiers for water. Redwood City created a web portal to calculate each irrigation customer’s water budget based on weather patterns and anticipated activities for the day, considering factors including the size of a property and whether there was a swimming pool or landscape design requiring additional water. The system also enabled Redwood City to establish an email module alerting customers of potential overuse or continuous leaks.

With these tools, Redwood City was able to save more than 80 million gallons of water in a year and some customers were able to save as much as $50,000, becoming a prime example of how intelligent water management can facilitate water conservation and empower water utility customers to make smart choices about water consumption.

Water consumption evaluation needed

Due to major global changes, less than 10 percent of the world’s freshwater supply is available for domestic use, necessitating a reevaluation of how the world delivers and consumes water. Intelligent water management will help modernize water utilities and prepare for a world where cost, legislation, and supply dictate changes in our relationship with water.

Posted in Autovation, Deployment, Emerging Technology, Pre-Deployment, Project Management, Smart Meters, Water utilities | 3 Comments »

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