NEW ORLEANS-Sentient Energy, Inc., the Intelligent Sensing Platform provider offering advanced grid monitoring and analytics for electric utilities, today unveiled the first ubiquitous distribution grid monitoring and analytics system for grid reliability and safety at DistribuTECH 2019.
The Sentient Energy Grid Analytics System couples the Ample Analytics Suite with intelligent sensors that can be deployed anywhere on the distribution grid. The system continuously measures a wide variety of parameters that can pinpoint the location and cause of potential service disruptions before they occur. Major utilities that are using the system are reporting significant improvements in SAIDI and SAIFI.
Sentient Energy’s flagship MM3à¢â€ž- line monitors are deployed on overhead feeder lines and at substations. As feeder level durations improvements are realized, utilities can achieve additional duration reductions by deploying ZM1 line monitors on high-CAIDI and long overhead laterals where monitoring is a challenge due to lower loads and smaller conductor sizes. With Sentient Energy’s rugged UM3+ monitors, utilities can pinpoint fault locations on the underground feeder cable portion of a circuit where isolation and restoration durations are exponentially longer.
“Sentient Energy’s next-generation Grid Analytics System officially transitions the grid reliability paradigm from reactive to proactive,” said Jim Keener, CEO, Sentient Energy, Inc. “Utilities that deploy the system will continue to see exceptional improvement in SAIFI, SAIDI, asset life extension, vegetation and wildlife management, DER siting and integration, and overall grid resiliency.”
The Sentient Energy Grid Analytics System leverages the high-resolution oscillography provided in each intelligent monitor. As a result, fault waveforms and pre-fault disturbance waveforms are captured that substation & distribution automation control equipment cannot detect
Sentient Energy’s Ampleà¢â€ž- is the core software platform used to seamlessly manage and collect data and analytics from Sentient Energy’s line monitors. Network communications are enabled via mesh networks or a wide selection of 4/5G cellular networks, including AT&T, Verizon, Southern Linc, Telus and Bell. Ample provides specific tools for a variety of utility users such as fleet managers and reliability engineers to significantly enhance their ability to reduce outage duration and frequency.
Utilities have been looking to gain visibility between substations and meters. With Sentient’s platform of software, analytics, and sensors that cover the entire distribution grid, utilities now have insight into their largest and most vulnerable asset that was previously unavailable. Adding grid context to the sensor data allows for granular information on location of potential faults and advanced post fault restoration practices, with the ability to deploy the right crews to the right location.
Sentient Energy’s Grid Analytics System measures the state of the grid at all overhead and underground sensor locations along feeders and laterals. At any point in time, significant changes in load and load direction, as well as faults and pre-fault disturbances, are detected so that applications such as State Estimation can leverage real-time data for distribution power flow applications. This will become increasingly important as the growth of DER continues to drive dramatic daily changes in the electric grid.
Sentinent Energy is at Booth 11942 on the DistribuTECH exhibit floor.
