Considering the needs of distribution engineers now will pay dividends in the future.
Too often, the terms “smart grid” and “smart metering” are used together or even interchangeably, as if they were two sides of the same investment coin. Utility distribution operations communication issues deserve more careful consideration within the larger industry smart grid dialogue.
Advanced metering is a fundamental enabling technology for the smart grid, but utilities should pause and pay careful attention to the hard-earned, pragmatic wisdom of their distribution operations engineers. After all, they’re the ones who work day-to-day to keep the lights on for customers. In the areas of system monitoring, control and security, utility engineers have brought the following distribution operations communication smart grid issues to our attention.
Monitoring and control
Utility monitoring and remote control of distribution substations with SCADA gained mainstream prevalence in the ’90s and the trend has accelerated in the past several years. Modern substation automation technology provides utilities with a new platform to cost-effectively extend system monitoring and control out into distribution feeders, but this has also exponentially expanded the requirement set for effective two-way communications to remotely controlled devices such as reclosers, cap banks, voltage regulators and switches.
As power utilities adopt new substation communication infrastructure in the form of powerful new remote terminal units and substation data concentrators capable of capturing unprecedented amounts of new equipment telemetry data received from a growing array of intelligent electronic devices (IEDs), the dedicated copper links between control house equipment and substation equipment will gradually give way to new, higher bandwidth, digital methods of communication connectivity. This need for increased communication and bandwidth capabilities, coupled with tighter and more granular control schemes, suggests the need for a strategic perspective on communication technology options that bridge the historical gap between the substation and the “last mile” of primary and secondary distribution feeders delivering power to customers.
Utilities working on advanced metering programs and rate cases should consider, and work to fund, communications networks/capabilities to address more than just advanced metering connectivity. Smart grid communications planning should consider opportunities across the entire service delivery value chain–from supply source all the way into the consumer’s home–to help all market participants manage energy better.
From our proprietary research and from ad hoc conversations with both distribution engineers and senior executives in the utility community, we’ve learned that utilities consistently cite improved customer service, enhanced reliability, and lower outage management times as some of the top benefits discussed within advanced metering reviews at their respective companies. In some of these same conversations, utility engineers cite a range of distribution automation projects they feel will help immediately address these very same issues. In some cases, utility engineers still have problems gaining funding or mindshare for these projects.
Distribution communications security
Security was once a somewhat relative term across utility departments, and distribution operations have historically operated on network environments that were separate from back-office systems. NERC recently clarified security with its CIP standards that set the bar for utilities and vendors alike. Utility CIOs who deem their information technology assets secure within the current confines of CIP-005 (electronic security perimeters) will need to begin planning for increased integration between internal business and operations control networks. While it’s common wisdom that utilities work to keep control systems and business networks separated with carefully controlled integration access points, the reality is that there will be more, not less, required interaction between control networks and utility business application networks under smart grid scenarios in the future. Complete isolation of control networks is not a practical solution going forward.
From a resource planning perspective, utility executives in larger investor-owned utilities should work today to dedicate in-house, full-time, staff resources to security functions in smart grid strategy, resource and rate recovery planning. Likewise, cooperative distribution utilities and distribution-focused municipalities should place both physical and architectural security capabilities at the top of their distribution communication issues list when considering ever larger proportions of customer demand management and distributed energy resources in their integrated planning.
The consensus view from many engineers in our customer community is that going forward, utility IT security and distribution network management roles will require a rare breed of engineer, one who combines knowledge of both information and operations technology, as power technology and digital communication and control functions continue to fuse under smart grid programs. Security will evolve into a dedicated (core competence) engineering function that utilities, regardless of size, should add into their resource planning under smart grid scenarios.
These smart grid security specialists will give careful consideration to not only the architectural security characteristics of distribution communications options (encryption, redundant data path designs, proven upgradability), but also to the physical risks and the susceptibility of highly visible and vulnerable communications targets in the field.
Finally, from the NERC report “Top 10 Vulnerabilities of Control Systems and Their Associated Mitigations,” the following foundational recommendations should be given increased attention in light of recent events: “Develop a risk management plan that identifies and documents a risk-based assessment methodology to identify critical assets”and perform background personnel checks on persons with access to sensitive systems and ensure that vendors and contractors have performed similar tests.” Utility companies entrust staff with tremendous responsibility for the safety and security of field crews and the general public. Rigorous utility staff and vendor screening/background checks are not indicative of a lack of trust; they represent sound risk management policy in the context of smart grid planning for the future.
Utility smart grid communication strategy, planning and deployments should consider more than just the communications requirements of advanced metering. Consideration of the needs of distribution engineers will pay utilities dividends down the road while ensuring that today’s advanced metering communication investments are positioned to deliver additional value for the larger smart grid of the future. (Visit www.elp.com for more on the smart grid.)
Author
A 19-year veteran of the utility automation industry, Derek Booth is smart grid general manager for Cellnet+Hunt. You may contact him at [email protected].
