Smarter than smart – Reaching beyond with Wireless Intelligence

Whether its power and energy production, distribution, green, or demand response initiatives, delivering cost-effective and reliable services is essential for any utility. Today’s increasing demand for energy continues to place a burden on the critical support and systems infrastructure of the most progressive of companies. Automating processes and utilizing wireless communications technology can effectively deliver new service capabilities while providing cost reductions and the operational efficiencies that result in lower costs and improved customer satisfaction. Ultimately, successful Smart Grid or for that matter, the intelligent connectivity of industrial natural resource distribution involves far more than just intelligence at the edge, but throughout the entire infrastructure.

The Market & Associated Challenges

Starting with energy production, the need for timely information is critical. From control points throughout the system, the need to understand how efficient our production facilities operate has been paramount to the success and balancing of the production and demand response infrastructure. Clearly, this area is well monitored with teams of qualified engineers ensuring the world's energy supply is reliable, consistent and stable. But what about the remote assets that are on-net only part of the time and operational in remote locations scattered across the countryside? Wireless connectivity can bring their participation in the network to life, providing the accurate operational data necessary to ensure that for example, the intermittency of non-dispatchable resources are utilized effectively as part of an over-arching energy strategy.

The distribution of energy demands that the delivery network be monitored. While traditional methods ensure that constant monitoring is provided, specific data may be required from points along the distribution network; here cellular communications can play a significant role in providing real-time decision support data for operations, demand response and load balancing. The wireless network also provides the necessary connectivity to support a host of communications needs, from control and distribution points to monitoring induction generators, substations or capacitor banks for power factor correction. No matter the device, timely data is critical for seamless operation.

In the minds of most, the Smart Grid started with Smart Meters and a series of initiatives designed to upgrade reporting and two-way communications at the end point. In reality the relative cost to network each meter quickly became cost prohibitive resulting in a series of new, innovative ideas that lead to more of a residential "gateway" type market approach. Now used primarily in a back-haul scenario, cellular communications are being successfully deployed to connect a series of devices from the automated home, to traffic signals, street lights and more, where digital connectivity helps save money, from production through to consumption.

Today's Smart Grid therefore is far more than just a smart meter or AMR/AMI application, it is the combination of production, transmission and utilization of energy in the connected, anywhere, anytime network.

Throughout the world, connected home automation continues to drive many of the real smart grid initiatives. With personal area networks (PANs), the idea of demand based energy usage in the "home grid" becomes a reality in the area of energy savings. Through such technologies such as WiFi, ZigBee, Bluetooth and other near-field based solutions; cellular based residential gateways are being deployed globally.

The Solution

With simple Data-Pipe technology to high-speed back haul embedded platforms - Enfora is empowering energy companies of all sizes with resilient, high-speed, reliable end-point, distribution and demand response connectivity solutions for today's Smart Grid operations. Driven by the N4A^TM Services Architecture, Enfora delivers a flexible, modular architecture for fast wireless connectivity and solutions deployment.

Coupled with the robust N4A Communications and Management platform, devices can be provisioned, monitored and reconfigured remotely, most anywhere in the world saving dispatch and reconfiguration time. Monitoring and decision support systems have been transformed with the N4A family of intelligent devices, from the Spider AT asset tag family for the monitoring of high-value mobile and fixed assets, to the SA fixed telemetry devices and a host of embedded platforms purpose-designed for the Smart Meter, AMR/AMI and industrial distribution markets.

Mission critical energy and distribution infrastructures can be efficiently managed, high-value assets can be located and leveraged using real-time location services - Enfora and its strategic partners deliver the data for better decision making, improving performance in your connected smart grid devices - driving green and other energy saving initiatives.

Smarter than Smart - Choosing the right partner, with a proven technology, scalable architecture and sound business practices is paramount to your successful deployment.

Learn more by visiting Enfora.com or use the following line to visit our connected automation page directly: http://www.enfora.com/IndustrialAutomation

Be sure to download the AMR/AMI Best practices whitepaper for additional information.

Enfora, connecting the Smart Grid and AMR/AMI infrastructure - providing you decision support data for ultimate cost savings and customer satisfaction - Anywhere, Anytime.

About Enfora

Enfora, a leading provider of intelligent wireless asset management solutions, enables enterprises to access, analyze and leverage information from distributed assets. The N4A Wireless Architecture consist of edge devices, communications and management software, and design and customization services to provide valuable communications between enterprises and their remote assets. Enfora's innovative solutions are comprehensive, customizable and scalable and the N4A Architecture with its Business Intelligence Logic helps enterprises seamlessly integrate their assets, optimize their utilization and performance, extend asset life cycle, and improve the overall asset ROI. Enfora's Connected Anywhere, Anytime solutions enable information anywhere.