City Of Naperville Selects Elster's Smart Grid Solution and Tropos' GridCom Architecture

By Carolyn J Dawson, TMCnet Contributor

As part of the Naperville Smart Grid Initiative (NSGI), the City of Naperville has chosen Elster and Tropos Networks solutions to help modernize the electric grid as well as improve operational efficiencies and power reliability.

With the targeted completion by September 2012, NSGI project will provide Naperville electric customers with access to more information and options, helping them choose the right use of electricity. To deploy load control management services, Naperville will also take advantage of the combined solutions from Schneider and Calico Energy Services. Naperville also chose Utility Partners of America as its installation contractor.

Initially, Naperville's electricity network will deploy Elster's EnergyAxis Smart Grid communications solution, and Smart Meters and will also be tested for future potential water and gas deployments. By providing a highly reliable and secure communications foundation, Tropos' GridCom architecture will ensure comprehensive wireless network management. This technology will be leveraged by the utility for multiple applications beyond AMI backhaul, including distribution automation, substation automation and many others.

The NSGI will provide customers with the appropriate tools to monitor and thereby reduce energy usage. Based on choice, customers will be either given a flat rate billing structure or time-of-use pricing model. The initiative will also help utilities gain increased reliability and efficiency while decreasing line loss and reducing wasted energy. While preparing the utility's infrastructure for future energy efficiency programs, NSGI will also support electric vehicles and integration of renewable energy sources.

In a release, Nadja Lalvani, City of Naperville community relations manager, said, “The City of Naperville is committed to modernizing our utility delivery infrastructure to provide customers with innovative new services and options for managing energy consumption. We are pleased to be working with Elster and Tropos on this project. These vendors have shown the unique ability to complete deployments of all sizes and we look forward to working with them to introduce the benefits of the Smart Grid to our community.”

As a field-proven Smart Grid solution, Elster's EnergyAxis with its 80-plus active smart grid deployments enables utilities to realize operational efficiencies; conserve environmental and economic resources with efficient usage of electricity, gas and water infrastructures; reduce outages with improved outage response and repair time; provide enhanced customer service; implement demand response program for resource conservation; educate customers for efficient energy management and consumption as well as reduce non-technical grid losses.

Want to learn more about Smart Grid technologies? Then be sure to attend the Smart Grid Summit, collocated with TMC’s (News - Alert) ITEXPO East, taking place Feb 2-4, 2011, in Miami. The Smart Grid Summit is the first event of its kind to address the unprecedented opportunity coming from the intersection of two core building blocks of our economy – utilities and communications. This unique event is based on the joint vision of TMC and Intelligent Communications Partners (News - Alert) to create a new forum for and actively engage an entire community. To register, click here.

(source: http://smart-grid.tmcnet.com/topics/smart-grid/articles/138673-city-naperville-selects-elsters-smart-grid-solution-tropos.htm)