I recently spoke with Pete Gomez, manager of information requirements, and Randy Huston, business technology executive for SmartGridCity implementation at Xcel Energy. They’re both involved in the first citywide deployment of smart electrical grid technology in the United States in Boulder, Colo. As they begin to deploy the advanced communication equipment, they’re finding the need to record whole new levels of information about their assets into their GIS system, and at greater accuracy.
The demands of a dynamic grid that is adaptive both to use levels and variable power generation levels from distributed sources requires a need for modeling at higher resolution. The new network will ingest power from such sources as wind turbines, solar panels and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles. Moving away from a centralized power source means that the utility will need to better understand user behavior as well as environmental variables that affect power generation. These many variables will require the utility to model the distribution system much more extensively and accurately. GIS software will also need to account for multiple power sources in the models.
Read more about the added needs of GIS systems for smart grid technology in this feature on V1 Magazine.
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