With nearly 4,000 votes cast, Smart Grid News readers (and their friends) have picked the smart grid companies they think are the ones we should watch in the year ahead. Did they get it right? We thought there were some surprising choices (and omissions.) Click inside and see if you agree.
Tropos Networks says its newly released GridCom 2.0 gives utilities the capability of integrating and managing an optimal mix of wireless technologies that will meet the varying communications requirements throughout their service areas.
Between reader nominations and a few of our own, we’ve got 37 contenders in the running for our 11 smart grid companies to watch in 2011. So now it's time to narrow the field. Click inside to vote for the one company you think most belongs on our list.
As electric utilities search for new and better ways to improve the reliability and security of their infrastructure, Matthias H. van Doorn of FreeWave Technologies makes a case for wireless data communications. (He also shares an intriguing tale of actress Hedy Lamarr's contribution to grid security made way back in the '40s.)
You had your turn, now it's ours. The SGN staff has added a few names to the nominees for smart grid companies to watch in 2011. Click inside to see who we selected and why.
When we asked SGN readers to nominate smart grid companies that should be on our radar in 2011, we received some fascinating responses. In today's post we highlight our fifth installment of your 11 in 2011 nominations, along with observations on each of them from Jesse Berst.
We've arrived at the sixth and final installment highlighting reader nominations for the smart grid companies that should be on our radar this year. Click inside to see the latest nominations along with a few observations about them from Jesse Berst.
Which smart grid companies will be on our radar as 2011 progresses? That's the question we put to our readers – and you came through with some fascinating nominations. In today's post we introduce the first batch of 11 in 2011 nominations, along with observations from Jesse Berst.
A smart grid trial in Liverpool appears to be giving broadband over power line technology a new lease on life. Overcoming technical limitations that have stalled BPL in the past could mean a major value stream for the electric power network.
The Wi-Fi Alliance says a recent GE white paper endorsing Zigbee technology over WiFi in home area network applications is "flawed" and "inaccurate" because the GE study relied on old technologies that don't reflect today's standards. What do you think? Vote in today's QuickPoll.
Silicon Valley Power will use Tropos Network's private wireless communications network, AMI systems and integration services for its SVP Meter Connect smart grid program.
British telecommunications company Cable&Wireless Worldwide and CURRENT Group will combine their expertise to provide integrated smart metering and smart grid solutions to help ensure that the goals of the British government's Low Carbon Economy and National Smart Metering programs are met.
A GE research study has found that in terms of cost-effectiveness and energy efficiency, Zigbee's wireless communications technology tops WiFi technology. Researchers determined that WiFi used a little more than twice the power than Zigbee in home area network applications.
At CenterPoint Energy in storm-prone Texas, a major communications overhaul to implement an "Intelligent Utility Network" proved to be the core enabler for transforming the entire organization. Click inside to learn about the four tough "customers" CenterPoint had to satisfy and the four foundational technologies they needed in addition to MDM.
Hughes has launched a new M2M broadband service that gives the utility, energy and other industries with remote, unmanned assets the ability to extend network intelligence to their entire infrastructure faster, including hard-to-reach locales.
Energy management pilots conducted by Duke Energy in both businesses and universities have been a positive testing ground for SmartSynch's IP-enabled GridRouter smart grid communications solutions.
IEEE has formally given its blessing to its 1901 Broadband over Power Line standard. The BPL standard is considered a key technology in paving the way for smart grid applications, transportation and local area networks.
The nation's largest cell phone companies made a show of force this week in a "combine-and-conquer" bid to become the preferred method for smart grid communications. In the U.S., private, purpose-built RF mesh networks have dominated the market, as embodied by the sector’s leader, Silver Spring Networks. Now cell companies are making a united effort to argue that public, cellular networks are a better way to go.
SmartSynch and Sprint have introduced a new residential utility meter that allows utilities to automate the electric grid with AMI, demand response and SmartSynch's network management. The combined capabilities will mean continuously updated energy use data will be available to both utilities and customers.
SmartSynch and Verizon have introduced a smart grid solution for the residential utility market they say will make smart meter deployments faster, easier and more scalable.
Smart grid deployments can be great opportunities for communications service providers, but they're going to have to be at the very peak of their game to give utilities the ultra-high reliability, security and technical support they need for successful smart grid implementation, a new study suggests.
Smart grid companies eyeing the unused broadcast spectrum referred to as “white spaces” are cheering the FCC vote that opens them up for wireless networking.
IBM, with a little help from major players in network technologies, is offering utilities that want to make the leap from traditional electric grids to smart grids a one-stop shopping experience, from consultation and design to integration and deployment.
Upstream from smart meter and AMI pieces, success of plug-and-play depends on how well components “talk” to each other. As KEMA VP Ron Willoughby explains in this guest column, Europe is already using IEC 61850 data communication standards to a great advantage, and forward-looking utilities in the U.S. are beginning to leverage the protocol to enhance substation and distribution automation investments. Learn more about IEC 61850 inside.
We're getting mixed signals about the vitality of the smart grid market. On the one hand, the recent DistribuTECH conference was one of the most successful ever. On the other, a well-known Wall Street analyst recently told his clients that the smart metering sector is "facing several headwinds," including weak regulatory support in the U.S. and delays in European adoption. Taking the pulse of the smart grid industry is this week's Tuesday Topic.
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