So we see that utilities first start to invest in smart metering programs at the residential & commercial sector. But why would utilities do that when immediate benefits can occur by clawing back the $52 Billion loses due to short momentary power interruptions or disturbances.

Perhaps the explanation could be as simple as by deploying metering programs 1^st, it has been argued by us (Meter-to-Cash - Electricity Use & Optimization Benefit) that two-way communications (AMI Network) all across the grid will let utilities:

Remotely identify, locate, isolate, and restore power outages more quickly without having to send field crews on trouble calls (50% reduction in troubled calls) Reduce the duration of power outages which would result in fewer utility calls to the contact center (raising customer satisfaction levels) Extend the life of substation equipment and distribution assets by remote monitoring and performing condition base management (CBM).

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Asset Health Management (AHM) is a new type of utilities analytics.

AHM uses non-operational data to track the health of assets and do condition base management (CBM) instead of predictive device maintenance (PDM) to make sure that the utilities are optimizing operations and maintenance expenses. The AHM approach helps drive the performance of the individual assets such as high-voltage breakers, transformers and other types of grid instruments and devices to provide better reliability.

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The key to smart meter deployment in the millions is the dependency of installation of the AMI wireless communications network that provides a complete solution to collect meter reading data and also manages the smart devices and feeder meter asset

The typical utilities project execution plan begins by attempting to deliver against the strategic objectives outlined below:

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In 2004 Berkley National Laboratory reported that in the United States, the annual cost of system disturbances is an estimated $79 billion.

@ Utility Level Deferred Generation, Transmission, & Distribution Capacity Investment Reduced Electricity Losses Reduced Electricity Cost @ Customer Level In-Home Feedback (IHF) Solutions Plug-In Hybrid Electric Vehicle (PHEV) Distributed Generation & Storage Solar Photovoltaic (PV)

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When it comes to protected information security under PCI DSS, consistent purview over log data is the guidance. But it’s known that this objective is not as easy as it sounds. Organizations managing PCI data are supposed to review log data and periodically schedule an assessment to be completed by an outside party. However with today’s economy, and so much being asked of IT staff, I wonder if periodic review of sensitive data risk controls to comply with PCI DSS is adequate.
 

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We have voiced to utilities that implementation and/or replacement of energy devices onto residential, commercial and industrial buildings and households should seek to have the customer expecting month-by-month a reduction in energy consumption and billing.

We advocate a best-practice whereby:

Utility companies partner with companies performing energy facility assessments and / or Energy Consumers are provided federal, state or local grants to engage in third-party providers of renewable products/services. The energy audit consists of reviewing the building shell, lighting, air conditioning, heating and other equipment.

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Participating and reviewing smart meter / smart grid programs have allowed us to evangelize the need for utilities to established a continuous near real-time enterprise-wide platform. The economics of today is forcing executives to overcome the regulatory issues and utilities standards of upgrading the current grid to resolve:

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Organizations must track and monitor all access to cardholder data and related network resources – in stores, regional offices, headquarters, and other remote access.

Yes, it is well documented that the three (3) tenets for adhering to PCI DSS 2.0 are as follows:

Assess - Identifying cardholder data, taking an inventory of your IT assets and business processes for payment card processing, and analyzing them for vulnerabilities that could expose cardholder data. Remediate - Fixing vulnerabilities and not storing cardholder data unless you need it. Report - Compiling and submitting required remediation validation records (if applicable), and submitting compliance reports to the acquiring bank and card.

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While participating in smart meter / smart grid programs, we have seen cash flow optimization by improving revenue realization and reducing costs for the utilities by:

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All companies know they should abstain from bad business practices, protect their business assets, minimize their risk and make as much money as they can. Most businesses that have a penchant for losing money and a knack for failing to meet their company goals know they should make certain changes to their business plans to improve their bottom line. Yet, I believe far fewer actually do so. So how can CIOs motivate and educate their colleagues to follow through in choosing the behaviors and techniques that help build and promote healthy companies? Let’s take a look at three elements that have a huge impact on the safety, health, profitability and longevity of every company.

My First Foray Into Tech Blogging...

Other than drinking inordinate amounts of coffee and cursing at servers the two things I’m typically stuck doing is writing highly scalable multi threaded applications and getting bizarre 3rd party APIs to talk to each other. So, this blog is mostly going to be an adventure into the dark corners of .Net, C++ and other frameworks and platforms that you don’t want to mention in the presence of polite company.

Using NISTIR 7628 and NISTIR 7756