Pacific Northwest Smart Grid Demo Moves Ahead

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Battelle and the Department of Energy’s National Energy Technology Laboratory have finalized an $89 million agreement to fund the Pacific Northwest Smart Grid Demonstration Project. The funds will be added to another $89 million contributed by the Bonneville Power Administration, 11 utilities and five technology companies, including QualityLogic (www.qualitylogic.com), that make up the demonstration project.

The project will expand existing electric infrastructure and test new combinations of devices, software and advanced analytical tools to enhance the power grid’s reliability and performance. QualityLogic is tasked with creating interoperability tests and certification for the Project’s transactive control system. This control technology will allow transaction-based collaboration to occur over complex networks, where intelligent devices negotiate with each other, their users and the energy supplier to increase efficiency and reduce costs.

“The next generation Smart Grid will comprise a variety of standards and devices that will present intricate interoperability challenges,” according to James Mater, QualityLogic co-founder and Smart Grid Interoperability Evangelist. “Now it’s our job to see that components of the project work together to achieve greater efficiency in the delivery and use of energy.”

The $178 million demonstration project is one of 16 regional smart grid demonstration awards announced by DOE last fall and is part of the American Recovery Reinvestment Act.

Smart grid enhances power delivery and use through intelligent two-way communication. The technology includes everything from interactive appliances in homes to substation automation and sensors on transmission lines. Electricity generators, suppliers and consumers are all part of the equation. Smart grid can monitor activities in real time, exchange information about supply and demand and adjust power use based on instantaneous data.

For more information about the project, visit www.pnwsmartgrid.org.

ABOUT QUALITYLOGIC

QualityLogic is a highly respected provider of testing products and outsourced quality assurance and engineering services. The Company provides a flexible menu of services at customers’ sites, at QualityLogic’s labs, or as managed services that scale to meet customers’ evolving needs. QualityLogic’s customers include technology companies around the world in a wide range of industries:

  • QualityLogic is a testing partner in the Pacific Northwest Smart Grid Demonstration Project and is developing interoperability, conformance, and certification test solutions for other Smart Energy technologies.
  • IT departments in companies of all sizes look to QualityLogic to ensure their web applications or websites meet their quality objectives.
  • Marketing groups rely on QualityLogic to provide independent validation of their competitive advantages and develop and execute certification programs for their partners.
  • Printer and MFP OEMs, ODMs and technology providers rely on QualityLogic test solutions to validate their products’ performance, conformance to industry standards, and interoperability with other hardware and software products.
  • Network infrastructure equipment manufacturers, carriers, and telecom service providers use QualityLogic fax test equipment to ensure interoperability with fax traffic from traditional devices and across the Internet.