Grid Net Collaborates with GE Energy and Intel to Deliver Smart Grid Solutions for Utilities

Grid Net, a provider of policy-based network management system (NMS) software for the utility Smart Grid, today announced key collaborations with GE Energy and Intel Corporation, focused on providing innovative Smart Grid solutions. Grid Net has been working with the companies to architect and produce open, standards-based, industry-leading Smart Grid products and services for utilities.

The collaboration has been productive. The companies have already established the key technological underpinnings for Smart Grid solutions, which include:

An open, interoperable Smart Grid communications and networking platform based on WiMAX, a leading 4G wireless broadband standard which is supported across the globe by the WiMAX Forum, a consortium of 522 industry leaders in the communications ecosystem, including Intel and Grid Net.

Grid Net's PolicyNet Smart Grid NMS™ software, of which core components are based on the Common Open Policy Service (COPS) engine1 and Intel® WiMAX Connection software reference kit, enabling an open standards-based, reliable, scalable, extensible, secure, policy-based networking platform for the Smart Grid, and

GE Energy's next-generation WiMAX SmartMeter products, which integrate Grid Net's PolicyNet firmware, and the Intel® WiMAX Connection 2250 and Intel® WIMAX Connection 2400 chipsets (formerly codenamed Baxter Peak).

"Implementing the Smart Grid requires a truly open approach, using the best products and technology," states Ray Bell, founder and CEO of Grid Net. "Our focus is all about offering utilities a broader choice of better solutions, at lower costs. That's why we’re pleased to collaborate with Intel and with GE Energy, and to leverage the ongoing innovations of more than 500 leading WiMAX technology providers into a Smart Grid ecosystem of open standards-based communications, utility transmission and distribution automation, and advanced metering products and technologies."

"The deployment of Smart Grid solutions addresses the issues of a growing population and climate change by increasing the productivity, reliability, and efficiency of our current electrical power grid. In addition, these technologies will empower the consumer to manage their electricity spend and usage, which will enable all consumers to become a part of solving the energy challenge now facing our planet," says Bob Gilligan, general manager of Transmission & Distribution. "At GE Energy, we have made a choice to be actively engaged in developing these technologies to meet this challenge."

"WiMAX will enable innovative applications for a variety of industries," said Sriram Viswanathan, vice president, Intel Capital and general manager, Intel WiMAX Program Office. "Grid Net and GE's Smart Grid solution is a brilliant example of what we can expect from solutions built with WiMAX technology’s performance, cost-effectiveness and standards-based, open architecture."

Open Standards and Interoperability

Implementing and managing the Smart Grid requires an "ecosystem" approach, where technology vendors collaborate using open standards to deliver an open, secure, cost-effective and intelligent technology infrastructure comprised of:

Smart grid devices that are always on-line, via reliable, high-speed, high-bandwidth, secure telecommunications networking, so that distribution automation, demand management, and other energy services are provisioned, delivered, consumed and analyzed rapidly and efficiently, and centrally managed via policy networking (or business rules driven) software and protocols, to ensure consistent, cost-effective and adaptive energy service delivery

Source; Grid Net