Kansas City Power and Light announced it is implementing a meter data management system as part of its SmartGrid demonstration project funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.
KCP&L has already implemented many other components of an integrated distribution management system in its evolution to the smart grid. Its Smart Grid Demonstration Project program is applying the latest advances in energy technology focused around intelligent substations to help monitor and manage energy delivery, integrate renewable energy sources and enable consumers to actively manage their energy usage. The project covers the Green Impact Zone (GIZ) of the Missouri initiative and surrounding neighborhoods. The GIZ is designed to reinvigorate an urban area of Kansas City, Missouri.
In December 2009, GridPoint announced that it would provide home energy management, load management and electric vehicle management software solutions for the Green Impact Zone SmartGrid Demonstration. That same month, Intergraph said it would provide KCP&L with its Smart Grid Operations Command-and-Control Center as well as related implementation, project management and training services. Last September, Landis+Gyr announced that it would deploy its Gridstream solution as the advanced metering and grid automation technology platform for KCP&L's project.
Now, Siemens will provide configuration, testing and integration services into KCP&L's information technology systems. The primary objective of this project is to demonstrate standards-based interoperability between the eMeter MDMS and other KCP&L SmartGrid systems.
This standards-based integration will complement the other Siemens' technologies already chosen by KCP&L – Smart-Substation and Spectrum Power distribution management system (DMS). Siemens was selected to partner on this project because of its standards-based implementation processes and commitment to on-time delivery. eMeter was chosen based on its product strength and proven implementations already in the market.
In addition to the integration of eMeter EnergyIP, KCP&L's SmartGrid project includes Siemens' Smart-Substation controller and Spectrum Power DMS. The Smart-Substation controller provides an intelligent substation information technology platform to enable real-time substation and feeder automation, Volt/VAr control and demand management, while Spectrum Power DMS facilitates operations information management and security.
"KCP&L's SmartGrid demonstration project will serve as the foundation to plan and study the feasibility of a broader roll out of the smart grid technologies," said Mike Deggendorf, KCP&L senior vice president of Delivery.