The Control Room Group, a division of AVI-SPL, has been selected by Allegheny Energy, to provide design, integration, installation and on-going support of video display solutions for its new transmission headquarters building in Fairmont, West Virginia. The solutions are built for mission-critical purposes, emphasizing reliability, functionality and serviceability in support of Allegheny’s mission to deliver affordable and reliable power.
CRG was chosen based on its vendor-agnostic design approach, which includes extensive assessment of manufacturer products and best matches those products to the Allegheny Energy project requirements, operational needs and accommodation for future growth. As part of the evaluation, CRG recommended that an enhanced content management visualization software package be added to allow further situational awareness for the operations staff.
CRG will supply 80” DLP SXGA+ video projection modules, 52” flat panel LCD monitors and the Control Room Management Suite software for advanced visualization in the transmission control room and the incident management room, for operator training and simulation, and employee training rooms. Additional solution components include audio systems and touch panel controls designed for 24x7 operations. The contract also includes traditional audiovisual systems for use in other conference rooms, directors offices and the security alarm station monitoring facility.
The system design is required to satisfy Allegheny Energy’s strict requirements to comply with North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) Critical Infrastructure Protection (CIP) standards. The system topology minimizes any impact on the transmission networks and isolates connections with all other utility IP networks while allowing advanced views of the Allegheny service area and other critical visual displays.