NI and Innovari Help Grid Operators Improve Utilization, Lower Costs
September 19 2017 - 9:00AM
Business Wire
NI and Innovari share how to optimize energy
grids with edge control and cloud analytics at IoT Solutions World
Congress 2017
NI (Nasdaq: NATI), the provider of platform-based systems that
enable engineers and scientists to solve the world’s greatest
engineering challenges, announced today a technology collaboration
with Innovari to help utility companies around the world improve
system utilization, manage distributed energy resources and foster
relationships between customers, local communities and
regulators.
Innovari’s Interactive Energy Platform (IEP) uses artificial
intelligence, “big data” analytics, proprietary optimization
routines and grid-edge hardware built on NI technology to deliver
capacity and address grid demand. Utility companies and commercial
utility customers (retail chains, grocery stores, universities and
more) have benefited from deployed systems, including:
- Kansas City Power & Light
(KCP&L) has embraced a forward-looking strategy that focuses on
edge-of-grid resources as opportunities, rather than threats, and
users as partners, rather than just bill-paying customers. The
company deployed the IEP because the technology provides real-time,
deep situational awareness into the grid – helping to reduce
the likelihood and duration of power outages to optimize
performance. The solution also supports many primary business goals
such as promoting economic growth in the region and improving the
customer experience. As a result of the program, KCP&L has
gained more than 400 hours of operation per year with the 15 MW
project that engaged over 200 commercial and industrial
customers.
- Mumbai-based electric utility Reliance
Infrastructure (RInfra) implemented the IEP on commercial buildings
and mobile generators to stabilize the grid in regional areas under
stress. Since October 2014, RInfra has responded to hundreds of
grid events using the IEP and has shown that the demand side can be
a real part of their resource plan year-round. RInfra customers see
benefits too with reduced energy costs and greater control of their
facilities. The Raghuleela Mall has almost a MW of controlled
capacity including 60 air-handling units and multiple 400 ton
chillers.
Innovari’s grid-edge hardware, called Energy Agents, attaches to
participant buildings to deliver important two-way communication of
energy information back to the utility and balance edge-of-grid
resources for an optimized grid. The agents are designed with
CompactRIO Single-Board Controllers and LabVIEW software for
distributed sensing and control.
“We were originally attracted to NI because of the company
reputation as a market leader in data acquisition technology,” said
Corey Catten, chief technology officer at Innovari. “We chose
CompactRIO Single-Board Controllers because we could get to market
faster than with other options while maximizing the data processing
capability per dollar spent. The end result is a system that not
only helps utilities and their customers lower energy costs, but
one that has eliminated millions of dollars’ worth of fossil fuels
that otherwise would have been burned to support grid
operations.”
At IoT Solutions World Congress in Barcelona, Innovari and NI
will participate in a session titled Improving Grid Utilization
(and Cost) With Edge Control and Cloud Analytics on Thursday,
October 5 at 12:40 p.m. The session explores the technical
components of the complete system, details on how to achieve
business benefits and an overview of a new pilot commissioned by
AEP, one of the largest electric utilities in the United
States.
Learn more about how the NI platform helps drive the Industrial
IoT at www.ni.com/iiot.
About Innovari
Innovari has created the platform for utilities to build the
grid of the future in partnership with their customers and
communities. The Interactive Energy Platform™ (IEP™) uses
artificial intelligence, big-data analytics, proprietary
optimization routines and deep knowledge of the utility business to
optimize the entire energy value chain, especially management of
distributed energy resources. The IEP adds much-needed intelligence
to both the generation and consumption side of the grid and behaves
like a virtual power plant, securely sitting alongside other
regulated utility company assets and business models. The
Interactive Energy Platform is currently installed on multiple
continents. Headquartered in Portland, Oregon, Innovari has offices
across the U.S. as well as in India, Latin America and Turkey.
Learn more at www.innovari.com.
About NI
NI (ni.com) empowers engineers and scientists with a
software-centric platform that incorporates modular hardware and an
expansive ecosystem. This proven approach puts users firmly in
control of defining what they need to accelerate their system
design within test, measurement and control. NI’s solution helps
build high-performance systems that exceed requirements, quickly
adapt to change and ultimately improve the world.
CompactRIO, LabVIEW, National Instruments, NI and ni.com are
trademarks of National Instruments. Other product and company names
listed are trademarks or trade names of their respective
companies.
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version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20170919005099/en/
NIBeth Williams, 512-683-6394beth.williams@ni.com
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