Smart Grids are a growth area. Increasing awareness about smart grid technologies and applications are resulting in new installations of technology that update one hundred year old infrastructure electricity generation and distribution models. V1 Energy editor Jeff Thurston interviewed Martin Ansell, general manager - Smallworld, GE Energy.  He described Smart Grid technologies and how GE is participating in the smart grid future.

V1 Energy: Could you begin by describing your company history as it relates to energy and Smart Grid?

MA: Smallworld has been involved in to the development of energy management tools and technologies for 20 years. We were founded in Cambridge, United Kingdom by a group of bright individuals at that time who thought scanning maps into computers was a wasteful and inefficient way to go about maintaining utility information. At that time they initiated the development of database technologies coupled to utility user needs and what would become Smallworld software.

What emerged was the methodology to describe how the assets in utilities connected.  In practice it was the beginning of developing spatial networks and led to further work in the development of complex networks. Smallworld became part of the GE company in 2000and is now considered a market leader across the domain.

V1 Energy:  So GE is more widely focused or narrow focused?

MA: We tend to think of ourselves as being focused on the customer. We have domain expertise focused specifically on the telecommunications and utilities markets. However, that same domain knowledge allows us to contribute toward other GE projects and products within infrastructure giving us a wider remit.

GE is involved in a wide variety of infrastructure areas within the infrastructure domain. These include gas, wind energy, distribution and generation.  Our particular interests in Smallworld can be used throughout these areas supporting wider scale GE objectives.

V1 Energy: Could you describe your customers?

MA: We have more than 1000 customers in 45 different countries. Much of the work extends beyond data models alone and we refer to it as Smallworld Core Technology. The idea is to be able to deal with large customers with complex networks and to be able to scale them for some of the biggest utilities in the world. Accordingly, we have many Tier 1 customers.  In some cases they have 30 million metered points in Europe. In North America our customers have 5-7 million metered points in some cases.

V1 Energy: How has the evolution of Smart Grid occurred and connected to GE?

MA: Over 20 years the foundation software has continually added value application suites. Today a big driver is the development of the smart grid. Smallworld solutions can support the re-engineering that is needed to upgrade and develop a system of network transmission based on today's users and their needs.

V1 Energy: That must be a large challenge with politics and other factors surrounding environment and global change at the same time, how are approaching it?

MA: It is. We see smart grid as a key component of meeting the EU targets for Energy emission reduction and improved efficiency. It helps to reduce losses within the network, improve energy use and allows for the development of renewable energy to co-exist with current generation more effectively. This has been recognised within the United States with the current administration directing fiscal stimulus funding to implement smart grid projects. GE has had an active roll in the development of this policy by informing Governments on the technologies that exist today and the performance improvements they deliver.

V1 Energy: Can you explain how GE is implementing smart grid?

MA: We first need to understand what the current grid looks like. This means an inventory of assets is required, but also includes knowing where they are. A key to this understanding is to be able to determine how the assets are inter-connected because that influences planning from the old grid toward development of a new smart grid. It is not like we take everything apart and install all new technology and equipment. Instead, a more realistic plan involves use of those parts of the current grid that fall within the smart grid plan..

V1 Energy: It seems like different people think of smart grids in different ways. How do you define a smart grid?

MA: A smart grid is an umbrella term that covers the modernization of both the transmission and distribution grids, using digital communication intelligence to empower consumers to actively participate in energy demand and cost control. The smart grid enables energy suppliers to reduce frequency and duration of outages, better prepare the grid for distributed generation and future energy storage options as well as optimise renewable generation sources.

So this digital communication will be at the heart of the smart grid. If we look at most electrical grids today we will find that they are capable of providing a real-time view of the network through their SCADA data acquisition instrumentation. However they cannot follow the network operation from the point of generation all the way to the home – today that ability usually ends as sub-station.

When we look at the typical control room, it consists of a map that more or less looks like a London Underground map. The connections are evident, but the true locations are distorted. The map is drawn for network analysis purposes. This is a very simplified view, because once we are past the individual sub-stations, then the network connections start rising and the map becomes more complicated since every individual home is a connection.  One of the distinguishing characteristics of a smart grid lies in the fact that there is line-of-sight from the point of generation all the way to individual homes. The entire network is live and managed by near-real time intelligence.

V1 Energy: Where would a geographic information system (GIS) come in to play in these networks?

MA: Geospatial applications will play significant roles in the smart grid – from system design and engineering, to managing the two-way communications network. The GIS should enable a view from the generation location all the way to the home. This means that not only will the assets of the network be identifiable, but also the location and activity across those locations will be visible, identifiable and manageable through the use of GIS technologies. The data can be mapped, highlighted, monitored and analysed – between and among locations.

V1 Energy: Are there other factors involved?

MA:

We believe that geospatial network engineering and mobile workforce management solutions are foundational elements of the smart grid. They address the smart grid’s emerging advanced network modeling requirements, enabling utilities to cost-effectively enhance, refurbish and optimize the existing distribution network. However once the network is designed the GIS will provide the right information at the fingertips of field crews and offering utilities a 360-degree view of their mobile workforce effectiveness.

V1 Energy: What do you see as the grande challenge heading forward?

MA: The introduction of distributed generation and the use of renewable energy will change the way our grid operates. In the UK for example, new offshore wind turbines and wave generators are being introduced where the network is not of sufficient quality to support large-scale generation from these sources. We're talking about places where 100's of megawatts would be injected into the system for which the network was not designed to handle.

V1 Energy: How is GE meeting this challenge in the UK then?

MA: For us the way forward is clear. A re-engineering to update the network is vital and we are working closely with Government and Industry to meet these challenges with cost effective solutions

A lot of the work we are doing surrounds the use and application development of analysis tools for determining the assets, monitoring the networks and the planning of new capacity. This could include planning that involves minimum capacity cables, rating of switchgear or the assessment of transformers that are currently in place. In other words, we are striving to understand the current network better with an eye to the future build out of smart grids.

This involves a lot of 'what-if' scanario's. We can plan, for example, what would happen if we put 500 megawatts into the network at certain points. This will obviously impact transformers, sub-stations and a whole host of connected resources. We need to understand what will fail, what will remain intact and operating and what needs improving. All of this creates a 'reactive' view of the network that is available during planning.

V1 Energy: Are we speaking about quite a few upgrades then?

MA: It really depends on the assets and their ratings. Much of the current system was re-engineered from the 1960's, but is still based on concepts 100 years ago. The present challenge involves aging infrastructure whose useful life may have passed. To understand this we use diagnostic tools to ascertain the life of assets. We put smaller sensing devices on key components and monitor them real-time. This allows us to gauge and predict failure.

V1 Energy: Does regulation have an impact on building smart grids?

MA: Yes Governments and Regulators have a big role to play. For example in North America, energy utilities are making a lot of progress as a result of the funding that has been allocated to the development of smart grids. In Europe despite a EU wide policy, each country has unique local characteristics that affect the way they adopt the policy. GE believes a stable and fair regulatory framework for the European electricity market is the prerequisite for needed investment.

Tax incentives, such as accelerated depreciation for Smart Grid related property, would also encourage infrastructure investments. Accelerated depreciation essentially allows utilities to “reduce” taxable income in a given year. This tactic is used in many industries to encourage businesses to invest in new technologies.

Also introducing regulation to ensure customer are provided with real-time and time-of-use pricing will stimulate the rapid adoption of Smart Meters and provide the consumer with real empowerment to make informed decisions about energy consumption.

V1 Energy: What will the smart grid do for consumers?

MA: Smart grid will be profound. The provider will help consumers manage power. The image is for most consumers to become more empowered and understanding about where and how they are using electricity. Each home will likely have it's own energy dashboard that computes, tracks and analyzes energy and water and so on. The net effect will be that consumers will feel that they can personally contribute towards reducing green house emissions and at the same time reduce energy bills.

V1 Energy: Do standards have a role in smart grid?

MA: They sure do. What we really want to do is be able to reach across all database systems. This means ERP and GIS and electrical information, all at once. GE is heavily engaged in making this happen.

V1 Energy: How far does smart grid reach into the architect and construction sectors - AEC?

MA: We don't reach into those sectors. GE is focused on telecommunications and electric utilities. We are interested not only in the physical connections, but the logical connections, which of course runs into thousands and more.

V1 Energy: Does 3D impact the work you are doing in smart grid?

MA: The use and application of 3D within our organisation is large and growing. We have an application called Electrical Office Suite that is designed for 3D use involving standardized applications. Our Corridor Manager product visualises where transmission lines will run and calculates how far they are away from objects. We feed in growth rates for tree species grown locally, for example, and it calculates when and where the lines and trees will clash.

For the most part we don't develop our own visualisation tools but use 3^rd party tools available for the types of applications we are involved in.

V1 Energy:  Do you see differences between the European and North American markets for smart grid products and services?

MA: We've announced Smart City programs in the US, for example in Florida there is Smart Miami. The U.S. is ahead in terms of providing funding, but Europe is catching up fast. In places like Spain there is greater importance placed on carbon storage, the UK is oriented more toward grid stability and the southern countries are obviously oriented toward solar and wave generation. As a global company GE understands the importance of local dynamics very well, we have the knowledge and the resources to customise smart grid solutions to specific local requirements.With smart grid one size does not fit all.

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Martin Ansell is the General Manager for the Smallworld Geospatial Asset Management and Mobile Software Applications business within GE Energy Transmission & Distribution.  Headquartered in the University town of Cambridge in the UK, Smallworld develops and markets software solutions that help to design and manage complex networks, delivering increased efficiency and productivity to over one thousand Utility and Telecommunications customers worldwide. Martin is increasingly being seen as an industry thought leader on the topic of how Geospatial Information Systems are at the heart of any smarter grid ambition, from re-engineering the grid to building out a smart meter communications infrastructure.

Graduating in 1979 with a bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering, Martin founded a company designing and marketing modems for educational and home computer use.   He then went on to hold senior Business Development positions at Dow ty Information Technolog y, which took him to Asia Pacific and the US A before returning to back Europe in 1992 to join ALSTOM’s T&D business. Initially working as Business Development Director in the Protection & Control Group, he led its global commercial activities including mergers & acquisitions (acquiring businesses in the Americas and Europe).  In 1997, he was appointed Managing Director of a group of ALSTOM T&D businesses based in the UK (High Voltage Switchgear, HV Substation Projects, Power Electronics/HVDC).  This culminated in Martins appointed as a Senior Executive of ALSTOM in 2000. Joining GE in June 2003 to briefly lead its S ubstation Automation business in Europe, Mar tin was then appointed EMEA Regional Director for GE Energy’s newly formed T&D business in January 2004 and began in his current role in July 2007. With a wealth of Energy Industry knowledge that covers the entire Transmission and Distribution Energy sector and Data Communications Industry, Martin offer s a grounded per spective on how the grid can evolve and which technologies will enable today’s network infrastructure to become smarter.

V1 Energy: What is ProjectWise PDx Dynamic Review Service?

AW: It is software that logs directly into a PDS database and extracts the graphics and data into a neutral data format (ISO 15926) such that a third party system can read this neutral format and reuse this information. PDS data is held within a PDS project database with a proprietary combination of DGN for graphics and ORACLE tables for data and reference to graphics. PDx Review extracts all this information into a common neutral format.

Prior to this the only way to extract PDS data from a proprietary database is via a saved DRV file snapshot, which is limited to 30 properties per item and the properties are controlled by the PDS system. So consumers of PDS data have been limited to seeing only what the PDS administrator allows and a small subset of the data at that. Such a tool has been used for controlled design reviews in say Bentley Navigator, Navisworks, SmartPlot or SmartPlant Review but not supported further design activity or handover of the full data model for operations. PDx Review extracts ALL the PDS data into the neutral ISO 15926 standard, thereby opening up all the data for access to all users.

V1 Energy: What prompted the shift toward ISO 15926 and this open approach to data?

AW: Many years ago the Piper Alpha oil platform disaster occurred in the North Sea. Industry discovered that Piper Alpha had no up to date records or documents for the equipment or even the people on the platform when it went down. They could not be sure of the source of the disaster or even be sure who was lost! Thus it took a long while to figure out what happened during that event. The platform was being maintained by a number of contractors, and much of the information for the platform it was learned, was with these third party contractors held in different formats, with varying consistency and accuracy, and even different naming conventions.

Industry decided to act to standardise formats and information. Shell was working on such a common data model, the Epicentre data model, for handling data across the lifecycle of it's assets. Shell offered it to the industry and Epicentre became the foundation for ISO 15926 – the ISO standard for “Industrial automation systems and integration—Integration of life-cycle data for process plants including oil and gas production facilities”. Through the EPITSLE group the standard was developed throughout the 90’s and into the 21^st century.

Oil prices dropped off for a while in the 90’s, so progress was slow but when the price of oil rose, business started to demand faster projects and more efficient data handover into operations, meaning greater collaboration between contractors and owners, and demands on IT systems to effectively share information.

Bentley, as a vendor of IT systems, saw the demand for software supporting this need and with our long experience of ISO 15926 (from delivering engineering data warehouses managing lifecycle data), we knew the value this standard could deliver not to only to use to achieve interoperability between our many products but also to the industry to support collaboration. We are heavily investing in this standard, and are developing and delivering products actually based on the ISO15926 data standard as the core data model. Products like ProjectWise PDx Dynamic review service and our OpenPlant suite of products, the next generation of plant design tools that uniquely use an open, non proprietary data model as its core.

The wide spread adoption of ISO 15926 is fairly new. It is easier to apply this approach to new sites with up to date, electronic data compared to converting older, possibly paper based data, but over time data conversion will become easier and the management of information resources will achieve higher levels of efficiency.

V1 Energy: This creates a greater opportunity for leveraging other tools and data as well doesn't it?

AW: If the software can read ISO 15926 then that is true. It can be used across different design systems and into operations to populate maintenance systems. There are a lot existing 3D PDS models out there. PDx Review enables that information to be unlocked and used across a wide range of companies and people, for example, revamping an existing plant, reusing a design on another project, opening up this information to maintenance and operations people for safety and operational reviews, perhaps for the first time ever.

V1 Energy: Does this have other advantages for Bentley products?

AW: As mentioned above, we have a lot of experience in ISO15926 due to a team we acquired a few year's ago in ESSI. BP, Chevron and others worked with ESSI to develop an engineering data warehouse based on ISO 15926 in the 90s, to enable better data handover from their contractors. For years these companies have basically based their handover approach on this standard, thereby achieving benefits from this approach, and enabling other companies to learn from this experience and benefit immediately today. This gave us years of experience in writing and deploying ISO 15926 related software, which we are using today beyond information handover and to enabling true interoperability between disparate applications.

As we acquired other organisations like Design Power, with PlantWise a conceptual design product, REI with STAAD the leading structural analysis product, and Rebis with AutoPlant the leading plant design product based on AutoCAD, we needed a simpler way to integrate all these products and their data, with our existing portfolio of products and between these applications. In other words we faced the exact same challenge as a company using such world leading products and trying to enable collaboration between it's engineers.

We made a statement two years ago that regardless of whether industry got behind ISO 15926 or not, we were going to use it because is the most effective means to integrate all of the these (and many other) products together in a truly interoperable and effective environment.

V1 Energy: Does this result in advantages for other companies?

AW: We have a number of companies like Bechtel and CH2MHill who use many different kinds of tools in their operating environments and they see a number of benefits in standardising around ISO15926 because of the advantages to collaborate and integrate data and information. Bechtel is replacing their in-house 'data broker environment' with ISO 15926 based tools.

V1 Energy: How does this relate to and help in the case of 2D and 3D information?

AW: The standard handles both 2D and 3D data and can bring existing 2D and 3D models (such as PDS models) into the most modern of design environments, as well as enabling interoperability between disparate systems such as PDMS and AutoPLANT. Companies can choose which design tools works best for them and be sure that can interoperate and collaborate with other companies as well as handover to their clients (the owners) a full set of data about their assets in a non proprietary format. And they can handover data rather than 2D and 3D models which their owners might not have a need for.

V1 Energy: Can you tell me about the Bentley OpenPlant Modeler?

AW: OpenPlant Modeler is the next product in our OpenPlant suite of products due to be released this year. We announced our OpenStrategy at the beginning of 2008 to build a suite of design and analysis products using open data models without proprietary formats. We released the first product, OpenPlant PowerPID at the end of 2008.

This is the first and only P&ID creation package built on an open data model and is also one of the most productive P&ID tools on the market as it also uses the most modern of graphics engines and build on years of experience of delivering such products through AutoPLANT and PlantSpace, our existing design tools. Software such as AutoPLANT, PlantSpace and STAAD run their own proprietary formats which are integrated through plug-ins, OpenPlant PowerPID and OpenPlant Modeler ( the next generation 3D plant design product) take existing plant design and analysis systems to the next stage incorporating interoperability functionality at the center of the products and promising to deliver a step change in engineers’ and project team productivity across the design, build operate phases of an asset.

V1 Energy: So OpenPlant Modeler is a new 3D plant design tool?

AW: Exactly. We debuted it in Houston recently.

V1 Energy: How do the Plant and Geospatial worlds connect, or not?

AW: They do connect. ISO 15926 is one of the most mature standards existing today, especially in terms of breadth and depth of coverage. Its probably more advanced in terms of maturity compared to geographic based tools because it can support a new design tool like OpenPlant Modeler to be developed. By comparison, GIS related standards usually focus on integrating information between different systems, and are not yet used as a basis for software products. In Bentley we have worked hard to develop platforms that can reference both geographic and relational information such as that found in plant design tools. In other words with our plant (and for that matter building or civil) design models it is easy to locate them in the real world on the surface of the earth.

V1 Energy: Can you give me an example of where the combination of geographic and relational information and interoperability using standards has shown benefit?

AW: Indeed, I have an excellent example – not plant related but I think you’ll see the connection. Bentley and other vendors teamed with Homeland Security on a pilot project to bring together information to address a security threat at Newark airport. The pilot and subsequent demonstration involved, the integration of Google Earth satellite information with wide area maps of the broad area(where the threat was deemed to exist), to detailed maps of the precise vicinity, down to the models of the airport infrastructure and detailed floor plans where the actual threat was deemed to be happening.

This demonstration used a combination of standard and proprietary file formats to share data. Going beyond this we are now openly sharing file and data formats with Autodesk (including Revit) the two largest CAD vendors working together - to take work of this type out of a pilot and into the commercially available world. This will certainly go on to include many other tools, products and data standards. Bentley and Autodesk are committed to interoperability and open data standards and now we gladly see Autodesk beginning to express interest in ISO15926 and working with us on this standard.

V1 Energy: Do you think people have moved beyond locked in data formats?

AW: Absolutely. Our work with Autodesk is proof of this, but also our work in the area of ISO15926. Customer's today do not want to be locked into one product, and many in the Plant field use two or more tools. We've moved beyond the data format arguments and now people are tending to focus on getting work done effectively, efficiently and with the highest quality with whatever tools are necessary.

V1 Energy: Why do you think ISO 15926 has been so successful?

AW: It came from the industry to begin with, thus was originating with Plant needs in mind. It is very flexible and differs in some respects from other ISO standards. The format structure is combined with a strong open architecture and includes flexible underlying libraries. Pragmatically, the reference library can be used in a flexible way to adapt and change as the asset adapts and changes over its life.

V1 Energy: Sustaining Infrastructure is a core theme for Bentley, what are you seeing out there to support this idea?

AW: Absolutely. Our Year in Infrastructure Project book (which we produce every year) includes an incredible range and variety of projects that our users are currently involved with. The Yearbook is a summary of our BE Inspired Awards Competition into which users nominate their greenest and most sustainable projects. Among others categories, I oversee the jury which chooses the winner in the 'Power Generation' category.

In this category, we had the range of power generation projects submitted, from wind projects, hydro related projects, solar power cells, nuclear power plant and clean coal technologies. In addition into our Water Treatment category some of the finest examples of ecologically sensitive engineering designs that I have ever seen have been submitted. Our buildings categories has includes several examples of Green Cities and buildings, such as Dubai Sustainable City.

In the plant world, most infrastructure was designed and built quite a while ago using PDS and many sites are under pressure to install 'Clean Technology' in order to remain sustainable. Our PDx Review Service, enables these projects to get a fast start using their existing design information and to make these revamps and plant changes easier. as often legislation is involved and speed is important. PDx Review enables these projects to be estimated and assessed for changes with less risk and in less time, which to date has been so much harder to do where integration and extraction was not possible.

V1 Energy: How does all of this relate to paper? Are we moving into true 3D digital modeling now?

AW: A lot of people still work on paper and that is because their data is sitting in databases and cannot be connected to, thereby enabling it. Our approach is to enable that information, making it available for use through higher levels of interoperability.

In many cases the need to have data in a certain proprietary format has resulted in a situation where the data has become stranded. Proprietary formats necessitate the need to have available systems and that trained staff and engineer's able to use and extract data often on paper for everyone else. As a result data is lost and rarely kept up to date.

Open formats solve these problems, the data lasts as long as the asset itself and not the system that created it. In addition, increasing collaboration between companies using different 3D modelling tools as standard nowadays, also supports new modeling approaches – like OpenPlant Modeler. Thus is is reasonable to say that we are moving toward higher level digital models, but not with higher complexity. The barriers are being reduced thereby enabling more sharing and access.

V1 Energy: What about training and education?

AW: We are seeing that while people like classroom training, travel restrictions are impacting their budgets for this. So we have developed online training and distance learning. We have invested in high powered servers and modern, internet based technologies, to enable our experienced trainers to provide learning to people through a virtual classroom. We even do our company training through this environment which has reduced our travel costs significantly and increased our learning hours.. We are seeing a huge uptake in this education provided in this way this year. We offer a range of courses ranging from free two hour taster sessions to full five day classes.

V1 Energy: Are you involved in simulated construction as well?

AW: Last year we acquired a company called CommonPoint that had a product called ConstructSIM. This product is a 3D based review and planning tool designed specifically for the construction environment. It brings together project plans, engineering models, delivery schedules, fabrication requirements – everything required for construction - into a virtual 3D model that is generated on the fly so detailed construction planning can be carried and actual worked monitored and automatically reported on.

It provides an accurate and real picture of where construction is at so problems can be avoided and unnecessary delays eliminated. People can see in 3D what is happening as the model proceeds during use. Planning can be done at the shift level, for example, and it produces a series of 'work instructions' for use on the work site. We demonstrated ConstructSim interoperating with our own design tools at at DaratechPlant in Houston recently.

V1 Energy: What about the inclusion of construction safety?

AW: We have engaged Jim Porter (recently retired Chief Engineer of Dupont and a world renowned expert in process plant safety) to guide us in building safe working practises into our products. He is pulling together a team of experts to be our advisory panel for these developments ensuring we cover every aspect required in a pragmatic and usable way. For example, the software should be able to recognize where scaffolding or crane work is involved and when or if people should be working underneath and pro-actively warn of or prohibit unsafe situations occurring. Building into the software materials and equipment safety requirements, so that as well as a work package being produced, the safety instructions are produced as well. We are just beginning to work on this and ideas are flowing in. It’s exciting times here in Bentley!

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Anne-Marie Walters is Global Marketing Director for Bentley Systems, Incorporated