KIUC is one of 23 electric cooperatives participating in the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association’s smart grid demonstration project.
The project is designed to assist rural utilities, such as KIUC, in implementing technologies that make the electricity grid more efficient and reliable.
KIUC will deploy Landis+Gyr’s Gridstream RF mesh network technology that provides an intelligent communication path with advanced meters, distribution devices and home area networking equipment.
In addition to automated meter reads, the utility will use the Gridstream platform to improve outage management, manage peak energy use, provide flexible billing options and help integrate emerging uses for electric energy, such as transportation.
The five-year demonstration project has two phases, and the utility intends to complete installation of new meters and network equipment in two years, beginning in 2012, and then will spend another three years in data gathering and analysis.
The Gridstream RF technology uses a radio mesh network to communicate with meters, in-premise devices and distribution automation equipment.
