The GridWise Architecture Council (GWAC), a collaborative effort among an extensive scope of industry stakeholders with an interest in the technological advancement of the electric power grid, is hosting a Constitutional Convention to frame the debate on interoperability for stakeholder communication and decision-making. The convention will be held December 6--7, 2005, in Philadelphia, PA.

The primary purpose of the Constitutional Convention is to establish consensus surrounding fundamental principles and amass buy-in from a broad base of stakeholders in the application of information exchange to the effective operation of the future electric power system. The constitution will guide critical future information technology advancement over the next 10--30 years to realize a healthy, self-sustaining, highly interoperable electric supply system.

GWAC expects between 100 and 150 North American electric-grid stakeholders to attend the convention, primarily consisting of senior technologists and company executives, trade associations, and government organizations that have significant interest in defining the future operation of the North American electric grid, from generation to consumption. Many of these delegates have already participated in the formation of an initial list of principles through an interview process.

Tenets

The architecture describes the commonly held beliefs that invigorate change to the status quo. Examples follow.

• The information age will revolutionize the way in which energy systems work today.
• Intelligence (better information supports better decision making) will invade all levels of the energy systems from generation, to bulk transmission, local distribution, and residential, commercial, and industrial consumption.
• Value is best judged in a fair market environment open to participation and review by regulatory authority This should be exposed at all levels of the system.
• Transparency of value allows market participants to develop and deploy economical solutions that cross traditional enterprise and regulatory boundaries.
• The system will evolve from its present form of operation, through a series of tractable changes over time Changes include organizational boundaries (ownership and operational responsibility), technology deployment, and forms of collaboration between system components.
• Collaboration based upon autonomous decision making enhances the resilience of complex systems to systemwide failure and accommodates evolutionary changes.
• Timely information exchange enhances the quality of autonomous decisions to the betterment of the security and reliability of the system.

With its long-term sights on these beliefs, the GridWise Architecture aims to provide high-level, abstract views of systems, software, information, and communication to help orient energy systems and technologies as they evolve.

Those seeking to participate as delegates to the Constitutional Convention will be asked to undergo a similar interview or briefing by the council and the organizing team to familiarize themselves with the directions of the group and ensure an invested and engaged audience is assembled to discuss and further this very important subject.

The GridWise Constitutional Convention and its ultimate success is reliant upon the vested interest of the industry stakeholders involved in this project. The input we’ve received from each and every industry sector has provided us an abundance of insight into the issues facing power system modernization, strengthening the core of the constitution.

There are many disparate, sometimes competing, efforts underway with a bearing on the advancement of communications, control, and electronic information exchange related to the electric system. Many of these advancements affect a broad range of industries that use electricity, while several particularly touch electric transmission and distribution. Without an overarching initiative to provide perspective to these efforts, contrary approaches may lead to confusion, duplication of efforts and ineffectual growth of transformational market opportunities in the GridWise domain.

For more information visit www.gridwiseac.org and www.gridwise.com.

RIK DRUMMOND is GridWise Constitutional Convention chairman.

DE - November/December 2005