APRIL 2018CIOAPPLICATIONS.COM 19Matt WakefieldFor example, in Japan due to the rapid growth of DER, the country has enacted the "360 rule." This rule states that any DER system on the grid, including individual PV systems, must have the ability to curtail or reduce 50 per cent of its capacity on an hour-by-hour basis, up to 360 hours-per-year in regions where grid stability may be at risk. Managing these reductions requires that previously unconnected systems will need to communicate with utilities. This is a complex integration task where DER such as PV will be deployed, likely for decades, in an environment where communication and security technologies will surely evolve. This makes data and network architectural decisions extremely important. In an effort to help inform utilities, the EPRI paper "The Value of Direct Access to Connected Devices" summarizes approaches and potential impacts of those architectural decisions in the following table.Value of Open, Standard, Direct-AccessRisks Otherwise AssumedFacilitates architectural flexibility, for example, coordination at local levelsRestricted architectural flexibilityEnhances network effectiveness, maintenance, and use Higher cost of network maintenance and difficulty in network evolutionFacilitates cohesive integration of multiple device typesInability to coordinate at the facility level, separate apps for each device typeMultiple brands of products can work together, consumers can choose the device brands they wishIsolated and competing ecosystems, restricted to the vendor's product family or select partnersContinuity of access/availability, even in disaster situationsDevice access contingent upon the availability of various remote networks and operations centersFacilitates consumer choice of connectivity providersRestricts consumer choice of connectivity providersInnovation is encouraged and acceleratedInnovations are limited to those of one (or few) company(ies)Open competition drives cost efficiencyLock-in eliminates natural competitionActions may be better aligned with grid state/ configurationDevice actions/services may be limited to those without awareness of grid state/configurationAccess over the life of the productAccess may be lost, for example if a manufacturer chooses to no longer offer a particular serviceDemand responsive services can be mapped to specific accounts for incentivesIt may be difficult to verify that a certain service was requestedfrom or rendered-by at a certain account"Mathematically speaking,..." the paper states, it "...is less about what is on store shelves at a single point in time and more about the practicality of managing the collective set of devices that have come off those shelves over a 20 year span of time. Developments that lack open, standard, direct access risk the accumulation of `architectural debt' ­ a term referring to future costs and business impacts that may result from present integration decisions."To further address these challenges and turn DER into grid assets which can create new opportunities, EPRI recently commenced a multi-year, collaborative research project with electric utilities to build industry knowledge about Information, Communication, and Cyber Security Architectures for DER Integration. Decisions about digital technology investments are being made broadly across organizations. However, it's not just about using digital technology to become a digital utility; it's about implementing fundamental computer science principles in architecture and in procurement requirements to enable successful digital transformations. The number of transactions a utility completes on a daily basis are vast and complex and there are no signs of that slowing down
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