IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2020 - 27

Connectivity Through Standardized
Interoperability Protocols

installations and other distributed energy resources (DERs)
that are transforming electricity consumers into prosumers
(who consume and produce electricity) to the proliferation of
controllable smart appliances reacting to signals and changing the pattern of power consumption. Key attributes common to the evolution of the distribution system and consumers
include the significantly increasing level of data connectivity,
interoperability, and systems integration required for realizing the benefits of adopting new technologies at scale.
Electric distribution utilities are no longer resellers of
power in a one-way transaction to consumers; rather, they
are increasingly dealing with two-way flows of electrons and
data. As the grid evolves to accommodate additional distributed generation sources and enable enhanced data availability
for real-time monitoring and analysis, utilities face the strategic challenge of integrating new technologies at scale while
ensuring safe, reliable, resilient, and cost-effective power for
their customers. Utilities need to understand, monitor, and
control the fundamental technologies underlying the modern
distribution network to deploy successful solutions and optimize their systems. Figure 1 illustrates the fundamental attributes required for a modern electric-distribution network. As
a result, many utilities are considering the novel benefits of
advanced distribution management systems (ADMSs) as one
solution to the new demands of the modern, integrated distribution system.

What Is an Advanced Distribution
Management System?
Just as the definition of the smart grid evolved, the ADMS
concept has developed during the past decade. The ADMS
definition "no longer refers to specific solution components
but, rather, an approach to modernize the operational grid. In
other words, ADMS now takes an à la carte approach; the
components may be any combination of outage management
systems (OMSs), supervisory control and data acquisition
(SCADA), distributed energy resources management systems
(DERMSs), and other mobile and advanced applications from
single or multiple vendors" (see Charlette in the "For Further
Reading" section). For example, Pacific Northwest National
Laboratories says that the "ADMS platform provides operational and analytical tools that enable the electric utility's
january/february 2020

distribution dispatchers to efficiently manage the distribution
assets, quickly process near-real-time data, and get ready for
the new environment of greater levels of DER penetration and/
or transactive loads. What previously were siloed utility functions, in an ADMS platform become necessary components of
an environment within which applications are run over welldefined interfaces, enabling functionality, interoperability,
and well-defined forms of interaction" (see Agalgaonkar et al.
in the "For Further Reading" section). Gartner states that the
ADMS is "the software platform that supports the full suite
of DM and optimization. An ADMS includes functions that
automate outage restoration and optimize the performance of
the distribution grid" (see Charlette in the "For Further Reading" section).

The ADMS Integration Challenge
Despite their well-established benefits, there are four major
obstacles to deploying and adopting ADMS platforms:
1) the complexity of integrating the various systems to
ensure seamless connectivity
2) the availability and quality of the data model
3) the inability to evaluate and quantify benefits
4) the lack of a broad community of vendors to address
the needs of utilities of all sizes.
This article will focus on the first item, the interoperability
and integration challenges. The complex, time consuming, and
expensive integration issues that arise from combining software

Smart Grid
Secure
Communication
Networks

Data Analytics

Interoperable Systems
Cybersecurity

figure 1. The fundamental attributes necessary for the
modern electric distribution network.
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IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2020

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2020
