Smart Grid Fundamentals Of Interoperability Course Coming To Denver

June 3, 2010 - PRLog -- MOORPARK, CA  – QualityLogic (www.qualitylogic.com) and Drummand Group (www.drummondgroup.com) announced today that they will team to present a course in Fundamentals of Interoperability for the Smart Grid. Offered under the auspices of Electric Utility Consultants Inc. (EUCI - www.euci.com/), the course will take place in Denver, CO on June 23-24, 2010, and will include lectures by QualityLogic founder and Director James Mater and Drummond Group CEO and Chief Scientist Rik Drummond.

The course is tailored for utility company personnel involved in Smart Grid, distribution, IT, system architecture and new technologies, as well as regulators, attorneys and smart grid consultants, service providers and vendors. Topics covered will include:  

•   The benefits of interoperability

•   Standards-based interoperability versus customized, one-of-a-kind interoperability between Smart Grid components

•   Examples of live test data showing differences between conformance and interoperabiity achievement

•   The role of utility/engineering departments in assuring proposed systems conform to standards and are interoperable with other systems

•   Status of Smart Grid standards development and what it means to utility IT/engineering

•   Validation of claims of conformance to open standards and interoperability with other Smart Grid components

•   Achieving mature Smart Grid interoperability

The course defines standards-based interoperability and conformance; summarizes the status of current smart grid standards and their adherence and interoperability validation; provides training in the use of best methods and techniques in validating interoperability and provides an introduction to the emerging interoperability maturity rating and process improvement models. International Association for Continuing Education and Training (IACET) will award 1.0 Continuing Education Unit for successful completion of this course.

“The next generation Smart Grid will comprise a variety of standards and devices that will present intricate interoperability challenges,” according to Mater. “We designed this course to give a foundational knowledge of interoperability to people who will be “on the ground”, creating a Smart Grid and ensuring its interoperability.”

“Smart Grid interoperability standards are evolving at a rapid rate,” said Rik Drummond, CEO Drummond Group Inc. and current chair of the Testing and Certification Committee for the Smart Grid Interoperability Panel Governing Board. “Our goal in this course is to provide participants with a strong foundation in these emerging standards that will allow them to create a mature, interoperable smart grid project.”

QualityLogic and Drummond teamed up recently to participate in an effort led by Battelle Memorial Institute for the Pacific Northwest Smart Grid Demonstration Project (www.smartgrid.gov/project/battelle-memorial-institute-pacific-northwest-division-smart-grid-demonstration-project). Together, the two companies provide interoperability testing and certification for technologies used in the Project.

For more information and to register for Fundamentals of Interoperability, go to the EUCI site (http://www.euci.com/conferences/0610-interop/index.php?ci...)

ABOUT QUALITYLOGIC

QualityLogic is a highly respected provider of testing products and outsourced quality assurance and engineering services. The Company provides a flexible menu of services at customers’ sites, at QualityLogic’s labs, or as managed services that scale to meet customers’ evolving needs. QualityLogic’s customers include technology companies around the world in a wide range of industries:

•   Smart Grid technologies and products must be interoperable to succeed, and QualityLogic is in the forefront of interoperability test solutions.

•   IT departments in companies of all sizes look to QualityLogic to ensure their web applications or websites meet their quality objectives.

•   Marketing groups rely on QualityLogic to provide independent validation of their competitive advantages.

•   Printer and MFP OEMs, ODMs and technology providers rely on QualityLogic test solutions to validate their products’ performance, conformance to industry standards, and interoperability with other hardware and software products.

•   Network infrastructure equipment manufacturers, carriers, and telecom service providers use QualityLogic fax test equipment to ensure interoperability with fax traffic from traditional devices and across the Internet.  

For more information, visit http://www.qualitylogic.com.

ABOUT DRUMMOND GROUP INC.

Drummond Group Inc. (DGI) is the trusted interoperability test lab which works with standards groups, software/firmware vendors and industry groups to drive adoption of standards by offering global interoperability and conformance testing, and certification. DGI facilitates these testing services under association-branded certification programs and its own Drummond Certified® program. Founded in 1999, DGI also represents best-of-breed in strategic interoperability consulting recognizing the challenges of interoperability for industry over the product life cycle.

•   DGI provides interoperability certification for M2M or business-to-business (B2B) standards which are used for the Fortune 500 financial information flow, representing billions of dollars per year.  Cyber security of data transfer is critically tested.

•   Drummond Group manages the KANTARA INITIATIVE’s Global Interoperability Program to provide interoperability testing for Identity information exchange for the US government and the global leaders in identity.

•   Drummond Certified® software and firmware is required in RFP’s around the globe to ensure seamless, secure, interoperable products which make implementation easy, thereby significantly reducing costs.

For more information, visit http://www.drummondgroup.com/.

MEDIA CONTACTS:

QualityLogic, Inc., info@qualitylogic.com, 805-531-9030
Drummond Group Inc., info2@drummondgroup.com, 512-826-2938