nema ei_july11

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The Association of Electrical and Medical Imaging Equipment Manufacturers n www.nema.org n July 2011 n Vol. 16 No. 7

Miratin to th

M Gifocusing on T&D system

ALSOI

NSIDE

n The Synergy o Wildlie and Power Transmission

n T&D SystemsWhen Does Automation Become Smart?

n Reviewing Efciency Standards or Distribution Transormers

n NEMA Helps Flood Victims with Evaluating Water-Damaged

Electrical Equipment


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Only UL has the expertise, breadth and track record to keep business ahead o the curve. With morethan a century o experience, you can rely on ULs technical expertise, thought leadership and fvediverse businesses to stay prepared or the next generation o saety challenges.

VISIT UL.COM TO LEARN MORE

RELY ON UL

Copyright 2011 Underwriters Laboratories Inc. All rights reserved.


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CONTENTS

FEATURES:

NEMA electroindustrytext and cover pages are printed using SFI certifed Anthempaper using soy ink.

SFI certied products come from North American forestsmanaged to rigorous environmental standards.

SFI standards conserve biodiversity and protect soil andwater quality, as well as wildlife habitats.

SFI forests are audited by independent experts to ensure

proper adherence to the SFI Standard.

SFI participants also plant more than 650 million trees each year to keep these forests thriving.

ECO BOX

electroindustry (ISSN 1066-2464) is published monthly by the National Electrical Manufacturers Association, 1300 N. 17th Street, S

1752, Rosslyn, VA 22209; 703.841.3200. FAX: 703.841.5900. Periodicals postage paid at Rosslyn, VA, and York, PA, and additional

mailing ofces. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to NEMA, 1300 N. 17th Street, Suite 1752, Rosslyn, VA 22209. The opinions

views expressed in electroindustry do not necessarily reect the positions of NEMA or any of its subdivisions.

Follow NEMA: www.nema.org/facebook, blog.nema.org, podcast.nema.org, twitter.com/NEMAupdates,

www.youtube.com/NEMAvue, www.nema.org/linkedin

electroindustryPublisher | Joseph Higbee

Managing Editor / Editor in Chief | Pat Walsh

Contributing Editors | William E. Green III

Chrissy L. Skudera

Economic Spotlight | Timothy Gill

Standards | Al Scolnik

Washington Report | Kyle Pitsor

Art Director | Jennifer Tillmann

Media Sales Team Leader | Stephanie Bunsick

NOTES:

DEPARTMENTS:

NEMA Ocers ................................................................2

Comments rom the C-Suite ...................... .................... 2

View rom the Top ..........................................................3

Integrating Wildlife with Power

TransmissionA Win-Win Solution ................8

T&D SystemsWhen Does Automation

Become Smart? .........................................10

NEMA to Organize Power Solutions Division ...11

A Personal JourneyDiscovering the

High Flux Isotope Reactor at NEMA ...............12

Surge Arresters: Utility Surge Protection

Upgrade Considerations ...............................14

Energy Independence and Security Act

of 2007A Smart Grid Reality Check ............16

Washington Report ........................................4

Transmission CorridorsGetting Power romPoint A to Point B ...........................................................4

DOE Reviewing Eciency Standards orDistribution Transormers ..............................................6

e-KNOW Act Gives Consumers Control ......................... 7

DOE Awards $19 Billion in T&D Technologies ...............7

Electroindustry News ...................................17

Leading Technology Forecaster to beFeatured at NEMAs 2011 Annual Meeting .......... .......17

Tune into ESFI or Saety Videos .................... ...............17

Midwest Flooding Prompts Warning aboutWater-Damaged Electrical Equipment........................18

Earthest Earns a Thumbs Up ..................... .................. 18

Surveying the Future o Electric Heat ..........................19

Care Act Builds on Manuacturing IndustryEorts to Ensure Sae Imaging Services ....................

MITA Issues Statement on JACR RadiologyBeneft Managers Study ............................................

Code Actions/Standardization Trends ...........

Standards WarsMyth or RealityA Timely Discussion o an Old Issue...........................

IEC Committees Abuzz with T&D Issues ................... .

New Tool Available to Electroindustry orSpeciying Nanomaterials ................... ...................... .

ANSI C84.1Just Right! ..........................................

3 TS Adds Standardized Controls to FlashingYellow Arrows ............................................................

Roadside Lighting Systems & TransportationManagement Centers NTCIP Builds onHistorical Developments in Street Lighting...............

Progress o IEC-Based Standards Developedunder CANENA Harmonization Process.................... .

U.S. Delegation to IEC TC Seeks Experts orEnvironmental Standards Development .................. .

IEC Considers Potential Surge Arrester

Classifcation Changes ...............................................

Pennsylvania Repeals Sprinkler Requirement ...........

Idaho Begins Process o Adopting 2011 NEC..........

International Roundup ...............................

Energy Eciency Collaboration Project Announcedat COPANT 2011 General Assembly ..........................

Economic Spotlight ......................................

Did you knowNEMA wants to hear rom you.

Take our readership survey at

www.surveymonkey.com/s/77RBTKV


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COMMENTS FROMTHE C-SUITEOcers

Chairman

David J. FitzGibbon

Vice Chaian & CEO

ILSCO Copoation

First Vice Chairman

Dominic J. Pileggi

Chaian of the Boad & CEO

Thoas & Betts Copoation

Second Vice Chairman

John SelldorffPesident & CEO

Legand Noth Aeica

Treasurer

Christopher Curtis

Pesident & CEO

Schneide Electic

Immediate Past Chairman

Charlie Jerabek

Vice Chaian

OSrAm Sylvania

President & CEO

Evan R. Gaddis

Secretary

Clark R. Silcox

2 NEMA electroindustry July 2011

Evan R. GaddisPresident and CEO

At NEMA, were great at making progress and overcoming obstacles.

Tis months electroindustry ocuses on transmission and distribution. Im sure mosto you are aware o the hurdles associated with constructing new transmission lines.Although these challenges can be deating, there is good news to share.

Weve illuminated the high cost and bureaucracy associated with opening newtransmission corridors, and I have seen some headway in Washington, D.C. Our messagis getting throughpolicymakers are beginning to understand that bureaucraticroadblocks deprive our citizenry o access to aordable, ecient electric energy.

Unortunately, the lack o new construction creates a negative eect on our countryseconomy. Fewer projects mean ewer jobs, less investment, and lost opportunities to mov

renewable resources, such as wind and solar, to where they are needed most. I maintainthat i our industry had a siting authority similar to that used by the natural gas industrywe would witness smashing successes. So we persevere.

We continue to see growth within NEMA and the Medical Imaging & echnologyAlliance (MIA), largely because o our members input and their involvement withlegislative advocacy in both ederal and state arenas.

MIAs recent addition o a radiopharmaceuticals group under its Molecular ImagingSection gives a voice to the companies that innovate, develop, manuacture, anddistribute the drugs that are used with advanced nuclear medicine imaging. Likewise,the progress we are making in electric vehicle supply equipment, high perormancebuildings, and Smart Grid benets both member companies and the public at large.

Tere is even more good news. Te NEMA Board o Governors has again shownexibility and visionary leadership by working with sta to develop a strategic planto provide guidance or NEMA activities through 2015. I continue to marvel at itscommitment. It is encouraging and rewarding to see the dedication, enthusiasm, andhard work rom industry leaders as they make the world saer through innovative,ecient, and aordable products.

Tis is a great time to ocus on our achievements and move orward. ei


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NEMA electroindustry July 201

View rom the op

Connecting Renewables to the GridDominic J. Pileggi, Chairman and CEO, Tomas & Betts Corporation and NEMA Board o Governors First Vice Chairman

Te electric utilityindustry is going

through an excitingtransormationwith an increased

ocus on SmartGrid and all o

the opportunitiesthat surround it

opportunities orutilities to expand their service oerings,

opportunities or consumers to betterunderstand and manage their energy

usage, and opportunities or suppliersto provide innovative new products and

service solutions to an industry that maynot have otherwise had the need to adoptsuch progressive technology.

And while the term Smart Grid may, at

times, seem a bit too overreaching or,some might even say overused, the

increased awareness that Smart Gridinitiatives have placed on the electric

utility industry will have very powerulimplications or electrical manuacturers.

Te concept o a Smart Grid will meanmany things to many people, but most

agree that it centers on increasing theintelligence o our transmission and

distribution (&D) inrastructure,whether that comes in the orm o better

controls, increased communications, ormore eective monitoring o what the

system is doing at any given time.

Tis, along with $4.5 billion o

government provisions that have been

allocated to Smart Grid technologies, hasno doubt created a surge in innovation.Moreover, it has orced traditional

electrical manuacturers to work outsideo their comort zones and delve into

more innovative technologies such assofware solutions, communications, anddigital electronics.

Tis is a positive step toward bringingelectrical manuacturing and electricutility industries up to speed with themost current national technologicaltrends. It even propels us, in some cases,into the oreront o innovation.

Powerful IMPlIcatIons

O course, Smart Grid doesnt endwith the grid itselit also extendsto anything that connects to it. Manyutilities, in act, have incorporatedinitiatives based on renewable energy

and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles intotheir Smart Grid programs because othe increased technological demand thatthese new resources will place on &D.

Within each o these areas, opportunitiesor innovation also abound, butsometimes in slightly less obviousapplications. Te unique design owind towers, or example, has createda need or new types o compressionlugs to connect to exible verticalcables, and have also led to the design

o space-saving solutions or using andswitchgear.

Similarly, solar arms have created theneed or more advanced metal ramingand grounding solutions. Tey have evenpresented electrical manuacturers withopportunities to provide pre-built solartables and systems.

Finally, plug-in hybrid electric vehicleshave led not only to the development oadvanced charging systems, but also to

less obvious opportunities o providingnew types o plugs, receptacles, cables,and even battery disconnect switchesto original equipment manuacturers(OEMs) and vehicle manuacturers.

Innovation takes on many orms and,many times, is not ocused purely on theproduct itsel. Te process o connecting

renewable resources to the grid isofen complicated by time constraints,

coordination issues, and environmenta

concerns. From this process arises the

need or innovation in project design,

management, and installation in order

to greatly improve installation time and

minimize the impact to the environme

Tomas & Betts, or example,

has developed a new approach to

transmission tower installation that is

air-centric, thereby eliminating the nee

or access roads and most ground-basedequipment. ransmission systems can

be installed aster, with lower cost, and

leave as much as 98 percent o the land

immediately below the line untouched

all without changing the actual produc

at all.

With all o this innovation comes a

renewed service and support model or

electrical OEMs. More and more, utiliti

and contractors will be looking to

their manuacturers to supply a level o

expertise around al l o these innovationthat may not have been previously

required. Tis, in turn, creates new

higher-tech jobs within our industry,

along with a new level o interest rom

potential recruits.

Te term Smart Grid has generated

excitement outside o our traditional

circles and has, in many ways, served

as a orm o marketing or the electrical

industry as a whole. Tis will inevitabl

attract people who want to be a part o

a growing and ast-paced environment,

and who want to build the oundation o

urther innovation or years to come.

Tis is a great opportunity or the

electrical industry, or electrical

manuacturers, and or our collective

uture. ei


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WashingtonReport

Transmission CorridorsGetting Power from Point A to Point B

Getting power rom point A to pointB sounds as simple as connecting the

dots; however, development o electrictransmission acilities aces an uncertainuture. NEMA is supporting policiesthat will encourage the developmento transmission acilities to improvereliability and incorporate morerenewable energy into the electrical grid.Recent events at all government levelsgive credence to both the optimist andpessimist.

favorable rulInG by blM

Te Bureau o Land Management

(BLM), the ederal agency responsible orbalancing multiple uses o 253 millionacres o public land primarily in thewestern U.S., has made a decision thatis positive or development o windand solar energy on ederal lands. Teinterim rule, eective April 26, 2011,seeks to reduce the conicts betweenwind and solar developers and miningclaimants.

Te conict occurs when a mining claimis made on land which has already been

identied by a wind or solar developer inits application to the BLM or a right-o-way (ROW) or a generation aci lity.Because the law states that the use othe lands surace cannot interere witha properly located mining claim, theseclaims can impede the BLM processingo a ROW application. Such dual claimshave caused headaches or energydevelopers, sometimes requiring thedeveloper to make a payment to have themining claim relinquished, whether ornot the claim was bona de or merely

speculative.

Te rule, which will stand or no morethan two years, will a llow areas o landidentied in applications to BLM orwind or solar generation to be segregatedtemporarily while the BLM reviewsthe application, which protects it rommining claims under the Mining Law.

BLM has also issued a Notice o ProposedRulemaking or the same purposes asthe interim rule. Afer a public comment

period, BLM will nalize the rule whichwill take the place o the interim rule.

ferc studyInG

transMIssIon IncentIves

Te Federal Energy RegulatoryCommission (FERC) has issued a Notico Inquiry concerning a portolio oincentives oered to developers oelectric transmission acilities (DocketNo. RM-11-26-000). Te Energy Policy

Act o 2005 (EPAct 2005) directed FERCto establish new incentives to encouragedevelopment o the highest priority andmost challenging transmission lines.FERC complied through Order No.679 in July 2006 and since that time,some have become concerned that these

incentives are being added to projectsless judiciously than intended.

FERC is seeking comment on whichactors should be considered in anapplication or incentives, how theincentives have helped to achieve thegoals o EPAct 2005, what obstaclesace transmission developers, whatincentives address those obstacles, andhow to balance the need or transmissioinvestment with just and reasonablerates. Comments are due by July 26, 201

courts Put reGIonal

corrIdors on Ice

Tis spring, the deadline passed orthe ederal government to appeal theFebruary ruling by the U.S. Court oAppeals or the Ninth Circuit, whichinvalidated the establishment o Nation


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Interest Electric ransmission Corridors.Tese corridors were conceived in EPAct2005 and designed by the Departmento Energy (DOE) to streamline the

regulatory landscape in two o the mostcongested regions o the countrytheSouthwest and the Mid-Atlantic. Tecourt held that DOE had not conductedproper environmental reviews inestablishing the corridors.

Te courts had previously overturned theederal backstop authority claimed byFERC when states ail to site an interstatetransmission acility within one year.

Given these setbacks, DOEs next steps to

address the nations inadequate electricinrastructure are unclear. What isclear is that energy demand is growingand what Americans are demandingis more renewable sources o energy.Both o these actors lend urgency to theneed or major investments in electrictransmission acilities. Yet regulatorybarriersand now court decisionscontinue to stand in the way o progress.

neMa charGes ahead

Many in Congress, with NEMAs strong

backing, are still ocused on gettingmore transmission lines built. NEMAhas distributed Siting ransmissionCorridorsA Real Lie Game oChutes and Ladders (www.nema.org/ransmissionCorridorsGameboard)to members o Congress and severalagencies. Tis oldout brochure

highlights the numerous steps that arepart o the arduous process o gainingapproval or the construction o atransmission line. Siting ransmissionCorridors continues to be well-received.

wo proposals in the Senate, theBUILD Act (S 652 Building andUpgrading Inrastructure or Long-

erm Development) and a Clean EnergyDeployment Administration draf bill

provide nancial incentives and tools or

transmission acilities. However, any

nancial tool needs to be accompanied

by regulatory reorm.

o that end, NEMA promotes the U.S.

Chamber o Commerce Project No

Project (www.projectnoproject.com).

Te study highlights 21 transmission

undertakings that have been delayed

or stopped outright because o overly

burdensome regulations and lawsuits.

Te irony o environmental challenges

is that many proposed transmission

projects are designed to deliver clean,

American, renewable energy. Virtually

everyone agrees that alternative sources

o domestic energy are part o the

solution to the dependence on oreign

sources o energy and are necessary to

diversiy our energy portolio.

NEMA has a lso been touting a recent

study by the WIRES Group (WorkingGroup or Investment in Reliable and

Economic Electric Systems). Te study,

Employment and Economic Benets o

ransmission Inrastructure Investmentin the U.S. and Canada, shows that

investments in Smart Grid create jobs.

Findings indicate that the annual

investment in new electrical

transmission acilities could reach $12

to $16 billion in the U.S in the coming

years. According to the study, this this

level o investment will stimulate $30 to

$40 billion in annual economic activity

and support 150,000 to 200,000 ull-tim

jobs each year over a 20-year period.

Te study highlights what NEMA and

the electroindustry has long known:

regulatory challenges and other

barriers are preventing investment in

transmission and the Smart Grid, leavin

huge numbers o new jobs on the table.

NEMA will continue to advocate or

policies that encourage development o

our electric inrastructure to increase

American competitiveness and stimulat

job growth. ei

Jim Creevy, Director o Governme

Relations | [email protected]

Learn more about energy transmission obstacles:

Siting Transmission CorridorsA Real Lie Game o Chutes and Ladders

(www.nema.org/transmissionCorridorsGameboard)

Project No Project (www.projectnoproject.com)

WIRES (www.wiresgroup.com)


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WashingtonReport

DOE Reviewing Efficiency Standards for Distribution Transformers

Whats 98 percent (or more) ecient

and installed all over? Distributiontransormers, o course.

Te NEMA ransormer Section is

currently working with the Department

o Energy (DOE) and its Building

echnologies Program to evaluate the

need and justication or updating the

ederal energy conservation standards

or newly-manuactured distribution

transormers.

Te ransormer Products Section

provided eedback in April to DOEstechnical support document, the

analysis that identies the costs

and benets, along with underlying

data and assumptions o updating

eciency standards.

Te existing standards or medium

voltage dry-type and liquid-lled

transormers went into eect in

January 2010. Federal eciencystandards or low voltage dry-type

distribution transormers became

eective in 2007. DOE is considering

even higher standards or some or all

o the numerous models o distribution

transormers, many o which are

custom built to meet utility customer

specications.

Manuacturers are eager to support

conservation standards that are

technologically easible, economically

justied, and that result in signicantenergy savings. For years, NEMA has

been a partner with DOE in identiying

standard levels that meet these criteria.

Manuacturers are ofen willing to go

urther. Te NEMA Premium eciency

transormer program was established

or those manuacturers o low voltage

dry-type transormers who sought to

oer products to their customers with 3

percent ewer electrical losses than theederal eciency standard allows.

Over time, gains in energy eciency

have been benecial to the customer

and easible or the manuacturer. As

eciency levels begin to approach 100

percent, however, there are signicant

additional costs associated with

achieving the next marginal level o

eciency. Tese range rom higher

priced steel to the use o more material

higher transportation costs rom a large

heavier product.

Te challenge is to identiy the levels th

meet these objectives, but also those tha

do not (as a result o higher cost), and

oer a perverse incentive to customers t

repair less ecient transormers in thei

inventories rather than purchase new,

more ecient products.

NEMA believes maximum energy

savings can be achieved through

incentivizing utilities and other

transormer owners to replace their

decades old, less ecient models with

new models that meet the current

energy-eciency standards o 98 or

99 percent.

Under the current schedule, DOE

will review comments in the coming

months and by October 1, 2011, make

a determination whether conservation

standard levels should be raised. I

DOE makes the determination that

updated standards are warranted,a nal rule with these standards

would be due no later than October 1,

2012. NEMA will be ully engaged in

providing recommendations to DOE

and in working with various stakeholde

organizations. ei

Jim Creevy, Director o GovernmeRelations | [email protected]


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e-KNOW Act Gives Consumers Control

DOE Awards $19 Billion in T&D Technologies

o take advantage o ever-expanding

communications capabilities in theelectrical grid, Senators Mark Udall (D-CO) and Scott Brown (R-MA) recentlyintroduced S 1029 Electric ConsumerRight to Know Act or e-KNOW Act.Designed to put more control into thehands o the consumers, the bill statesthat consumers have a right o accessto [their] energy usage inormation,and that improving understanding oand access to the electric energy usageinormation...will help consumers moreeectively manage usage.

Te bill also states that:

consumers should have access tounaudited usage directly rom theelectric meter

consumers retain a right o bothprivacy and security o the data

utilities should provide data based on

the best capabilities o their currentmetering technologies

uture capabilities should be basedon the standards recognized by theNational Institute o echnologies(NIS)

Not only does the bill guaranteeconsumer access to electric usageinormation, but it also lays thegroundwork or consumers to share theirdata with third-party service providers

who may be able to assist them withdemand response and energy-eciencyapplications.

Data must be provided in an electronic,machine-readable orm, ree o charge,and in the case o a smart meter(which is dened in the bill), it must beavailable not more than 48 hours afer

consumption has occurred. Utilities

must also make the data available to theconsumer online or 13 months afer thdate o consumption.

As the publishers o the ANSI C.12metering standards and an active leaderand participant in the NIS Smart GridInteroperability Panel, NEMA will betracking this bill with keen interest. Aselectroindustry went to press, there wasno House version, however; a versionsimilar to the one authored by SenatorUdall was submitted in the 111th

Congress by Edward Markey (D-MA). e

Paul A. Molitor, Assistant ViPresident, Strategic Initiativ

and Special [email protected]

Te U.S. government continues toreward innovation with a number orecent grants aimed at improving theperormance o the nations transmissionand distribution operators. In aprogram announced by Secretary oEnergy Steven Chu, DOE selected veprograms designed to provide cleanerand more ecient, reliable, resilient,and responsive power transmissiontechnologies.

Among the awardees are three

NEMA members:

Areva &D to develop models andanalytical tools to integrate distributedenergy resources in the service areasor Commonwealth Edison

ABB Inc. to develop and demonstratereal-time monitoring, control, anddistribution o health management

to improve grid reliability andeciency in the Xcel Energyservice territory

S&C Electric to develop devicesto better integrate renewableenergy resources on the grid withConsolidated Edison Inc.

Tese awards reect the cutting-edge nature o our members productdevelopment eorts, said NEMA VicePresident o Government Relations KylePitsor, and their dedication to realizethe vision o Smart Grid. ei

Paul A. Molitor, Assistant VicePresident, Strategic Initiatives

and Special Projects |[email protected]


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Yellow-breasted chats and

turkey vultures are among

the wildlie that benet

rom integrated vegetation

management. Photos

courtesy o Ron Runkles


Could a chicken-like bird no larger than an America crow stop an industry inits tracks and potentially cost Oklahoma billions o dollars in lost revenues?

It is hard to imagine that a bird living in a short-grass, dry,wind-swept prairie habitat wields such power, but the lesserprairie-chicken may potentially do just that. It may crippleOklahomas wind energy industry.

But how can this be? Te breeding populations o the lesserprairie-chicken have been drastically declining or decades tothe point that it is being considered or listing as an endangeredspecies. Conservation ocials claim that wind turbine towersand their transmission lines contribute to the shrinking,

natural breeding habitat o this species.

Tere may be some truth to this. Using radio tagging,researchers at the University o Kansas recently ound thatlesser prairie-chickens avoid man-made structures, suchas power lines, when nesting and raising broods. Teystay as much as a quarter o a mile away rom power lines.One thought on this behavior is that power lines provide aconvenient perch or hawks hunting the lesser prairie-chickens and other prey.

Because o the shrinking habitatand declining breeding

populations, Oklahoma Gasand Electric has

contributed more than $8 million to help mitigate the loo habitat, while more than $23.5 million has been spent Oklahoma in the past ve years to protect the lesser prairie

chicken. It costs an average o $600 per acre to restore baredirt to suitable habitat or the lesser prairie-chicken.

Meanwhile, wind arms are being sited in exas and Kansas,and research is being done that may show wind arms arebenecial to lesser prairie-chickens. It seems that whilelesser prairie-chickens y low to the ground well under windturbine blades, the hawks that prey upon them do not like theturbulence caused by the blades.

Integrating Power Lines and WildlifeAn increasing number o power companies practice what iscalled integrated vegetation management. According to thisstrategy, mice, voles, rabbits, and deer are encouraged to eatthe plethora o tree seeds and seedlings beneath overheadtransmission lines. Integrated vegetation managementdoes several things. It removes trees that would otherwisegrow tall and short-out power lines, it reduces herbicideuse, and it reduces injuries rom chain saws and hydraulicmowing machines.

Tis strategy leaves desirable vegetation, such as low-growingshrubs and herbaceous plant communities, which attract

migrating neo-tropical birds, such as Canada andmagnolia warblers and veeries, in the spring andall. Te vegetation also provides breeding habitat

or indigo buntings, yellow-breasted chats,and alder ycatchers, among many other species.

Integrating Wild


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MIgRATION TO A MODERN gR

Scott Shupe, Wildlife Management on Right-of-Ways

Module: Power Line Wildlife. (www.esf.edu/rwls/

research/karnerblue/module20.pdf)

Michael McNutt, Lesser Prairie-Chickens May Cripple

Oklahomas Wind Energy Industry. NewsOK. (www.

newsok.com/lesser-prairie-chicken-may-cripple-

oklahoma-wind-energy-industry/article/3493456)

Lesser and Greater Prairie Chicken. (www.kdwp.state.

ks.us/news/Hunting/Upland-Birds/Greater-and-Lesser-

Prairie-Chicken)

Delmarva Power. Vegetation Management.

(webapps.delmarva.com/dp/our_environment/veg_

mgmt/index.cfm)

IEEE Standards Association. Power to the People and

Protection or Wildlie! Standards insight. (www.

standardsinsight.com/announcements/power-to-the

people-and-protection-or-wildlie)

Resources


with Power TransmissionA Win-Win Solution

Te symbiotic relationship o power lines and wildlie,especially birds, has created a niche industry. Companiesnow manuacture various types o perch deterrents andinsulators or live conductors. IEEE has published two newstandards: IEEE 1651 Guide to Reducing Bird-Related Deathsand IEEE1656 Guide or esting the Electrical, Mechanical,and Durability Perormance o Wildlie Protective Devices onOverhead Power Distribution Systems Rated Up to 38 kV. Terst standard covers methods, techniques, and designs that canbe used to mitigate bird-related power outages and equipmentdamage due to birds interacting with electrical equipment.

As with many things, there are risks and rewards. On the

one hand, birds can cause problems or power companiesalong power line rights o ways. Lesser prairie-chickens mayjeopardize the growth o the wind arm industry and itsconnection to the power grid. Ospreys build nests on powerline poles, which occasionally cause short-circuits. Many powercompanies now erect special nesting structures or them.

According to Delmarva Power, whichprovides electricity to 498,000 customersin Delaware and the Delmarva Peninsula,electric utility rights-o-way have traditionallysupported little more than poles, lines, and

towers. By law, these companies must maintain the vegetationbeneath power lines. By turning them into wildlie habitats,power companies can reduce long-term maintenance costs ancreate much needed habitats or migrating and breeding neo-tropical birds, which have been in serious decline, as well asother orms o wildlie.

Tats a win-win solution. ei

Ron Runkles is the NEMA Lighting IndustryDirector and or more than 25 years hasheld a permit with the U.S. Department oInterior, Fish and Wildlie Service to captureand mark wild birds. He has oen capturedbirds in powerline right-o-ways or his variousresearch projects. He can be reached [email protected].

r rk, neMa ligig I di


12/36


Smart Grid. Renewable energy. Green power. These are the buzz words

afecting transmission and distribution project planning throughout

todays power industry. For now, lets leave renewable energy and green

power to the next TV commercial or newspaper headline and ocus on

Smart Grid.

dIstrIbutIon autoMatIon

It is dicult to talk Smart Grid without discussing

distribution automation. Te concept o automation is

certainly not new. Utilities and other power providers have

been automating their systems or many years. But what does

this really mean? System designers can look at automating a

distribution circuit in many ways.

Tere are varying degrees o automation. Some start with

simply controlling their overhead or underground distributionswitchgear remotely through a nearby control. Tere is also

stand-alone automatic transer controls which can readvoltage and current values and automatically transer

rom one source eeder to another based on programmedparameters. Te next level may be a supervisory control anddata acquisition (SCADA) system where system components

relay real-time system inormation (typically voltage andcurrent values) to a master station. Based on the inormationprovided, operating personnel then decide their course o

action and open or close circuits accordingly through a mastercomputer. Tese types o systems can be relatively simple

or extremely complex depending on the size and unctionalrequirements o the system.

G&Wpadmountautomatedswitch

T&D SystemsWhen Does Automation Become Smart?l a, Mkig Mg, G&w ei cmp


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Lastly, there are automatic power restoration systems wherecertain system components transer real-time inormationrom one control to another. Each control is able to readand automatically react to the data based on programmedparameters. Tese types o systems enable the controls to

make certain decisions without the need or a master station oroperator. It ocuses on critical load installations to maximizeservice reliability.

One example o this is G&Ws Lazer distribution automationsolution, a protection and control package that eatures one ormore protective relays equipped with distributed capabilitiesand peer-to-peer communication to make intelligent operatingdecisions and monitor eld conditions. Tis technology ocuseson critical load installations to maximize service reliability andspecically addresses loss o voltage, ault detection, isolation,and restoration (FDIR) requirements.

Lazer continuously monitors the circuit. When it senses anelectrical overload or short-circuit ault within its protectionzone, it will issue a command to the appropriate switchgearto trip-open within a pre-determined time delay based on theseverity o the ault. Communication with other upstream anddownstream Lazer devices unctions continually to determinewhat other actions are required to re-congure the circuitsto automatically restore power to customers connected to theunaulted lines.

All o the levels o automation mentioned above provide somedegree o operational benets, associated cost savings, andimprovements in service reliability. So how much automation

does it take to be smart?

sMart GrId

A Smart Grid is one that takes distribution automation to thenext level. It involves looking at all o the distribution systemcomponents, such as switches, re-closers, gauges, meters, etc.,and determining how they can all talk to each other. Ten,

afer all o these components have communicated, it must bedetermined how to program this data so that the controls canmake decisions to open or close circuits automatically withoutdispatching crews to the job site. Controls can be programmedin dierent ways to perorm dierent unctions, such as isolatina ault or adjusting equipment to peak load demands during thesummer when everyone uses their air conditioners. Te goalo a Smart Grid is to minimize downtime in case o a problem,maximize the reliability to provide continuous power to thecustomer, and to optimize power consumption on the system.

It is proven that a well-designed automated distribution systemhelps operation eciency and reliability o service. System

designers today, however, who have a desire to jump on theautomation bandwagon are aced with the realities o high-cosand complexity o going rom a manual to an automated systemWhere do they start? What equipment is compatible? What arethe application concerns? o what degree do they automate?

Te answers vary depending on specic customersrequirements. Look at your system requirements, your criticalloads and, o course, your budget. Do your homework and gethelp where you need it. Tats being smart. ei

Larry Arends, a degreed engineer and long-time IEEE member,has more than 35 years o experience in marketing distribution

and transmission products to the power industry.

NEMA is pleased to announce theorganization o the Power SolutionsDivision 10, which will be made up oour new sections and three existingones: Uninterruptable Power Systems(UPS) Section, Power ElectronicsConversion Equipment Section, PowerQuality Section, Battery Charger (Cycleype) Section, Electric Vehicle SupplyEquipment/Systems Section (existing),Energy Storage Council (existing), andDry Cell Battery Section (existing).

Te division will provide NEMA andits sections with business opportunities,inormation, and direction. As the

industry continues to grow and change,there are business opportunities thatcall or an industry approach or SmartGrid, solar and wind power, batterycharging, etc. Te new division willhelp member companies develop newbusiness and markets.

Te division will identiy and evaluatebusiness opportunities around which toorganize an industry consensus or suchissues as:

marketing

business inormation

standardization policy

government aairs

It is recommended that businessstrategists rom NEMA membercompanies sign up or membership andparticipation in the division and its

sections. A meeting o the new divisionwill be called soon to establish prioritiesand goals.

For more inormation on the PowerSolution Division, contact Harry Massey([email protected]).

NEMA to Organize Power Solutions Division


14/36


A Personal JourneyDiscovering the High Flux Isotope

Reactor at NEMAJ ck, ai vi Pi I opi

We dont actually have a reactor at NEMA, but NEMAs work did allow me

to visit Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) in Tennessee. It turned

out to be a journey back to where I begana physics major in college.

Few people at NEMA have degrees in physics. Physicistsusually end up working in laboratories or universities. In mycase, however, I worked or two dierent electric utilities andone electrical manuacturer beore joining NEMA. Im able to

apply some o what I learned in college to my job, but like manyscience majors, I orgot most o the hard-core training.

Being the industry director or the Power Equipment Divisiongave me an opportunity to get back to my roots, thanks to theNEMA Metering Section. Meter and socket manuacturersrealized that there were dierent meter-related standards thataddress temperature testing o meters in dierent ways. TeAmerican National Standards Institute (ANSI), UnderwritersLaboratory (UL), and National Fire Protection Association(NFPA) and all cover meter temperature testing. ANSI C12.1

American National Standard or Electric MetersCode orElectricity Meteringaddresses temperature rise inside the meteitsel, while UL 414Meter Sockets addresses temperature rise atthe metal blade that slides into the meter socket.

With the advent o solid state meters, it becameimportant to evaluate the dierent approaches

in these standards to see i temperaturerise should be measured dierently

In order to assess the situationthe meter and socket

manuacturersdecided to test th

John Caskey sits att

hecon

trol so

ftheG

raph

iteR

eact

or

at

OakRidgeNationalLabora

tory.


15/36


temperature inside the meter and socket under acontrolled laboratory environment. Tis projectis named the emperature Rise and Interace IssueWorking Group project .

Afer considering several dierent options, themanuacturers concluded that ORNL provided the bestlaboratory setting or conducting this research. Since I serveas the contract administrator between NEMA and the lab, it

was important or me to actually meet the lab project managerand technicians. Little did I know that this administrativeunction would re-open the world o physics to me.

According to ORNLs website, it is the Department o Energyslargest science and energy laboratory. Established in 1943as part o the secret Manhattan Project to pioneer a methodor producing and separating plutonium, it has become aninternational center or the study o nuclear energy andrelated research. Its mission now includes a variety o energytechnologies and strategies.

Te visit enabled the working group to evaluate the testing

apparatuses and review preliminary test results. Tepreliminary test results indicated that we need to work with

various standards organizations to be certain we understandthe dierent temperature tests specied in the standards.

But I learned a lot more than that. My tour included theHigh Flux Isotope Reactor; the Oak Ridge Electron LinearAccelerator; the Material Sciences Lab; the High emperatureMaterials Laboratory; Energy and Environmental SciencesBuilding; and demonstrations o high temperaturesuperconductive, energy storage, electric vehicles, superenergy-ecient cooling systems, and other experiments and testequipment.

I was most excited, however, to see the Graphite Reactor thatwas built as part o the Manhattan Project that ultimately endedWorld War II. It was built at ORNL to prove the easibility opilot-scale production o plutonium rom uranium. It took only11 months to build the reactor that went critical at 5:00 a.m. onNovember 4, 1943.

Te success at Oak Ridge led to the construction o theHanord, Washington, reactor which produced plutonium used

in the atomic bomb.In addition to being therst nuclear reactor in the world,the Graphite Reactor was the rst to produceelectricity rom nuclear energy. It became the worlds oremostsource o radioisotopes or medicine, agriculture, and industryTe Graphite Reactor at Oak Ridge was designated a nationalhistoric landmark by the U.S. Department o Interior in 1966.

Overall, I elt like a kid playing with many o the toys I learnedabout in college. Who would have thought that working oran association would have brought me this opportunity? Imlooking orward to the next opportunity to put my physicstraining to work. ei



16/36


The earthquake and tsunami in Japan, along with the recent severe

tornado activity in the U.S., were devastating to lie and property.

A secondary consequence was the damage sustained by the electrical

grids. Critical to the rebuilding efort is repairing that damage.

Te electrical grid consists o several important segments:

voltage generation at low voltage (LV) level (e.g., ossiluel/nuclear generating plant, hydro dam, wind arm,or solar panels)

transorming rom LV generation to high voltage (HV)transmission generation

transmission o HV rom generation to load(customer location)

voltage transormation back to LV distribution (or residentior commercial use)

In each o these electrical grid segments, proper perormanceo installed electrical power equipment is critical to the reliable

delivery o electricity to the end user. Under normal serviceoperating conditions, excluding physical damage associatedwith natural disasters, the reliability o the electrical grid isenhanced by installation o surge arresters adjacent to each pieo power equipment.

Te sole purpose o the surge arrester is to protect theelectrical insulation o the adjacent power system equipmentrom potentially damaging overvoltage surges. It does thisby diverting the overvoltage surge away rom the equipmentthrough the adjacent surge arrester. I not diverted by theadjacent surge arrester, the overvoltage surge could damage theequipment. An example o an overvoltage surge is lightning

striking a power line.

Modern Era Designs Improve PerformancSurge protective devices in the orm o a simple rod gap installeacross the power equipment were rst used in the late 1800s.While these simple devices adequately protected equipmentinstalled on the early low voltage distribution systems, theycould not reliably protect the equipment installed on higher

voltage systems that evolved as the electrical grid grew.

Te transition to higher system voltages was critical to ecienttransmitting electrical power to end users rom an ofen

remotely-located generating plant. As electrical grid systemvoltages increased rom early LV distribution toward ultra highvoltage (UHV) 800 kV o today, surge arrester designs continuto improve to assure that expensive, high voltage equipment isproperly protected rom damage by overvoltage surges.

In the U.S., the post-WWII era marked the start o the moderera o surge arrester design, including the introductiono the gapped silicon-carbide (SiC) surge arrester designs.

Surge Arresters: Utility SurgeProtection Upgrade Considerations

d lk, Piip egi, h P sm

Photos courtesy o Hubbell Power Systems


17/36


Tis technology utilized internal spark gaps with a preciselycontrolled spark-over response characteristic. Connected inseries with each gap assembly was a non-linear resistanceelement, called a SiC block. Tese critical components wereassembled inside sealed porcelain housings to ensure electricalintegrity in all environmental conditions.

In this design, the gap perormed the gap spark-over unction

while the non-linear resistance SiC block limited the arrestercurrent, allowing the series-connected gap to reseal. Unlikea use which, by design, ails open when it operates properly(necessitating replacement), the surge arrester is designed toperorm its protective unction repeatedly without ailure. Teimplementation o gapped SiC surge arresters was critical toassuring that the equipment installed on new, higher voltagesystems were provided the best possible protection againstpotentially damaging overvoltage surges.

Te mid-1970s marked the introduction o the metal oxidevaristor (MOV), which has a higher exponent o non-linearitywhen compared with the silicon-carbide blocks. Because o

the excellent non-linearity o the MOV, this next generationsurge arrester was designed without internal gaps. At systemoperating voltage, the MOV gapless surge arrester appears asa high resistance to ground. When exposed to an overvoltagesurge (e.g., lightning strike), the MOV discs become highlyconductive (turn on), bypassing the surge to ground and, indoing so, limits the equipment insulation to acceptable levels o

voltage exposure.

While the gapped SiC arresters provided state-o-the artprotection when manuactured, recent testing has conrmedthat the MOV gapless arresters, still being manuactured today,actually provide improved perormance characteristics. Te

most important improvement provided by gapless MOV surgearresters is that they provide surge protection at lower voltagelevels. Tis is particularly important or maximizing protectiono the aging, possibly degraded, electrical insulation o powerequipment that has been installed on the grid or many years.Gapless MOV surge arresters also have higher energy absorbingcapability, minimizing the chance o ai lure when dischargingan overvoltage surge.

Replacement o gapped SiC with gapless MOV surge arrestersis a simple, cost eective way o extending the servicelie o expensive, aging equipment and, at the same time,minimizing unplanned power grid service outages. Forexample, replacement o a gapped SiC by a new gapless MOVsurge arrester at an older 69 kV transormer location would beless than two percent o the cost o transormer replacement.Similarly, or an older 345 kV station, arrester replacementwould be less than one percent o the cost o replacing thetransormer.

It should also be noted that all HV surge arresters, by design,dissipate power rom the grid when operating at normal system

voltage levels. For the gapped SiC arrester, the continuous powloss is a result o high-resistive current owing through thearresters grading resistors. MOV gapless surge arresters do norequire this resistive grading structure. Laboratory testing hasconrmed that MOV arresters consume less continuous wattsrom the grid than comparably rated gapped SiC arresters.Tis energy-saving eature is consistent with the governmentsmandate or utilities to reduce energy losses on the grid. Asan example, replacement o one early 1960s vintage 120 kV-rated gapped SiC arrester with a similarly rated MOV gaplessarrester would result in an annual energy savings o more than1000 kWtHr.

It is estimated that a large quantity o gapped SiC high voltagesurge arresters may still be installed in utility power systems.Some utilities understand the benets o gapless MOV arresterand have initiated replacement programs. Others have little orno inormation on these 3050 year old surge arresters.

o address this concern, the NEMA 8LA Surge ArresterSection has developed a website, www.nemaarresters.com ,

which provides inormation on gapped SiC arresters, includingan identication guide and detailed discussions o arresterreplacement considerations. ei

Denny Lenk has more than 40 years o experience in the designand testing o surge arresters. He is a past chair o the IEEEPES Surge Protective Devices Committee and has been activelyinvolved in IEEE and IEC Standards writing eorts or 30 years.



18/36


Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007

A Smart Grid Reality CheckJ ck, ai vi Pi I opi

One o the major drivers o Smart Grid is the Energy Independence and

Security Act(EISA) o 2007. EISA devotes an entire chapter (Title XIII) to

Smart Grid and instructed the director o the National Institute o Standards

and Technology (NIST) to:

coordinate a ramework that includes protocols and

model standards or inormation management to achieveinteroperability o Smart Grid devices and systems;

consider the use o voluntary uniorm standards or certain

classes o mass-produced electric appliances and equipment

that enable customers to respond to an emergency or demandresponse signal;

provide and publish an initial report on progress toward

recommended or consensus standards and protocols withinone year afer enactment.

Te legislation called or NEMA and others to support NIS

in this eort. It also called on the Federal Energy RegulatoryCommission (FERC) to institute a rulemaking proceeding to

adopt standards and protocols that are necessary to ensure

Smart Grid unctionality and interoperability.

Afer almost our years, NIS has completed many o EISAs

requirements. It published the rst release o the Smart GridFramework in January 2010 and is developing the secondedition.

NIS also established the Smart Grid Interoperability Panel

(SGIP) to help coordinate the development and modication

o standards to support interoperability. Trough SGIP, severalstandards-related projects were initiated. Tese projects are

reerred to as Priority Action Plans (PAPs), 19 o which havebeen created and a ew already completed. NEMA completed

PAP 0 on Smart Meter Upgradability in September 2009.

Additional accomplishments o SGIP include:

ormation o committees and working groups to support

establishment o task orces (e.g., Home Area Network,International Outreach, and Intellectual Property Rights)

establishment o procedures and process ow charts or

projects (Priority Action Plans) and committees

a joint meeting with National Association o RegulatoryUtility Commissioners

development o working group consensus process

creation o the Catalog o Standards (CoS)

Work AheadTere is, however, a lot o work still to be done. Some o thepending issues are:

What is the real denition o consensus?

Will the standards be mandatory or voluntary?

What is FERCs role in the Smart Grid arena?

What is interoperability, how do we ensure it, and is it thesame as plug and play?

It appears that there has been consensus concerning severalstandards within the Smart Grid community; however, onceFERC increased its visibility with a public meeting, talk quicklyturned toward questions about rulemaking and potentialmandatory standards. Even i FERC does not pursue anyrulemaking now, state commissions may essentially make thestandards mandatory by requiring utilities to use certain onesduring the procurement process.

Over the next ew months, SGIP will address the denitionsor consensus and interoperability. It will also place the rststandards in the CoS and explain to state commissions andFERC that these documents are intended to be reerences andnot mandatory.

According to SGIP Governing Board Chair John D. McDonaldthe next hurdles or SGIP include:

timely and eective international outreach

testing and certication ramework

approval o standards or inclusion in its Catalog o Standard

inclusion o the Privacy Impact Assessment in the CyberSecurity Working Groups three-year plan

We were like pioneers in territory that had never been plowedWe had to mark the boundaries, clear the land, plow the earth,and build good relations with our neighbors, McDonald said.

John Caskey is the vice chair o the NIS Smart GridInteroperability Panel Governing Board.


19/36


ElectroindustryNews

Leading Technology Forecaster to be Featured at NEMAs 2011 Annual Meeting

Tune into ESFI for Safety Videos

Daniel Burrus,one o the

worlds leadingtechnologyorecastersand businessstrategists, willbe eaturedat NEMAs2011 AnnualMeeting,

Illuminations Weekend: Where Leadersand Ideas Meet. He will be the ExecutiveLeadership Workshop presenter onSaturday morning, October 29.

Mr. Burrus, ounder and CEO o BurrusResearch, a research and consultingrm that monitors global advancementin technology driven trends, will bespeaking on how to understand and usetechnological, social, and business orcesto create untapped opportunities.

He is the author o six books, includingthe Wall Street Journalbestseller, Flash

Foresight: How to See the Invisible and Do

the Impossible. Te New York imes has

reerred to him as one o Americas topthree business gurus.

Illuminations Weekendis scheduled

or Friday, October 28, and Saturday,October 29, at Te Mayower

Renaissance Hotel in Washington,D.C. Tis years annual meeting will

showcase George F. Will, Pulitzer-Prizewinning journalist, as the keynote

speaker. NEMA Vice President and ChieEconomist Donald Leavens, PhD, will

discuss the electroindustry economic

outlook in an afernoon seminar.

Register now at www.nema.org/

illuminations and take advantage o

early bird registration rates, which end

September 9. Tis is NEMAs premiere

networking event o the year. ei

Francine Meyer, Meeting Manage

[email protected]

Are you looking or an easy way to

equip your employees with tools to

help them stay sae both on and o the

job? Or maybe you need to brush up on

your own electrical saety knowledge?

Te Electrical Saety Foundation

International (ESFI) has developed a

number o new multimedia resources to

help you do just that.

Gone are the days o dull saety

pamphlets and boring saety briengs.

Our Virtual Demonstrations are just

what you need to jazz up saety meetings.

Tese ast-paced, computer-animatedvideos add visual learning to saety

awareness materials. Available in both

English and Spanish language versions,

these one- to three-minute videos

provide simple guidelines or the sae

use o common household items, such

as extension cords, smoke alarms, and

portable generators.

You can also make sure your employees

are up to date on the latest advances in

electrical saety with video public service

announcements (PSAs) rom ESFI.

Our newest PSAs provide 60-second

introductions to two important electricalsaety devicestamper resistant

receptacles (RRs) and arc-ault circuit

interrupters (AFCIs). Tese technologieprovide enhanced protection romserious electrical hazards, yet manypeople are unaware that they even existWhile the PSAs wil l air on televisionstations across the country, you may alsuse them as part o your saety program

All o ESFIs Virtual Demonstrations anthe new RR and AFCI public serviceannouncements can be viewed on ourwebsite at www.electrical-saety.orgor o

our Youube channel at www.youtube.com/user/esdotorg. ei

Kate Janczyk, Program Manager, [email protected]


20/36


ElectroindustryNews

Midwest Flooding Prompts Warning about Water-Damaged Electrical EquipmentTis year, the Midwest has experienced

historic ooding, raising havoc on homes

and armlands along the Ohio, Missouri,and Mississippi rivers. Te armingcommunity has already begun to speak

o the dismal outlook.

As people ee to higher ground to seek

reuge rom the raising ood waters andleave their homes to possible destruction,

they also ace pending economic disaster.

Once the waters recede, individuals

and business owners will start to assessthe damage and begin the process

o rebuilding. When contractors arecalled to help with the reconstruction,

it is important they understand what

electrical products can or cannot be used

afer being submerged in contaminatedood waters.

Evaluating Water-Damaged Electrical

Equipmentis available at no charge at

www.nema.org/stds/water-damaged.cm.

It provides advice on the sae handling

o electrical equipment that has been

exposed to water and outlines items

that require complete replacement or

that can be reconditioned by a trained

proessional. Equipment covered in the

document includes electrical distribution

equipment, motor circuits, power

equipment, transormers, wire, cable an

exible cords, wiring devices, GFCIs an

surge protectors, lighting xtures andballasts, motors, and electronic product

NEMA eld representatives actively

promote this document directly to

contractors and building ocials on-sit

during the clean-up, at ocial meetings

and electrical educational conerences

to ensure that electrical saety remains

top priority during the reconstruction o

ooded communities. ei

Don Iverson, Field Representativ

[email protected]

Mark Pitta and Amanda Poverchuk o Waste Management promote energy-efcient lighting technologies at

Earthest in Boston.

Earthfest Earns a Thumbs UpNEMA attended Earthest this year

in Boston, Massachusetts, to promote

energy-ecient lighting technologies,

demonstrate how easy it is to recycle

uorescent lamps, help residents

understand the states lamp recycling

law, and answer questions about the

upcoming transition or more energy-ecient lighting.

Te event drew a greater attendance than

last years and with the support o Osram

Sylvania, Waste Management, and Veolia

Environmental Serv ices, NEMA was able

to educate more than 1,000 attendees.

Te hand-crank watt meter empowered

children and their parents to see or

themselves how much less energy

CFLs (compact uorescent lights) and

LEDs (light emitting diodes) use thantraditional incandescent lamps. o the

chagrin o some parents, however, the hit

o the day was temporary tattoos. ei


21/36


Surveying the Future of Electric HeatOver the past year, electric resistanceheat has come under serious attack,rst in proposals to the InternationalEnergy Conservation Code (IECC)and most recently at the InternationalCode Council (ICC) Code DevelopmentHearings or the inaugural InternationalGreen Construction Code (IgCC). Teaccusation is that electric heat is neitherecient nor green when compared withother orms o building heating systems.

But is electric heat really guilty o thealleged crimes against nature, andshould it be sent the way o the dinosaur?Opponents say electric heat is much lessecient than natural gas or heat pumps.But that depends on how eciency isdened; where eciency is measured;i the metrics used are old, traditionalmodels or based on orward-lookingtechnology; and how is the heatingsystem congured and used.

According to the U.S. Department oEnergy, electric heat is the only onethat is 100 percent ecient. Tat is, noappreciable energy is lost in deliveringenergy rom the buildings panelboard tothe heating equipment.

But what happens when the entireenergy distribution system is takeninto consideration? Claims that theelectrical grid is only about 25 to 30percent ecient in generating anddistributing energy to the end userare based on traditional generation,composed largely o non-renewable,ossil-ueled generation plants. Usingthis inormation, its not hard to see

why electricity is seen as a polluting,depleting, and increasingly costlyresource.

Te biggest problem with the traditionalview o electrical distribution is thatit does not account or modern andemerging technologies. While there arestill transmission ineciencies, they areless o a concern with the modernization

o the grid. And what about areas inwhich the generation mix is primarilyhydroelectric, as in the Northwest?Air pollution associated with hydropower is virtually non-existent.

Wind and solar are contributing to thegeneration mix at an incredible pace.Onsite and near-site generating acilitiesare rapidly deusing the transmissionineciency argument while oeringthe promise o nearly limitless cleanpower. Add in other emerging cleantechnologies, plus the promise o thermalenergy storage, and it becomes clear thatthe old view o electricity as dirty orinecient is less viable every day.

dIssectInG the arGuMent

We need to dissect the components othe argument that electric heat is lessecient than heat pumps or natural gas.Heat pumps are costly to install and arenot ecient in extreme climates. Teyalso share the same shortcoming as gasheat, that is, the ineciency o ductworkto distribute heated air.

Most estimates are that traditional ducts

are not sealed properly, losing upwardso 30 percent o the heated air beore itreaches its destination. Beore that heatedair is distributed, colder air sitting inthe duct must be moved out o the way,resulting in it being blown into the space(and at the occupants) beore warmer airis introduced.

A urther consideration is that, with aducted system, the whole building mustbe heated even i only a portion is beingused. Dont ignore the issue o indoor

air quality with ducts either, as dust,pollen, and even microscopic organismsare blown out o the ducts at every use.Registers can be closed in unused roomsand spaces, but some heated air leakspast the registers and is wasted; closingo a register increases the pressure in therest o the system, exacerbating leakage.Newer split-system units overcome some

o these drawbacks, but they are stillrelatively expensive and many object tothe visual aesthetics.

Properly designed electric heat oersadvantages. It is easily and inexpensivelinstalled; zoned to be used when andwhere it is needed; clean at the source ouse; and eciently controlled by moderEnergy Aware compliant thermostats.It is ofen the only viable option wherenatural gas is unavailable or a largepressurized propane tank sitting on theproperty is unacceptable.

In recent IECC and IgCC hearings,eorts to eliminate or severely restrictelectric resistance heat were debatedand ultimately rejected. Concernedmanuacturers rom both the U.S.and Canada educated code ocials,hired a consultant to navigate the ICCprocess, testied at the IECC FinalAction Hearings, and established awebsite dedicated to the industry(http://linkd.in/NAEHIC).

While it is certain there will beadditional challenges, it appears thatthis established, reliable technology wilcontinue to be a viable option. ei

Joe Andre, Field [email protected]

The biggest problem with the

traditional view of electrical

distribution is that it does

not account for modern and

emerging technologies.


22/36


ElectroindustryNews

Te Medical Imaging & echnologyAlliance (MIA) supports the

Consistency, Accuracy, Responsibility,and Excellence in Medical Imaging

and Radiation Terapy Act o 2011,introduced by Representatives EdWhiteld (R-KY) and John Barrow (D-GA) on June 2. Also known as the CARE

Act, the bill builds on the eorts o themedical imaging industry to ensure saeand eective patient care and promotesaccess to high quality medical imaging

and radiation therapy services.

Specically, the CARE Act would work

to urther guarantee that the individualsperorming medical imaging andradiation therapy are appropriatelyqualied by establishing standards orthese personnel.

MIA believes that high-quality patientcare has always been the number onepriority o the imaging industry. We ully

support the steps that RepresentativesWhiteld and Barrow are taking to buildon this commitment by establishingtrainings and standards that saeguard

eective diagnoses and therapies.

Ensuring that operators are appropriatelytrained to use medical imaging and

radiation therapy technologies is just oneo the proactive steps the industry hastaken to improve patient care and saety.Earlier this year, manuacturers released

a Radiation Dose Reduction Plan, which

supports mandatory reporting o medical

errors associated with ionizing radiation,certication o imaging technologists,

and accreditation o imaging acilities.

Last year, computed tomography (C)

manuacturers released the C Dose

Check Initiative, a commitment to add

new eatures to C scanners. Tese

eatures include dose notication to

reduce dose levels associated with scans;

dose alert to prevent medical errors; and

dose recording to track dose and develop

reerence levels, which help providers

understand how their acility comparesto local and national standards.

In addition, radiation therapy technology

manuacturers released the Radiation

Terapy Readiness Check Initiative

to develop and implement additional

patient protection eatures or radiation

therapy equipment. Tese eatures will

conrm that patient treatment plans aredelivered as intended, and that radiation

therapy equipment, accessories, and

patients are properly positioned prior to

delivery o therapy.

Te imaging and radiation therapy

industries continue to innovate,

revolutionizing healthcare

through advanced technologies and

higher standards o care. MIA looks

orward to working with Congress on

the passage and implementation o the

CARE Act. ei

Dave Fisher, Executive Director

MITA and Vice President o NEMA

[email protected]

Care Act Builds on Manufacturing Industry Efforts to Ensure Safe Imaging Services

In response to the study Radiology

Benet Managers (RBMs): Cost Saving

or Cost Shifing, published in the June

2011Journal o the American College

o Radiology, MIA has applauded the

authors or uncovering the hidden costs

o RBMs and contributing to the growing

body o evidence surrounding the

economic impact o prior-authorization

programs.

Relying on RBMs to conduct prior

authorization or advanced imaging

increases costs, places the burden on

physicians, and creates instances where

red tape becomes an issue. It can also

cause delays in treatment.

In light o ongoing threats to patient

access, policymakers should not add

barriers or patients who are in need o

medical imaging services. Physicians

should be equipped with tools, such as

physician-developed appropriateness

criteria, to guide them in making

optimal medical decisions or their

patients. ei

Dave Fisher, Executive Director

MITA and Vice President o NEMA

[email protected]

MITA Issues Statement on JACR Radiology Benefit Managers Study


23/36


Code Actions/Standardization Trend

Standards WarsMyth or RealityA Timely Discussion of an Old Issue

More than 130 standards developmentorganizations (SDOs) are participating

in the Smart Grid roadmap projectthat the National Institute o Standardsand echnology (NIS) is managingunder the 2007 Energy Independenceand Security Act. While some SDOs areworking on similar and even overlappingstandards, each has a unique perspectivedepending on the industry it represents.

On May 12, American National StandardsInstitute (ANSI) convened a workshopto tackle this question: Is the customerbetter o with multiple standards to

choose rom? Te workshop, StandardsWars: Myth or Reality, attracted morethan 250 participants rom government,academia, industry, and SDOs. Wheneveryone was nished speaking and thedust had settled, the conclusion was itdepends on what you need.

For years, the issues o competition,convergence, and coordination have beenhotly debated within the standards andconormance community, said ANSISenior Vice President and COO, Fran

Schrotter, in her opening comments.

Jim Pauley, Schneider Electric VicePresident o Industry and GovernmentRelations, acilitated the workshop,saying, I am sure that each o youbrings to this session some thoughtsand experiences related to conict,duplication, coordination, andcompetition in the standards world.

Tree panels based on users, developers,and speciers presented alternative

perspectives on how standardizationshould be carried out.

users

Bill Mays o Consumers Union said thatit wants to see standards harmonized tothe most rigorous requirements, whileAmy Marasco o Microsof disagreed,noting that customer needs vary. Inrapidly evolving industries, such as IC

(Inormation and Communicationsechnology), requiring one standard will

interere with competition, she said.

Te IC industry likes to let themarketplace pick winners and losers.In the European Union, standardscompetition is encouraged to reduceantitrust violations. Mary Saunders oNIS stated that multiple standards areuseul i they help the government getwhat it needs at a lower cost and deploytechnology. On the other hand, JamieCarroll o JBC Law Group explainedthat rom a legal perspective its hard

to deend an action on the basis ocompliance when theres more than onestandard a plainti can reerence.

sdos

SDO panelists agreed that duplicationshould be avoided. Kathy Morgan oASM suggested that the prolierationo accredited standards organizationsmay be counterproductive. O the 12,000American National Standards, 80 percentare developed by 20 percent o the SDOs.Te remaining 20 percent come rom 80

percent o the SDOs. Do we really needthese organizations? she asked.

Clare Ramspeck o ASHRAE echoedher comments. Conicting or duplicatestandards cause marketplace conusion.Duplication also increases the cost ostandardization.

Andrew Updegrove o GessnerUpdegrove LLP discussed the role ostandards consortia, noting that thistype o SDO encourages competition.

He recommended that a nationalregistry might be useul to collect anddisseminate inormation about who isdoing what standards.

Lynne Gilbertson o the NationalCouncil or Prescription Drug Programssaid that in her marketplace, variousstandards approaches appeal to dierentcustomer groups.

Karen Higgenbottom o IEC/ISO Jointechnica l Committee (JC-1) explained

that organizations are encouragedto submit ideas to JC-1, which hasproduced 115 standards rom dierentsources in 15 years.

sPecIfIers

Te third panel oered the perspectiveo standards speciers, including thoseinvolved in regulation and procuremenAimee McKane o Lawrence BerkeleyNational Laboratory explained thatshe relies on accredited standardsorganizations to determine i suppliers

are in conormance.

Bill Dupler, a building ocial romChestereld County, Virginia, saidsometimes one standard will do the jobbut other times, multiple standards arepreerred, depending on the installation

Scott Colburn o the Food and DrugAdministration said it relies on some 60standards or many purposes, includingpremarket review to expedite deviceapprovals.

Mary McKeil o the EnvironmentalProtection Agency (EPA) said she doesncare how many standards are in themarketplace, or i they conict, as longas they meet EPAs needs. oday, greenis a top priority in the governmentprocurement supply chain, so EPAis looking or standards that coversustainability.

In addition to discussing the pros andcons o standards competition, Bob

Hager o ANSI announced ANSIs planto roll out a new National StandardsSystem Network in 2013 that willacilitate access to more records rommore SDOs than the current system. ei

Al Scolnik, Vice President o TechnicServices | [email protected]


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25/36


New Tool Available to Electroindustry for Specifying NanomaterialsRecently, the InternationalElectrotechnical Commission echnicalCommittee (IEC C) 113 Nanotechnologystandardization or electrical andelectronic products and systems approvedIEC Publicly Available Specication(PAS) 62565-2-1 Nanomanuacturing

Material specicationsPart 2-1: Single-wall carbon nanotubesBlank detailspecication.

IEC PAS 62565-2-1 serves as guidanceor carbon nanotube (CN) suppliersand customers by providing a commonormat or speciying, illustrating,and dening various characteristics osingle-wall carbon nanotubes (SWCNs)or industrial use in electrical andelectronic products, and illustrates howto incorporate these into a bilateraldetail specication between vendor anduser. When NEMA members beginincorporating nanomaterials into theirproducts, the common ormattingprovided in blank detail specications,such as IEC PAS 62565-1, will acilitateclear communication with material.

A PAS, as dened by the IEC, isa publication responding to anurgent market need. It speeds upstandardization in areas o rapidlyevolving technology, such as nano-electrotechnology. C113 WorkingGroup 3 Perormance Assessmentsintends to work immediately towardpublishing 62565-1 as a technicalspecication (S), a document thatapproaches the status o a ullyinternational standard in terms odetail and completeness, but has not

reached international consensus becausestandardization o the subject matter isconsidered to be premature.

Te need or this specication arosebecause there are dierent modicationso CNs. Subtle dierences in physicalstructure lead to marked dierencesin electrical, optical, and chemicalproperties and require special attention.

In order to permit common processingequipment and common unit processesto be used in multiple abrication lineswith predictable and reproducibleresults, it is essential or CNcharacteristics to be standardized,in particular the characterizationmethods or quality control o the CNmanuacturing processes. o enablelow-cost mass production o CNs, areliable, aordable means o preparingone type o CN (e.g., single-walledsemiconducting carbon nanotubes witha certain specied length) is necessary.Inormation on characteristics such as

length, diameter, purity, chirality, andconduction type are needed to acilitatea reliable source o CNs with tailoredproperties, stating the specicationlimits and the characterization methodsto prove conormance. IEC PAS 62565-2-1 provides a blank ormat or theseessential electrical characteristics, as wellas certain others, including dimensional,structural and mechanical.

Te success o IEC PAS 62565-2-1 wil lobviously be measured by the degree to

which it is accepted within the SWCNindustry. According to Brent Segal, PhDU.S. National Committee echnicalAdvisor to IEC C113, a wealth oeedback has already been received roma number o SWCN vendors worldwid

Tis was very instrumental in the naldraf o the PAS. Input must continueto be sought as C113 urther developsthe document in the orm o a technicalspecication. Tis is the only way toensure that the content will be useulin the production environment. Tatsuccess can be a model or the successudevelopment o blank specications ora number o other nanoscale structuressuch as graphene, nanowires, andquantum dots, he said.

Tese well-developed blank specicatiowill be highly useul tools or NEMAmembers as they begin speciyingnanomaterials as subassemblies or theiend product applications. ei

Mike Leibowitz, Program [email protected]


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ANSI C84.1Just Right!By Daniel Ward, Principal Engineer, Dominion Virginia Power

I Goldilocks had been asked about

voltages, there is no doubt that she wouldhave told us what was too high or toolow or just right. Unortunately, she wasnever asked about that so we have to relyon ANSI C84.1 to provide that guidance.

ANSI C84.1American NationalStandard or Electric Power Systemsand EquipmentVoltage Ratings (60Hertz)is being revised this year. Tisis a bread and butter standard ormost utilities because it establishes theacceptable ranges o service voltages to

their customers (i.e., what is deliveredat the meter). Tis in turn tells utilitieshow they should design and operatetheir system.

Equally important, rom amanuacturers standpoint, is thatthe window o satisactory utilization

voltages denes what the end-useequipment must be designed to copewith. Tus, ANSI C84.1 is a standardaimed at achieving a compatibility levelbetween the power distribution system

and the equipment that plugs into it.

Tis standard establishes nominalvoltage ratings and operatingtolerances or 60-hertz electric powersystems above 100 volts. It also makesrecommendations to other standardizinggroups with respect to voltage ratings or

equipment used on power systems and

or utilization devices connected to suchsystems. ANSI C84.1 includes preerred

voltage ratings up to and including 1200kV maximum system voltage.

In dening maximum system voltage,voltage transients and temporaryovervoltages caused by abnormal systemconditions such as aults, loads, andrejections are excluded. However, voltagetransients and temporary overvoltagesmay aect equipment operating

perormance and may be considered in

the individual product standards.

Te contents and scope o ANSI C84.1-2006 may be downloaded at no chargeor an electronic or hardcopy o thestandard may be purchased or $56 atwww.nema.org/stds/c84-1.cm. ei

Daniel Ward chairs the AccreditedStandards Committee on PreerredVoltage Ratings Electric Power Systemsand Equipment.

ANSI Standard for PowerThe ANSI C84.1-2006 committee is divided into three categories or ANSI accreditationutility providers,

end users, and general/consultants.

The committee has determined that:

there will be no change in the range previously specifed or voltage ranges o 100 volts to 1200 kV

a section will be added to urther defne s teady state voltages

nominal system voltages o 12470, 13200, and 13800 are commonly used by utilities throughout

the nation

it will review higher eciency motors and whether the 460-volt rating is appropriate or 480 -volt

systems based on eciency

The committee has listed the Project Initiation Notifcation System Form (PINS) and Board o Standard

Review (BSR) 8 or public review and comments and plans to fnish the revisions to the standard by late

summer, and obtain ANSI approval by the end o the year.

Chris Henderson, Program Manager | [email protected]

3TS Adds Standardized Controls to Flashing Yellow ArrowsTe 3S ransportation Product Section

has nished the amendment to NEMAS 2-2003 rafc Controller Assemblieswith NCIP Requirements to addstandardized control o ashing yellowarrow (FYA) displays. Tis time-testedsignal control standard covers trac-signaling equipment used to acilitateand expedite the sae movement opedestrians and vehicular trac.

Since 2006, the Federal Highway

Administration (FHA) has alloweddepartments o transportation to useFYAs or lef-turn signals on certainroadway intersections. Tey allowdrivers to make a lef turn afer yielding,even when the light is red or tracgoing straight and opposing trac hasa green light.

FHA estimates that more than 1,000intersections employ FYA signals.

Research shows that drivers making a le

turn can too easily misinterpret a greensignal as giving them the right o way,whereas an FYA cautions drivers to lookor and yield to oncoming trac. ei

Bruce Schopp, Manager Transportation Systems | bruc

[email protected]


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Roadside Lighting Systems & Transportation Management CentersNTCIP Builds on Historical Developments in Street Lighting

One o the earliest reerences to streetlighting dates to ourth-century Antioch.In the U.S., Baltimore and Marylandintroduced gas street lighting in 1816. InMarch 1880, Wabash, Indiana, was therst city to use Tomas Edisons recently-commercialized carbon lament lamp orstreet lighting.

As Edison observed, each innovationbuilt on its predecessor advanced the artand science o street lighting.

Now, building once again on historicaldevelopments in street lighting, NCIP1213 v02 Object Denitions or ElectricalLighting Management Systems (ELMS),provides a standardized way to controland monitor the status o street lightingrom a trac management center (MC).

NCIP 1213 v02 provides standardizeddata elements that supportcommunication between a MC andan ELMS device (e.g., street lights). Fortransportation agencies, ELMS providesa number o benets:

Remote Conguration oLighting PlanELMS allows conguration o alighting plan to optimize illuminationat dierent times in specic locations.

Some conguration options includescheduled, manual, or staggeredoperation with specied dimminglevels, or congured lighting in zones.

Remote Monitoring o Lamp/Luminaire StatusOperators receive data on theoperating status o lamps and

luminaires rom the MC. Tey can

then gather and analyze this data

over time or predictive purposes.

ELMS can also identiy a change in

luminaire pole condition (e.g., a pole

is knocked down).

MaintenanceLive or o-line data on the condition

o ELMS devices allows an agency to

optimize operations and maintenance

resources. For example, afer remotely

detecting an ELMS ault condition,

an agency can deploy maintenancepersonnel to the location where

re-lamping is required with the

equipment necessary to address the

condition. An agency can also identiy

long-term ELMS maintenance trends

and deploy maintenance personnel

nearer the end o lamp lie, but beore

ailure. Determining lamp lie can be

accomplished by logging actual burn

time or a lamp.

Energy Usage

Optimizing energy consumption oELMS devices can be achieved through

automated monitoring and controlling

o ELMS devices, and monitoring the

status and condition o related power

meters. An ELMS device may be

controlled by turning it on or o rom

the MC, controlling the electrical

service, or controlling a group o ELMdevices in a zone.

Incident and Event LightingManagementELMS provides exible and timelycontrol o roadside lighting devices toassist law enorcement ocials andor other specic incident or eventmanagement purposes.

NCIP is a amily o data protocolstandards that species commandsor communication between a trac

management center and eld devices,such as signal control devices atan intersection. NCIP-speciedimplementations provide commandand control capabilities or more

visible elements o transportationinrastructure, such as roadways, andboth require ongoing maintenance.

Since 1993, NEMA and membercompanies in the NEMA ransportatioManagement Devices Section have ledthe development and promotion o the

NCIP amily o standards. For urtherinormation, see www.ntcip.org, www.itsdot.gov, and www.standards.its.dot.gov .

Jean Johnson, Technical PrograManager | [email protected]

I start where the last

man left off.

Thomas A. Edison


28/36



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register at www.nema.org/illuminations

register atearly birdrates for

ILLUMINATIONS WEEKEND

Where Leaders and Ideas MeetOctober 28 & 29

Green MarketingDiscussion moderated by Clark Silcox,

NEMA General Counsel

Electroindustry Econom

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