Total-Cost-of-Ownership Calculator

The True TCO Calculator is a free resource from the Uptime Institute that provides a comprehensive framework for modeling the real life-cycle costs of building and operating a data center. The calculator captures key data-center cost components, including site infrastructure capital costs, computer equipment costs, energy bills and other operating expenses to characterize the estimated costs to build and operate a new data center. A white paper, “A Simple Model for Determining True Total Cost of Ownership for Data Centers,” is also available.

The calculator characterizes a high-density, high-performance computing facility housing financial services applications. The design offers high-level financial, IT and data-center facilities analysts and decision makers the opportunity, for example, to evaluate trade-offs between more energy-efficient computing equipment and infrastructure capital costs and the energy costs to operate over the anticipated life of the facility.
Uptime Institute | www.uptimeinstitute.org

Bird Repellent System

The Bird Buffer, offered by Nixalite, controls flying birds in open spaces, indoors and outdoors, with a nearly invisible haze of safe and humane Fog Force repellent. The Bird Buffer is a programmable, electronic aerosol generator that produces a dry haze of Fog Force that never settles or leaves any residue. This is a permanent system that works on a timer, so there is only one installation. The haze is delivered automatically, with no additional labor required.

Fog Force is harmless to people, pets and birds. It stimulates a nerve that only birds have. With each exposure, the birds come to associate the area with the stimulation and learn to stay away. The active ingredient in Fog Force, methyl anthranilate, is registered and approved by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Food and Drug Administration, and is used as flavoring and aromatics in food products. The haze smells faintly like grapes.
Nixalite | www.nixalite.com/BirdBuffer.aspx

Data Recorder

The Dash 32HF from Astro-Med Inc.'s Test & Measurement Product Group is a multichannel, high-frequency data-acquisition recorder. Engineered specifically for capturing high-frequency data and transient signals, the unit supports recording up to 32 channels to an internal hard drive at sample rates of up to 500 kHz and a bandwidth of 100 kHz per channel.

The system contains 32 differential inputs that accept up to ±50 Vdc (35 Vrms). The versatile digital signal processing of the Dash 32HF provides a wide variety of filtering capabilities, including low-pass, high-pass, bandpass and notch filtering. Frequency counter inputs are also included. Equipped with a 15-inch (38-cm) diagonal monitor for intuitive touch-screen control and real-time data viewing and analysis, the graphical user interface of the Dash 32HF is optimized for ease of use. Simple menus permit the user to set most parameters using button and checkbox controls.
Astro-Med Inc. | www.astro-med.com

Vegetation Management Track Carrier

The FTX100L track carrier from FECON Inc. features a 97-hp Kubota engine, steel tracks and the ability to run multiple skid-steer attachments including Bull Hog Mulchers, Stump Hog, Dozer Blade, Grapples and Tree Shears. Equipped with standard loader-arm arrangement, the FTX100L offers big tractor reach and load over height in a compact size.

When equipped with the Bull Hog BH74 Mulcher, the carrier weighs approximately 13,700 lbs (6214 kgs) and offers a cutting width of 60 inches (152 cm). Travel speed of the FTX100L ranges from 3.3 mph to 5.8 mph. Options for the FTX100L include standard and skidder winches, rippers, front and rear grapples, buckets and stump grinders.
FECON Inc. | www.fecon.com

Ground Bars

Harger Lightning & Grounding now offers a complete line of grounding bus bars and its Line Card as a quick reference guide for the grounding needs of utilities. Options include insulator bracket kits, tower mount kits, Ultraweld exothermically welded pigtail conductors, plexiglass covers and compression lug kits. Standard ground bars are available for equipment racks and specialty ground bars for FAA applications. Harger offers custom-designed ground bars at no extra charge.
Harger Lightning & Grounding
www.harger.com

Partial-Discharge Investigation Tool

EA Technology's UltraTEV Plus+ combines all the functionality of the UltraTEV Detector with many new features for investigating and understanding partial-discharge (PD) activity in medium-voltage and high-voltage switchgear in greater detail.

Like the Detector, the UltraTEV Plus+ measures PD activity in the form of ultrasonic and transient earth-voltage (TEV) signals, but provides operators with considerably more comprehensive information about emission levels. Ultrasonic emissions are displayed as decibel readings as well as being converted into audible signals, which can be heard through the headphones supplied. TEV signals appear on the menu-driven color LCD screen as numerical values, as a bar graph and as a green-amber-red indication.

An optional plug-in microphone is available to investigate PD activity in hard-to-reach areas, as well as an optional UltraDish parabolic waveform concentrator to listen to activity in overhead assets and at a distance. The ability of the UltraTEV Plus+ to display the number of PD pulses per cycle, severity and maximum levels for internal discharges, in addition to displaying ultrasonic emissions numerically for surface discharges, provides information that is vital for deciding on a course of action.
EA Technology | www.eatechnology.com

Monitoring Equipment

Telemetric Corp. has added global system for mobile communications/general packet radio service (GSM/GPRS) models to its MicroRTU, capacitor bank control and voltage monitoring products. The GSM/GPRS units are based upon three years of successful deployments of Telemetric's Remote Telemetry Modules on GSM/GPRS. The new units can be installed anywhere AT&T/Cingular (or roaming partners) service is available.

The GSM/GPRS units are suitable for any application from low data rate alarm/exception reporting up to applications requiring frequent communications and large amounts of data. Telemetric offers a range of flexible data service plans.

Users can be notified of events by text message, e-mail or pager, and the information can be delivered to their SCADA or energy management system. They can also view and manage device information on their own secure account.
Telemetric Corp. | www.telemetric.net

In-Ground UPS

The In-Ground AC>DC uninterruptible power supply (UPS) from Solis Energy is designed to be installed in the ground, making it ideal for gang-switched light poles that typically do not get power during the day and in areas where utility poles are overcrowded or undersized and cannot support an additional attached power source. Also, since the battery enclosure is out of sight, the In-Ground UPS is more aesthetically pleasing and doesn't detract from decorative street lights that weren't typically built to support an external power source. Further, underground installation also provides additional insulation against extreme temperatures.

The In-Ground UPS solution provides 100% backup power necessary to run critical, low-wattage devices (typically 100 W or less), wherever they are located, even where grid-supplied electricity is unavailable. An extension of Solis Energy's AC>DC Outdoor UPS Series, the In-Ground AC>DC UPS is ideal as a secondary power source for routine applications or as battery backup power for short-term emergency needs to maintain vital applications.
Solis Energy | www.SolisEnergy.com

Product Website

Staco Energy Products Co. has revamped its website so that customers can now search by problem encountered, in addition to product category, brand names and industries served. Staco presents information on its voltage regulators, UPS, power-factor correction equipment, harmonic mitigation equipment, variable transformers, test sets and more.

In addition to general and product-specific information, the site offers technical information such as product manuals, application notes, engineering drawings, product specifications and software downloads. A “service” drop-down list details the many service offerings available to ensure proper use and functioning of Staco equipment.
Staco Energy Products Co.
www.stacoenergy.com

Load Research System

Itron's Load Research System (LRS) is designed to greatly simplify load research processes, reduce data collection and analysis costs, and increase accuracy of load profiles. LRS uses the latest Windows .NET technologies. The resulting graphical user interface enables analysts to view input data and estimation results in a variety of powerful statistical views, providing improved capability to detect and resolve problems and increased confidence in the final results.

LRS 2.0 is the latest addition to Itron's suite of utility software applications. These solutions support meter data collection, meter data management, complex billing, revenue assurance, customer care and other value-added applications of interval data.
Itron | www.itron.com

“Working seamlessly with other Itron solutions, LRS is a new tool that will add value for our customers in a number of key areas, including integrated resource planning, optimizing T&D system efficiency and reliability, settlement processes in retail energy markets, rate design, energy efficiency and demand response programs, and a host of other applications,” said McMenamin.

Detailed product information is available at www.itron.com/loadresearch.

Single-Person Total Station

The Leica TPS1200+ Total Station from Leica Geosystems provides precise automatic positioning and several other accuracy improvements over previous versions. Improved automatic target recognition (ATR) sensors in the TPS 1200+ follow the prism with unmatched speed and precision. If lock is interrupted, then the PowerSearch sensor quickly relocks onto the prism, either automatically or with the push of a single button. The TPS 1200+ can position itself in seconds to accuracy levels never before achieved by robotic surveying instruments.

Through continued research and development, Leica's PinPoint reflectorless technology has been improved with the TPS1200+. PinPoint reflectorless EDMs can now measure to distances of more than 3000 ft (914 m). To improve instrument performance to reflectors, Leica developed a new CMOS camera system. The camera makes pointing accuracies of 1 second possible. To improve the overall instrument distance accuracy, a new red-diode EDM has been designed to bring the base EDM accuracy to 0.1 cm. This type of quality has always been reserved for special application instruments, but now is available in all Leica 1200+ instruments.

A new color display allows users to see and interact with their instruments in vivid detail. Drawing colors can now be imported directly to the instrument with data. The brilliant color-map screen allows users to select items and use them for real working functions. Map screens are now a tool in the field to be used, not just for pretty pictures. The drawing programs are supported in both the field and the office.
Leica Geosystems | www.leica-geosystems.us

Data-Center Networking Architecture

The Brocade Data Center Fabric (DCF) simplifies data-center connectivity and reduces costs by combining storage networking and server-to-server clustering into a single, converged data-center infrastructure. In addition, it adapts to the dynamics of virtualized servers and storage, while accommodating expanding application workloads and the relentless growth of corporate data.

The Brocade DCF is an application-driven architecture. It adapts and responds to the changing needs for managing applications and data. Moreover, it provides a secure, reliable and high-performance infrastructure to help ensure that mission-critical applications receive the resources they need in order to access and protect critical data. The architecture uses the distributed intelligence of the data center. It leverages existing data-center application, server, network and storage elements to maximize functionality, flexibility and choice for customers.

The Brocade DCF is also a policy-based architecture. It helps ensure that important data-center services — such as data security, encryption, backup and replication — are automatically available based on company business policies, and that they do not encumber the infrastructure when not in use.
Brocade | www.brocade.com

Enterprise Content Management

Enterprise Library Services from Open Text provides a comprehensive offering for integrated records, metadata, archiving and storage management for all content types across an enterprise. The offering gives customers a single “trusted repository” delivered as a shared service for all content, allowing customers to set consistent rules for managing and archiving content to meet compliance and business requirements, while helping organizations reduce storage costs.

The Enterprise Library Services provides the critical foundation for a true enterprise-wide ECM strategy. Information is archived and stored based on a life cycle defined by records retention and disposition rules and the value of the content to the organization.
Open Text | www.opentext.com

Distributed Temperature Sensing Technology

SensorTran Inc.'s PerfectVision enables temperature-measurement accuracy and repeatability regardless of changes in optical-fiber condition, simplifies the set up of distributed temperature sensing (DTS) systems, and also dramatically extends the life and usefulness of optical fiber in DTS deployments.

Whereas traditional DTS systems use the light source from a single laser, PerfectVision uses two lasers operating at different wavelengths to automatically adjust for dynamic and nonuniform changes in optical loss in the fiber. PerfectVision instantly identifies and corrects for these effects, allowing for the continued use of the existing fiber and avoiding a costly redeployment that would have otherwise been required.

The merging of the PerfectVision dual laser technology with SensorTran's long-range DTS capabilities enables the effective life of optical fibers to be extended by addressing the traditional problems related to fiber darkening and damage. This dramatically reduces the frequency of costly and disruptive fiber redeployment, resulting in an increased return on investment for operators. Additionally, existing manual calibration techniques are based on averaging measurements over the entire length or large sections of the fiber, which is complicated and requires frequent recalibration efforts. PerfectVision automatically calibrates each of the thousands of measurement points along the fiber, significantly simplifying DTS installation by use of its active plug-and-play capabilities.
SensorTran Inc. | www.sensortran.com

Substation Solution

The Cybectec SMP I/O from Cooper Power Systems, a division of Cooper Industries Ltd., is a distributed, substation-hardened, contact input/output (I/O) processing unit. The SMP I/O offers significant savings for utility facilities by reducing the amount of wiring required, as well as configuration and commissioning time.

The SMP I/O is incredibly practical, as it is able to be installed closer to power equipment, which saves on cabling costs while offering remote upgrading capabilities. Designed to install directly into 19-inch (48-cm) relay racks, the SMP I/O is field upgradeable and supports the industry's standard DNP3 communication protocol. Rugged and reliable, the SMP I/O supports the simultaneous operation of up to 18 outputs and includes built-in input redundancy. In addition, this product meets all the IEEE and IEC requirements for vibration, electrical surges, fast transients and extreme temperature ranges.

A collection of cutting-edge advancements was used in the design of the SMP I/O. The local/remote control switch, coupled with the IRIG-B input, ensures the safe, accurate and reliable operation of the module. The product also supports select-before-operate or direct-execute outputs and 1-ms transition time tagging.

The Cybectec SMP series of products are designed to bridge the gap between the substation and the people who maintain, engineer and plan the future of the enterprise.
Cooper Power Systems | www.cooperpower.com

Ethernet Switch

RuggedCom Inc.'s RuggedSwitch RS940G 8-Port Gigabit Ethernet switch addresses the needs for high-bandwidth applications found in substation automation for electric utilities, video over IP in intelligent transportation systems, and advanced control and automation for industrial processes. The switch features six triple-speed 10/100/1000BaseTX Ports plus two optional gigabit fiber or copper ports, a hazardous location certification (Class 1, Div. 2), advanced managed Ethernet switch functions and integrated cyber-security enhancements.
RuggedCom | www.RuggedCom.com

ArcGIS for AutoCAD Software

With the new version of ESRI's ArcGIS for AutoCAD software, CAD users are provided a simplified means of storing coordinate system definitions inside AutoCAD drawings, eliminating the complexities of maintaining external companion files.

With ArcGIS for AutoCAD, CAD users can define the coordinate system they are using within AutoCAD. When they connect to an ArcGIS Server map service in a different coordinate system, the map is automatically projected on the fly to display in the proper AutoCAD location. This increases the usefulness of the map service, as users can work in their chosen coordinate system without transforming their CAD drawings or converting the geographic information system (GIS) data.

The new version of ArcGIS includes tools to list, assign, export and remove coordinate system definitions from the AutoCAD drawing. Beginning with ArcGIS 9.2 Service Pack 3, ArcGIS will continue to recognize the companion file to define the coordinate system of AutoCAD drawings, but it will also recognize AutoCAD drawings that have implemented the new coordinate system definition with ArcGIS for AutoCAD. Other geospatial industry software, such as Safe Software's FME extraction, transformation and loading (ETL) tools, will also recognize this internally stored coordinate system definition.
ESRI | www.esri.com/autocadapp

Uninterruptible Power Supply

A new pure sine wave output, line-interactive Digital Energy IT Series 600-3000 VA uninterruptible power supply (UPS) from GE Consumer & Industrial's Power Quality business allows owners and managers of server, data storage, networking, telecommunications and point-of-sale applications to stop worrying about downtime or equipment damage from power outages, voltage fluctuations and transient surges.

Available in 600-, 100-, 1500-, 2000- and 3000-VA tower and 19-inch (48-cm) rackmount models, GE's Digital Energy IT Series 600-3000 VA UPS features pure sine wave, fully digitized microprocessor-controlled automatic voltage regulation at 50/60 Hz and uses hot-swappable, user-replaceable batteries.

Featuring RS-232, USB and accessory-card communications slots, the GE Digital Energy IT Series 600-3000 VA UPS uses MONITORing management and monitoring software, capable of interfacing with all major operating system platforms.
General Electric Co. | www.geindustrial.com/ups

Remote Firmware Upgrades

Distribution Control Systems Inc. (DCSI) is remotely upgrading firmware to enable new meter functionality in thousands of its previously installed Universal Meter Transponders

The capacity to remotely upgrade firmware demonstrates DCSI's ability to “future proof” its products. Future proofing is an expression describing the requirement that advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) technologies be flexible and robust enough to anticipate future needs of the utility markets. DCSI's proven Two-Way Automatic Communications System (TWACS) technology meets that challenge today.

The flexibility of DCSI's process allows utilities to upgrade a single, individual meter or thousands of meters simultaneously, all without system downtime or loss of data. Using TWACS technology, a remote download is broadcast in the background of power line communications so that regular system operations can take precedence. However, if a utility has the need to upgrade hardware immediately, it can override some or all of the regular system communications.

While the basic capabilities of TWACS AMI modules are quite extensive, the ability to upgrade existing endpoints allows utilities to take advantage of emerging software platforms designed to address the growing information needs of the utilities and their customers.
DCSI | www.twacs.com

Thermal Imagers Software Upgrade

Fluke Corp. has upgraded its InsideIR software, a Windows-based PC application for thermal analysis and reporting that is included with Fluke Ti20 and Ti30 Thermal Imagers. The application features tools designed to help users identify and analyze captured images, and use them to plan thermography inspection routes and generate reports, including temperature spots, histograms, isotherms, and emissivity and temperature compensation.

The InsideIR 4.0 upgrade features advanced analysis tools including points, lines, rectangles, ellipses, polygons and curved areas, as well as trending capability and an enhanced profile tool. It supports increased routing flexibility and provides users with reporting enhancements including trending and the ability to generate reports of up to four pages per image. Now available in 10 languages, InsideIR software automatically checks the Fluke website and notifies the user if a newer version of software is available.

An unlimited-use license of InsideIR software is included with each Fluke Ti20 and Ti30 Thermal Imager. The Version 4.0 upgrade of InsideIR software is available as a free download.
Fluke Corp. | http://us.fluke.com/usen/support/software