Tennessee Utility to Deploy Self-Healing Technology

Oct. 18, 2010
S&C Electric Co. and EPB of Chattanooga, Tennessee, have announced the first shipments of S&C’s IntelliRupter PulseCloser and IntelliTEAM SG for the EPB electric distribution system

S&C Electric Co. and EPB of Chattanooga, Tennessee, have announced the first shipments of S&C’s IntelliRupter PulseCloser and IntelliTEAM SG for the EPB electric distribution system. This shipment kicks off a major project where up to 1500 IntelliRupters with IntelliTEAM SG will be deployed on EPB’s distribution system.

S&C’s self-healing solution will use the 100% fiber-optic infrastructure EPB is currently building. The project, which is partly funded by a federal stimulus grant awarded by the U.S. Department of Energy, will support EPB’s goal to achieve the highest level of electric service reliability and power quality by building the most automated smart grid in the United States.

“At a time when the U.S. needs to modernize our infrastructure for this century, forward-looking utilities like EPB are seeking efficient ways to deploy leading technologies to deliver the functionality they need,” said Witold Bik, vice president of S&C’s Automation Systems Division. “S&C’s self-healing solution is interoperable and will leverage EPB’s fiber-optic network to restore power rapidly in the event of a short circuit.”

S&C’s advanced automation technology uses embedded intelligence and peer-to-peer networking technology to restore power in seconds.

EPB is currently building a fiber optic-based communication system that will be the backbone for its smart grid and was recently awarded $111.5 million in federal stimulus funding from the Department of Energy to expedite its smart grid implementation. EPB, established in 1935, is one of the largest publicly owned providers of electric power in the country serving more than 169,000 residents in a 600 square-mile area that includes greater Chattanooga, as well as parts of surrounding counties and areas of North Georgia.

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