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Process Improvements from a lack of integration with smart meter data is seamlessly
By rationalising smart meter data existing processes, and additional integrated into existing processes,
and functions into industry scale operational complexity may the portal could produce the
services, the overall risk and cost present a ‘cliff face’ for operations associated meter reading, advance
of a UK roll out can be reduced. staff across the industry, and and Supplier purchase files
adversely affect the quality required for seamless integration
The potential to implement of shared business data. with existing gas and electricity
the next generation of market By implementing an industry market processes defined by the
processes, business transactions scale Smart Interoperability MRA, BSC and UK Link. During
and data types as a function Portal, smart meter functions the period following a UK roll
of rolling out of smart meters can be integrated with existing out, the Smart Interoperability
is rightly anticipated by many ’Supplier hub’ processes. A further Portal could facilitate a managed
stakeholders with a great deal of advantage of this approach is that migration to the next generation
optimism. The next generation smart meter roll out is de-coupled of market processes as required.
of business processes will require from business process re-design Competitive retail energy markets
open standard asynchronous thus avoiding a dependency on in the UK may disadvantage
transactions, near real time latency, new processes impacting the a UK smart metering roll out
and excellent data quality. These lead time to roll out. Immediate when compared to vertically
market processes will support benefits of smart metering data integrated implementations
collaborative data sharing whilst such as opening and closing in Italy, France, Sweden and
maintaining process efficiency, reads on Change of Supplier, North America, however the
quality and security of data. improved billing accuracy and deployment of a shared Smart
time of use data, can all flow Interoperability Portal offers a
However, the risks of introducing immediately whilst at the same unique proposition that can enable
entirely new market processes time avoiding the operational UK markets to access similar
in a ‘big bang’ implementation hit of a big bang changeover benefits and employ appropriate
are great. Exceptions arising to new processes. To ensure technology whilst minimising
Network Smart
Operator Meter
GSM / GPRS
GSM / SMS
3G
Communications
Interoperability
Portal WiMAX
Standard XML
Web Services LPR
DSL
PLC
ISDN
Concentrator
Meter data
head end
systems
Authentication and Access Control
Smart
Meter
Meter Data
Management
XML Web
Services
Site Meta Data Interval Data
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Interoperability Portal would the overall risk and cost of Network Operators, Suppliers,
provide the range of common data implementing the UK solution for Metering Services companies and
management functions covered smart metering. By adhering to the Data Aggregators, have benefited
in the next section of this paper. agreed service descriptions, and from the reliability of the data
It is important to emphasise the associated schema, stakeholders transfer network and central data
point that the proposed use of can integrate with the portal processing infrastructure (DTN).
centralised data management by developing B2B interfaces ElectraLink has established a
resources is intended to support, risk free from interoperability reputation for specialisation and
rather than replace, distributed issues and vendor ‘lock in’. service excellence in transferring
data management functions. It business critical data in a secure,
is natural that energy Suppliers Parties accessing the portal reliable and cost effective way.
will seek, to differing degrees, services will benefit from low cost ElectraLink has used its core
to gain competitive advantage bandwidth and the self describing, delivery capability to deliver
through additional layers of data self validating nature of easily further data transfer services to
management. However, access re-usable and adaptable XML file its customers in the electricity
to consistent source data will formats. On the portal to meter and gas markets in support of
provide a sound foundation for, side, device and WAN network their requirements for DUoS
and facilitate further distributed volumes are minimised by using e-billing, gas metering, RGMA gas
data management. The common binary data protocols, thus saving developments, REMA electricity
data management services bandwidth and device resources metering developments and
will provide core functionality at the meter and concentrator. improving the customer transfer
to support effective market process through the NOSI flows.
operation for new entrants and By providing robust links to In addition we have diversified
established businesses alike. existing industry processes the our technical delivery capability
Smart Interoperability Portal can to include web service design,
allow smart metered sites at all development and delivery.
Architecture stages of lifecycle to be handled in
It is essential that the Smart a seamless way ‘en route’ to the Since 1998, the national data
Interoperability Portal is next generation business processes transfer network and central data
designed and implemented to when near real time transactions processing infrastructure (DTN)
open standards. To meet this and collaborative parallel data has continued to serve the data
aim the Smart Interoperability processing will become the transfer requirements of the UK
Portal services (Figure 2) are norm reducing lead times and energy industry specified within
fundamentally defined and bringing a significant improvement the Data Transfer Catalogue
presented as XML web services in customer experience. (DTC). The EDI like, batch based
within a Service Oriented transaction file format specified
Architecture (SOA). The use by the industry in 1998 has
of a SOA will provide the About ElectraLink remained largely unchanged since.
commercial flexibility to allow ElectraLink Ltd is 100% owned by
the Smart Interoperability the UK energy industry and was In 2004, we replaced the
Portal to be procured from, established in 1998 for the specific underlying national data transfer
and operated by, a single or task of creating and operating a network and central data
multiple service providers. fast, reliable and secure electronic processing infrastructure (DTN).
means of communicating data This allowed us to take advantage
Being vendor independent, the between participants in the of technology advances since 1998
selection of web services as the competitive electricity market. and the new service provides
basis for the Smart Interoperability This requirement was met through users with even higher levels
Portal services is a key enabler the establishment of the Data of guaranteed service levels for
to integrating stakeholders to Transfer Service (DTS). Since security, availability and speed of
the common services available our creation, organisations such data transfer. Users of the DTN
at the Portal and hence reducing as Settlement bodies, Distribution are now able to enjoy all the