MORGAN HILL, Calif. — The OpenADR Alliance, a nonprofit corporation created to foster the development, adoption, and compliance of a smart grid standard known as Open Automated Demand Response (OpenADR), has announced the successful testing of the OpenADR 2.0a profile standard. Using the new OpenADR Test Tool developed by QualityLogic, OpenADR members Akuacom, a unit of Honeywell, EnerNOC, IPKeys Technologies, and Universal Devices successfully tested their client and server devices, helping to further refine the standard.

According to the alliance, the OpenADR 2.0 technology is based on the Organization for the Advancement of Structured Information Standards (OASIS) and builds on the OpenADR 1.0 specification supported by more than 60 organizations worldwide. Through the OpenADR 2.0 standard, the OpenADR Alliance will provide utilities, independent system operators (ISOs), regulators, and controls suppliers with a selection of certified products for cost-effective demand response implementation.

“We hosted several PlugFests over the past six months to help members develop the first generation of interoperable products based on OpenADR 2.0,” said Rolf Bienert, technical director of the OpenADR Alliance. “As we get closer to formal certification testing, we’ll continue to see the smart grid come to life with big improvements in energy efficiency on the grid and in the energy users’ homes and offices.”

The process of finalizing the OpenADR standard involves the qualification of the initial implementations and the validation of the test harness. The alliance said both objectives were met using the now validated OpenADR 2.0a test tool. The test event involved three virtual end nodes (VENs or client implementations) and two virtual top nodes (VTNs or server implementations). All products passed extensive testing from more than 180 test cases. Upon release of the final test tool, Intertek — the official test service provider — will initiate certification testing using the validated test harness to run tests on candidate devices.

The test event was held in Knoxville, Tenn., coinciding with the Automated Demand Response and Ancillary Services Demonstration Project kickoff meeting hosted by the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI). The utilities, ISOs, and regulators participating in the EPRI event were able to get a preview of the first OpenADR 2.0a compliant products during the test event.

For more information, visit www.openadr.org.

Publication date: 05/14/2012