NEMA has led the effort to develop SG-IC 1, a standard that describes the roles and responsibilities for each of the four main participants in the testing scheme for interoperability and security among smart grid products. This guideline brings uniformity and portability to the process, as well as creates the necessary levels of checks and balances for the overall testing process. Contributors include internationally-accredited testing bodies that are also nationally recognized testing laboratories.

NEMA said smart grid stakeholders can now validate the interoperability and security of individual grid elements on a consistent, industry-wide basis. The implementation of this guideline promotes the major points that define the smart grid adoption process, namely testing and certification, governance, harmonization, and backward compatibility. The guideline is said to be a major step in addressing one of the challenges defined by the National Institute of Standards and Technology and the Smart Grid Interoperability Panel.

“The goal of the utilities is to ensure that products are interoperable the day they are installed,” said Evan R. Gaddis, NEMA president and CEO. “Prior to the publication of these guidelines, each utility would have been required to develop its own testing procedures for interoperability. This would have created a tremendous burden on manufacturers who sell the same product to multiple utilities.”

The association said SG-IC 1 will be available for purchase on its website soon. For more information, visit www.nema.org.

Publication date: 7/22/2013

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