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CalAmp to Provide Bolivar Energy Authority with Wireless Communications Network for Smart Meter ProjectJan 12, 2012 (Close-Up Media via COMTEX) -- CalAmp Corp., a provider of wireless products, services and solutions for Smart Grid applications, has been chosen by Elster, an electricity, gas and water measurement and control provider, to supply the wireless routing hardware and network services for a wide-area advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) for Tennessee's Bolivar Energy Authority (BEA). Located in southwestern Tennessee and serving more than 11,000 households and businesses, the Company noted that BEA is one of 155 power distributors for the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), a federally owned corporation providing electricity across the southeastern U.S. Elster's EnergyAxis and Smart Meters will enable BEA to modernize its electric infrastructure and provide customers with pricing and usage information, allowing customers to better manage, monitor and control energy consumption and costs. According to a release, CalAmp's Viper SC 900 system will serve as the vital communications link between Elster's Gatekeeper AMI network concentrators and the core communications infrastructure, offering the speed and range necessary for secure data backhaul over the Smart Grid. Viper's multispeed operating capability optimizes network efficiency and accommodates extended range communications across an area, such as that served by BEA. This CalAmp private wireless network will use a combination of unlicensed spectrum and licensed 900MHz spectrum that was secured by BEA through CalAmp. In addition to the radio hardware, CalAmp will also supply network design and project management services. "Elster's EnergyAxis Smart Grid solution requires robust and responsive wireless data communications. CalAmp's Viper system meets that critical need with licensed and unlicensed radios, network design and frequency planning services, and wireless communications hardware to deliver secure data over a vast, remote service area," said Mike Zachan, GM of CalAmp's Wireless Networks business. "Our total solution approach will help assure communications reliability and network access for Elster's two-way AMI network throughout the BEA service region." CalAmp noted that it has begun shipping wireless router equipment for the BEA AMI project and anticipates completing the communications network in mid-2012, with follow-on expansion opportunities possible. More Information: www.calamp.com ((Comments on this story may be sent to [email protected])) |