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The utilities industry is under tremendous pressure to integrate new energy sources and consumption models, improve service reliability, optimize operations, and lower costs — all while reducing cybersecurity risk. That’s nearly impossible to achieve with the status quo. But with a comprehensive architecture from Cisco, utilities can have one secure network built for the modern utility grid. At DistribuTECH 2020 we’ll show you how.

Utilities face a number of business imperatives that can only be achieved by modernizing their aging infrastructure. However, the common approach of deploying multiple siloed networks increases complexity, which in turn increases headcount, operating costs, and cybersecurity risk.

Cisco offers a different approach to utility grid modernization. Our converged IP network supports both cellular and mesh, for flexibility and reduced complexity. We address distribution automation, advanced metering infrastructure (AMI), and demand response (DR) all under one FAN — and enable its secure and scalable management under one pane of glass.

Our security solution, Cisco Cyber Vision, provides owners and operators full visibility into their ICS infrastructures, so they can build secure infrastructures and enforce security policies to control risk. Cisco Cyber Vision leverages a two-tier architecture consisting of edge sensors and a central platform. The sensor software is embedded into Cisco network equipment and gives you visibility to devices that connects to it as well as their communication flows. This unique architecture enables utilities to deploy OT security at scale, quickly and at a reasonable cost. Cyber Vision fully integrates with existing IT security platforms so that security teams have all the details on your industrial assets and their behaviors.

We are at DistribuTECH this week, the leading annual electric power transmission and distribution conference and exhibition event, where we will feature many of these solutions, including:

  • New cybersecurity capabilities that protect both the network and applications in your substation and distribution deployments
  • New additions and features to our industry-leading ruggedized routing, switching, and wireless portfolio for DA, AMI, DR, and substation solutions
  • New software solutions to process data at the edge of the utility network
  • New enhancements to our utility Cisco Validated Designs for Distribution Automation
  • New Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) partnerships
  • Unified management platforms for cellular, mesh, and LoRaWAN®
  • Wi-SUN compliant and certified solutions

For the past 30 years, we’ve helped our utility customers modernize their networks and operations. More than 200 utilities like innogy and Duke Energy now use Cisco utility-specific solutions, with even more customers spanning the globe. There are Cisco communication devices in over 10,000 substations in the U.S. and almost 11 million smart meters under contract. Cisco is proud to continue to solve modern utility challenges and be a part of DistribuTECH, the leading annual electric power transmission and distribution conference and exhibition event.

We hope to see you this week in San Antonio, Texas. We’ll be at booth #1537, where we’ll be listening to your challenges and sharing approaches that add value to your grid operations.



Authors

Sean Song Jiang

Lead, Distributed Automation Solutions

Cisco IoT Solutions Group