Electricity Distribution Pulaski Electric System Surges Ahead with use of Distribution Design Studio Read how Itron's comprehensive software solutions have helped this municipality increase the accuracy of its field data. click here for more information Problem Solved: Introducing the Itron Problem Resolution System Itron's announces use of an automated information gathering tool used to assist in the retrieval, detection and resolution of problems reported by customers. click here for more information Putting the Power of GPS into the Design Process Read how customers are enhancing the distribution design process with the power of global positioning systems. click here for more information What is the Smart Grid and Can It Save Energy? The power industry continues to buzz with talk of the Smart Grid, but not all parties agree on what the Smart Grid is. Read the first in a series of articles detailing Itron's take on the Smart Grid. click here for more information

Pulaski Electric System Surges Ahead with use of Distribution Design Studio Itron's Comprehensive Software Helps Utility Increase Accuracy of Field Data
		Opportunity As Tennessee's oldest municipal electric system, and the first system in the state to receive power from the Tennessee Valley Authority, Pulaski Electric System (PES) has a unique and unrivaled history of service. The utility is known for its public-mindedness and its focus on enriching the lives of those living in the City of Pulaski and communities throughout Giles County. To that end, PES was an early adopter of Distribution Design Studio (DDS), software from
Itron used to improve the distribution design process and reduce the redundancy of construction drawings and staking sheets both in the field and in the office. Further building on this effort, in the best interest of its customers, PES began looking for ways to leverage its existing technologies with DDS, helping to keep prices low—an ultimate benefit to its ratepayers. "We didn't want any of our systems to be islands. We wanted to draw on the power of GPS, but also enhance productivity by utilizing information from our GIS. Our ultimate goal was a more seamless process from design to development to database," says Eddie Jackson, vice president and chief operations officer for PES. Solution The utility's initial purchase of Distribution Staker, the base application to Itron Distribution Design Studio, provided a flexible platform to accommodate the inevitable changes to utility workflows and design objectives. Distribution Design Studio offers several enhancement modules that integrate seamlessly with Distribution Staker and can be deployed seamlessly where needed without impacting a designer's ability to share jobs and design information. The first module selected by PES was the GPS Module. It immediately addressed a number of the utility's concerns. Says Richard Kelley, a PES engineer, "Prior to use of the GPS Module, we lacked real-time coordinates in the field and were not able to produce accurate line designs on-site. We really needed to improve the precision of design data captured in the field-the Itron product helped to accomplish this." The utility's second addition to Distribution Staker came in the form of Itron's Mobile Asset View Module. The module makes GIS asset and land base data available inside the Distribution Staker base application for increased design accuracy and efficiency. Prior to its implementation, PES employees responsible for staking relied on hand drawings that did not fully account for realistic land base features such as curvatures in roads, driveways, etc. Graphically, things were getting skewed and it was leading to excess time in the field and inaccurate material quantities. "The Mobile Asset View Module has allowed us to overlay aerial maps and maps from the county over our GIS data. We've corrected our existing GIS information and it has resulted in a true representation of field information. The resulting accuracy allows us to be more proficient in the field," says David Kelley, director of GIS for the utility. Benefits With introduction of the two modules, Pulaski Electric System is enjoying the benefits of technological advancements more than ever before. "The results of using the modules have been not only immediate, but promising," says Jackson. With the GPS Module, workflow for PES is finally streamlined and employees now rely on a more accurate data model of what's in the field. The utility is now able to track its materials including poles, transformers, light poles, secondary poles, etc. Additionally, there was immediate cost savings associated with reduced trips to the field. With an average of 30 designs per month, Jackson estimates the savings to be in the thousands. With the Mobile Asset View Module, PES significantly reduced its trips on bad poles. Engineers now bring up the pole in Asset View and turn it without ever making a trip. This not only reduces expenses related to having to roll a truck, there are financial gains associated with increased productivity—equaling savings again in the thousands. Recently the Module allowed PES to do something that has never been done at the utility—a full system inventory collection. Aside from engineering; accounting is thrilled to balance the books against tangible information. Previously relying on estimates, PES deduces that its growing estimates were unjustified. This has resulted in a further dividend for the utility. Going forward, since the modules have been so well received, PES is exploring purchase of Itron's WMS/MMS/CIS Integration Module to meet its work-order management system (WMS) integration goals. This will also enable the utility to discontinue its manual entry of materials while automatically receiving material, labor and work order updates from its customer information system (CIS) and seamlessly uploading design information back to its CIS. "When we first explored Distribution Studio, in its pre-release stage, it was already neck-and-neck with its competitors in terms of functionality," says Jackson. "Our predictions about DDS eventually being head and shoulders above other products turned out to be true. It is clear to us that the Itron name represents something special; Distribution Design Studio is no exception."

Problem Solved: Introducing Itron Problem Resolution System
		It's a common frustration for all of us. We go to open an application on our computer and quite inexplicably our system freezes up or shuts down all together. What's worse, when we consult IT professionals for resolution, we're tasked with relating the exact details of the event without use of their specific, technical vocabulary. Another common scenario—having to recite the details of the error message that flashed before our eyes only momentarily.
Thankfully, these scenarios are quickly becoming a thing of the past with use of Itron Problem Resolution System (PRS). It's an automated information gathering tool used to assist Itron in the retrieval, detection and resolution of problems reported by customers. The tool offers a simple, on-demand web interface, allowing Itron the ability to see exactly what the user experience is and solve problems in less time with better information. Investing in this technology is what sets Itron support services apart from others in the industry. It helps Itron to deliver tailor-made assistance to customers. Just as a "black box" flight recorder on an aircraft captures a comprehensive, real-time record of each flight, PRS works in much the same way. The PRS blackbox is automatically downloaded, and once complete it is removed from the target machine. The user need only to start PRS, duplicate the issue and follow the process for sending the recording to Itron. The PRS blackbox monitors application execution and captures a synchronized, real-time log of Itron-specific application activity at several levels. User activity is represented through fully-synchronized screen captures complete with key strokes and mouse clicks. It also tracks system and application configuration and performance, system- and code-level performance, and internal logging and other custom events. Recording files are stored and uploaded to Itron's support site in a custom compression format. So with all this power, does this mean that Itron is installing a product on your machine that will allow us to gather too much data, i.e., spyware? "Not in the least," says Dwayne LeBlanc, a senior research and development manager at Itron. "Itron's recording profiles are tuned to record only information relevant to Itron products. Users control which Itron recording profiles are downloaded to their machines and whether the recordings are sent back to Itron." PRS is currently available to customers utilizing Distribution Staker, Itron Enterprise Edition™, MV-90 xi, MVLT xi, MV-PBS and Premierplus4. Additional Itron and Actaris applications will be added in the near future. Customers interested in learning more should contact support services at support@itron.com.

Putting the Power of GPS into the Design Process
		A distribution utility recently came to Itron looking for a change to its design workflow. They were hoping Itron had a solution that would help reduce costs associated with designing new facilities, as well as drive material savings from an optimized design performed in the field. Did Itron have a product to help the utility realize substantial material savings through the installation of fewer poles, reduced man-power, fewer trips to the field and optimal span lengths?
When added to Distribution Design Studio (DDS), Itron's GPS Module* allows designers the ability to capture real-time coordinates in the field and produce accurate line designs on site, without costly field surveys or other labor-intensive methods. The module uses global positioning system (GPS) technology to boost the accuracy and efficiency of the utility line design process. Working with a GPS-enabled device and Distribution Staker, the base application to DDS, utility designers can layout overhead lines by defining pole locations, as well as line routes for underground line extensions. Span information for overhead and underground designs is also easily captured. Designers can locate property lines pin-to-pin and also the nearest facilities using the shortest path. While in the field, designers can assign materials to existing or new locations and design new projects then synchronize with utility work orders back in the office. They can also differentially correct GPS data in the field real-time and/or back in the office with a single-step post processing routine. The benefits of these features are numerous, including: Eliminating the challenges of line-of-sight, enabling more efficient and safer capture of design data Improving the precision of design data captured in the field Providing accurate position and elevation data suitable for updating GIS systems Eliminating manual measurement and design methods Increasing accuracy and efficiency by uploading field data to Distribution Staker for full materials, cost and staking reports Reducing material and labor costs Eliminating data correction and data importing steps associated with traditional design process For more information about purchase of Itron's GPS module, contact Jarod Tait (509) 891-3543 or email jarod.tait@itron.com. *Powered by GSIWorks technology.

What is the Smart Grid and Can It Save Energy?
The power industry buzzes with talk of the Smart Grid, but not all parties agree on what the Smart Grid is. From the competing definitions emerge some common elements. Those elements include: • Self-diagnosis and self-healing of network faults   • Coordinated operation across multiple systems and technologies
• Network management of the transmission and distribution network itself and the data and communication networks that support it   • A clear, consistent and knowable data model for describing the network and its operation   • Security for the transmission and distribution network itself and the data and communication networks that support it As envisioned, the Smart Grid provides many benefits, chief among them reliability and efficiency. And the efficiency gains alone can be huge. In testimony before Congress in May of 2007, Commissioner Jon Wellinghof of the U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission stated, "If we could make the electric grid even 5 percent more efficient, we would save more than 42 gigawatts of energy: the equivalent of production from 42 large coal-fired power plants. Those are plants that we would not need to build and emissions that we would not produce." Multiple organizations, both public and private, are working to define and promote the Smart Grid. These include: Electric Power Research Institute GridWise Alliance GridWise Architecture Council Modern Grid Strategy Galvin Initiative IEEE National Institute of Standards and Technology As a provider of numerous innovative solutions for the energy industry, Itron is well positioned to play a key role in creating and shaping the Smart Grid. OpenWay® is Smart Metering for the Smart Grid, an enabling technology for creating a smarter grid. Our design, management, analysis, forecasting and presentation software solutions create value out of enabling technology. The knowledge built from the meter data and analytics provide a foundation for how to make the grid smarter. The North American power grid is considered the largest machine on Earth and one of the crowning achievements of the 20th century. The Smart Grid could be one of the defining technologies of the 21st century. Stay tuned. Future articles in this newsletter will delve deeper into the emerging Smart Grid.