Comments on: Smart Grid Will Rely on Wireless, Broadband Services http://www.consumerenergyreport.com/2009/08/16/smart-grid-will-rely-on-wireless-broadband-services/ Fri, 19 Mar 2010 06:34:08 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.1 hourly 1 By: Insteon http://www.consumerenergyreport.com/2009/08/16/smart-grid-will-rely-on-wireless-broadband-services/comment-page-1/#comment-2740 Insteon Wed, 09 Dec 2009 03:55:32 +0000 http://www.consumerenergyreport.com/?p=2825#comment-2740 Properly secured, this shouldn't be an issue at all but when the power controls of a large commercial building are at stake there will need to be proper monitoring of all vulnerabilities, likely someone dedicated to monitor and contact building owners in the event of equipment upgrade requirements. I'd like to think they've thought of all this, but I've seen worse get rolled out with SCADA stuff. Properly secured, this shouldn’t be an issue at all but when the power controls of a large commercial building are at stake there will need to be proper monitoring of all vulnerabilities, likely someone dedicated to monitor and contact building owners in the event of equipment upgrade requirements. I’d like to think they’ve thought of all this, but I’ve seen worse get rolled out with SCADA stuff.

]]> By: Mike Raphone http://www.consumerenergyreport.com/2009/08/16/smart-grid-will-rely-on-wireless-broadband-services/comment-page-1/#comment-1338 Mike Raphone Wed, 19 Aug 2009 00:53:24 +0000 http://www.consumerenergyreport.com/?p=2825#comment-1338 Jeff, One Billion, Five Hundred and Seventy Million Dollars is a bargain to wire the United States. Consider how much it cost to build the roads that the power company right of ways run along. Even if the cost is ten times the cost that you quoted the project would be a bargain. In the 1930's the Rural Electrification Administration funded the wiring of America. That program was not inexpensive. The power and telephone cooperatives had to start from scratch, constructing outside plant where there was no right of way or even a path. When I was a child I lived in a rural area North of New York City where there would have been no power distribution and telephone system without REA financing. Compare the cost of installing fiber to the cost of constructing a foot of Two Lane Highway? The government is building new highways every day. Jeff, One Billion, Five Hundred and Seventy Million Dollars is a bargain to wire the United States. Consider how much it cost to build the roads that the power company right of ways run along. Even if the cost is ten times the cost that you quoted the project would be a bargain. In the 1930’s the Rural Electrification Administration funded the wiring of America. That program was not inexpensive. The power and telephone cooperatives had to start from scratch, constructing outside plant where there was no right of way or even a path. When I was a child I lived in a rural area North of New York City where there would have been no power distribution and telephone system without REA financing. Compare the cost of installing fiber to the cost of constructing a foot of Two Lane Highway? The government is building new highways every day.

]]> By: Jeff http://www.consumerenergyreport.com/2009/08/16/smart-grid-will-rely-on-wireless-broadband-services/comment-page-1/#comment-1323 Jeff Tue, 18 Aug 2009 01:56:10 +0000 http://www.consumerenergyreport.com/?p=2825#comment-1323 Mike, laying down an entire fiber network is far too expensive. Yes, it would be nice, but fiber isn't cheap. It costs teleco's about $2 a foot to hang fiber on poles which translates to $10,000 per mile. Even if it's only half of that since the poles are already there that's $5,000 per mile, and it costs a lot more when done underground. The US has around 157,000 miles of high voltage power lines. So on the low end we are talking about $1,570,000,000 to lay the fiber alone on our major high voltage power lines. Then you have to add in the cost of routers, switching equipment, maintenance, underground and residential lines and the costs will easily increase by a factor of ten. In this case wireless is the most economical solution, and while running fiber is always nice. It isn't always the best solution. Mike, laying down an entire fiber network is far too expensive. Yes, it would be nice, but fiber isn’t cheap. It costs teleco’s about $2 a foot to hang fiber on poles which translates to $10,000 per mile. Even if it’s only half of that since the poles are already there that’s $5,000 per mile, and it costs a lot more when done underground. The US has around 157,000 miles of high voltage power lines. So on the low end we are talking about $1,570,000,000 to lay the fiber alone on our major high voltage power lines. Then you have to add in the cost of routers, switching equipment, maintenance, underground and residential lines and the costs will easily increase by a factor of ten.

In this case wireless is the most economical solution, and while running fiber is always nice. It isn’t always the best solution.

]]> By: Mike Raphone http://www.consumerenergyreport.com/2009/08/16/smart-grid-will-rely-on-wireless-broadband-services/comment-page-1/#comment-1321 Mike Raphone Mon, 17 Aug 2009 13:00:37 +0000 http://www.consumerenergyreport.com/?p=2825#comment-1321 The simple solution would be to have the power companies install fiber along their rights of way. The Government could subsidize the power companies installation of fiber. The fiber could serve customers along the fiber route directly and then use wireless technology to reach customers too distant to serve with fiber. There will be no problem providing power to electronic equipment supporting broadband service because the broadband equipment can be powered directly from the power line. The power companies already have the equipment and personnel capable with dealing with the installation of cables whether fiber of copper. The simple solution would be to have the power companies install fiber along their rights of way. The Government could subsidize the power companies installation of fiber. The fiber could serve customers along the fiber route directly and then use wireless technology to reach customers too distant to serve with fiber. There will be no problem providing power to electronic equipment supporting broadband service because the broadband equipment can be powered directly from the power line. The power companies already have the equipment and personnel capable with dealing with the installation of cables whether fiber of copper.

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