Burgess COMMENTARY

Peter Burgess

Dell To Equip Pecan Street Smart Grid Research Dell today announced it has joined the industry advisory council of Pecan Street Inc., a nonprofit energy and smart grid research and development organization headquartered at the University of Texas at Austin. As a member company, Dell will provide technology and IT expertise to Pecan Street to advance its work in energy big data.

Pecan Street is conducting robust and detailed consumer energy research on electricity and gas use, as well as solar and electric vehicle integration. In more than 400 homes, researchers are monitoring electricity and gas use from several circuits every 15 seconds, resulting in what is said to be the world’s deepest consumer energy use data.

Such complex systems — requiring two-way communication between users, producers and transmitters of energy — rely on high-performing data management systems to provide actionable information in real time. Dell’s decision to join Pecan Street builds on its announcement this fall of the Dell Smart Grid Data Management Solution: an architecture that bundles servers, storage, networking and security services with software into a ready-to-deploy solution that helps utility companies better manage their distribution networks.

Dell said it believes smart grids and other information-enabled networks can help utilities, businesses and consumers use natural resources in a wiser and more informed manner — improving both productivity and efficiency.

In Sustainable Brands' Issue in Focus on information technology last May, we spoke with utility executives on the challenges of employing data analytics for smart grid applications and the future of big data sharing for greater sustainability.

@Bart_King is a freelance writer and communications consultant.

Bart King is the principal of New Growth Communications (formerly Cleantech Communications), a network of affiliated content producers and strategists serving clients in the emerging green economy. He is also an associate editor for Sustainable Brands. Follow him @bart_king.