Comprehensive Asset Performance Management from Schneider Electric reduces capex & opex for T&D utilities

Schneider Electric’s EcoStruxure TM Grid offers unprecedented management of millions of assets across grid infrastructures. Comprehensive solution enables predictive maintenance and longer asset life

Rueil-Malmaison (France), October 3, 2017 – Schneider Electric, the leader in digital transformation of energy management and automation, will showcase its Asset Performance Management (APM) capabilities at European Utility Week, 3-5 October, Amsterdam. At the event, Schneider will present how existing EcoStruxureTM Grid solutions will fully meet the APM needs of transmission and distribution utilities, through partners. As such electrical utilities gain significantly greater control of escalating operational costs.

Electrical utilities under pressure

Electrical utilities are experiencing unprecedented disruption, driven by decentralization of production due to rapid growth of renewable energy installations on outdated infrastructures. Consequently, they must ensure network stability and increase their understanding of the real-time condition of critical assets. They are also under pressure from regulators to control costs, requiring new investment strategies to optimize life expectancy of electrical equipment while implementing more efficient maintenance operations.

Jérome de Parscau, SVP Energy Digital Solutions & Strategy at Schneider Electric, said: “The combination of complexity and cost pressure is driving the need for utilities to integrate operational technology across their grids that can help them move from a reactive maintenance strategy, to a fully predictive and preventative maintenance model.”

EcoStruxure Grid integrates Asset Performance Management

Schneider Electric’s EcoStruxure Grid solution can now offer unprecedented management of millions of assets across grid infrastructures, by extending its expertise through the partnership, with IPS Company Group, recognized for its specialized Asset Performance Management solution for electric power systems. This combination of asset performance management software portfolios addresses the growing demands of transmission and distribution utilities. As such, EcoStruxure Substation Operation will enhance its condition, risk and reliability-centered maintenance capabilities at the substation level, while fully integrating with utility enterprise solutions. This embedded-intelligence provides a means to diagnose the health of critical equipment and avoid unnecessary maintenance or downtime.

IPS-SYSTEMS™ adds the world’s largest proven technical library relating to new and legacy assets, to EcoStruxure Grid, enabling high-performance configuration, rapid deployment and ease-of-use. Schneider Electric’s improved EcoStruxure Grid architecture will deliver immediate benefits to its utility customers. Predictive maintenance will reduce the number of outages, for which utilities are penalized, while optimized investment strategies and longer asset life will reduce capital expenditure.

Jérome de Parscau, added: By combining our know-how in deploying IoT equipment on electrical utilities’ assets, and our new partnership with IPS Company Group, we can retrofit old equipment to become smart, as well as providing a whole range of new connected equipment. Schneider Electric’s strategy is to continue finding synergies outside the company that can help its customers control costs while supporting their digital transformation in a rapidly-changing energy landscape”