Electric utility’s new SCADA boosts cybersecurity, projected to save $400K/year
On March 16, 2017, Brown Engineers received the 2017 Engineering Excellence Award for Energy Efficiency from ACEC-Arkansas, for the new electric utility SCADA system in Clarksville, Arkansas. Brown created the nation’s first cybersecure electric SCADA system for Clarksville Light and Water, using Bedrock Automation’s military-grade controllers, which are impervious to cyber-attacks and EMP bursts.
The new electric SCADA system delivers secure remote monitoring, control, data collection and reporting to authorized utility staff at CLW’s Network Operations Center or via remote devices. CLW expects to save over $400,000 per year through reduced energy losses, better monitoring, and improved reliability of the electric grid, all direct results of this project.
Brown sized the utility’s new citywide, 288-strand fiber optic loop to support CLW’s SCADA system plus extensive additional business and community development. CLW now has sufficient fiber capacity to offer broadband Internet service to residents, businesses, schools, hospitals and local government agencies at very competitive rates, keeping hundreds of thousands of dollars in Clarksville.
The utility’s general manager also envisions offering free Wi-Fi at local parks and downtown areas, a benefit for students and low-income residents. The Arkansas Economic Development Commission is evaluating Clarksville as a prime location for new industrial and manufacturing centers, due to their local business park, fiber communications, and improved electric power reliability.
