Emerson has launched automation technology for utilities and independent power producers that rely on diverse renewable energy sources and serve the microgrid market. Its modular Ovation OCC100 controller extends Emerson’s Ovation control technology by managing the flow of energy from various sources to ensure continuous generation for these emerging industries. This scalable technology is also well-suited to critical water and wastewater applications.
With renewable electricity capacity expected to expand by over 920 gigawatts – an increase of 43 percent – through 2022, according to a 2017 International Energy Agency report, the OCC100 controller is particularly designed for power generators with growing and diverse renewable generation portfolios (including hydro, solar and wind) and microgrids that rely on a variety of distributed energy resources.
The OCC100 offers remote monitoring and control capabilities for wind farms spread out over a wide geographic area and the ability to operate in the higher ambient temperatures associated with solar facilities. For microgrids, it provides a single point of control for performance optimization. Similarly, the controller monitors and controls remote pump stations critical to collecting, treating, storing and distributing water to homes and businesses.
Today, power generation and water/wastewater facilities often rely on non-integrated programmable logic controllers (PLCs) with limited functionality to automate smaller, stand-alone equipment or processes. These “islands of automation” limit broad information-sharing necessary for optimal operational efficiency.
In addition to operating independently, the controller can be natively merged into a larger, Ovation distributed control system for greater visibility into plant-wide operations. The controller also features integrated wide-area technologies that allow it to control geographically dispersed equipment using cell or other wireless technology.
Emerson will showcase the scalable Ovation OCC100 compact controller in booth #5314 at POWER-GEN International, December 5–7, 2017, Las Vegas.
About Emerson
Emerson, headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri (USA), is a global technology and engineering company providing innovative solutions for customers in industrial, commercial, and residential markets. The Emerson Automation Solutions business helps process, hybrid, and discrete manufacturers maximize production, protect personnel and the environment.
For more information, visit Emerson website.
