ATLANTA, March 28, 2006 (PRIMEZONE) -- Web Service Gateway, a solution for cross-application data communication developed by Advanced Control Systems (ACS), Norcross, Ga., has been certified by MultiSpeak(R) under that group's Version 3 interoperability specification. ACS is the first SCADA vendor to achieve this milestone.
MultiSpeak announced earlier this year the release of its Version 3 specification, which offers real-time systems integration using Web services. This popular transport method can tightly integrate functions from different software providers and improve productivity. MultiSpeak is a collaboration between the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA) and more than 30 software providers and consultants serving electric utilities.
"MultiSpeak offers an exciting new level of data exchange and application integration," said Terence Fernandes, manager of enterprise development for ACS. "Our Web Service Gateway provides an ideal way for utilities to deliver on-demand access to real-time operations information across their enterprise. Now that it has passed an interoperability test against MultiSpeak's testing harness, cooperatives and utilities of all sizes can move ahead with confidence"
The ACS Web Service Gateway is a dynamic link for the cooperative's real-time systems: SCADA, distribution automation and energy and distribution management, and any compatible system that needs real-time information.
The MultiSpeak Initiative has always provided independent, third-party verification of interfaces, but the introduction of Version 3 marks the first time that MultiSpeak has used interoperability testing.
Interested parties at electric utilities may visit www.MultiSpeak.org to examine assertions statements that have been certified by MultiSpeak. Gary McNaughton, MultiSpeak project coordinator said, "The assertions documents lay out, in detail, the MultiSpeak integration that two products support. The cooperative then can examine those documents and determine whether or not the integration offered meets its business needs."
About Advanced Control Systems
Advanced Control Systems, Inc. is a leading developer and supplier of utility information systems, including outage management, distribution management, energy management and substation automation systems. Established in 1975, the company has consistently been at the forefront of information technology deployment for electric utilities. The company is based in Norcross, Ga., with customers and agents throughout the world. Customers include investor-owned utilities such as NSTAR, San Diego Gas & Electric and United Illuminating as well as publicly-owned utilities, market operators and cooperatives across the United States.
About the MultiSpeak Initiative
The MultiSpeak Initiative fosters business process improvement and simplifies data integration at electric cooperatives through a collaboration between NRECA and more than 30 software companies and consultants who serve electric utilities. MultiSpeak has released a series of specifications that enable popular utility software applications to exchange data in a predetermined manner.
MultiSpeak3, the latest release, has defined 30 interfaces that encompass nearly every commonly used software application deployed at electric distribution co-ops, including automatic meter reading, customer information system, customer relationship management, engineering analysis, load management, mapping, outage management, SCADA, and staking. To view the specification and for more information, visit www.multispeak.org.