PISCATAWAY, NJ--(Marketwire - Sep 26, 2012) - The IEEE Conformity Assessment Program (ICAP) today announced its intention to collaborate with the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the University of New Hampshire InterOperability Laboratory (UNH-IOL), on the development of a conformity assessment initiative for the IEEE C37.238™ (Power Profile) addressing the smart grid market. This collaboration is a significant step forward in support of the advancement of IEEE C37.238 based certified products to market.

There is increasing demand for accurate time synchronization for protection and control equipment for electrical power systems. The IEEE 1588™ Precision Time Protocol (PTP) has been identified as a solution to address the synchronization requirement for substation automation. The IEEE C37.238 Standard defines a standard profile for the use of IEEE 1588 PTP in Power Systems applications.

Building upon their respective areas of interest, the organizations are collaborating to further work that has been initiated independently. NIST initiated the construction and development of an IEEE C37.238 Test Suite to experiment with the accuracy, reliability and interoperability of IEEE 1588 devices in next generation power substation applications for the smart grid. Through an agreement between NIST and the UNH-IOL, the UNH-IOL will assume the responsibility for future development of the Test Suite. ICAP, serving as the Certification Authority, will develop and implement a certification program that will leverage the Test Suite. ICAP will bring together representatives of the interested community to develop a certification program that meets their respective needs.

"The UNH-IOL has developed core competencies around the development of comprehensive and robust test suites to address myriad technologies," said Bob Noseworthy, Chief Engineer, the UNH-IOL. "Building upon the foundational Power Profile Test Suite under development by the UNH-IOL and NIST, this collaboration is a natural extension to bring together the necessary components of a successful certification program."

ICAP will announce their intention to collaborate with NIST and the UNH-IOL, as well as to seek industry participation in the development of the conformity assessment program at the 2012 International IEEE Symposium on Precision Clock Synchronization for Measurement, Control and Communication (ISPCS) conference, September 26-28, 2012 in San Francisco, CA.

"Through this collaborative engagement, ICAP is uniquely positioned to deliver a certification program to support the IEEE C37.238 profile," commented Peter Lefkin, Director, ICAP. "The certification program will build upon, and complement the IEEE C37.238 Working Group's efforts to develop the standard, as product implementations are now reaching the marketplace."

Interested companies, looking to receive additional information about the ICAP IEEE 1588 Power Profile Certification Program, should contact Lloyd Green, ICAP Marketing Director via email at Lloyd.Green@ieee-isto.org.

About NIST

For more information on NIST, please visit the NIST website at www.nist.gov.

About UNH-IOL

Founded in 1988, the UNH-IOL provides independent, broad-based interoperability and standards conformance testing for data, telecommunications and storage networking products and technologies. Combining extensive staff experience, standards body participation and a 32,000+ square foot facility, the UNH-IOL helps companies efficiently and cost effectively deliver products to the market. For more information, visit http://www.iol.unh.edu/, or connect with the UNH-IOL on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/UNHIOL, on Twitter at http://twitter.com/UNH_IOL and on LinkedIn at http://www.linkedin.com/company/unh-interoperability-lab.

About The IEEE Conformity Assessment Program
The IEEE Conformity Assessment Program (ICAP) -- a joint initiative of the IEEE Standards Association (IEEE-SA) and IEEE Industry Standards and Technology Organization (IEEE-ISTO) -- provides programs and industry support that help bridge those standards development activities with the conformity assessment activities that accelerate market acceptance and enablement of new products and technologies. The foundation of ICAP activities is based on industry best practices, internationally accepted quality systems and use of proven test tools. Fostering the market acceptance, adoption and implementation of standardized technologies; ICAP spans the spectrum of today's smart grid, information and communications technologies. To find out more about ICAP, visit http://www.ieee-isto.org/icap-program.