RuggedCom Inc., a designer and manufacturer of rugged communications equipment for harsh environments, recently announced that it has been awarded a major order from Green Mountain Power (GMP). Under the terms of the agreement, RggedCom will provide GMP with RuggedBackbone RX1500 multiservice communications solution for its smart grid initiative, which is aimed at implementing remote access to its substations.

According to the RuggedCom website, its RuggedBackbone family of products is high port density routing and switching platforms. Designed to operate in harsh environments, the RuggedBackbone can withstand high levels of electromagnetic interference, radio frequency interference and a wide temperature range of -40°C to +85°C. This platform is designed to meet the challenging climatic and environmental demands found in utility, industrial and military network applications. The cyber security and networking features make it ideally suited for creating secure Ethernet networks for mission critical, real-time, control applications, according to its maker.

Green Mountain Power, a company that serves approximately 96,000 customers in Vermont, was on the lookout for a reliable communications network that could withstand the harsh environment of an electric utility. Based on a thorough investigation, GMP finally selected RuggesdCom’s utility grade devices for its Smart Grid project.

In a press release, GMP explained that the RuggedBackbone RX1500 multiservice communications platform meets all the necessary IEEE and IEC (News - Alert) requirements for communications equipment in substations environments and thus suitable for providing Ethernet connectivity from GMP's SCADA network to all of its substations.

The flexibility of RX1500 was also a strong factor for its selection. The RuggedBackbone RX15 is a scalable, hot-swappable, modular platform, which allows the users to change configurations as their network grows or their needs change. The solution is expected to provide great flexibility for GMP's substation networks, which include a mixture of serial, Ethernet and frame relay devices.

“We determined that RuggedCom's Ethernet network equipment was a perfect fit for what we needed. RuggedCom's focus on the electric power market, product performance certifications and the flexibility of the RX1500 will allow us to install a communications network that will be reliable, robust and long-lived,” GMP's Engineering Manager Ken Couture explained in a statement.

Earlier this month, RuggedCom reported another contract win from Vermont Electric Power Company (VELCO). The company reportedly selected RuggedCom to provide a substation communications network and remote access solution.