Smart Grid Update announced its first annual Smart Grid Distribution Automation Conference will take place in Raleigh, N.C., on Nov. 2 and 3.

Leading utilities like Northeast Utilities, Duke Energy (News - Alert), Alabama Power and Con-Ed  will participate in the event to discuss the latest developments in smart grid distribution automation.

Optimizing smart grid distribution promises utilities a significant positive return on their smart grid investments, according to officials at Smart Grid Update.

Last year Pike Research (News - Alert) forecasted that smart grid distribution automation spending would total $46 billion worldwide by 2015 and that the returns from the sale of sensors alone would reach $6.3 billion by 2014, TMCnet reported.

Though the opportunities are huge, utilities are still uncertain which project will ultimately be the most successful and reap the greatest return on investment (ROI) for both utilities and technology providers, according to officials at Smart Grid Update.

The Smart Grid Update will provide a platform for utilities to share their findings on a whole range of distribution automation initiatives. There will be a focus practical advice and business opportunities, including case studies from the most successful distribution automation projects currently being rolled out.

Northeast Utilities will demo how their self-healing technologies are enabling fault location and energy restoration. Duke Energy will detail their wide-ranging communication integration architecture. Alabama Power will demonstrate the benefits realized by their integrated distribution management system. Con-Ed will present the findings of their recent SCADA projects to optimize the display of data for human interpretation.

The event will also see participation from experts from the industry and research groups, according to officials at Smart Grid Update.

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