Dulles, VA January
26, 2009 – Encore
Networks today announced that the
North Carolina Electric Membership
Cooperative (NCEMC) has standardized
on Encore’s industrially
hardened (rugged) router, the BANDIT™,
for their Supervisory Control and
Data Acquisition (SCADA) platform
upgrade. The BANDIT™ will
provide multiple NCEMC electrical
cooperatives with a secure method
for converting legacy SCADA protocols
for transport over Frame Relay
and IP networks.
SCADA networks transmit and monitor
critical automated meter reading,
usage, and real-time billing information
while controlling the functions
for power distribution. These SCADA
networks must now meet Critical
Infrastructure Protection (CIP)
requirements mandated by the National
Electrical Reliability Corporation
(NERC).
“As is the case with all utility
companies, the NCEMC cooperatives
are being pushed by government regulations
and industry initiatives to improve
the security of their internal SCADA
networks,” stated Bruce Russell,
Encore Networks Vice-President of
Business Development. “The
BANDIT meets all applicable CIP and
NERC security requirements and allows
utilities to better manage the increasing
flow of data and control traffic
from additional energy management
applications.”
Traditionally, utilities have monitored
information from Remote Terminal
Units (RTU’s) using leased
analog lines. With the move towards
digital methods of transport, the
costs to maintain these analog lines
have increased. In response, utilities
are seeking more cost-effective,
IP-based solutions that accommodate
SCADA.
The BANDIT™ ensures
secure system data and SCADA network
connections directly to a Wide Area
Network (WAN) and/or Local Area Network
(LAN), or commercial cellular data
IP services. The BANDIT™ is
a rugged security router with integrated
firewall, terminal server, serial-to-IP
conversion, legacy-protocol conversion,
and VPN functionality. Its hardened
construction allows for operation
over the wide temperature ranges
found at remote substations.
Utility customers have complete
freedom to configure the BANDIT™ to
any transmission service including
Frame Relay, VSAT, cellular wireless,
cable modem, DSL, fiber, microwave
and dial-up. With its extensive failover
capabilities, the BANDIT™ allows
any network connection to serve as
either a primary or back-up WAN service.
The BANDIT™ supports
all variants of the SCADA protocol,
both bit- and byte-oriented, with
encryption of all traffic and complete
remote management capabilities.
“Interruptions in communications
drive up our costs,” said Ken
Moore, Director of Field Engineering
Services for NCEMC. “With the
BANDIT installed at all of our power
delivery points, we can take advantage
of IP-based technologies allowing
us to operate in a more reliable
and economical way.”
For more information about Encore
Networks and its complete line of
industrially hardened and commercial
grade routers, visit www.encorenetworks.com or
e-mail sales@encorenetworks.com. |
