After much anticipation, Australia’s first smart grid Standard is open for public comment. DR AS 5711 Smart Grids Vocabulary was developed following extensive industry and stakeholder consultation.

A smart grid is defined as an electricity network that can intelligently integrate the actions of parties connected to it.

“When a new area of standardisation is first being developed, it’s customary to first start with an agreed vocabulary, which is precisely what this Standard does. Just to get to this point in any new set of Standards is a significant break-through,” says Standards Australia chief executive officer Colin Blair.

“The Standard describes key concepts, and lists terms and definitions relating to smart electricity grids, in the Australian context,” Colin says.

The Standard establishes common terminology for use in the electricity supply, electrical equipment, communications, appliance, consumer, government and other sectors involved in smart grids in Australia.

The need for this Standard was identified in the 2012 Standards Australia Smart Grid — Standards Roadmap, commissioned by the Federal Department of Resources, Energy and Tourism.

The report identified five foundation Standards required to expedite Smart Grid development: technical vocabularies, data security protocols, communication protocols, electromagnetic capability, and interconnection protocols. DR AS 5711 Smart Grids Vocabulary is the first of these.

The draft Standard was developed by Standards Australia Committee EL-062, Smart grids, comprising:

• Australian Communications and Media Authority
• Australian Energy Market Operator
• Australian Industry Group
• Chargepoint
• Consumer Electronics Suppliers Association
• Consumers Federation of Australia
• CSIRO
• Department of Resources, Energy and Tourism
• EE-OZ Training Standards
• Energy Networks Association
• Energy Retailers Association of Australia
• International Copper Association Australia
• Smart Grid Australia