PLANO,
Texas, Oct. 25, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Evergy
(NYSE: EVRG), Ericsson (NASDAQ: ERIC) and Burns & McDonnell
have launched a new private LTE (PLTE) core and radio access
network (RAN) to help enable grid modernization efforts at Evergy,
a U.S. investor-owned utility, in record time. The project created
one unified network capable of supporting an array of both known
and future-focused use cases to modernize the grid, increasing
reliability and safety while decreasing latency for
mission-critical applications.
Headquartered in Kansas City,
Missouri, and Topeka,
Kansas, Evergy awarded the project to Ericsson in
March 2022 with 20 PLTE sites planned
in the initial deployment for 2022 to support a smart grid. With
the first of these originally set to be completed by October 2022, Evergy expedited the cell site
build plan and launched the first site in May 2022, in less than two months from the
project award.
"Early in 2021, we identified several use cases that would
result in better resiliency and efficiency for Evergy customers. By
building a private LTE network we have a more secure and reliable
means of transmitting grid data into our back-office systems for
processing. Burns & McDonald has been heavily involved
from the initial design work and Ericsson has been a critical
partner in the deployment of their RAN technology," said
Gary Johnson. Sr. Director of IT
infrastructure and Security for Evergy.
"We've commercially deployed and operated secure
mission-critical network solutions for both investor-owned
utilities and rural municipal utilities across North America," said Per Wahlen, Vice President and Head of Business
Development at Ericsson North America. "Evergy in partnership with
Burns & McDonnell chose Ericsson not only for our ability to
deliver against aggressive timelines but for our technology
leadership, meeting capital efficiency KPIs, and focus on security
and safety."
For the project, Evergy leveraged experienced utility
telecommunications consultant Burns & McDonnell to assist with
designing the private network and support the build-out management.
Evergy is deploying Ericsson's cloud-native dual-mode 5G Core and
private RAN network, which supports both LTE and 5G, allowing for a
smooth transition to future 5G services. In addition, through a
wide portfolio of additional operational and business support
services as well as managed services provision, Ericsson is fully
supporting Evergy's ability to rapidly expand the use of PLTE to
enable smart grid applications.
"The close collaboration among all parties is what made it
possible to complete this project so quickly," said Matt Olson, Vice President at Burns &
McDonnell. "We all came together with creative ideas to strengthen
the entire effort, giving Evergy a vital, powerful network that
will help its communities for years to come."
By investing in grid modernization and rapidly deploying PLTE,
Evergy is now better equipped to deliver reliable power to
customers and fulfill the potential of its strategic Sustainability
Transformation Plan for its customers and stakeholders. The new
PLTE network will support a variety of utility use cases, including
accelerating decarbonization of the grid, engineering access, fault
circuit indicators, line regulators and advanced metering
infrastructure solutions.
NOTES TO EDITORS:
Getting the energy utilities industry connected
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SOURCE Ericsson