As most of our regular readers know, May-June is our annual Customer Service & Support issue. Therefore, the Automation/IT Leadership Series interview is with the executive team of one of the most prominent – and arguably, the most unusual – suppliers serving the CIS (Customer Information Systems) marketplace. That company is Harris Computer Systems of Ottawa, Ontario. Why do I say unusual? Well, how many companies do you know that actually compete with themselves… intentionally?!

Jeff Bender, Harris’ CEO, prefers to call it Customer Choice, and thanks to a string of synergistic acquisitions over the past few years, his company provides a breadth and depth of product offerings that might legitimately challenge the notion that you can’t be everything to everyone. In any case, I think you’ll be intrigued by the way Harris has woven together a network of companies into one of the most successful companies in the automation/IT business. We think you’ll enjoy taking this brief tour of the inner sanctum of this interesting company and learning more about their unique business model.

This issue also contains the second installment of 2009 in our Executive Directions series. My interview is with Elliott Boardman, Executive Director of the Peak Load Management Alliance (PLMA), an organization dedicated to the principles of Demand Response (DR). These days, DR is one of the fastest growing areas in the marketplace as the whole notion of broad-based demand reduction as both a cost saving and environmentally conscious set of conservation initiatives takes hold.

The LightsOn feature in this issue is similarly – and we think, appropriately – focused on DR, illustrating just how creative suppliers and utilities can be when they focus their ideas and innovation squarely on saving energy. The system makes use of Southern California Edison’s existing SCADA network, comprising two communications channels: A satellite network and a separate radio network with events capable of being scheduled through either network, independent of one another.

Our featured article in this issue by Fiserv (formerly CheckFree) examines the growing acceptance of Electronic Bill Payment & Presentment (EBPP). EBPP is not a new concept, but rather one that is now rapidly gaining momentum, especially with Internet usage on the rise and becoming more of a basic necessity with each passing day.

Indeed, a 2008 study by Javelin Strategy & Research focusing on electronic payments predicted that 83 million households would be banking online by 2013, with 45 million paying bills through banks and credit unions. Among other things, the Fiserv article delves into both the challenges and opportunities associated with the projected rise in EBPP as well as tips for motivating customers to develop their online experience with utilities through various forms of electronic payment acceptance.

Javelin also forecasts that 56 million consumers will view bills at the billing organization websites, while 54 million will pay bills there, which strongly suggests that EBPP is at the very least, a way – if not the way – of the future.

Two utility case studies – one at Nevada Power (one of America’s largest and most progressive utilities), and another at Blue Water Power (a Canadian distribution utility in Sarnia, Ontario, located about 65 miles northeast of Detroit and the result of a merger of six local utilities in the year 2000) provide intimate assessments of how automation and technology have been harnessed to address the daunting challenges of rapid growth and organizational expansion.

Fault isolation, detection and restoration (FDIR) is a topic that we’re hearing more and more about as utilities, consumers and suppliers alike wrestle with the looming issues surrounding grid reliability and integrity. The article by three of ABB’s top power engineering specialists walks us through the methods and technologies associated with reducing customer outage duration, improving service reliability and taking a major step toward achieving the self-healing distribution network we increasingly associate with Smart Grid initiatives.

As we navigate the uncertain waters of a volatile economy, we eagerly await the promise contained in a massive economic stimulus package intended to provide funding for the huge backlog of projects long overdue to repair, restore and modernize our aging infrastructure and help stem the decline in power engineering staffers. Trying to understand exactly how these dollars will affect the power industry, however, can be a very difficult task for even the most knowledgeable individuals.

To that point, the article from Gregory K. Lawrence – a partner in the Energy and Derivatives Markets Group of global law firm McDermott Will & Emery – offers up-to-date guidance and insights relative to recent FERC actions and a glimpse into the role that standards will likely play in the implemen­tation of FERC’s Smart Grid plans. Perhaps even more interesting, however, is the rate recovery component of the overall plan – a topic that has remained on most utility agendas ever since talk of grid transformation and the term “Smart Grid” first became part of our industry vernacular.