Interaction of EMS related systems by using the CIM standard

Abstract

Energy distribution companies nowadays use different IT-systems from vendors within their infrastructure. Those systems often use proprietary data exchange formats and must be connected to other systems. Building specialized adaptors for interconnection between the systems is the most common and time-consuming task for IT-departments at energy companies. The Common Information Model (CIM) establishes a common language and domain model for energy management systems and related data structures. Instead of connecting all systems and building up a meshed net, it is possible to connect the systems to a an integration platform using the CIM as a common language. This paper will discuss the CIM and its benefits and focusses on a current industrial project conducted by the authors which integrates CIM as a standard for data exchange between energy management related systems.