Today, electrical generation systems are rarely used as isolated, stand-alone systems. More often, they need to communicate with peripheral devices, other generation systems, building-management systems or remote monitors. As a result, there are a number of technologies used to enable communication between electrical generation systems and other equipment. If you’re involved in specifying, installing or maintaining electrical generation systems, you’ll find it helpful to understand how these communication technologies work to meet your needs and the requirements of the building. It’s important to involve all stakeholders when you discuss integrating the existing systems with the electrical generation system. Mutual agreement on the needs and desired functionality will ensure a system that operates as required. Specifying the correct communication technologies at the beginning can save you and your clients hours of frustration as you try to make mismatched systems work or have installation delayed while you order the correct parts.
