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Iowa Rural Electric Cooperatives Group Select OSI to Upgrade its Distribution SCADA Systems

Open Systems International, Inc. (OSI) has been chosen by a joint group of Rural Electric Cooperatives (REC) to replace an aging SCADA system.

Eastern Iowa REC, East-Central Iowa REC and Linn County REC are members of the Iowa Association of Electric Cooperatives. The three cooperatives routinely work together on matters of joint interest for the purpose of reducing costs and sharing staff resources and expertise. Together they bring power to portions of more than 20 counties in eastern Iowa.

The main motivation for the selection of OSI's monarch™ system was the implementation of a modern, flexible, reliable, and secure system. OSI expects to aid the three REC's with their commitment to deliver power that is safe, reliable, environmentally responsible and affordable by providing its state-of-the-art monarch platform as the base platform for automation initiatives including future Smart Grid and Green Energy initiatives.

These next-generation SCADA systems are based on the OSI monarch platform and include Data Acquisition and Control, DNP serial and IP communications, Historical Information System, Calculation and Trending Subsystems, Open Database Connectivity Support, and Disturbance Data Collection and Review.

Tom Lebakken of Sugar Hill Consulting, LLC (SHC) led the effort on a comprehensive process for technical assessment, specification, and evaluation of suppliers proposals for this project. SHC (www.sugarhillconsulting.net) provides electric utilities with engineering and technology consulting and implementation services.

Linn County Rural Electric Cooperative (www.linncountyrec.com) is a not-for-profit, member owned electric distribution cooperative serving more than 23,000 members in portions of six counties in eastern Iowa. Its membership includes residential and commercial accounts in rural and suburban areas of Linn and Johnson counties with line extensions into Jones, Cedar, Iowa and Benton counties.

Eastern Iowa REC (www.easterniowa.com) is Iowa's largest distribution electric cooperative with 25,000 meters. It serves a diverse membership that includes traditional farm operations, rural housing areas, industrial and commercial developments and recreational facilities. The Eastern Iowa rural service area covers all or portions of 12 counties, stretching along the Mississippi River.

East-Central Iowa REC (www.ecirec.coop) serves approximately 7,350 member-consumers and over 2,200 miles of electric lines, in 11 Iowa counties. It is a non-profit REC with operation centers located in Vinton and Independence, Iowa each supporting a full line crew and member service department.

OSI (www.osii.com) provides open, state-of-the-art, and high-performance automation solutions to electric utilities worldwide. These solutions include Energy Management Systems (EMS), Distribution Management Systems (DMS), Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) Systems, and Generation Management Systems (GMS), as well as individual software products and e-business solutions for electric utility operations. OSI is headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA.

For additional information regarding this news release please contact news@osii.com.