Hortonworks and Open Energi to Optimize Power Grids with Hadoop
Hortonworks, the company focused on Big Data-crunching open source platform Hadoop, has a number of partners and customers who have helped to illustrate that Hadoop's capabilities can be thrown at all kinds of new tasks.
In the latest example of that trend, Hortonworks announced it has expanded its European customer base with the addition of Open Energi, a company focused on delivering a much smarter energy grid in Europe.
Open Energi has selected the Hortonworks Data Platform (HDP) to transform the way energy is delivered and consumed through smart grids with Hadoop-powered, real-time, Internet of Things (IoT) data.
Smart grids, powered by real-time sensor data, allow energy consumption to be managed based on immediate demand and supply data rather than historic patterns of energy use. With HDP, the industry's only Open Enterprise Hadoop solution, Open Energi will help organizations gain valuable insights by analyzing real-time information based on data streamed from over 3,000 electricity consuming assets and meters around the United Kingdom.
Using HDP, Open Energi forecasts that it will collect, store and analyze sensor data containing information about real-time electricity consumption and control processes more efficiently and at a far greater scale than previously possible. Additionally, HDP will provide a single view of all this information to enable organizations to react swiftly to changing conditions on the grid, and identify ways to generate extra revenue from existing assets, maximize energy savings and spot opportunities to reduce CO2 emissions.
"Our vision is to build the world's first virtual power station and we aim to do that by developing a smarter platform built around smarter demand," explained David Hill, Business Development Director, Open Energi. "Using the HDP in combination with the IoT will enable us to make connections between a wider range of disparate datasets at a far greater scale, so that we can provide organisations with a previously unattainable level of insight into their use of energy and ultimately create an energy system which is cleaner, cheaper and more secure."
As more devices connect to the IoT, an ever-increasing amount of data is being created that can purportedly offer insight into a number of areas. In addition to supporting the optimization of smart grids, Open Enterprise Hadoop's ability to accommodate over 1 trillion files through an internet-scale storage layer might be used to track everything from weather patterns to supporting the healthcare industry to more effectively record and monitor patients' vital statistics and other health indicators.
"Data is the driving force behind a smarter energy grid and with access to more accurate technology, it is now possible to build a far more detailed picture of energy usage," said Andy Leaver, Vice President of International Operations, Hortonworks. "Through its use of the Hortonworks Data Platform, Open Energi will have real-time information and insight into grid conditions that can be fed back to customers help them make more informed decisions about their energy consumption. This collaboration is a great example of Hortonworks' momentum internationally as more customers in more industries turn to Hortonworks to solve their big data problems."