“We are excited at the prospect of helping develop a measurement standard that makes the entire U.S. Smart Grid more stable, while utilizing renewable energy efficiently and effectively,” said Barbara Hulit, Fluke president.

Fluke’s new calibration technology will be used to calibrate Phasor Measurement Units (PMUs)—a gating technology that measures the health of the electrical power grid. PMUs measure and evaluate power flowing into the grid from diverse sources. Grid distribution centres then use this information to determine where/when to send power across transmission lines, leading to a more efficient use of energy and lessening the risk of power interruptions and outages.

PMUs identify the preconditions that lead to power interruptions. The Canada-U.S. investigation into the Northeast blackout of 2003 hypothesized that, had a system of PMUs been in place, the grid collapse could have been avoided. Fluke also says that, according to a study at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, power interruptions cost the U.S. economy about $79 billion annually, or about one third of what the nation spends on electricity.

Fluke will develop the calibrator over the next 26 months and, as part of the grant, will invest $390,000 of its own money in the development effort.

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