Electricity Today T&D Magazine – Substations And The Grid 2006 Special Edition

In this issue, we take a focused look at how substations are evolving to meet the demands of a digital, DER-heavy grid. As utilities move away from legacy hardwired architectures, technologies such as IEC 61850 networking, DERMS, FLISR, and AI-driven diagnostics are becoming central to how substations are designed, secured, and maintained.

Digital substations are replacing point-to-point copper wiring with fiber-optic networks, enabling faster fault isolation and vendor interoperability, while rising DER penetration is turning substations into active two-way coordination points. Cybersecurity frameworks like NERC CIP and IEC 62443 are pushing utilities to build network security into digital substation design from day one, and AI is beginning to dissolve the line between protection and maintenance through predictive diagnostics and thermal imaging.

Together, these developments reflect a clear industry movement toward smarter, more resilient, and more connected substations. This edition brings these themes together to help professionals understand the technologies and engineering practices defining the next generation of substation intelligence.

Read Our Feature Articles

• Digital Substations and the IEC 61850 Standard: The Architecture Behind Today's Smart Grid
• Substations in a DER-Heavy Grid: DERMS, FLISR, and Grid-Enhancing Technologies
• Substation Cybersecurity in the Digital Era: NERC CIP, IEC 62443, and Protecting the IEC 61850 Network
• From Protection to Prediction: How AI Is Changing Substation Maintenance and Operations