A concept solution architecture for electrical distribution control centres

Established network operator control systems continue to evolve, but are neither homogenous nor necessarily designed to scale with the pace of change required to meet decarbonisation aims. Intrinsic to `smart' and `autonomic' power system concepts is a need for adaptive and accordingly more flexible control philosophies, grounded in reflexive systems able to balance local optima with global conditions. To bridge technological differences between these aspirations and foundational infrastructure in place today, principles and techniques in solution architecture are explored. A solution architecture concept design is presented in this paper, primarily intended as a basis for more detailed design iterations toward vendor- and operator-agnostic control systems, and in support of control system scalability and flexibility. Operator aspirations are ambitious, such that systems risk growing in complexity. This risk and associated mitigations are highlighted and incorporated within the proposed design.