CALABASAS, Calif. and CULVER CITY, Calif., Jan. 13, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- National Technical Systems, Inc. (NTS), a leading provider of testing and engineering services, announced today that it has been selected by Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) as the first provider of validation testing of ZigBee Home Area Network (HAN) devices for use with PG&E SmartMeters™. NTS is now performing validation testing for PG&E at the NTS Advanced Technology division located in Culver City, CA.

PG&E SmartMeters contain a radio for use in home and business area networking which, when activated by PG&E customers, can make electricity usage information available to compatible HAN devices. These HAN devices show how much electricity is being used in real-time to help consumers make educated choices in their energy use.

Based on a PG&E-developed test procedure, NTS is testing HAN devices, which are based on the ZigBee networking standard, to verify that they can correctly communicate with the PG&E SmartMeter. Testing is performed using actual PG&E SmartMeters installed in the NTS Advanced Technology facility specifically for this purpose. HAN devices that successfully complete the testing will be listed on the PG&E website.

"NTS' selection as the first test lab to perform validation testing on behalf of PG&E strengthens our leadership position in the testing of Smart Energy and Smart Grid devices focused on the consumer market," said NTS CTO Osman Sakr. "With the further expansion of the Smart Grid market, it's important to verify that devices function with the specific equipment they are going to be used with—in this case, PG&E's SmartMeters and the associated back-end equipment. NTS is looking forward to helping PG&E's partners bring these devices to market for PG&E's consumers."

About NTS Advanced Technology
NTS Advanced Technology, located in Culver City, CA, provides a wide range of testing and compliance services, as well as managed services, to the consumer products industry including computer software and hardware sectors. As a leader in the computer testing industry, NTS provides high quality testing services which range from standard hardware and software testing to the development of complex certification and compliance programs for the telecom and other industries. Highlights of the NTS Advanced Technology capabilities include quality assurance testing services, performance and benchmark results, certification and compliance programs, development tools—customer automation tests and validation tools and customized program development tools. For more information about NTS Advanced Technology, visit www.nts-at.com.

About National Technical Systems
National Technical Systems, Inc. is a leading provider of engineering services to the aerospace, defense, telecommunications, automotive and high technology markets. Through a world-wide network of resources, NTS provides full product life-cycle support, offering world class design engineering, compliance, testing, certification, quality registration and program management. For additional information about NTS, visit our website at www.nts.com or call 800-270-2516.

SOURCE National Technical Systems, Inc.