Broome Community College is officially in the wind business. College leaders on Wednesday unveiled the college’s 40-feet-tall wind turbine — “or upside down egg beater, however you prefer to refer to it,” said BCC President Kevin Drumm. Students from multiple departments will use the turbine as part of their studies — including engineering, art, business, Continue reading →
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Homes in rural locations or with poor broadband connections could now be fitted with smart meters, helping occupants and industry save money and energy. Bglobal, a provider of smart energy solutions and NEUL, a white space specialist have successfully carried out a trial in which smart meter readings have been taken remotely over a distance Continue reading →
According to a report provided by IDC, “Energy Insights Worldwide Utility Smart Grid Spending Forecast, 2010-2015?, expenditure on smart grid technology will increase globally by 2015. In the midst of its prediction that smart grid spending will increase by 17.4 percent from 2010 to 2015 — whereas overall spending will reach $46.4 billion — London Continue reading →
The metering industry has called for the proposed European Union (EU) energy efficiency directive (EED) to set mandatory requirements for smart meters to provide minimum functionalities and energy consumption and cost information. The EED, now the subject of haggling by the European Parliament and the European Council of EU governments, would otherwise fail to achieve Continue reading →
Asia is quickly becoming a center of global smart grid activity. The cumulative smart grid market in China, Japan and South Korea is currently valued at US$8.5 billion, with that number forecasted to increase to $19 billion by 2016, according to GTM Research’s latest market report, The Smart Grid in Asia, 2012-2016: Markets, Technologies and Continue reading →
The connected residential market is a fast evolving segment influenced by a number of emerging industry trends. Recent developments in the implementation of end-to-end smart grid at the utility level, as well as changes witnessed in the area of managed home devices and systems, are expected to further impact the dynamics of this market segment. Continue reading →
The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) has released the 802.15.4g radio standard, a global wireless networking standard establishes common and consistent communication specifications for utilities deploying smart grid technologies. The standard enables interoperable communications between smart grid devices, including smart meters and smart home appliances. via IEEE establishes consistent smart grid deployment specs Continue reading →
We touched a nerve on Monday when I asked a basic question in a column titled “Is `Saving Money’ the Right Smart Grid Pitch?” The occasion was a couple newspaper articles on Commonwealth Edison’s grid modernization work in Chicagoland. I based my premise, essentially, on the lead sentence of one article from the Joliet Herald-News, Continue reading →
Richard Ford doesn’t like the term smart grid. “It means different things to different people,” says the manager of grid solutions at Toronto Hydro. “The term has become overused. It gets in the way.” Many hydro customers in the city associate the term with the smart meters in their homes and the time-of-use pricing they Continue reading →
Elster has been contracted to supply 80,000 smart meters to households in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, by local utility Light. The order follows the successful deployment of 20,000 units in the neighbourhoods of Tabajaras, Cabritos and Borel, in the first half of 2011. The advanced metering system was developed in Brazil and allows the utility Continue reading →
BMW has taken another step in what is shaping up to be a multifaceted electric vehicle initiative that focuses on spurring infrastructure and lifestyle changes among consumers, as much as touting the vehicles themselves. A new partnership between BMW and Real Goods Solar, a Louisville, Colo.-based provider of residential and commercial solar technology, will allow Continue reading →
S&C Electric Company, a smart grid leader shaping the future of reliable electric delivery, today announces an agreement to bundle application control software from McAfee into S&C’s PC-based control platforms. This bundling will allow S&C to enhance the security and protection of its control platforms that use commercial, off-the-shelf operating systems. “Cybersecurity is a concern Continue reading →
An interesting video from NOVA scienceNOW illustrates the immense challenges and opportunities faced in modernizing the US electricity grid. In the video, Eric Lightner, Director of the Federal Smart Grid Task Force at the Department of Energy (DOE), addresses how smart grid is the best way to make the largest most interconnected machine – the Continue reading →
The term “smart grid” means many things to many people, but for solar and utility engineers, the effort around perfecting solar smart grid tools has focused on refining the grid-capable properties of inverters and storage components. Communications protocols are being drafted and harmonized, and component manufacturers and utilities are entering a new phase of testing Continue reading →
Customer backlash over new technology for measuring power usage is slowing utilities’ efforts to upgrade their networks. As utilities such as Pacific Gas and Electric Co., Central Maine Power Co. and Central Vermont Public Service Corp. push forward with installations of “smart meters” — wireless digital technology that monitors electricity usage and transmits data in Continue reading →
Boing Boing science editor Maggie Koerth-Baker has built a career out of demystifying complicated science and technology issues. With her recent book, Before the Lights Go Out: Conquering the Energy Crisis Before it Conquers Us, she set herself the gargantuan task of explaining the evolution and potential fates of American energy system—from our wood-stove days Continue reading →
Siemens has developed an energy-storage system that can act as a buffer in electrical power grids. The aim is to provide a buffer against short-term fluctuations in output from renewable energy sources. Such fluctuations can last for seconds or several minutes long. The modular designed Siestorage battery is based on lithium-ion rechargeable battery technology and Continue reading →
A new town modeled after Rock Hill will soon rise from the New Mexico desert. Portions of the town will look like downtown Rock Hill, while other areas will resemble local neighborhoods, industrial sites, and even farm land. If you look closely, you may be able to pick out familiar east-west streets such as Dave Continue reading →
The numbers, when it comes to the overall smart grid category, are big. This week, for instance, ABI Research released a report that said the sector will reach $65 billion annually by 2017. That’s a lot of money, even to Mitt Romney. And 2017 only is five years off. The press release paints a very Continue reading →
Convincing consumers to accept smart grid technology will not be an easy task, but it is vitally important if grid modernization is to achieve its full potential, according to participants who took part in a roundtable discussion hosted by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and Great River Energy. One big obstacle is conveying the Continue reading →
