“The best time I could spend given our focus on enhancing the outage experience for our customers in the next 6 months. Timely, useful, and engaging material I am excited to share with others in my organization!” – Manager Product Development – CX, Avangrid Networks “EUCI brings together professionals with…
Municipal wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) that re-position themselves as Resource Recovery Facilities can leverage multiple revenue streams including those from renewable natural gas (RNG), environmental attributes of the RNG, tipping fees, recovered nutrients and fertilizer/soil amendments. Recently, environmental attributes of the RNG, such as Renewable Identification Numbers (RINs) and Low…
Managing new and upgraded transmission projects in the public right of way (ROW) is an increasingly complex and challenging process. Electric utilities and transmission developers must balance the competing interests of all stakeholders. Special attention is required at every stage of the process to ensure that reliability and capacity objectives…
With ever-increasing customer demands for a highly reliable supply of electric power and energy, distribution utilities must avail themselves of new technology and evolving design techniques to insure customer satisfaction. One of the newest and most effective ways to meet this challenge is through the use of fault location, isolation…
Few things can gum up a utility’s operations more completely than mismanaging supplier relationships, parts sourcing, and inventory. Today’s supply chains are the result of what we’ve done in the past; tomorrow’s supply chain will be the result of what we do today. So, a utility that is constantly examining…
While solar has been hot in terms of deal flow, investment and deployment in recent years, the energy storage industry is undergoing its own revolution and emergence into the main stream. Energy storage is a crucial tool for enabling the effective integration of renewable energy and unlocking the benefits of…
Today, most American households pay for electric service via a two-part electric rate. There are some variations on this two-part model – including energy rates that vary based on time of day or total monthly consumption. But, the basic structure of residential rates hasn’t changed much over a long period…
Learning Outcomes
This general introductory course provides some basic engineering concepts needed to understand how a coal-fired power plant works, followed by a general overview of power plant layout and operating principles. All major systems in the power plant will be discussed, from coal handling to the switchyard. Relationships between power plant…
Every year, utilities write off millions in bad debt caused by customers who don’t pay their electricity bills. Customers are getting more creative every day in avoiding paying outstanding utility debt, including trying to use a different name to establish new accounts, etc. Typically, the utility seeks to pass those…
Have you wondered how much energy could be saved by reducing energy losses by a small amount? As pressure increases for utilities to modernize their grids, industry experts are recognizing the significant energy savings and reliability benefits available through use of Volt/VAR Optimization (VVO). VVO systems have the ability to…
In recent years, the power industry has been undergoing fundamental changes. Aging coal plants are being rapidly retired. Nuclear plants are asking for (and receiving) multi-billion dollar subsidies. And the only new capacity additions being built are wind farms, utility-scale and distributed solar, and high-efficiency gas plants. As a consequence,…
From the explosion of Facebook to the Smart Grid and the rise of autonomous vehicles, the world is rapidly digitizing. The amount of data is exploding even as the value of accessing data in real time is increasing. This dynamic is resulting in a need for larger and more powerful…
“It was a great day. Took back lots of ideas and new contacts.” – Customer Contact Lead, Enbridge Gas “Each presentation was interesting, engaging and relevant in very distinct ways under the intriguing umbrella of the conference topic.” – Manager, Utility Partnerships, 3Degrees “EUCI conferences remain amongst my favorite opportunities…
We are pleased to announce our inaugural event, the Building Leadership: Women in Architecture, Engineering & Construction (AEC), taking place in Chicago on April 20th and 21st, 2017. This conference will bring together both women and men across related sectors in the AEC industry, leading the way on diversity and…
Many utilities in the traditionally coal power-dominated Southeast (SE) are significantly ramping up investments in renewable energy, as the states in which they operate adopt policies and implement strategies that promote the addition of solar, wind and other forms of renewable power. Two major utility contributors to this massive uptick…
The concept of storage batteries is not new to the electric power industry. However, the universal application of utility scale storage batteries as an integral component of the U.S. electric power industry transmission and distribution systems is quite new. Currently, the battery technology is on advancement trajectory with the expectation…
Always in plain view, but not always noticed, wood utility poles have been the backbone of the electric distribution system since the mid-19th century with the installation of the telegraph system. Today, with new technology, new standards, and new materials, it is getting increasingly difficult for utilities to determine what…
Transmission infrastructure projects are often characterized by high perceived risk and low stakeholder trust. A balance must be struck between the need for additional transmission development and landowner priorities, environmental impact considerations and regulatory compliance. A comprehensive strategic public participation process is a key tenet to the success of any…
Major advances in technology, combined with advances in the ease of access and information-sharing, have created a consumer whose expectations of customer service has increased dramatically. Add to that the rapidly growing use of mobile devices across all customer segments, which further promotes the use of mobile communications as an…
Similar to other industries (banking, healthcare, etc.), the energy industry views automated telephone calls and text messages as a current means of communication for a variety of reasons, such as notifying customers of energy-saving programs, unpaid balances, alternative billing arrangements or unplanned service outages. However, before utilizing automated calls or…
With the advent of new technology and advancing capabilities of electric vehicles, it is vital for utilities to understand how EVs effect the power grid and how utilities can take advantage of this new technology. In order for utilities to benefit from the increased popularity of EVs, the industry must…
Electric vehicles hold significant potential for improving local air quality, reducing carbon emissions, and stimulating electricity demand. According to analysts at Argonne National Laboratory, electric vehicles will make up 58% of the light vehicle market by 2030. Customers with electric vehicles use nearly 60% more electricity than the average customer.…
The Aboriginal Energy Challenge is a Forum that provides timely information on the most recent developments in the energy, economic development and legal sectors that are engaging aboriginal participation in energy and economic development projects. The program will focus on the topics like the First Nations participation in energy projects including the…
At this unique forum, you will hear top executives from the area’s RTOs, utilities, transmission developers, and state regulatory agencies discuss and debate the most critical issues surrounding transmission expansion in the Midwest region. You will have the opportunity to brainstorm with these thought leaders on how to address complex…
For many utility industry observers, it’s not a matter of whether drones will be integrated into the operational landscape—it’s when. The practical applications of unmanned aircraft systems (UASs) are poised to transform the industry with strong implications for worker safety, system reliability, and data collection & storage. The opportunity to…
Filters in a Water Plant are the last barrier to prevent particulate and microbial contamination and they have a profound effect on the plant effluent water quality. It is important to periodically assess the condition of the filters and optimize their operation. This involves a comprehensive understanding of filter problems,…
The increasing penetration of renewable energy resources — combined with the gradual, but inexorable, shift away from traditional baseload generation and other changes in the distribution and grid profile — are creating new challenges for utilities/load-serving entities, balancing area authorities and transmission system operators. The need for grid-integrated resources that…
This conference will explore the impacts of new climate policies and programs being implemented in Alberta and Saskatchewan to help the provinces reach their 2030 renewable generation targets, specifically: The Climate Leadership Plan and Alberta’s Renewable Electricity Program (REP) currently being designed by the Alberta Electric System Operator (AESO) to…
Guys and anchors are critical to support the tension of conductors on distribution lines. The reliability of the distribution line is dependent on the proper design of these assemblies. The design of these assemblies is based on the tension of the line and 2012 National Electric Safety Code requirements for…
Choosing whether to maintain or upgrade hydropower plant components can be difficult. Technology and design techniques continue to evolve, allowing vast improvements to equipment. Poor original equipment reliability can force changes, but often a detailed cost-benefit analysis is needed to make decisions. The question many decision-makers ask is: “Do we…
Microgrids are a fundamental tool in enabling today’s grid modernization by addressing growing demand, distributed generation, and environmental pressures among other challenges. Microgrids offer new technology and service choices for customers and can be designed and operated to meet the needs of specific customers in contrast to the utility grid,…
In recent years, utilities and other load-serving entities (LSEs) have increasingly been evaluating battery storage resources as a supplemental technology to enhance the value of solar energy systems. These solar-plus-storage energy systems could potentially be the key to balance the intermittency of solar generation, providing greater grid reliability and enhancing…
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