FOCUS: Smart Grid 2014

Smart grid technology has the capacity to increase energy efficiency by improving awareness among consumers about the connection between electricity use and the environment. On Wednesday, November 5, experts will convene at the German Center for Research and Innovation (GCRI) in New York to review the technology’s past successes and future challenges.

NEW YORK (October 30, 2014) – After sequential hurricanes in 2011 and 2012, New Yorkers experienced firsthand how an electricity disruption can have a domino effect – a series of failures that affect transportation, communications, and security. A smarter grid adds resiliency to electrical power systems and makes them better prepared to address emergencies, such as severe storms, earthquakes, heat waves, and terrorist attacks. In addition, the smart grid is one way to address an aging energy infrastructure that needs to be upgraded or replaced. The smart grid not only provides a unique opportunity to propel the energy industry into a new era of reliability, availability, and efficiency, but it can also have a positive impact on the economy and the environment. On Wednesday, November 5, 2014, join experts from Germany and the U.S. for a panel discussion at the German Center for Research and Innovation in New York on smart grid technology.

Prof. Dr. Ingo Stadler, Professor for Renewable Energies and Energy Economics at the Cologne University of Applied Sciences, will speak. He will provide an overview of what is occurring in Germany with regards to this technology, what is holding the country back, and where the technology is headed. He will begin his presentation by defining what the smart grid is before addressing its importance and relevance in contemporary Germany. Additionally, he will present new research developments in the field and explain how modern applications of smart grid research affect people in their everyday lives. He will also describe how the smart grid affects consumers in Germany and how it affects and delivers improvements to German industry. Lastly, Prof. Dr. Stadler will discuss whether new smart grid developments from Germany could be interesting for research and industry in the U.S. as well as what opportunities for research collaboration exist for Germany and the U.S.

In his presentation, Prof. Dr. Stadler will draw upon years of expertise in renewable energy, both in academia as well as in private sector projects. From 2001 until 2005, he served as Associate Director of the Department for Efficient Energy Conversion at the University of Kassel in Germany. In 2006, Dr. Stadler finished his Habilitation on “Demand Response: Non-Electrical Energy Storage for Electricity Supply Systems with High Renewable Energy Penetration.” In 2009, he joined the scientific board of the Dubrovnik Conferences on Sustainable Development of Energy, Water, and Environment Systems and became a guest editor of the peer-reviewed journal Applied Energy. Since 2006, he has been a member of the scientific board of the annual International Renewable Energy Storage Conference (IRES).

Margarett Jolly, P.E., Director of Research and Development at the Consolidated Edison Company, will also speak. Like Prof. Dr. Stadler, she will also address how to define smart grid technology, both for the commercial and residential sectors. In addition, she will also explain why this topic is relevant to the general public. At Con Edison, Ms. Jolly is responsible for driving innovative technology solutions to support strategy and operations that advance the safe, reliable, and resilient delivery of electricity, natural gas, and steam. She manages the $15M regulator-approved budget and partners with industry as well as stakeholders to identify and execute demonstrations of new technologies and processes. She has been with Con Edison since 1997, most recently as the Distributed Generation (DG) Ombudswoman. Ms. Jolly’s previous career at Con Edison included power plant control room/instrumentation and control systems and boiler operations, regulatory and energy markets policy, and electric distribution engineering for DG interconnections. She graduated from New York City Technical College in 1993 and from The Cooper Union in 1997 with a B.E. in Mechanical Engineering. Ms. Jolly has been a licensed professional engineer in New York State since 2004. She speaks regularly about the changing role of the electric distribution platform and customer engagement.

Jeremiah Miller, Senior Analyst at Smarter Grid Solutions, will moderate the discussion. He will draw upon his 12 years of engineering experience, which he applies to renewable energy, energy efficiency, storage, and regulatory and financial assessments, to help Smarter Grid Solutions perform power analysis of electric networks for real-time automated control to double or triple clean energy hosting as well as to offer community micro grid control solutions.

This panel discussion will take place on Wednesday, November 5, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m., at the German Center for Research and Innovation (871 United Nations Plaza, First Avenue, btw. 48th & 49th Streets). To RSVP by November 3, visit: http://form.jotformpro.com/form/42585615038963

Unable to attend? Follow @gcri_ny and the hashtag #SmartGrid for live tweets. A video recording will be available on www.germaninnovation.org shortly after the event.

This event is co-sponsored by the German Center for Research and Innovation (GCRI), Consulate General of the Federal Republic of Germany, New York, German American Chambers of Commerce, Inc. (GACC), UAS7 German Universities of Applied Sciences, and The Urban Institute.

The German Center for Research and Innovation provides information and support for the realization of cooperative and collaborative projects between North America and Germany. With the goal of enhancing communication on the critical challenges of the 21st century, GCRI hosts a wide variety of events from lectures and exhibitions to workshops and science dinners. Opened in February 2010, GCRI was created as a cornerstone of the German government’s initiative to internationalize science and research and is one of five centers worldwide.

Media Contact:
Jennifer Audet
Communications Officer
German Center for Research and Innovation
871 United Nations Plaza
New York, NY 10017
(212) 339 8680, ext. 302

This release was published on openPR.