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Weathering Storms with a Smart Grid
Tuesday, Jul 5, 2011 - Posted by Advertising Department [The following is a paid advertisement.] On June 21 powerful storms, including two tornadoes, struck ComEd’s service territory knocking out power to 440,000 customers. ComEd’s call center responded to nearly 600,000 calls and Web site traffic was at an all-time high as customers reported their outages and checked to find out when power would be restored. With more than 800 crews, working around the clock ComEd restored service to 90 percent of customers within the first 48 hours. Within three days, the company had restored power to virtually all customers, with some individual, isolated outages lingering into Saturday. Power outages are more than just an inconvenience; they lower productivity of the region’s economy and cost money. But what if smart grid technology had been in place?
o Technology would have pinpointed outages allowing us to dispatch crews more quickly to restore service. o Digital automation would have rerouted power meaning fewer customers would have been seen outages, and o Thousands of customers may have never experienced an outage. Why wait to modernize our electric grid? The time to act is now.
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It looks like the rest of the country is ready for a Smart Grid
Friday, Jun 17, 2011 - Posted by Advertising Department [The following is a paid advertisement.] Illinois lawmakers aren’t the only policymakers talking about benefits of Smart Grid deployment. A new White House report, A Policy Framework for the 21st Century Grid, says the future of clean energy and its potential for economic development and jobs relies on a smart grid. We agree. The White House report talks about building a “cost-effective smart grid,” “empowering consumers,” “facilitating a clean energy economy,” and “unlocking the potential for innovation.” Sound familiar? These are the same concepts embodied in Senate Bill 1652, the Energy Infrastructure Modernization Act. SB 1652 seeks to strengthen our economy and create 2,000 jobs by investing an estimated $3 billion in a modern grid — while also strengthening regulatory oversight, accountability by utilities and giving consumers new tools to reduce their own energy usage and costs. So, as the national conversation grows about the benefits of a smart grid on our economy, the environment, our homes and pocketbooks, Illinois is poised to become a leader rather than a follower. SB 1652 can help us deliver reliable power, bolster our economy and put Illinois at the forefront of innovation. For more information visit www.smartenergyIL.com or follow us on Twitter at SmartEnergyIL.
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