Solar Power International ‘09: Here Comes The Sun
October 29, 2009 by iCeL Team · 3 Comments
The Solar Power International ‘09 conference in Anaheim, California hosted 900 exhibitors and 20,000 attendees. Esteemed keynote speakers included Robert Kennedy, Jr. New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson, and US Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis. Eco entertainer Ed Begley also gave an inspiring account of how much the environment has improved in the last three decades due to changes in consumer behavior, renewable technology, and government legislation.
Robert Kennedy, Jr., lifelong environmental advocate and currently a senior attorney at the National Resources Defense Council, spoke of the coming democratization of energy distribution in America. Mr. Kennedy described a recent breakfast he had with a number of political dignitaries including US Energy Secretary Steven Chu, Al Gore, Bill Clinton, the EPA’s Lisa Jackson, Dept. of the Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, and Senators Jeff Bingaman, Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid among others. The discussion centered around the creation of a national grid system that would allow all Americans to participate in the energy marketplace through the exchange of renewable power that their home or business produces. This incredible scenario is just one example of the many ways in which solar energy integration is evolving.
iCeL Systems CTO Dr. Wartena was heartened by his experience at Solar Power International ‘09. After walking the floor of SPI ‘09, he stated enthusiastically, “I was really impressed by the aesthetic integration that solar panels have made. Many of them don’t even look like solar panels anymore. They look like sleek plates of black glass.” The barrier for solar adoption based on appearance seems to finally be dissolving, at the same time as government resistance. At Solar Power International 2009, it was clear to all- times they are a’changing.
Obama Announces $3.4B In Smart Grid Technology
October 27, 2009 by iCeL Team · 4 Comments
President Obama toured the DeSoto Next Generation Solar Energy Center this past week in Arcadia, Florida. With the nation’s largest photovoltaic array as his backdrop, Obama announced the US government’s massive investment into Smart Grid infrastructure under the Recovery Act. “We are making the largest-ever investment in a smarter, stronger, and more secure electric grid. This investment will come in the form of 100 grants totaling $3.4 billion- grants that will go to private companies, utilities, cities, and other partners who have applied with plans to install smart grid technologies in their area.”
The President emphasized the importance of smart meter technology and explained the concept in detail for families across America, “Smart meters will allow you to actually monitor how much energy your family is using by the month, by the week, by the day, or even by the hour. So coupled with other technologies, this is going to help you manage your electricity use and your budget at the same time, allowing you to conserve electricity during times when prices are highest, like hot summer days. Through these investments in a variety of smart grid technologies, utilities like Florida Power & Light will also be able to monitor the performance of its electricity grid in real time, which means they’ll be able to identify and correct service interruptions more quickly and effectively. And all this information will help increase renewable energy generation, provide support for plug-in electric vehicles, and reduce the carbon pollution that causes climate change.”
Obama summed up his momentous address with a balance of optimism and realism. “At this moment, there’s something big happening in America when it comes to creating a clean energy economy, but getting there will take a few more days like this one, and more projects like this one.”
Study States 60% Of The US Capable Of Energy Self-Reliance
October 5, 2009 by iCeL Team · 2 Comments
According to a recent study by the New Rules Project, 31 states in the US have the potential to generate all the energy they require from renewable resources, and then some. “As the map shows, about a dozen states have renewable energy capacities far exceeding their internal needs. This has encouraged the current federal emphasis on extra high voltage transmission lines. However, the map also reveals that over 60% of all U.S. states (31) can be self-sufficient in electricity if they relied on native renewable energy resource. A further ten (10) can generate at least half of their electricity from domestic renewables. It is unlikely these states will want to rely on imports if they have so much domestic potential. The Southern states from Kentucky to Louisiana appear to have the least potential for renewable energy self-reliance. However, even these states could meet 25% or more of their electricity needs from in-state renewable resources.”
What Is The Smart Grid Anyway?
October 1, 2009 by iCeL Team · 6 Comments
This video by IEEE gives a brief, yet clear vision of the Smart Grid and what is required to make it a viable reality in the coming years.
IBEW Training Electrical Workers In Green Technology
September 15, 2009 by iCeL Team · 2 Comments
The International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) has gone green, training unions across the US to install renewable energy systems and retrofit buildings for energy efficiency. The IBEW is determined to remain on the cutting edge of the Cleantech industry and will be training its local unions, starting with Local 11, to install iCeL’s intelligent energy storage systems. iCeL is very excited to work with the best electricians in the country, expanding the Smart Grid while creating green jobs for the skilled union members of America.
iCEL St. Paul: Green Union Jobs For The Twin Cities
August 24, 2009 by iCeL Team · 2 Comments
Due to corporate cutbacks and outsourcing, the City of St. Paul Minnesota lost 2,900 manufacturing jobs in December 2008 alone. This disquieting number adds to the more than 75,000 jobs lost over the past year. Fortunately, according to the Minnesota Green Jobs Report, green jobs are expected to grow in Minnesota to 72,467 by 2020. This makes for a phenomenally promising equation. As lost jobs are restored, the greening of an industrial capital will take place, increasing quality of life for St. Paul citizens on numerous levels. iCeL Systems, Inc. is looking forward to being part of Minnesota’s much-needed green job growth with its latest iCeL Energy Lab.
iCeL St. Paul (iSP) is slated to open its doors this fall and sales are already under way with Fortune 500 businesses. iSP will produce and install iCeL energy storage and management systems throughout the State. This will employ electrical workers, administration and sales staff, and other renewable energy companies. iCeL St. Paul plans to create approximately 500 new local jobs over the next several years.
Headed by solar professionals from Minnesota’s Energy Harvest Group, iCeL St. Paul is led by people who understand the renewable energy business inside and out. Having been to every energy storage technology on the market, it was iCeL’s extreme versatility and functionality that captured the attention of Dan Thees, Pete Treacy, and Al Christensen in the fall of 2008.
According to Christensen, iSP’s Executive VP of Government Affairs, “We caught the iCeL bug last October when Chaz Haba sat down with the Mayor of St. Paul…The metro area cities and counties are very interested in using this new technology in numerous applications, some designed as power back up systems at data centers, some combined with renewable for street lighting in city parks, others as auxiliary power to run lights on Metro Transit buses and lastly for peak shaving or load shifting energy management systems used for day to day operations in municipal buildings or to increase efficiencies in low income government housing.”
iCeL St. Paul is extremely fortunate to have the mayor’s office on their side, as Chris Coleman was recently named one of 15 Green Leaning Mayors by Grist Magazine. “To sustain our city in a new century and preserve a bright future for our children, we must act as responsible stewards of our urban environment,” Mayor Coleman strongly states in his vision for a Sustainable St. Paul. Coleman has stewarded numerous green transport initiatives and is committed to working with energy providers to reducing carbon dioxide emissions.
IBEW President Endorses iCeL Systems
July 9, 2009 by admin · 7 Comments
The International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) is an international labor union representing electricians, linemen, and public utility workers, led by President Edwin Hill. The IBEW has over 750,000 members and conducts a myriad of training programs for electricians and journeymen in conjunction with the National Electrical Contractors Association (NECA). The LMCC is the third party which educates, advocates, moderates, and markets on behalf of the electrical and construction industries.
iCeL Systems CEO Chaz Haba met Tom Martinez, Statewide Director of Business Development for the IBEW-NECA LMCC, and Kim Craft of IBEW Local 11, back in 2006. Mr. Haba explained in detail the unsurpassed benefits of pairing iCEL Systems with renewable energy; the safety, reliability, and uniquely long life impressed these industry professionals. Haba’s relationship with the IBEW and NECA evolved further with Jim Wilson and Marvin Kropke, and eventually he met with President Edwin Hill in 2008. Huge proponents of a clean energy future, the IBEW and NECA decided to become the major installation arm of iCEL Systems throughout the United States.
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Empower The People: Energy Production For Everyone
July 4, 2009 by Jenn Breckenridge · 12 Comments
Fast Company magazine covers the latest best and “next” practices in the business world. In their July 2009 article “Beyond The Grid,” Pulitzer Prize-nominee Anya Kamanetz writes, “The evidence is growing that privately owned, consumer-driven, small-scale, geographically distributed renewables could deliver a 100% green-energy future faster and cheaper than big power projects alone.” Looks like small, locally made energy can be quite a mouthful.
Kamanetz goes on to report, ”Companies like GE and IBM are talking in terms of up to half of American homes generating their own electricity, renewably, within a decade.” Are the predictions of these corporate giants just a bit far-fetched?
The New Energy Paradigm
The fossil fuel business may indeed be headed ironically towards extinction. Though thousands of huge coal and nuclear plants around the world still produce and transmit the majority of power on the planet, these toxin-spewing dinosaurs may just be facing a massive unforeseen shift in technology.
Renewable energy infrastructure is increasing in functionality while decreasing in cost. Efficient micro-turbines, mass produced solar panels, and advanced energy storage like iCEL Systems, are being paired with extensive renewable energy rebates from the government to finally make accessible to the masses all the necessary hardware for energy production.
Vanguard IT companies like Google and Cisco are jumping on board the energy train, jockeying to be the lead innovators in metering and communications for the rapidly approaching Smart Grid.
Public and private utilities may begin to lease their infrastructure and focus on managing the exchange of energy between individuals, rather than the distribution of energy from centralized power plants. A massive network of individual energy producers could generate and exchange power instantly with friends, neighbors, and business associates.
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iCEL Systems Inspires New WattPlot MultiMATE
Over the past year, iCeL Systems has joined forces with WattPlot, a comprehensive software tool which provides real-time reporting on renewable energy system data. WattPlot allows iCeL customers to monitor their energy storage systems remotely via desktop or smart phone.
For the Anaheim Energy Field project, iCeL CTO Dr. Ryan Wartena, made some special requests of WattPlot. Wartena was extremely impressed with WattPlot’s ability to completely exceed expectations by developing a whole new product to meet iCeL’s needs for the Energy Field, which feeds into the Anaheim Public Utility grid.
Andrew Welch of WattPlot recently shared his experience developing the new software.
“Earlier this year, iCEL Systems of California presented us with a challenge. They install 3-phase renewable energy systems, using six OutBack inverters arranged as three pairs: one pair for each phase, and each phase with its own MATE! They wanted a way of monitoring all three MATEs on one screen, viewing each phase as a reporting set, as well as having an overall power production plot, summarizing the three phase reporting sets – a set of sets! They also needed to be able to send a MATE command to all three MATEs simultaneously.
Such capabilities were beyond the standard WattPlot, but we were intrigued by the possibilities and got right to work on a custom solution for iCEL. There was a deadline to meet: the new system was being installed in the new Energy Field park in Anaheim, CA, and the ribbon-cutting ceremony [hyperlink to News article of Anaheim Ribbon Cutting], was only a few weeks away!
I am pleased to report that, not only did we meet the deadline, but some of the work will be applied to the next major WattPlot release. Version 4.4 is still some weeks away, but the final result will be all of the current WattPlot PRO features in a package that can mix and match MATEs and reporting sets, all in a single monitor program. We call it WattPlot MultiMATE and we’re very excited!”
Flexible, innovative, and customer-oriented, WattPlot and iCeL Systems are two companies clearly devoted to providing the ultimate functionality for all their clients, big and small.
Anaheim Energy Field Ribbon Cutting
June 15, 2009 by Jenn Breckenridge · 4 Comments
In June of 2009, iCeL Systems, Inc. joined together with the Mayor of Anaheim, Public Utilities General Manager Marcie Edwards, and the Anaheim Center for New Energy Technologies (AC-NET) to cut the ribbon on the visionary Anaheim Energy Field.
Located in central Anaheim, at 1625 S. Ninth Street, the Energy Field transformed a three-acre segment of overgrown weeds into a colorful playground and park for the neighborhood. Hundreds of solar panels line the far end of Energy Field and are even incorporated into the roofs of picnic shelters and lunch tables.
The large solar array paired with a 50 kilowatt-hour iCeL System is an initiative of the Anaheim Public Utilities Department (APUD). The APUD believes small, distributed power generation is a potential key asset for future “smart grid” configurations and is investigating iCeL’s intelligent energy storage system as a means to efficiently distribute affordable green energy.
During this pilot program, the City will be able to monitor and manage the iCeL System with a secure web-based platform from any computer or smart phone. “It is exactly this kind of technological advancement and partnership that will continue to put Anaheim at the forefront of innovation,” said the Mayor.
After the Mayor, Marcie Edwards, and City Council Members completed their opening speeches, iCeL Systems CEO Chaz Haba and CTO Dr. Ryan Wartena gave an educational tour of the their interactive energy storage and management system.
Dr. Wartena was excited to share the unique intelligence and functionality of the iCeL System with city leaders who are inundated with energy and environmental concerns. “I feel the opening of Anaheim Energy Field is a landmark occasion for energy storage. This pilot project is enabling renewable energy to be a part of the local community’s shared energy management capabilities.”
Members of the Anaheim community now have a special opportunity to learn about renewable energy at Energy Field, while reaping the benefits of its renewable energy supply at home.