During the course of summer 2018, OATI experts traveled across the country to attend five different events, including the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC) Summer Policy Summit, the IEEE Power & Energy Society (PES) General Meeting, the Great Lakes Electric Meter School (GLEMS) event, the Tennessee Valley Public Power Association (TVPPA) Engineering & Operations (E&O) Conference, and the Cooperative Technologies Conference and Expo (CTCE) event.
 
NARUC Summit
Dr. Ali Ipakchi was invited to the NARUC Summer Policy Summit held at the Fairmont Scottsdale Princess Hotel in Scottsdale, Arizona on July 15-18. During this event, NARUC organizes a series of meetings in the month of July to provide in-depth analysis of policy issues that are relevant to state utility regulators as well as stakeholder groups and federal regulators.

Formerly known as the Summer Committee Meetings, this event drew national experts and policymakers to a forum that upholds the tenets of serving the public interest: safe, reliable, and affordable service. NARUC members are focused on learning and sharing best practices, ensuring that the important role of state regulators is understood and appreciated on the national stage, and advancing key resolutions that will influence policy.

IEEE Power & Energy Society (PES) General Meeting
OATI Senior Vice President Dr. Farrokh Rahimi spoke at the IEEE PES General Meeting on August 6-9 in Portland, Oregon. He delivered comprehensive and robust lectures on “Demand Response: An Overview, Applications, and Field Experiments.”

The Local Organizing Committee, PES Technical Committees, and the General Meeting Coordinating Committee welcomed colleagues and friends from all facets of the industry and corners of the world to a valuable technical program, productive committee meetings, and exciting networking opportunities. The technical program theme of “Re-Imaging the Electric Grid” provided a platform to offer new insights and innovative ideas and answers to some of the most intriguing and important questions facing the power industry today. During the meeting, the following was discussed:

• Increased variability of renewable generation resources
• Changes in the conventional “load following” paradigm to a new “generation following” regime resulting in the need for higher levels of balancing requirements from demand-side participation
• Advancement of information technologies have made power system end-use loads more agile and can participate in provision of balancing energy and other grid services

GLEMS Events
Steve Sendele, Midwest Account Executive at OATI, attended the GLEMS event on August 13-16 held at the Radisson Plaza Hotel, Kalamazoo, Michigan. The event drew many attendees and provided hands-on training opportunities that highlighted correct metering methods.

Attendees were also provided with a safe environment to demonstrate incorrect activities that would result in severe injury. It was great opportunity for all those who are looking to update or upgrade their industry knowledge. In addition, the event also featured:

• A balance of classroom and hands-on training
• Tracks designed to foster safety, growth and understanding within each topic area
• An exhibit hall of more than 40 metering vendors and experts
• Large hands-on lab areas where students were exposed to real-world metering problems in a safe environment with trained instructors

TVPPA E&O Conference
OATI Account Executive Kent Fisher attended the TVPPA E&O Conference held on August 8-10, 2018 at the Marriott DT and Convention Center in Chattanooga, Tennessee. During this three-day event he asked pivotal questions to vendors at the conference and shared valuable insights on OATI solutions with attendees.

Educational conferences organized by TVPPA are a source of new ideas and a means of shared problem-solving for utility industry professionals. Annually, seven conferences are conducted for special interest groups of utility employees. Every TVPPA conference has a goal of providing participants the valuable information they can take back and implement for improved business results. These conferences provide a multitude of networking opportunities between colleagues and subject matter experts and engage people in subjects that impact the electric utility industry.

The TVPPA annual educational meeting, the E&O Conference, provided a great platform to electric utility operations managers and professional engineers. The conference enabled attendees to enjoy a variety of breakout sessions in Engineering, Operations, or Technology which enabled them to tailor the agenda for their own particular needs.

Cooperative Technologies Conference and Expo presented by NCEMC
Mr. Fisher also attended the Cooperative Technologies Conference and Expo presented by North Carolina Electric Cooperatives held at Kingston Plantation in North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina on August 15. At this flagship technology conference, Fisher was among the 40+ Cooperative representatives to attend the event by discussing how companies can equip themselves with practical and up-to-date information to network and discuss common problems and solutions at the information-packed conference.

MMUA Summer Conference
OATI Account Executive, Glen Fisher, attended the Minnesota Municipal Utilities Association (MMUA) Summer Conference held on August 20 – 22, 2018 at the Arrowwood Resort in Alexandria, MN. This three-day conference involved educational sessions in tracks focused on management and policymaking, a trade show, and networking with municipal utility leaders from around the state.

A Knowledgeable Experience
OATI is excited to continue attending future events to learn and network within the energy industry, and we look forward to working together with others at these events to transform the business of energy.