Smart Grid Library

Saturday, January 28 is International Data Privacy Day.  It’s a great opportunity to think about new data created as a result of the modernization of our electrical grid into the Smart Grid, and what this means for our privacy.  Sir Francis Bacon (1561-1626) is credited with the quote:  “Knowledge is power.”  Agreed.  Understanding what this [...]

Ben Franklin, the first American genius, achieved fame and notoriety for his electricity research, which included that famous kite-flying experiment.  But did you know that he first described the concept of treating energy efficiency as an energy resource?  He memorably stated “A penny saved is a penny earned,” back in the 1700s, but today he [...]

The Smart Grid presents a number of challenges to policy-makers and utilities, but perhaps none is more vexing than the question of who will educate consumers about the rewards and risks of energy consumption data that can be derived from smart meters and increasingly from products that can disaggregate electricity “signatures” to determine usage of [...]

The recent announcements about the retirements of Google’s PowerMeter and Microsoft’s Hohm are not causes for concern for Home Energy Management Systems (HEMS) vendors.  These were early starts that helped educate the market about the value of energy consumption data.  However, like many pioneers, they contributed knowledge that will benefit other Smart Grid solution vendors.  [...]

Games are identified as one of the biggest trends for social media and mobile devices.  Gamification is called the next big thing for marketing.  Both have exciting implications for behavior change in the health care sector.  So will social games and gamification play a significant role in changing consumption behaviors for electricity, gas, and water?  [...]

An Independent Review Panel convened by the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) to study the causes of the September 9, 2010 gas pipeline explosion in San Bruno, California released its findings late last week. This tragic event caused the loss of eight lives, and scores more were impacted with losses of property and displacement. The [...]

Last week I wrote about how the Smart Grid will introduce changes at every point in the electricity value chain – from generation to consumption.  The TV show, Star Trek Next Generation, characterized unwelcome change as a nemesis in the form of the Borg.  Fans of the show will recall the Borg declaration about change [...]

I attended a couple of Smart Grid events last week that emphasized two themes – that the Smart Grid is a convergence of ideas, technologies, and operations; and that this convergence will challenge human nature – specifically our resistance to change. The basic definition of the Smart Grid – the bi-directional flow of communications and [...]

Energy efficiency is “the first fuel to set priorities about design, deployment, and use of any devices or materials that consume electricity or contribute to its consumption.” (Definition from the Smart Grid Dictionary, 2nd Edition). It is also called “low-hanging fruit” to describe that it is the easiest and cheapest way to avoid the purchase [...]

The news coming from PG&E these days is trending from bad to worse for the Smart Grid and for this country’s citizens.  First they created a public relations disaster with their smart meter rollout, which now has its own term called “the Bakersfield effect”.  PG&E investment in a sensible communications plan and budget could have [...]