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News & Commentary
Commentary from Industry Pros
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Mar 03, 2010 |
Large businesses are sophisticated energy consumers and they expect a correspondingly high level of service from their energy providers. Utility account representatives know that providing reliable energy and an accurate bill -- the basics -- are essential, but that great service requires more. Beyond the basics, what should utilities and account representatives prioritize to have the biggest positive impact on customer satisfaction?
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Mar 02, 2010 |
There has been much discussion about the need for increased transmission capability and the so-called smart grid. The need has been framed in terms of repair of deteriorating infrastructure, energy independence and security, and economic competitiveness.
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Feb 24, 2010 |
Creating strategic account plans is considered an account management best practice for businesses in any industry. Yet results from the 2009 E Source Account Management Assessment-a recently conducted online survey of utility account management departments regarding the structure, communications, systems, processes, and strategic approaches used in managing business customers of all sizes-showed that only slightly more than half (59 percent) of utilities are creating individual strategic account plans for their key accounts.
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Feb 23, 2010 |
Most successful smart metering programs focus on business process management to maximize benefits (e.g., operational improvements) enabled by an Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI). Improved data visibility, frequency, and quality enabled by AMI technologies, can enhance future-state business processes and allow the utility to truly reach the expectations of the large investment they are making.
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Feb 18, 2010 |
The official worldwide history of electrically powered public transportation began in the year 1890 when electric trams and electric streetcar replaced horse drawn trams and streetcars. Electrically powered subway trains subsequently replaced steam hauled subway trains in London, UK. The construction and introduction of New York City's electrically powered subway trains soon followed.
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Feb 15, 2010 |
Temperature disparity as it relates to buildings and homes is simply noticeable temperature variations in different parts of the structure. Building managers and owners are very aware of the complexities of keeping tenants on different floors and in different parts of the building pleased in a variety of differently oriented, sized, and positioned spaces in changing weather conditions.
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Feb 08, 2010 |
Transmission facilities in the United States that distribute electrical power have traditionally been built by vertically integrated utility companies to transmit power from their own generating facilities to their customers. Since the utility companies built and owned both the generation facilities and transmission facilities, interconnecting their transmission facilities to their generation facilities was simply a matter of necessity to deliver power to their customers.
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Feb 03, 2010 |
The explosion in consumer technologies and options, coupled with the utility industry's expansion into the smart grid, advanced meters and communications will do what all of the failed attempts at deregulation could not: create true customer choice.
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Jan 26, 2010 |
These are exciting times. The electric industry is undergoing tremendous change. Smart Grid initiatives are being developed and many are proceeding across the country, with engineers, technologist, accountants and others designing and implementing systems, technologies and rate structures that have the potential to help many.
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Jan 11, 2010 |
The waterway system between Lake Superior and the Gulf of St Lawrence provides power generation and the capacity to store massive amounts of energy through pumped hydraulic storage. The well being of a population of several million people who live on both sides of the US-Canada border depend that hydroelectric power generation. At present, the pumped hydraulic storage installation at Ludington, Michigan is the largest of its kind along the waterway.
