The U.S. Department of Energy rolled
out its Open Government Plan yesterday, pledging to be more
transparent about energy policy shifts and to better educate the market
about efficiency initiatives. A major part of the latter goal is
teaching people about the benefits and importance of the Smart Grid — a
concept that consumers and some utilities have yet to rally behind.
Tackling this challenge head on, Energy Secretary Steven Chu announced today that the department will be sinking almost $100 million into 54 different Smart Grid training programs across the country. Targeted at about 30,000 utility workers and electrical equipment manufacturers, these programs will also use $95 million from universities, utilities and industrial groups to design curricula around the modernization of today’s electrical grid.
As some of the oldest and largely unchanged companies in the U.S., utilities move notoriously slow when it comes to adopting new technologies and updating equipment in the field. Some substations and transistors have been in place for decades. One of the reasons for this is that the workforce is older and accustomed to established practices. This new investment in training employees is an attempt by the federal government to shake things up and accelerate change.
To read the full, original article click on this link: Energy Dept. invests $100M in Smart Grid education | VentureBeat
Author: Camille Ricketts
