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The Third Edition of The IEEE Power & Energy Society's (PES) Power Systems Conference and Exposition (PSCE) was cohosted by five utilities: Seattle City Light, Tacoma Power, Bonneville Power Administration, Puget Sound Energy, and Snohomish County PUD. The conference was held at the Washington State Convention Center and Sheraton Seattle Hotel, Seattle, Washington, 15–18 March 2009.
The biennial PSCE is designed to bring together practicing power systems engineers, operators, planners, policy makers, economists, academics, and others interested in power systems from around the world to address topics under the 2009 event theme “Next Generation Grid.” This conference and exposition provided a venue to share and discuss various issues and developments in the multifaceted field of electrical power systems. There was an outstanding technical program with a combination of a plenary session, a poster session, panel sessions, paper sessions, technical committee meetings, and tutorials, as well as an extensive student program and an exposition of major industry players in the area of power systems and the next generation grid.
The conference theme “Next Generation Grid” was selected over two years ago and proved to be timely given the recent attention to smart grid by the new administration of the U.S. government and the accompanying stimulus package programs and funding presently being rolled out.
The Exposition—A Highlight of the Event
The exposition showcased state-of-the-art software and hardware systems as well as consulting services for those involved in the power systems area. There were times devoted exclusively to the exhibits—with no parallel technical sessions scheduled—so attendees could focus on the displays and have a chance to speak directly with vendors on the latest technologies, systems, software, hardware, and services as well as giving exhibitors the opportunity to interact with many potential customers. With nearly 80 companies, PSCE 2009 had over double the number of exhibitors participating in this year's event compared to past events.
The Plenary Session— Three Views on the
Next Generation Grid
Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels welcomed attendees at the opening of the plenary session, while sharing Seattle's commitment to the energy debate and actions toward green and renewable resources. Then, in keeping with PSCE tradition, the plenary session featured speakers with unique perspectives on the electric utility industry. Hardev Juj, PSCE 2009 executive chair and plenary moderator, facilitated three talks sharing different perspectives on the next-generation grid. Randy Berry of Areva T&D described industry initiatives to develop a smarter and more efficient grid, Mark Zeller of Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories presented some of the industry's smart-grid success stories while also highlighting smart-grid philosophy and vision. Finally, Anjan Bose of Washington State University provided a preview of the future of the next-generation grid and discussed technologies that are around the corner as well as barriers to such implementation that need to be overcome.
PSCE'09—Some Numbers
PSCE'09 achieved some very impressive numbers in various categories:
- Nearly 350 panel and proceedings papers were presented.
- The technical program consisted of 52 sessions for panel or proceeding paper presentations, plus a poster session, four tutorials, and three short courses on power system basics.
- There were nearly 80 exhibitors, double that of the previous PSCE.
- The total attendance was over 1,300 delegates, a 50% increase over the previous PSCE, in the following categories:
- 835 registrant badges were issued in the main categories (full conference, one-day, companions, students, life members, exhibits hall only).
- 255 exhibitor badges were issued on site for the nearly 80 exhibitor booths.
- The local organizing committee and on-site volunteers totaled 120 badges issued.
- The educational track had 35 participants.
- The Wednesday open house for the host utilities and PSCE'09 supporters had 65 participants.
The conference organizers, led by the Seattle PES Chapter, spent three years in the planning and organizing stage and proved to be a learning and rewarding experience for all members. PSCE 2009 brought together five area utilities, a university, a consulting group, and an equipment supplier, as the primary sources of members of the local organizing committee (LOC). The LOC found that many people were willing to volunteer at the event, with 120 volunteers on site for part, or all, of the meeting.
Mark you calendars for PSCE'11. Details to be announced at www.pscexpo.com soon!!!
—John Paserba
 The welcome reception—a time to meet and great (and eat!).
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 Seattle Mayor Nickels welcomes PSCE 2009 attendees.
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 Chinese lion dancers lead the way to the exhibit hall opening ceremony.
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 The PSCE 2009 exhibit hall.
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 PES President Wanda Reder and PSCE'09 Executive Chair Hardev Juj open the exhibit hall.
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 The PSCE 2009 poster session.
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