Retire Your Old Refrigerator and Receive $50

FirstEnergy News Release:

Retire Your Old Refrigerator and Receive $50

Toledo Edison Program Picks Up And Recycles Old Refrigerators TOLEDO, Ohio, May 30, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Residential customers of Toledo Edison, a subsidiary of FirstEnergy (NYSE: FE), can receive $50 when they choose to recycle an old, working refrigerator or freezer. Smita Khare, a Toledo Edison customer, took advantage of the program today, when a crew came to her home and removed an old refrigerator the previous owner had left in the garage decades ago.  The crew disabled the old appliance and transported it to a local de-manufacturing facility operated by JACO Environmental.  Khare will receive $50for recycling her old working fridge, but she will also save up to $150 in energy costs each year.  "This old fridge was still running, so we kept it plugged in for sodas and leftovers," said Khare.  "Once I learned how much it costs to operate, I jumped at the chance to have it picked up and receive a $50 check." Scheduling a pickup is easy.  Residential customers of Toledo Edison can call 877-545-4112, or visit www.energysaveOhio.com.  Appliances must be in working order when the crew arrives to pick them up for recycling. JACO Environmental manages the recycling program for FirstEnergy's utilities. After collecting old refrigerators and freezers, the national appliance recycler transports them to a de-manufacturing facility where they are safely dismantled.  About 95 percent of the material in the old refrigerators and freezers is recycled, and any toxic materials are removed and safely discarded. FirstEnergy is a diversified energy company dedicated to safety, reliability and operational excellence. Its 10 electric distribution companies form one of the nation's largest investor-owned electric systems, serving customers in Ohio, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, West Virginia, Maryland and New York. Its generation subsidiaries control more than 20,000 megawatts of capacity from a diversified mix of scrubbed coal, non-emitting nuclear, natural gas, hydro, pumped-storage hydro and other renewables.  Follow FirstEnergy on Twitter @FirstEnergyCorp.

Quasar Breaks Ground on Eighth Ohio AD Project - REW - Renewable Energy from Waste

Quasar Breaks Ground on Eighth Ohio AD Project - REW - Renewable Energy from Waste

Tesla tripling supercharger network for LA to NY trip - May. 30, 2013

Tesla tripling supercharger network for LA to NY trip - May. 30, 2013

Offshore wind farm operator BARD Engineering stores operating data with a storage solution from Dell

Dell Press Release:

Offshore wind farm operator BARD Engineering stores operating data with a storage solution from Dell

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Date : 5/29/2013

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• Combined with exceptional service and support throughout planning, implementation and operation BARD Engineering benefits from a tiered storage concept
• Storage volume grows 1 TB every three months
• BARD Engineering effectively manages its rapid data growth and also ensures that in the long-term, data can be stored in accordance with legal regulations
• Wind farm operator achieves high performance, flexibility and scalability to support the company’s business growth

Emden, Germany, based BARD Engineering has deployed a Dell storage solution to cope with rapidly growing data volumes that have resulted from the constant monitoring and controlling of offshore wind farms. Specializing in the planning, implementation and operation of wind turbines, Bard Engineering now benefits from 120TBs of storage capacity to automatically collect data that can be calculated and analyzed daily before being dynamically moved to archives.

BARD Engineering’s wind turbines are specifically designed to withstand extreme conditions in high seas. In the control room in Emden, the company monitors each wind turbine as well as controlling entire farms. The amount of data collected has grown so significantly in recent years that the business’ legacy storage solution was no longer able to cope with the need for more automation, greater simplicity and compliant, economical tiering for both ‘hot’ and archived data. Bard Engineering chose Dell storage for its virtualized, scalable disk pools and agile architecture, which can support the company's growth as well as new offshore wind-farm technologies.

Before implementing the new solution, the company migrated 40 TB of data without disrupting day-to-day-business. The business is constantly generating new data in the amount of 1 TB every three months. With the new Dell Compellent system in place, intelligent and automated features such as tiering means that active data now can be dynamically stored on high-performance, tier 1 hard drives. Inactive data is stored on lower tiers consisting of less expensive disks with large capacity. With these features in place, BARD Engineering can effectively manage its rapid data growth and also ensure that in the long-term data can be economically archived in accordance with legal regulations that require a 20- to 25-year record of wind farm data.

Quotes:

“An important factor in the decision to go with Dell Compellent was the self-optimizing, intelligent storage functions which easily meet our demanding performance and capacity requirements,” says Andreas Fischer, Head of IT at BARD Engineering. “Combined with exceptional service and support throughout planning, implementation and operation phases, we benefit from a storage infrastructure that is proactively monitored by Dell and covered by a four hour on-site service support in the instance of any hard disk failure. This resiliency gives us confidence that we have a solution that can easily grow and support our business.”

“With advancements to the Dell storage and enterprise portfolio, an increasing number of customers are turning to our company for large-scale storage deployments,” said André M. Braun, Germany Sales Director Storage, Dell. “BARD Engineering’s decision to partner with Dell is a great example of our ability to efficiently and cost-effectively offer performance, scalability and long-term protection to business-critical workloads.”

About BARD EngineeringThe BARD Engineering GmbH was founded in September 2003 in Bremen as an offshore wind farm specialized engineering and investment company. For business purpose it also includes the acquisition of such projects and their implementation and operation in its own portfolio. Meanwhile, the entire value chain is largely covered with headquarters in Emden in electricity generation from wind power on the high seas by the BARD Group company.

About DellDell Inc. (NASDAQ: DELL) listens to customers and delivers innovative technology and services that give them the power to do more. For more information, visit www.dell.com.

Sandia, SRI International sign pact to advance hydrogen and natural gas research for transportation

Sandia Labs News Releases

May 30, 2013

Sandia, SRI International sign pact to advance hydrogen and natural gas research for transportation

LIVERMORE, Calif.— Sandia National Laboratories and SRI International, an independent research and innovation center, will join forces to explore, test and evaluate a broad range of hydrogen and natural gas fuel systems and components for transportation applications under a new agreement.

The five-year memorandum of understanding (MOU) is the first agreement in Sandia’s new Center for Infrastructure Research and Innovation (CIRI), an alternative fuel research and innovation facility whose goal is to accelerate hydrogen and natural gas infrastructure technologies into the marketplace. The collaboration also will capitalize on research at Sandia’s renowned Combustion Research Facility(CRF).

Sandia National Laboratories' new Center for Infrastructure Research and Innovation (CIRI) is an alternative fuel research and innovation facility whose goal is to accelerate hydrogen and natural gas infrastructure technologies into the marketplace. An MOU with SRI International represents the first agreement to be part of CIRI, which is located at Sandia's Livermore Valley Open Campus (LVOC). (Image courtesy of CIRI.) Click on the thumbnail for a high-resolution image.

CIRI will be located at Sandia’s Livermore Valley Open Campus (LVOC), adjacent to the CRF. The LVOC was established in 2011 as a space for open, collaborative work in such fields as bioscience, energy, cybersecurity and detection technologies.

Through the MOU, Sandia and SRI International together focus on such research areas as:

• High-pressure system/component durability testing
• Destructive testing of components and systems
• Fire engulfment/impingement testing
• Life-cycle testing
• Risk assessments of hydrogen infrastructure
• Advanced storage technology
• Hydrogen and natural gas release experiments
• Evaluation of material/component/system failure modes

“Together, Sandia and SRI will address the most challenging barriers associated with alternative fuel infrastructure, including cost, performance and availability of the fueling systems,” said Daniel Dedrick, hydrogen program manager at Sandia. “We’re excited to kick off this collaboration with SRI and see it as a critical step toward a comprehensive gaseous-fuel research capability for the nation.”

---

Sandia National Laboratories is a multi-program laboratory operated by Sandia Corporation, a wholly owned subsidiary of Lockheed Martin company, for the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration. With main facilities in Albuquerque, N.M., and Livermore, Calif., Sandia has major R&D responsibilities in national security, energy and environmental technologies and economic competitiveness.

Innovations from SRI International have created new industries, billions of dollars of marketplace value, and lasting benefits to society—touching our lives every day. SRI, a nonprofit research and development institute based in Silicon Valley, brings its innovations to the marketplace through technology licensing, new products, and spin-off ventures. Government and business clients come to SRI for pioneering R&D and solutions in computing and communications, chemistry and materials, education, energy, health and pharmaceuticals, national defense, robotics, sensing, and more.

Customers Have Spoken: Alpha House, Betas, Annebots, Creative Galaxy and Tumbleaf Chosen for Amazon’s First-Ever Original Series, Available Exclusively on Prime Instant Video

Amazon Media Room: RSS Content

Amazon Announces Login with Amazon to Reduce Sign-In Friction and Drive Higher Customer Engagement

Amazon Media Room: RSS Content

This is an excerpt from EERE Network News, a weekly electronic newsletter.

May 29, 2013

Secretary Moniz: What the Natural Gas Boom Means for Renewables

In a new video released on May 23 by the Energy Department, Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz comments on how the United States should take advantage of the natural gas boom and use it as an opportunity to further develop renewable energy sources like wind, solar, geothermal, and hydropower. Secretary Moniz, who was sworn into office on May 21, made the comments during his first employee Town Hall meeting.

“The way I look at it is that this natural gas boom is a boon. First of all, we all know that it is partially responsible for the decrease in CO2 emissions that we have experienced over the last years in the absence of, at least, over-arching legislation." For the full story, see the Energy Blog.

This is an excerpt from EERE Network News, a weekly electronic newsletter.

May 29, 2013

New GSA Initiative Replaces Aging Federal Fleet with Hybrid Vehicles

The U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) on April 22 announced a new GSA fleet consolidation initiative to give federal agencies the opportunity to replace their aging fleet with hybrid vehicles. Through this initiative, GSA will expand the number of hybrid vehicles in the federal fleet by up to 10,000 vehicles, resulting in the reduction of approximately one million gallons of fuel per year for the life of these vehicles. This opportunity will allow more efficient fleet operations, create significant savings through fuel efficiency, and make government more sustainable.

Through this initiative, federal agencies can now consolidate vehicles into the GSA Fleet inventory. If agencies choose to participate in the program, GSA will fund the total incremental cost to replace eligible vehicles with new hybrid sedans. See theGSA press release.

This is an excerpt from EERE Network News, a weekly electronic newsletter.

May 29, 2013

EV Automaker Tesla Repays Department of Energy Loan

Tesla Motors has paid off its 2010 Energy Department loan nine years earlier than required. Credit: Tesla

Tesla Motors announced on May 22 that it has paid off the Energy Department's $465 million loan awarded in 2010 to the company under the Department's Advanced Technology Vehicle Manufacturing program. The payment came nine years earlier than originally required. The California-based automaker designs and manufactures electric vehicles (EVs) as well as EV powertrain components for partners such as Toyota and Daimler. Tesla has delivered more than 10,000 electric vehicles to customers in 31 countries so far. Tesla vehicles have won the 2013 Car of the Year awards from both Motor Trend and Automotive Magazine.

The Energy Department released a fact sheet providing additional statistics and highlights of the Department’s loan portfolio. For example, in June 2009, the Department offered more than $8 billion in conditional loan commitments to three companies—Ford, Nissan, and Tesla—to help retool, refurbish, and reopen U.S. auto plants to produce energy efficient cars. Ford used the loan to upgrade and modernize 13 factories across six states and to introduce new technologies to raise the fuel efficiency of more than a dozen popular vehicles. In Tennessee, the first advanced battery packs produced in the United States are coming off the production line of Nissan North America’s production plant. And Tesla was able to reopen a shuttered auto manufacturing plant in Fremont, California and to produce battery packs, electric motors, and other powertrain components.

The Department also reported that overall losses to date in its loan programs represent about 2% of the $34 billion portfolio and less than 10% of the $10 billion loan loss reserve that Congress set aside to cover expected losses in the programs. See theTesla Motors press release and the Energy Department press release.

This is an excerpt from EERE Network News, a weekly electronic newsletter.

May 29, 2013

Better Buildings Challenge Reports First Year's Savings

The Obama Administration's Better Buildings Challenge partners have improved facility energy efficiency by more than 2.5% per year on average compared to their baseline years during the Challenge's first year. This equals about $58 million in annual energy savings. The Energy Department on May 22 recognized the partners for their progress toward the goal of making America's commercial and industrial buildings 20% more energy efficient by 2020.

Better Buildings Challenge partners are actively deploying energy efficiency projects across their entire building portfolios and tracking data on energy use and energy savings, including more than 7,700 facilities to date. Of these, more than 1,300 have reduced energy intensity by 20% or more, while another 2,100 have reduced energy intensity by at least 10% since their baseline years. These partners have also completed more than 50 showcase projects that highlight innovative, cost-effective energy saving strategies. For example, Kohl's, with its commitment of 112 million square feet in more than 1,000 U.S. stores, has achieved a 7% reduction in energy intensity since its 2008 baseline year.

Better Buildings Challenge financial allies have also invested more than $1.1 billion in private financing for energy efficiency improvements. U.S. commercial and industrial buildings together account for roughly half of the nation’s energy use and more than 40% of U.S. carbon emissions. Each year, the United States spends about $400 billion to power those buildings. See the Energy Department press release and theBetter Buildings Challenge website.

This is an excerpt from EERE Network News, a weekly electronic newsletter.

May 29, 2013

Penn State Named EcoCAR 2 Competition Year Two Winner

EcoCAR 2: Plugging In to the Future named Pennsylvania State University its Year Two winner at the EcoCAR 2013 Competition in San Diego, California on May 24. The 15 universities competing in EcoCAR 2 recently gathered in Yuma, Arizona, for six days of vehicle testing and evaluation on drive quality and environmental impact at General Motors Desert Proving Ground. The competition then moved to San Diego for a second round of judging by automotive industry experts.

EcoCAR 2 is a three-year competition managed by the Energy Department's Argonne National Laboratory and sponsored by the Energy Department, General Motors, and 30 other government and industry leaders. The competition gives students the opportunity to gain real-world automotive engineering experience while striving to improve the environmental impact and energy efficiency of the 2013 Chevrolet Malibu. The students converted the gasoline-fueled vehicle to run on a variety of fuels, including E85 (a blend of 85% ethanol and 15% gasoline) and electricity.

Pennsylvania State University impressed judges representing various EcoCAR 2 sponsors with its E85 plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (EV). The team was the first to pass safety and technical inspections and an on-road safety evaluation. California State Los Angeles excelled with its ethanol-fueled vehicle, placing second. Ohio State University took third place overall after demonstrating its series-parallel hybrid EV. The teams will now spend Year Three of EcoCAR 2 perfecting their designs before the competition finals in Washington, D.C., in May 2014. See the Energy Department press release and the EcoCAR 2013 Competition website.

European Commission Set to Fight German Energy Subsidies - SPIEGEL ONLINE

European Commission Set to Fight German Energy Subsidies - SPIEGEL ONLINE

AT&T Pre-Paid Smart Meter Application Helps Consumers

AT&T Pre-Paid Smart Meter Application Helps Consumers

Key hydrogen report now available on OpenEnergyInfo wiki site

Sandia Labs News Releases

May 28, 2013

Key hydrogen report now available on OpenEnergyInfo wiki site

LIVERMORE, Calif.— As part of the Open Government initiative launched by the Obama administration, Sandia National Laboratories’ Technical Reference on Hydrogen Compatibility of Materials has made its debut on the Energy Dataset of OpenEnergyInfo, or OpenEI.

Many in the industry working to increase the competitiveness of clean hydrogen-powered fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEVs) already consult the reference guide, which has been available on Sandia’s web page for several years. But, now, the information found in the publication is more widely available and easier to access.

“The Technical Reference is a valuable tool for the hydrogen delivery and storage industries,” said Sunita Satyapal, director of the Fuel Cell Technologies Office, the Department of Energy (DOE) office that has sponsored Sandia’s work on the Technical Reference. “It can help eliminate R&D redundancies by providing extensive compatibility data to the broader industry.  By sharing these crucial findings on OpenEI, the Technical Reference can increase the rate of progress towards overcoming the barriers of hydrogen delivery and storage and allow us to reach full commercialization of FCEVs sooner.”

The Technical Reference focuses on compatibility issues between hydrogen and other materials.  Due to their small size, hydrogen molecules can seep into materials at room temperature. This high rate of diffusion can promote embrittlement in some of those materials and some materials can be downselected depending on the application and conditions.

To help overcome this challenge, the Technical Reference provides detailed information of the effects of hydrogen on the materials that might be used in equipment for storing hydrogen and delivering it to fuel cell electric vehicles. Developed and updated by researchers at Sandia, the Technical Referenceconsolidates results of extensive review of reports and journal publications, as well as new research conducted by Sandia, on a range of compatibility issues that must be addressed to increase the cost-effectiveness and ease-of-use of hydrogen vehicles and their infrastructure.

Browsing the reference reveals the extent and depth of detail available. Concentrating on relatively low-cost and high-strength materials — including a variety of steel, aluminum, copper and nickel alloys, as well as non-metal polymers — the report provides data on potential high-priority impacts of hydrogen on such material properties as yield and tensile strengths, fracture toughness and fatigue crack growth rates.

“The reviewed and tested data in the Technical Reference can help industry target and develop components and systems with fewer hydrogen compatibility issues,” said Sandia researcher Brian Somerday, who, along with Sandia colleague Chris San Marchi was a principal developer of the report. “This could potentially accelerate the timetable for the hydrogen-fueled transportation system.”

---

Sandia National Laboratories is a multi-program laboratory operated by Sandia Corporation, a wholly owned subsidiary of Lockheed Martin company, for the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration. With main facilities in Albuquerque, N.M., and Livermore, Calif., Sandia has major R&D responsibilities in national security, energy and environmental technologies and economic competitiveness.

NREL Media Advisory:

NREL to Showcase Fuel Cell Hybrid Vehicle and Stationary Fuel Cell System at Capitol Hill People's Fair

Tuesday, May 28, 2013

The Energy Department's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) will showcase a fuel cell hybrid vehicle on loan from Toyota and a small stationary fuel cell system at the Capitol Hill People's Fair on June 1 and 2. 

Representatives from NREL will be on hand to answer questions and give away educational literature about renewable energy, alternative fuels, and advanced vehicles.

The fair, which is presented by the Capitol Hill United Neighborhoods organization, is free and open to the public.

What: Fuel cell hybrid vehicle and stationary fuel cell system on display at Capitol Hill People's Fair For more information about the fair, visit the Capitol Hill United Neighborhoods website.

When: 10 a.m. – 9 p.m., Saturday, June 1
           10 a.m. – 8 p.m., Sunday, June 2

Where: Civic Center Park, 101 West 14th Ave., Denver, Colorado

NREL is the U.S. Department of Energy's primary national laboratory for renewable energy and energy efficiency research and development. NREL is operated for DOE by the Alliance for Sustainable Energy, LLC.

###

GE Press Release:

GE’s ORegen Waste Heat Recovery System to Boost Brunei Power Station Output with No Additional Emissions

Downloads

May 28, 2013

• GE Supplying ORegen System with Consortium Partner Boustead International Heaters
• Project to Increase Berakas Power Station’s Output, without Additional Fuel or Water
• Augmentation Project Supports Sultanate’ Green Brunei Initiative

BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN, BRUNEI—May 28, 2013—Berakas Power Company (BPC), Brunei’s national energy company, plans to install GE Oil & Gas’ (NYSE: GE) innovative ORegen^TM waste-heat recovery systems to increase the output and efficiency of four GE LM2500 aeroderivative gas turbines at the Berakas Power Station, located outside the capital city of Bandar Seri Begawan in the Sultanate of Brunei.

GE is supplying its ORegen system with consortium partner Boustead International Heaters (BIH), which will provide its heat exchanger components as part of the package. The project is designed to help meet Brunei’s growing power requirements and has been made possible by the Sultanate’s “Green Brunei” initiative to promote energy efficiency and develop cleaner energy projects.

BPC is installing GE’s ecomagination-qualified ORegen technology with government-owned power producer Berakas Power Management Company Sdn Bhd (BPMC), which operates the Berakas Power Station on behalf of BPC. The ORegen system will be connected to three of the LM2500 units, each of which generate up to 22 megawatts (MW). The fourth LM2500 turbine and one waste heat recovery unit will be kept on standby.

GE’s ORegen system utilizes a thermodynamic superheat cycle that recovers waste heat from gas turbines and converts it into 14 MW of extra net electricity without using fuel or water and does not produce additional CO₂ or NOx emissions. The system also has minimal operational and maintenance requirements. The Brunei project is the first use of GE’s ORegen technology in the Asia-Pacific region.

“Our BPS Augmentation Project using GE’s ORegen and BIH’s joint solution provides us with a cost-effective way to increase our power plant’s output and enhances the long-term value of our investment in the power plant’s original gas turbines,” said the Permanent Secretary (Downstream & Power), Energy Department at the Prime Minister’s Office. “It is the right solution to help us increase our sustainability and efficiency.”

GE previously collaborated with BIH as suppliers for Alliance Pipeline’s Whitecourt compressor station in Alberta, Canada, the world’s first commercial application of ORegen technology. BIH is a wholly owned subsidiary of Boustead Singapore Limited, a global infrastructure-related engineering services and geo-spatial technology group.

The equipment for the Berakas project is scheduled to be delivered at the end of 2014 and commissioned in early 2015. The upgraded power plant is expected to start commercial operation in the first half of 2015. In addition to the equipment, GE also is providing site installation and training as well as a resident engineer to support BPMC for one year.

“Our ORegen project for BPMC illustrates how GE is working successfully to deploy a wide range of technologies and services to boost Brunei's energy efficiency in line with their strategic objectives,” said Visal Leng, GE Oil & Gas Regional General Manager for Asia Pacific.

Mr. Leng also highlights how “Our ORegen system generates power through the use of gases that would otherwise be wasted in the environment. We are delighted to support Brunei on their innovative approach to green energy in this way.”

The Brunei ORegen project also illustrates GE’s ongoing commitment to help the government address its long-term energy infrastructure priorities. In 2012, GE opened a corporate office in Brunei to oversee the company’s local operations and coordinate efforts to develop the local workforce.

GE has been a leading supplier of power generation and energy delivery technologies in Southeast Asia for more than 100 years, with a presence in Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.

GE’s ORegen technology is the largest Organic Rankine Cycle (ORC) single unit available for gas turbine waste heat recovery. ORegen is applicable on any type of simple-cycle gas turbine and can generate electricity at lower gas turbine loads than a standard combined cycle system that utilizes water and steam to recover waste heat.

When compared to the same gas turbine operating in a combined-cycle system, a turbine equipped with GE’s ORegen system operating more than 8,500 hours a year generates additional electricity while avoiding the consumption of more than 11,000 cubic meters of water per year—equivalent to more than four Olympic-sized swimming pools.

The ORegen system is qualified under ecomagination, GE’s company-wide initiative. To earn ecomagination qualification, a product is evaluated for its ability to significantly and measurably improve the customer’s environmental and operating performance.

About GE

GE (NYSE: GE) works on things that matter. The best people and the best technologies taking on the toughest challenges. Finding solutions in energy, health and home, transportation and finance. Building, powering, moving and curing the world. Not just imagining. Doing. GE works. For more information, visit the company's website at www.ge.com.

About GE Oil & Gas

GE Oil & Gas is a world leader in advanced technologies and services with 37,000 employees in more than 100 countries supporting customers across the industry—from extraction to transportation to end use. Making the environment, health and safety, quality and integrity our highest priorities is The Way We Work. Our technologies and services include: surface and subsea drilling and production, monitoring and diagnostics, measurement and controls, large-scale LNG, pipeline compression and inspection, well site and industrial power generation, technologies for the refining and petrochemical industries, and modular CNG and LNG units for transportation sectors. Through our customized service solutions, training programs and technologies, GE Oil & Gas partners with customers to maximize their efficiency, productivity and equipment reliability; develop their next generation workforce; and fully benefit from the megatrends of natural gas, the growth of subsea and hard-to-reach reserves and the revolution in asset health management.

Kansas City joins green movement with solar panel additions - KansasCity.com

Kansas City joins green movement with solar panel additions - KansasCity.com

Ohio Honors Corporate Recyclers - REW - Renewable Energy from Waste

Ohio Honors Corporate Recyclers - REW - Renewable Energy from Waste

Cisco News Release:

PRESS RELEASE

The University of British Columbia and Cisco Collaborate on Smart+Connected Buildings and Smart Energy

UBC campus to act as ‘living lab' for initiatives in energy efficiency and smart buildings

VANCOUVER, BC-- May 27, 2013 - The University of British Columbia (UBC) and Cisco today announced an arrangement that will see the two parties collaborate on a number of initiatives focused on smart energy technologies and converged network solutions.

A key component of the collaboration will be Cisco's direct involvement in the university's Campus as a Living Lab Initiative to accelerate the development, demonstration and commercialization of new technologies and solutions. Together UBC and Cisco aim to help create smarter, more energy-efficient buildings while identifying best practices and innovative solutions to reduce UBC's net greenhouse gas emissions and associated carbon costs.

UBC and Cisco intend to pursue activities that will enhance, augment and sustain strategies and opportunities that use the capabilities and expertise of UBC, as well as drive Cisco's solution development, testing and commercialization in Cisco Smart+Connected Communities™, Smart+Connected Real Estate™ and energy management.

Facts and Highlights:

• Cisco envisions investing up to $1 million over five years in collaborative projects.
• Cisco and UBC will explore solution approaches for a campus-wide Smart Energy System that can integrate energy generation, demand and supply to buildings at UBC's Vancouver campus.
• Cisco and UBC will explore the integration of all building systems, such as environmental controls, security, lighting, energy, video, fire and life safety, onto a converged network solution.
• Cisco and UBC will collaborate with multiple building solution manufacturers on the development of new building automation devices using Cisco® Universal Power Over Ethernet (Cisco UPOE™) and Cisco EnergyWise™ software development kits.
• Cisco and UBC will explore the building-scale demonstration and evaluation of converged network solutions.

Supporting quotes:

Pascal Spothelfer, vice president, Communications and Community Partnership, The University of British Columbia: "Cisco and UBC share a vision of achieving environmental sustainability through the transformational use of smart energy systems such as smarter buildings and communities. This agreement will give us the opportunity to act on this shared vision by using UBC as a living laboratory to provide faculty, students and staff with fantastic learning opportunities and more efficient University operations. The living lab will also aim to define new industry benchmarks and a city-scale demonstration for making communities more sustainable through better efficiency and advanced technologies."

Nitin Kawale, president, Cisco Canada: "Cisco is committed to exploring opportunities presented by our increasingly connected world in order to enrich lives through the use of innovative technology. The work done by Cisco and UBC on campus will enable vital energy-saving solutions for the university, and also serve as a roadmap for future smart energy and smart community initiatives not only in Canada, but around the world."

About UBC

The University of British Columbia (UBC), established in 1908, is one of Canada's leading research universities and is consistently ranked among the top 40 in the world. The university attracts 54,000 students from across Canada and 140 countries around the world to two major campuses. For ongoing news, go to www.ubc.ca .

About Cisco

Cisco (NASDAQ: CSCO) is the worldwide leader in IT that helps companies seize the opportunities of tomorrow by proving that amazing things can happen when you connect the previously unconnected. For ongoing news, please go to http://thenetwork.cisco.com. Cisco Systems Canada Co., a wholly owned subsidiary of Cisco, has offices across Canada dedicated to customer support, sales and service. For ongoing news, please go to http://newsroom.cisco.com/canada/.

-30-

Cisco and the Cisco logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Cisco and/or its affiliates in the U.S. and other countries. A listing of Cisco's trademarks can be found at www.cisco.com/go/trademarks. Third-party trademarks mentioned are the property of their respective owners. The use of the word partner does not imply a partnership relationship between Cisco and any other company.

Contact Information

Karin Scott Cisco Canada 416-306-7164 kariscot@cisco.com

Brent Sauder Director of Strategic Partnerships University of British Columbia 604-822-4988 brent.sauder@ubc.ca

NREL News Release:

Middle Schoolers Shine in Electric Car Races

May 24, 2013

Enlarge image

Xavier Urquijo from Summit Ridge Middle School in Littleton waits for the start signal to lift the folder covering the solar panel on his team’s car, “Knight Hawk.” His team was one of 97 from 28 Colorado middle schools racing solar and lithium-ion powered vehicles they designed and built themselves at NREL's 2013 Junior Solar Sprint and Lithium-Ion Battery car competitions on May 18.
Credit: Dennis Schroeder

Put a solar or lithium-ion car in the hands of a middle-school student, and watch adolescent angst and eye-rolling disappear — at least for a few hours.
"This is the best," said a boy from Greeley last week at the annual Colorado Junior Solar Sprint and Lithium-Ion Battery car competitions in southern Jefferson County on May 18.
"We rock — we are such risk-takers," said a girl from Douglas County.
It was the 23rd annual electric car competition sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), the DOE Office of Science, the Alliance for Sustainable Energy, Jefferson County Schools, Planet Honda, Dakota Ridge High School, and the DOE Golden Field Office.
NREL and other sponsors hold the races each year to show middle-school students that science, engineering, and design can be rewarding, in an effort to encourage them toward careers in STEM — science, technology, engineering, and math. The batteries and solar panels are supplied by sponsors, but students design and build the rest of their cars themselves.
NREL Laboratory Fellow David Ginley, who served as official starter for the solar races, said: "For many middle schoolers, this activity represents their first hands-on connection to renewable energy and sustainable technologies."
Ninety-seven teams from 28 middle schools throughout Colorado were at Dakota Ridge High School on Saturday by the time the first-period bell rings on a weekday.
The sun was a near no-show, barely peeking through the thick clouds.
Undaunted, teams tweaked their model cars, added a rubber band here, dusted a solar panel there, and raced their vehicles 20 meters down neoprene tracks.
The atmosphere was electric, akin to the pits at Talladega, with checkered flags, sponsor decals, and heart-racing, deadline-pushing repairs. Parents cheered, buffered disappointment, and cheered some more. Coaches corralled team members, who scattered to make last-minute adjustments to the hooks and paper clips that connected their cars to the guide wires down each lane.

Girl Power, with a Hint of Nail Polish

Enlarge image

From left, Coach Kathy Briggs, Rya Muller, and Mia Kirlan-Stout of Southern Hills Middle School in Boulder react as their car wins a heat at NREL’s 2013 Junior Solar Sprint and Lithium-Ion Battery car competitions.
Credit: Dennis Schroeder

Femininity was not going to take a back seat to engineering for the girls from Woodland Academy in Castle Rock. Sure, they had designed a solar-powered car that could roar down the 20-meter neoprene track in a tick above 6 seconds. But showing that brains and fashion can combine, they cut the chassis of their car in the shape of a bottle of nail polish.
"The black part is where you take the brush out, and the purple is the color of the nail polish," said Emma Ciafone, who was sporting purple toenail polish herself.
The four-girl team, dubbed "Sweet and Sassy," looked like they were ready for senior prom at Sparkle High School, with eye glitter, makeup, stylized coifs, and purple ribbons in their hair.
"We woke up at five to do makeup; we went a little overboard," said Sofie Weidenhues.

 The Joy of Victory, the Agony of Wipe-outs

"Let there be photons!" race starter Ginley yelled . And a few photons peeked through the clouds, enough to separate the wheat from the chaff among the solar engineering designs.
Some cars performed like champions on the practice track, but wavered in the actual races.
"I think my car has stage fright," said Taylor McCown of Merrill Middle School in Denver. "It goes forward and backward great on the test track, but I couldn't get it going when it counted."
"But we finished — that's something," said teammate Devin Shepard.

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From left, Sophie Wiedenhues, Izzy Gorsuch, Emma Ciafone, and Summer Hockley of Woodlands Academy in Castle Rock won first place for solar design as well as the Spirit Award for sportsmanship and enthusiasm at NREL's 2013 Junior Solar Sprint and Lithium-Ion Battery car competitions.
Credit: Dennis Schroeder

A team of girls from Southern Hills Middle School in Boulder had a solar car fast enough to make it to the semifinals, thanks in part to wrapping a wide rubber band around each wheel to reduce friction.
But they put more effort into whimsy with their car, "Blue Water Blast." "We used cellophane to make it appear that there was blue water inside," said Rya Muller.
They crafted two fish, a jellyfish, a crab, and an eel to place inside the cellophane-sealed box.
"They shake when the car moves, so it looks like they're swimming," said Mia Kirlan-Stout.

Awards for Speed, Design, and Sportsmanship

In the semis, "Blue Water Blast" and "Sweet and Sassy" were in the same heat, but neither advanced to the finals. "My car runs completely on solar, and there just wasn't enough sun," said Summer Hockey, chief designer for "Sweet and Sassy." "We gave it our best shot, but you can't always win. It was really fun."

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The Rocky Mountain Foothills provide a dramatic backdrop for the 23rd annual Colorado Junior Solar Sprint and Lithium-Ion Battery car competitions hosted by NREL and the U.S. Department of Energy at Dakota Ridge High School in Jefferson County. The neoprene racetracks are 60 centimeters wide. A fish line down the middle helps keep the cars in a straight line. Eyelets or paper clips secure the cars to the line.
Credit: Dennis Schroeder

It was congeniality like that — not to mention the eye sparkle and hair ribbons — that won "Sweet and Sassy" the Spirit Award for good sportsmanship, respectful behavior, enthusiasm, and courtesy. "Sweet and Sassy" also won the first-place design award in the solar car division.
The solar car speed winners, from the STEM School and Academy of Highlands Ranch, put long hours into engineering. "We played around with the geometry until it was perfect," Michael Whitaker said of his team's sleek car, which was comprised of a thin slab of glass and a protective cover over the solar panel to block the sun until it is needed. The team used a laser engraver to ensure the cover had the same dimensions as the car itself, and put holes in the glass to increase air flow.
"We spent a lot of time on the gear ratios so it wouldn't require much power to get to full speed," said Koby Dudley.
Rashid Zakiror noted that they could adjust the slab of glass up and down to match the angle of the sun. "I think the clouds actually helped us, because our car might have needed less sunlight than the other cars."
During a break, several of the competitors drew inspiration from watching a neighboring exhibition race — high-school students from all over Colorado racing their larger model cars around an oval track at high speeds. It was an hour-long endurance contest, and the laps numbered in the hundreds.

Hauling a Bunch of Salt in Lithium-Ion Vehicles

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Moises Martinez looks at the gold medal presented to him by NREL Research Fellow David Ginley. He and teammates Devin Archuleta, Trevor Killen, and Trenton Elliot (not pictured) of University School in Greeley won the speed competition for lithium-ion cars at NREL's 2013 Junior Solar Sprint and Lithium-Ion Battery car competitions.
Credit: Dennis Schroeder

In the lithium-ion battery car division, wheels were flying off cars like leaves in a storm. The "Dynamic Divas," racing against five all-boy teams, were in third place with a ticket to the semifinals when their car lost its grip on the guide wire and spun off the track.
The lithium-ion team from University School in Greeley was thinking speed and not much else. The cars need to be light, streamlined, and rugged enough to speed down the track while nestling a 26-ounce cylinder of salt above the chassis.
The team's balsa-wood car, "Lucky Charms," won a preliminary heat in 5.6 seconds, but the cardboard backseat gave way to the weight of the salt.
The team had a quick confab with their coach, eighth-grade STEM teacher Eric Buxman, and headed to the repair station.
Rubber bands are the duct tape of the car repair shop, but ultimately, the University School team decided on glue to strengthen the backseat.

A Competition to Inspire All Types of Students

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Pure joy and pure consternation register on the faces of four competitors in the 23rd annual Colorado Junior Solar Sprint and Lithium-Ion Battery car competitions.
Credit: Dennis Schroeder

"They're really doing excellent, but they're nervous," seventh-grade STEM teacher Keith Decker said. "Some of these kids struggle in class, but a competition like this brings out the best in them."
For the lithium-ion finals, the University School team of Trenton Elliott, Moises Martinez, Trevor Killen, and Devin Archuleta made a last-second decision to place the salt canister sideways across their car's backseat.
At the starter's command, they switched on the battery and the car blazed down the track in 5.52 seconds, winning by a couple of car lengths.
"STEM is our favorite class — at least when we were building our car, it was our best class," Archuleta said.

Tomorrow's Scientists and Engineers

Ginley, the NREL research fellow who served as starter for the solar races, said he's always gratified by the annual contest. "This year, the competition was so close," he said, indicating that a large number of teams had first-rate designs. "And they did it on a very cloudy day. Events such as these kindle the passion for renewable energy in the next generation."
Bill Farris, associate NREL laboratory director, said: "Some of our best young researchers first heard of NREL when they were in middle school, designing cars for this race. I'm betting that some of the kids here today will be working for us or designing cars someday."
If so, we can all look forward to a future of whimsical, fashionable, and speedy cars — all driven by renewable energy.
Learn more about NREL's education programs.
—Bill Scanlon

Trophy Winners at the 2013 Middle-School Electric Car Competitions

Lithium-Ion Cars, Best Design:

First Place: Lincoln Academy Middle School, Arvada, "The Nerds"
Second Place: Sabin Middle School, Colorado Springs, "Saint 4"
Third Place: Woodlands Academy, Castle Rock, "Sodium the Salt Truck"

Lithium-Ion Cars, Speed Competition

First Place: University School, Greeley, "Lucky Charms"
Second Place: Southern Hills Middle School, Boulder, "Fat Albert"
Third Place: Southern Hills Middle School, Boulder, "Green Spartan"

Junior Solar Sprint, Speed Competition:

First Place: STEM School and Academy, Highlands Ranch, "#2"
Second Place: Bell Middle School, Golden, "Swerve Logo"
Third Place: Lincoln Academy Middle School, Arvada, "Terminators"

Junior Solar Sprint, Best Design:

First Place: Woodlands Academy, Castle Rock, "Sweet and Sassy"
Second Place: Woodlands Academy, Castle Rock, "Ghetto Gecko"
Third Place: Logan School, Denver, "Electric Engineers"

Spirit Award:

Woodlands Academy, Castle Rock, "Sweet and Sassy"