PRESS RELEASE

Elster to Offer Advanced Smart Grid Solutions Using Cisco Technology

Cisco's Connected Grid Endpoint reference design SDK to be used with Elster's EnergyAxis® System

SAN JOSE, CA and RALEIGH, NC – Sep. 18, 2012 – Cisco and Elster announced today that Elster will offer smart grid solutions for field area networks using Cisco's technology. The solutions will integrate the Cisco Connected Grid Endpoint reference design with Elster's EnergyAxis System, and will showcase the power and flexibility of Elster's Universal technology while demonstrating support for Cisco's expertise in standards-based and interoperable communication solutions.

Through this integration of communication functions into advanced meters, utility customers will be provided with an even more flexible, secure, and economical Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) communications infrastructure. The combined solution will integrate the Elster EnergyAxis architecture within the Cisco IPv6 RF Mesh reference design.

Cisco has developed a complete suite of communications solutions for the smart grid. These include the Connected Grid Endpoint reference design as well as a full suite of switching, routing, network management and security products for the Field Area Network, Transmission & Substations, and Grid Operations. Plus Connected Grid Services to architect and optimize Smart Grid communications systems.

In addition to providing a comprehensive suite of AMI capabilities, Elster's EnergyAxis architecture enables smart meters to act as sensors for Distribution Automation and Asset Management applications such as Outage Notification, Voltage Monitoring, Asset Monitoring, and Loss Detection.  These advanced solutions enable utilities to extract even more value from their AMI investments. Elster is licensing the Cisco Connected Grid Endpoint reference design and software development kit (SDK).The addition of the Connected Grid Endpoint reference design further expands the EnergyAxis System interoperability and standards-based optimization.

With its innovative Software-Defined Radio and advanced software based metrology, Elster's REXUniversal meter platform offers utilities the flexibility to deploy this device with the Cisco GridBlocks^TM Solution Architecture, the Landis+Gyr GridStream^TM architecture (previously announced), as well as the Elster EnergyAxis Architecture.

Elster intends to develop EnergyAxis communications firmware that will operate within Cisco's 1000 Series Connected Grid Routers, and leverage application programming interfaces from the Cisco Connected Grid Network Management System.

"Cisco is committed to supporting our customers' need for interoperable vendor solutions," said Lionel Chocron, Vice President, Connected Energy Networks at Cisco. "By licensing the reference design to industry leaders such as Elster, we are enabling utilities to combine AMI communications over a common, reliable and secure communications infrastructure."

"As a Smart Grid solutions industry leader, Elster is committed to true interoperability and innovation," said Ed Myszka, President of Elster Solutions. "This announcement builds on Elster's track record of collaboration and integration to deliver the next generation of interoperability needed by utilities as they deploy Smart Grid solutions."

About Cisco

Cisco, the worldwide leader in networking, is helping the energy industry modernize the electrical grid from generation to distribution to consumption - with highly secure, reliable and scalable communications solutions. The Cisco Connected Grid solutions include: Transmission and Substation, Field Area Network, Grid Security, Data Center and Grid Operations. To learn more, please visit www.cisco.com/go/utilities.

About Elster

Elster is one of the world's largest electricity, gas and water measurement and control providers. Its offerings include distribution monitoring and control, advanced smart metering, demand response, networking and software solutions, and numerous related communications and services – key components for enabling consumer choice, operational efficiency and conservation. Its products and solutions are widely used by utilities in the traditional and emerging Smart Grid markets. 

Elster has one of the most extensive installed revenue measurement bases in the world, with more than 200 million metering devices deployed over the course of the last 10 years. It sells its products and services in more than 130 countries across electricity, gas, water and multi-utility applications for residential, commercial and industrial, and transmission and distribution applications.

For more information about Elster, please visit www.elster.com.

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GE Partners with Excelsior College to Launch Renewable Energy Technology College Credits-for-Work Experience Program

Press release:

07 August 2012

GE Partners with Excelsior College to Launch Renewable Energy Technology College Credits-for-Work Experience Program

 

• GE Employees Eligible to Receive up to Nearly 50 College Credits for Completing Wind Technician Certification Program
• Technicians Train on Wind Turbine Components at GE’s Energy Learning Center
• Excelsior College Adds Renewable Energy Technology Concentration to Bachelor’s Degree Program
• Initiative Highlights U.S. Energy Industry Efforts to Recruit, Train and Retain New Workers

SCHENECTADY, N.Y. —August 7, 2012—Citing the need to recruit and train a larger, educated workforce to support the global expansion of renewable energy, GE (NYSE: GE) and Excelsior College today announced that GE employees can receive up to nearly 50 college credits from the college for completing the company’s intensive renewable energy services training program.

To earn GE’s Lead Certification Standard, technicians must complete more than 500 hours of classroom, online and practical, hands-on field training on wind turbine components at GE’s Energy Learning Center (ELC) in Schenectady, N.Y., where GE’s renewable energy business is headquartered.

At the ELC, technicians are trained—with a strong focus on safety—to inspect and repair actual GE wind turbine components, including the nacelle, which is installed atop a 200-foot steel tower and houses the wind turbine’s generating equipment.

Technicians who complete the certification program now are eligible to earn up to 49 credit hours for their work experience through Excelsior College, the leading nonprofit, regionally accredited distance education institution in the nation.

Excelsior College has created a new concentration in Renewable Energy Technologies within the school’s Bachelor of Professional Studies in Technology Management program. The general public is eligible to register for this concentration starting August 8, 2012. GE’s technicians also may apply their college credits to the new degree concentration.

“Excelsior College recognizes the future of adult education will be increasingly aligned with the needs of businesses and workers alike, including the energy industry,” said Excelsior College President Dr. John F. Ebersole. “We are pleased to partner with GE on our new renewable energy area of focus within our Bachelor of Professional Studies program and reach a new segment of the competitive adult education population.”

Travis Anderson is one of the first GE service technicians to enroll in the Excelsior College program. Anderson, GE’s site lead at the Blue Canyon Wind Farm in Oklahoma, has worked at wind farm sites using GE turbines for five years. After helping develop the process that enabled GE technicians to participate in the Excelsior College program, he enrolled himself and is eligible to receive 48 credits.

“The renewable energy college credits program with Excelsior College is important to us as GE employees because it recognizes the value of our training and rewards us for our classroom and practical work experience,” Anderson said.

The quality and thoroughness of GE’s certification program is a significant differentiator for GE’s renewables services business. The Energy Learning Center also offers one of the most comprehensive array of training classes in the energy industry.

“Offering our employees the opportunity to earn college credits for completing our Wind Technician Certification Program not only enhances the value of our products and services, but it also enables GE to compete for—and retain—the skilled workers we need to support our globally installed base of wind turbines,” said Andy Holt, general manager—renewable energy services for GE Power & Water.

The Excelsior College program marks the first time GE has partnered with a U.S. college to award credits to its renewable energy technicians for their work experience. GE has forged relationships with a number of other U.S. colleges and universities—including Union Graduate College in Schenectady—in complementary fields as the energy industry seeks to recruit and train new engineers and technicians as employees from the “Baby Boomer” era retire.

About Excelsior College
Excelsior College is a regionally accredited, nonprofit distance learning institution that focuses on removing obstacles to the educational goals of adult learners. Founded in 1971 and located in Albany, NY, Excelsior is a proven leader in the assessment and validation of student knowledge. It offers more efficient and affordable access to degree completion through multiple avenues: its own online courses and college-level proficiency examinations, and the acceptance in transfer of credit from other colleges and universities as well as recognized corporate and military training programs. Excelsior College is accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education. Excelsior’s bachelor’s degrees in electrical engineering technology and nuclear engineering technology are accredited by the Engineering Technology Accreditation Commission of ABET, a specialized accrediting agency recognized by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA).

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.

GE Energy works connecting people and ideas everywhere to create advanced technologies for powering a cleaner, more productive world. With more than 100,000 employees in over 100 countries, our diverse portfolio of product and service solutions and deep industry expertise help our customers solve their challenges locally. We serve the energy sector with technologies in such areas as natural gas, oil, coal and nuclear energy; wind, solar, biogas and water processing; energy management; and grid modernization. We also offer integrated solutions to serve energy and water-intensive industries such as mining, metals, marine, petrochemical, food and beverage and unconventional fuels.

Follow GE Renewable Energy on Twitter at @GErenewables

IBM and Bauman Moscow State Technical University Open Smarter Cities Development and Education Center in Russia

Collaboration will create new opportunities for students and support the development of Russian Cities

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ARMONK, N.Y. and MOSCOW - 25 Apr 2012: IBM (NYSE: IBM) and Bauman Moscow State Technical University (BMSTU) today announced the opening of a Smarter Cities Development and Education Center in Russia – the first of its kind in the region.

Located on the university's Moscow campus, the center will be home to a unique educational program giving students the chance to explore and apply IBM's latest technologies and solutions to improve the management of urban infrastructure and support the development of smarter cities. Aligned with the Russian government's priorities for the modernization and technological development of urban centers across the country, the center will support the development of IT skills crucial to Russia's innovation agenda.

"The launch of the new Smarter Cities Development and Education Center at BMSTU is a significant milestone for IBM in the Russian market and shows the maturity of the Smarter Cities vision," said Kirill Korniliev, Country General Manager of IBM in Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States. "Skills are crucial for the development of smarter cities and by establishing this new facility we will open up new opportunities for young professionals and spur innovation in the field."

Students will be given the chance to explore how advanced technologies such as analytics software and mobile collaboration tools can help to integrate city systems such as water, traffic and public safety. A key component of the center will be IBM's Intelligent Operations Center (IOC) for Smarter Cities, which is designed to help cities of all sizes integrate city systems and apply intelligence to their operations through one central point of command. Some of the center's first development projects will look at how IBM's IOC solution can be integrated with data from  Russia's Global Navigation Satellite System, which already spans some 33 cities in Russia, to enable officials to better monitor and respond to city incidents.

"Creating this center gives rise to a new professional direction for our graduates," says Anatoly Alexandrov, Rector of Bauman Moscow State Technical University.  "This collaboration with IBM provides our graduates with skills that we believe will be in significant demand as Russia seeks to create Smarter Cities and increase its global economic competitiveness."

In the past two years, IBM has opened Smarter Cities centers in Dublin, Ireland in collaboration with Ireland's Industrial Development Agency and the University of Guadalajara in Mexico. The new center in Moscow is part of IBM's ongoing global effort to help students and city leaders develop expertise and apply innovative technologies to create smart solutions to tackle issues that have high social and economic impact for cities around the world.

About IBM

For more information about IBM Smarter Cities please visit: http://www.ibm.com/smartercities.

About Bauman Moscow State Technical University (BMSTU)

For more information about BMSTU please visit: http://www.bmstu.ru/english/.

Scarcity Solutions: Apple's Solar Solution

CNBC's Jane Wells reports Apple's plan to "green" its image by building a powerful data center that could potentially draw 10-15 per cent of its power from solar energy.  To see the video, click the link below:

http://video.cnbc.com/gallery/?video=3000081552

News Release from the DOE - Energy Efficiency Training Centers

President Obama Highlights Energy Department Efficiency Training Centers That Save U.S. Manufacturers $5.6 Billion

February 23, 2012 

WASHINGTON, D.C. – During a visit to the University of Miami to highlight his administration’s all-out, all-of-the-above approach to American energy, President Obama today touted the Energy Department’s cost-cutting Industrial Assessment Program. The program supports university-based Industrial Assessment Centers (IACs) across the country, which provide students with critical skills and training to conduct energy assessments in a broad range of facilities, while producing real cost savings for small to mid-size manufacturers. To date, these assessments have helped save over 530 trillion BTUs of energy – enough to meet the energy needs of 5.5 million American homes – and have helped participating manufacturers save more than $5.6 billion in energy costs.

“As President Obama made clear, an American economy built to last will depend on American manufacturing, American energy and skills for American workers,” said U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu. “This is why the Energy Department invests in innovative initiatives like the Industrial Assessment Centers that help to train the clean energy workforce of tomorrow, while cutting energy waste for American businesses and making our manufacturing companies more competitive.”

Through Industrial Assessment Centers at universities throughout the U.S., engineering students receive practical training in industrial processes, energy assessment procedures, and energy management principles, and gain real-world experience by working directly with small and medium-sized industrial and manufacturing facilities in their communities.

For more than 30 years, the Industrial Assessment Program has provided valuable training and experience for students, while saving money for manufacturing plants. Since the program began in 1976, the university teams have conducted more than 15,000 energy assessments at U.S. manufacturing plants nationwide. To date, more than 3,000 students have graduated from the Industrial Assessment Center program, with more than 60 percent going on to careers in the energy industry.

More information and a full list of Industrial Assessment Centers across the U.S. can be found HERE.