If the world and IoT industry are going to move into the uber connected future envisioned and predicted by the market analysts and futurists of the tech world, the first technological hurdle to be jumped is Energy.
Energy is integral to building a Smart ioT System of Systems, and the infrastructure of energy has to be intelligent, and resilient enough to never go down.
This Resilient Energy Infrastructure push has to come at the beginning of any plan for implementing Industry 4.0 at scale, or any Smart City implementation. A rebuilt and renewed infrastructure system can bring with it the opportunity to renew energy infrastructure in such a way as to enable Electric Vehicles, renewable energy, better storage, localized generation; and the microgrid approach to make it all work and keep working.
In a panel at the upcoming Intelligent Infrastructure event, taking place April 28-29 in Austin, TX, Scott Hinson, CTO, Pecan Street; Dan Gregory, CEO, Available Power; and Robert Cruickshank, CTO, GRIDIoT by RCA will all jion in a discussion on how communities, companies and utilities can join forces to create Intelligent Infrastructure for Energy Resilience in the future and right now.
The need for resilient energy infrastructure is well-understood and in no doubt among industry professionals and scientists. Many factors make it necessary to develop these technologies, including climate change, extreme weather, security risks, and growing energy needs all over the world, to name a few.
At the MIT (News - Alert) Joint Program on the Science and Policy of Global Change, a recent study entitled “Toward Resilient Energy Infrastructure: Understanding the Climate Average Changes and Extreme Events in the Northeastern U.S.” is looking into the likely extent of changes in regional energy demand across several factors and how this understanding is critical to the strategic planning of energy supply and infrastructure, urban infrastructure development, and resilience of energy grid companies to risk.
The results of that study aren’t available yet, but it is likely to provide important insights and guidance into what is needed in both the short- and long-term to avoid energy shortages and outages.
The development and employment of Resilient Energy Infrastructure is only the first step toward a Smarter future, and renewable energy sources, microgrid architectures and battery storage advancements are on that path. Without this first step it is possible, even likely, that further growth toward scaling IoT across the globe into a System of Systems will not be possible.
So, let’s get charged up, shall we?