FSU joins coalition working to improve nation's power grid

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- Florida State University's Center for Advanced Power Systems (CAPS) has joined a prominent national coalition that seeks to transform the nation's electric power systems. CAPs is now a member of the GridWise Alliance, a group of 69 leading companies and academic institutions whose goal is to combine their knowledge and innovation in an effort to increase the safety, reliability and capacity of the U.S. power grid.

"CAPS looks forward to contributing to this important effort to achieve a more resilient, reliable and secure power system," said Steinar Dale, director of the center.

Founded in 2003, the GridWise Alliance (www.gridwise.com) advocates a vision of an electric system that integrates the infrastructure, processes, devices, information and market structure so that energy can be generated, distributed and consumed more efficiently and cost-effectively. Its members include utilities, IT companies, equipment vendors, new technology providers and educational institutions.

According to Dale, "FSU CAPS' resources will support the GridWise Alliance by helping to develop, analyze, demonstrate and 'de-risk' new technology and new approaches to power delivery."

In addition to CAPS, members of the GridWise Alliance include ABB, Accenture, Aegis Technologies, Alcatel-Lucent, the Ambient Corporation, American Electric Power, Arcadian Networks, AREVA-T&D, Austin Energy, Autodesk, BC Hydro, Beacon Power Corp., the British Columbia Institute of Technology, Cellnet+Hunt, CenterPoint Energy, Cisco, CMEA Ventures, the Computer Sciences Corporation, Con Edison, Constellation Energy, Consumers Energy Company, Cooper Power Systems, Current, Duke Energy, Eka Systems, Electricite de France, Elster Integrated Solutions, Energy Insights, EnergySolve, the EnerNex Corporation, Environmental System Research Institute, GE, GridPoint Inc., Hewlett-Packard, IBM, the Institute of Electric Power Engineering, Itron,