Megger Best Practices Battery Maintenance and Substation Seminars now in Atlanta, Georgia and Orlando, Florida

Secondary batteries play an essential role in many areas of business and commerce, but to be sure that they deliver their full performance when called upon to do so, regular testing is needed.

To learn more Megger is presenting FREE one-day seminars across the United States and recently we have added events in Georgia and Florida. The seminars address some of the most important and costly issues relating to battery and substation maintenance, and include extensive practical
presentations.

Megger’s Best Practices Battery and Substation Seminars are being held at the following locations:

October 26th
Holiday Inn Atlanta/Roswell
909 Holcomb Bridge Rd.
Roswell, Georgia 30076
click here to register

October 28th 2010
Holiday Inn Main Gate
5711 West U.S. Hwy 192
Kissimmee, FL 34746
click here to register

Focus
The key focus of the Best Practices Battery and Substation Seminar is condition analysis, and the assessment of power transformers. All sessions include show-and-tell demonstrations of practical techniques for maximizing reliability, including the most commonly used methods and practices.

Among the topics covered in detail for circuit breakers are basic testing techniques, first trip testing, static and dynamic resistance measurements, vibration analysis, the formulation of test plans and reporting.

For power transformers, recent advances in condition analysis and assessment are presented, complemented by discussion and demonstration of the most useful and convenient test techniques. These include power factor testing, sweep frequency response analysis (SFRA) and insulation diagnostic analyzer (IDAX) applications.

Invaluable information is also provided on Battery Performance Testing and Reporting data collection, trending and analysis via PowerDB software, as well as insights into how companies are coping with the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) and Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) data collection and management requirements.

Participants of this training seminar will improve business skills, share insights, and learn from Megger’s technology specialists as they share their expertise by addressing many of the challenges seen in the electric power industry today. Topics will highlight HV Circuit Breaker Testing and Condition Analysis, and Assessment of Power Transformers. Each session will include show and tell demonstrations on the practical aspects of ensuring reliability including common methods and practices.

Sign up early as spaces are limited. Please contact Nicole Stokes at 214 330 3245 or email nicole.stokes@megger.com to register.

(source  www.megger.com)

View and Purchase Megger Products HERE

Solar Panels at NASA's Kennedy Space Center

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – A newly constructed solar power facility at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, Fla., officially is providing electricity to Florida homes. NASA, Florida Power & Light, or FPL, and political leaders commissioned FPL’s Space Coast Next Generation Solar Energy Center on Thursday.

The 10-megawatt solar plant was built by FPL, Florida’s largest utility. It will feed FPL’s electric grid, generating energy for more than 1,000 homes and reducing annual carbon dioxide emissions by more than 227,000 tons.

FPL built a separate 1-megawatt solar power facility at Kennedy as part of this unique public-private partnership between NASA and FPL. That facility has been supplying the space center with electricity since late 2009.

“NASA is a pioneer in the use of solar power for space exploration, so it’s fitting that we’re working with FPL to expand the use and R&D of that renewable energy source at Kennedy where many of those missions were launched,” said Bob Cabana, director of the Kennedy Space Center. “This type of commercial partnership with NASA helps provide Florida residents, and America’s space program, with new sources of green power that reduce our reliance on fossil fuels and improve the environment.”

“Florida is poised to be a leader in America’s growing clean-energy economy, which naturally includes solar power,” said Rep. Suzanne Kosmas of Florida. “Bringing new clean-energy jobs to our communities is one of my top priorities. This joint effort between NASA and FPL is an example of how we can create jobs while investing in common-sense solutions to the economic, environmental and national security challenges we face today.”

The 10-megawatt facility features approximately 35,000 highly efficient solar photovoltaic panels from SunPower Corporation on 60 acres at Kennedy. The panels are 50 percent more efficient than conventional solar panels.

“Like NASA, FPL is looking beyond the horizon. FPL’s Space Coast Next Generation Solar Energy Center is an important part of our state’s clean-energy future, but large-scale solar projects like this one also have a very positive impact on the economy today,” said FPL President and CEO Armando J. Olivera. “Projects like this and our Next Generation Solar Energy Centers in Martin and DeSoto give Florida the opportunity to create and attract clean-energy jobs and produce millions of dollars in new revenue for local governments while reducing greenhouse gas emissions and fighting the effects of climate change at the same time.”

Plans also are being discussed to expand the 10-megawatt facility’s generating capacity to 100-megawatts at another Kennedy location. This expansion of the solar facilities is contingent on regulatory support and the passage of renewable energy legislation at the state level. If proven environmentally and economically feasible, an expansive field of photovoltaic solar panels will be constructed in phases on 500 or more acres of fallow Kennedy agricultural land and integrated into the utility’s grid. A dedicated research and development facility to support continual improvement of solar renewable energy also would be established by SunPower and FPL’s other partners at Kennedy’s upcoming business complex, Exploration Park.

The proposed projects are being pursued under a five-year Memorandum of Understanding entered into by Kennedy and FPL in 2007 to promote jointly developed projects in renewable technologies.

(source www.nasa.gov)

For more information about NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/kennedy

Major corporate players in the Corridor include G.E. Power Systems, Harris Corporation, Jabil Circuit, Mitsubishi Power Systems, Raytheon Systems Co. and Siemens Westinghouse Power Corp., among others.  Even more significant are the small companies and start-ups throughout the 23-county region developing revolutionary advancements in the field.  UF spin-out, Sinmat (http://www.sinmat.com) is applying the company’s tested methods to make robust, resilient semiconductors, while Planar Energy Devices (http://www.planarenergy.com) in Orlando is creating next generation batteries that are lighter, more durable and longer-lasting.  Both have taken advantage of the Florida High Tech Corridor Council’s Matching Grants Research Program to advance their technologies.

The partnerships forged by these companies and institutions create a dynamic atmosphere for progress in the Corridor’s microelectronics and nanotechnology sector.

About The Florida High Tech Corridor Council:
The Florida High Tech Corridor Council was established by the Legislature in 1996 to attract, retain and grow high tech industry and to help develop the workforce to support those industries in the 21-county service areas of the University of Central Florida and the University of South Florida. In January 2005, the Council welcomed the University of Florida as a full partner of this unique economic development initiative, merging the strengths of three world-class universities and bringing the number of Corridor counties to 23.

The Corridor Council is a partnership involving more than 20 local and regional economic development organizations (EDOs) and 14 community colleges serving the 23-county region. The Council itself is made-up of the presidents of the three state universities, the presidents of two of the community colleges who serve on a rotating basis, the president of the Florida Institute of Technology, and up to 24 representatives of high tech industry. Those partnerships have resulted in a strategic approach to high tech economic development that involves matching funds research, workforce development, cultivation of technology communities and a marketing program leveraging governmental, EDO, and corporate budgets on a regional rather than local basis.

Corridor partners cooperate to identify and initiate pro-industry legislative and tax incentives, develop and provide innovative credit and non-credit training programs, and invest in infrastructure-building projects to increase Florida’s strength as a nationally-recognized, high-technology region. Since 1996, the Florida High Tech Corridor Council has partnered with more than 250 companies on 800 research projects. The Council’s investment of more than $50 million has contributed to more than $170 million in total research that has been used to retain more than 1,500 graduate and doctoral students.

The high technology focus areas of the Council are based on key strengths of the universities, and include:

• Agrictechnology
• Aviation & Aerospace
• Biotechnology
• Digital Media & Interactive Entertainment
• Financial Services
• Information Technology
• Life Sciences & Medical Technologies
• Manufacturing Design
• Marine Technologies
• Microelectronics & Nanotechnology
• Modeling, Simulation & Training
• Optics & Photonics
• Sustainable Energy
• Telecommunications