Most people take electricity for granted – you plug something into the wall, and it runs. But like the Great Oz, behind the scenes is a battalion of experts, putting additional generating units online when they are needed and keeping the alternating current at a steady 60 Hz so the lights don’t flicker.
AES performs these services – generating and distributing electricity – the world over. In Southern California, the company’s natural gas-fired generators are contracted by the electrical utility, Southern California Edison, to augment its electricity demand in intermediate and peak situations.
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To some, the Northeastern Rural Electric Membership Cooperative (NREMC)’s name might imply a small utility that is not very well advanced when it comes to technology or one that covers just a small, sparsely populated region.
Neither of these presumptions applies to the Columbia City, Ind., based member-owned electric distribution cooperative, founded in 1935. The cooperative has long been on the cutting-edge of technology, dating back in 1981, when it became one of the first organizations of its kind to implement a supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) system. The system today includes 27 operated tie points that allow remote load transfers between substations.
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State Route 520 in Seattle is undergoing some substantial work as the Washington State Department of Transportation replaces the aging floating bridge over Lake Washington with a new structure that will provide greater stability as well as future-proof the highway for light rail and increased traffic. A crucial component of the work going on along SR 520 is the West Approach Bridge North project, which will connect westbound traffic to the new floating bridge.
Lending its expertise to this critical stage of the project is Flatiron Construction Corp., one of the region’s most trusted and accomplished contractors. Project Engineer Tom McMillan says that although the project is especially challenging for a number of reasons, Flatiron has the skills and experience needed to bring its portion of the work to a successful conclusion, and so far the company is on track to do exactly that.
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As a suburb of Tulsa, Okla., the city of Bixby has enjoyed rapid population growth in recent years. The city’s infrastructure itself, City Engineer and Assistant City Manager Jared Cottle notes, is growing along with it, thanks to several new projects.
Located in Tulsa and Wagoner counties, the city is home to approximately 24,000 residents.
“Our population has grown roughly 69 percent since 2000,” he says, noting that people have multiple reasons to want to reside in the suburb. “Many have moved here for the schools,” he says, noting that its location near Tulsa is also an attraction. “Residents can take Highways 75 or 64 [to Tulsa], which are both major highways serving significant commerce areas.”
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Applied High Voltage draws on its broad experience in non-utility generation to integrate an 800-megawatt natural gas-fired generation facility in Pennsylvania into the local utility’s transmission grid. “The thing that is interesting about this project is that it’s one of the first projects that are built in the Marcellus Shale region,” President Mark Scher says. “It’s a very high-profile project.”
Founded in 2013, Applied High Voltage provides comprehensive power solutions through experienced, hands-on professionals who understand its clients’ objectives. In less than one year, Applied High Voltage has grown from a two-person operation to employing nearly 50 people and its annual revenue is on track to hit $60 million.
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