Pasadena Company Leads the Way in Managing 21st Century’s Power Grids

Electric Power Group (EPG), located on Lake Avenue, has created an online training service for new technology used to manage power grids — the first ever course of its kind.

Using an open online course platform, EPG has created a class called “Introduction to Synchrophasors” that has become a key learning training program for people working in the electric power industry, according to the North American Electric Reliability Corporation.

“Synchrophasors are the next generation of technology for managing electric power grids and are essential for security, reliability and economic efficiency,” says Terry Winter, former CEO of California Independent System Operator.

Synchrophasors — which monitor the pulse of electric grid at rates between 30 to 120 times per second — are currently 100 times faster than Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA), the method currently used.

Terry Boston, the former CEO of PJM Interconnection described advantages the new technology holds in this analogy: “Synchrophasors provide power grid control centers ‘MRI-quality’ situational awareness compared to ‘X-RAY-quality’ view using legacy SCADA technologies.”

With the adoption of new technology, and need to train as many people as possible, EPG looked at the logistics of finding expert training personnel, travel, cost and scheduling and decided to put its training program on an Internet-based platform.

“EPG decided to fill this gap by utilizing web technology, instructors with expertise and experience in synchrophasor technology,” according to Vikram Budhraja, EPG’s President.

The course will teach power grid operators, engineers and planners about the practical use of synchrophasors in their day to day jobs and is both designed and presented by expert practitioners.

“We are excited to bring this essential training on a contemporary education platform,” Vivek Bhaman, EPG’s Executive Vice President said

EPG was established in 2000 and is the leading provider of synchrophasor technology to electric utilities and Independent System Operators.