The way we get our energy and water is as dynamic and complex as ever, and utilities are under a lot of pressure to deliver safe, reliable, and affordable service. They face a litany of new and evolving challenges like extreme weather, security threats, aging infrastructure, water scarcity concerns, and more.
As if anyone needed an excuse to visit southern California in the fall…
Innovators, thought leaders, and decision-makers of all ilks will be posting up in picturesque Palm Springs, CA from October 4-10 for Itron Inspire 2024 to tackle these concerns and more. Itron’s signature event assembles energy, water, IIoT, and smart cities professionals to share knowledge and address challenges facing utilities and cities managing energy and water.
“Utilities are facing a broad set of challenges, which include meeting increased energy demand from data centers and AI, adapting to distributed energy resource (DER) adoption, enhancing safety, integrating renewables, and more,” explained Marina Donovan, Itron vice president of global marketing, ESG, and public affairs. “At Itron Inspire 2024, we look forward to sharing our collective expertise with our partners and customers to demonstrate innovative solutions to these challenges.”
I’m checking out Itron Inspire for the first time and will be sharing some of the sights and sounds on LinkedIn. Before I get out to California, here are some highlights of the event I’m keying in on.
The Knowledge Conference
The Knowledge Conference, billed as Itron Inspire’s main event, runs from Sunday, October 6 through Tuesday, October 8. It includes two inspiring keynotes, numerous networking events, and more than 75 Itron and customer-led breakout sessions. Itron’s integrated solutions and partner offerings will be showcased in the Knowledge Center.
Keynotes
- In the opening general session, attendees will hear from senior vice president and chief information officer of Southern California Edison (SCE), Todd Inlander, about SCE’s plans to leverage sophisticated technologies to deliver electricity reliably, keep outages to a minimum, and facilitate customer choice in adopting new innovations around energy monitoring and usage. Tom Deitrich, president and CEO of Itron, will discuss the importance of innovation in support of digital transformation, and Marina Donovan will present the findings of the 2024 Itron Resourcefulness Insight Report, which explores how utilities are leveraging AI and machine learning. Farah Saeed, research director at Frost & Sullivan, will unveil the winners of the 2024 Excellence in Resourcefulness Awards (Monday, 10/7 8-9:30 am)
- In the second general session on Tuesday morning, Dr. Michael Webber- CTO of Energy Impact Partners, Sid Richardson Chair in Public Affairs, and the John J. McKetta Centennial Energy Chair in Engineering at the University of Texas at Austin- will highlight trends shaping the future of energy and water delivery and what we can do to propel the industry forward on our journey to a cleaner energy and water economy. Following, Ben Huggins the senior vice president of customer and marketing experience at Itron, will present the annual Itron Innovator Award. (Tuesday 10/8 8-9:30 am)
I’ll be conducting interviews with both SCE’s Inlander and Itron’s Marina Donovan on LinkedIn Live following the general sessions on Monday and Tuesday. UPDATE: Here’s my chat with Inlander; Donovan’s will be live at 12:30 PT on Tuesday.
Big Picture Sessions
- Grid Edge Intelligence and the Role of Data Governance: Monday’s Big Picture Session will be facilitated by Dr. Andrea Nuesser, grid modernization leader at Capgemini, and will feature a discussion with industry expert Amber Connors, director of IT customer and grid operations technology at Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD), around innovative approaches to data rights and management amid the energy transition. (Monday, 10/7 3:30-4:15 pm)
- Navigating the Journey Toward Sustainability: Aaron Smallwood, vice president of research and industry at Smart Electric Power Alliance, will moderate the Tuesday Big Picture Session, which will explore how utilities are leveraging technology, policy frameworks and stakeholder collaboration to create impactful change and a carbon-neutral future. Panelists include Scott Martin, chief financial officer, SMUD; Shriram Ramanathan, AI strategist and chief of staff, Bidgely; and Mark Spalinger, director of utilities intelligence, J.D. Power. (Tuesday, 10/8 11:15-Noon)
Women Who Inspire
Stephanie Kolodziej, vice president of transmission and distribution at the massive T&D event DISTRIBUTECH, will lead a discussion between industry leaders Cheryl Mele, vice president of customer and employee services at El Paso Electric Company; Evelyn Cortez-Davis, chief of staff – water systems at Los Angeles Department of Water and Power; and Brandy Bolden, chief customer officer at Sacramento Municipal Utility District. Panelists will discuss timely topics including career paths, work/life balance, tips for driving cultural change within an organization and more. (Tuesday, 4:30-5:30 pm)
Breakout Sessions
Customer and partner-led breakout sessions will take place each day of the conference after the general session in the following tracks:
- Applications, Outcomes & Services: This track covers secure, scalable outcomes powered by grid edge infrastructure solutions, including grid edge intelligence, distributed intelligence, consumer engagement, grid operations, forecasting, revenue assurance, demand response, prepayment and DER management. It also highlights gas distribution safety, water operations, outcomes-based delivery and managed support services, benefiting utilities, cities and global third-party providers.
- Data Management: In these sessions, utilities will share insights and experiences centered on meter data management as well as strategies for storing and using data effectively.
- Mobile and Measurement Solutions: Session in this track provide insights into how Itron’s mobile-based solutions offer the flexibility for seamless migration to next-generation networks or hybrid deployments, tailored to meet both business and operational needs.
- Multi-Purpose Network Solutions: In this track, attendees will learn how Itron enables utilities to overcome challenges and deliver more efficient, resilient and sustainable services through intelligently connected IIoT platforms and solutions.
Conversations to keep an eye on
- Solving Intermittent Resource Problems with DERMS & Grid Flexibility Programs with Pablo Bauleo, Fort Collins Utilities (Monday, 10/7 10-10:45 am)
- Building the Case for Grid Edge Intelligence with Luis Pizano of Eversource, Paul Jones of Avangrid, and Itron’s Gary Kessler (Also Monday, 10/7 10-10:45 am)
- Enhancing Customer Safety with Distributed Intelligence with Shawn Mundy of CenterPoint Energy and Joel Hutson from Tampa Electric Company (Monday, 10/7 1-1:45 pm)
- Achieving Real-Time Transformer Visibility & Awareness featuring Aaron Almand, TECO; Trevor Lamb, SMUD; and David Ganger, Itron (Monday, 10/7 2:15-3 pm)
- Using AI to Orchestrate Activity on the Edge with Meredith Gilstrap and Eric Young of Itron (Tuesday, 10/8 10-10:45 am)
- Resourcefulness Report Roundtable with Itron’s Tom Deitrich (Tuesday, 10/8 1-1:45 pm)
- Unlocking Opportunities: Navigating the Infrastructure Investment & Jobs Act (IIJA) Together moderated by JD Domenichelli of 4Liberty, featuring Trevor Lamb (SMUD) and Matt Monnot (FirstEnergy) (Tuesday, 10/8 2:15-3 pm)
- Modernizing & Simplifying Energy Distribution with Integrated Distributed Intelligence (DI) & ADMS Solutions with Hydro One’s Martin Hyang, Schneider Electric’s Giovanni Herazo, and Itron’s Eric Young and Jennifer Gallegos (Tuesday, 10/8 3:30-4:15 pm)
