Quebec businesses in search of new wind markets

A delegation of ten Quebec-based companies is participating in a commercial mission organized by the TechnoCentre éolien and the Wind Energy Cluster.

This important North American event, which is being held in Toronto in the framework of the Canadian Wind Energy Association’s (CanWEA) 31st Annual Conference and Exhibition, allows participating companies to carve out a place in new markets and to demonstrate their expertise as related to the wind industry.

Export companies
The companies taking part in this commercial mission, the list of which can be viewed below, are well established in the Quebec wind industry. The innovative character and the maturity of the products and services of the Quebec delegation are genuine assets for succeeding in the export markets of other Canadian provinces and the United States.

While some of these businesses are already exporting their know-how and services on the Canadian market, others are eager to enter into new markets, including Ontario. An Ontario-Quebec wind energy panel is also being organized by the Bureau du Québec à Toronto in order to present major business opportunities in the local and global markets.

“The TechnoCentre éolien is proud to assist these companies in their efforts to identify potential clients and position themselves within the North American export markets. These combined actions are paying dividends, as the companies active in this sector are now present in Ontario, Alberta, Nova Scotia, the US and Mexico. A commercial mission like this one offers a unique service in the form of business meetings entirely dedicated to wind energy. Such commercial missions generate tangible benefits and, in this regard, are indispensable for the development of our businesses”, affirms Monica Normand, Wind Energy Cluster Manager at the TechnoCentre éolien.

Commercial missions that reap benefits
Entering new markets requires time and energy. The companies of the Quebec delegation rely on expertise developed in specialized niches to stand out from their competitors. This has proven to be a winning strategy, as demonstrated by the approximately $5.5 million of contracts signed by companies that participated in last year’s mission organized by the TechnoCentre éolien at the CanWEA Conference in Montréal.

The Quebec wind industry comprises over 150 active businesses and the wind farms installed throughout the province contribute nearly a half a billion dollars to the economy annually. According to a study conducted by SECOR-KPMG, the wind industry creates 5,000 jobs in Quebec, including nearly 1,000 in the Montréal region alone, and 1,200 in the Gaspé region and the MRC de La Matanie.

The list of participating companies includes:

• Téchéol


• Plaquettes de frein B&B


• Suspendem


• Vent de l’Est


• Le Groupe Ohméga inc.


• Collineo


• Estampro


• Groupe LD


• Grues Gendron


• Maintenance Logic Systems

This commercial mission is being conducted in partnership with Export Québec, thanks to the financial support of the Ministry of Economy, Innovation and Exports (MEIE). We would also like to point out the important collaboration of the Bureau du Québec à Toronto.

TechnoCentre éolien
www.eolien.qc.ca

Quebec businesses in search of new wind markets

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Dealing with the haze: Lifting the gloom with acts of kindness, social initiatives and humour

SINGAPORE – Even amid the hazy weather and grey skies that have plagued Singapore over the past few weeks, there have been bright spots to chase the gloom away.

Examples of Singaporeans looking out for each other and performing acts of kindness can be found on social media, while different initiatives have emerged to help combat the haze in various ways.

Acts of kindness

Facebook user Josiah Ng, for instance, was touched to receive a message from his driver after booking a cab on Sept 24, which read: “Hello Mr. Ng, I am your Taxi booking. The Haze is very bad. You stay indoor (sic) first. I will SMS you again when I am here, so you don’t need to wait in the haze. Will not start meter first.”

Mr Ng said that the driver had been sending the same message to his other customers.

And while there were reports of people cashing in by re-selling N95 masks at a higher price during the last haze crisis in 2013, one hardware shop is doing the exact opposite this time round.

Home, located on the ground floor of Block 442, Clementi Avenue 3, was spotted putting up a sign in English and Chinese that read: “Free mask for children and senior citizens.”

Initiatives to help people cope with haze

Volunteers of the “I Will Be Your Shelter” campaign, who gave out free air purifiers and filters to residents in the North Bridge Road area on Sept 19, 2015. PHOTO: FACEBOOK/STANDUPFOR.SG

The good folks behind local kindness movement Stand Up For Singapore last month kickstarted a fund-raising campaign called “I Will Be Your Shelter” to buy air purifiers and filters for the elderly and needy in the North Bridge Road area.

It has raised about $6,000 through crowdfunding site Indiegogo and donations thus far. It distributed 40 air filters and 10 purifiers to the residents on Sept 19.

Mr Wally Tham, 38, the man behind the campaign, told The New Paper that he started the campaign last year when he realised that the elderly in nursing homes were defenceless against the haze.

For Mr Cai Yinzhou, the health of Singapore’s homeless and migrant workers were foremost on his mind when he embarked on his project “3,000 masks, 1 Singapore” project to help his target demographic.

Mr Cai, 25, had read about community centres giving out two free masks each to eligible Singaporeans and permanent residents, and decided to assist those who did not qualify.

Sisters Cheryl and Charlene Lie, meanwhile, launched their mask-collection drive “Let’s Help Kalimantan”, which aims to help Indonesians cope with severe haze conditions that have reportedly hit Pollutant Standards Index (PSI) levels of nearly 2,000.

The duo have reportedly amassed more than 20,000 masks through individual donors and an Indiegogo campaign. They plan to fly to Palangkaraya, the capital of the Central Kalimantan province, to distribute the masks and educate residents on how to use them.

Education campaigns

A worker handling palm oil seeds at a plantation in Sumatra. The demand for palm oil is said to be one of the main driving factors behind Indonesia’s forest fires. PHOTO: AFP

Several volunteer groups have also sprung up, such as the Haze Elimination Action Team (H.E.A.T.) and People’s Movement To Stop Haze, which aim to raise public awareness of the companies who are responsible for causing the forest fires.

Besides publishing useful tips on Facebook to help Singaporeans guard against the hazy conditions, H.E.A.T. also intends to sue the companies.

The People’s Movement To Stop Haze, or PM.Haze, has been particularly vocal on advocating the use of products made from sustainable sources. Its campaign, called We Breathe What We Buy, is trying to collect 50,000 pledges from Singaporeans to show that there is a demand for sustainable products.

Laughter the best medicine

A screengrab from the “Thank You Indonesia for 11 months of clean air” website. PHOTO: THANKYOUINDOFORTHECLEANAIR.COM

There have also been light-hearted attempts to poke fun at the current situation. A website named “Thank You Indonesia for 11 months of clean air” was recently set up, which referenced the unpopular comments made by Indonesia Vice-President Jusuf Kalla.

Visitors to the site can click on a button to “thank” Indonesia – it has been thanked more than 3.3 million times to date – and leave comments to vent their frustrations.

And netizens proficient with Photoshop have been having a field day, generating hilarious memes and their own creative takes on a problem that Singaporeans face every year.

Dealing with the haze: Lifting the gloom with acts of kindness, social initiatives and humour

ISU assistant professor develops power-saving tools to improve solar-powered robots

An assistant professor at Iowa State University is developing new power-saving methods to improve solar-powered robots, both on land and in the air.

For Ran Dai, an ISU assistant professor and Black and Veatch Faculty Fellow in aerospace engineering, this is her first time working with solar power. But after working as a post-doctoral researcher at the University of Washington in Seattle, she worked with Boeing to help make the 787 jet more power-efficient.

“So that work motivates this solar-powered robot,” she said. “My idea, at the beginning, was if we can implement the power-management research in the solar-powered robot, if we have limited solar power energy outside, can we schedule the operation of the robot to work more efficiently?”

After observing a range of other solar-powered products, Dai noticed the majority require a manual recharge every few hours. Even the strongest solar robot currently being used to defuse bombs in the military, Dai said, needs to be recharged every three hours. The key to a longer charge, she said, will require the robot to be smart enough to recharge itself.

“If we want to make the robot to work by itself, they need an automation system. That will make them smart enough to know what’s going on outside, and know how to adjust their operation,” she said. “The idea is if we want them to work permanently or have a long duration, we have to find a way to make them charge automatically.”

A longer battery life can provide more help in several areas, Dai said, including search and rescue missions, agriculture and environmental monitoring, or “anything that requires long-term operation.” As an end goal, Dai said she would like to eventually see a robot capable of working for up to several years.

Students at ISU are also helping to make that goal a reality. Along with students Adam Kaplan, Chuangchuang Sun, Nathaniel Kingry, Kishan Patel and Justin Vandentop, Dai is developing the third generation of a land robot, and the undergraduate program Make to Innovate is busy designing the first generation of an unmanned aerial vehicle capable of self-charging. That vehicle, Dai said, is planned to eventually determine which altitude and angle of flight will give it the most sun exposure and obtain the maximum amount of energy. The goal is to finish the UAV’s design this semester and prepare it for a flight test next year.

Dai’s power-management research is also supported by a five-year, $500,000 grant from the National Science Foundation’s Faculty Early Career Development Program to help support the research and teaching of junior faculty.

ISU assistant professor develops power-saving tools to improve solar-powered robots

Green Energy Job for College Student (degree12954)

Comverge is looking for a Regulatory Analyst to contribute to our growing regulatory team by providing analysis and research to the regulatory, strategy, client delivery and sales teams across the company. Based in the Washington, DC area and r eporting to the Sr. Director of Regulatory Strategy, you will be a key player in the company’s regulatory department by helping track policy developments, analyze relevant data, and reach out to stakeholders across the country.

The ideal candidate is a self-starter with a predilection toward both the analytical and political. Drawing from your professional experience or professional degree, you know how to gather and analyze data in order to understand trends and predict an outcome. You have some understanding of the Energy and Utility sectors and want to know more about the shifting landscape.

Responsibilities:

· Provide data analysis and research to the regulatory, sales and client delivery teams.

· At the direction of the Sr. Director of Regulatory Strategy, contribute to presentations and proposals to key clients and other stakeholders.

· Assist with the preparation of comments and testimony for regulatory proceedings, and presentation and meeting materials as needed.

· Provide direct regulatory support when needed and liaise with relevant coworkers across the company.

· Proactively monitor policy and regulatory changes across a number of states and ISOs.

Qualifications Required:

· BA/BS from a top university.

· 2-4 years of relevant experience; experience and focus in the Energy / Utility industry preferred; State PSC / ISO experience is a plus. An advanced professional degree from a top university will be considered as a substitute.

· Exceptional written and oral communication skills.

· Ability to solve complex problems, think strategically, collect data, establish facts, and draw valid conclusions.

· Have proven analytical skills and at least a basic understanding of statistics.

· Ability to read, analyze, and interpret common technical journals, financial reports, and legal documents.

· This role will involve periodic travel as determined by regulatory and team needs.

Benefits:

In exchange for your hard work and dedication, we offer a competitive salary, excellent benefits package and positive working environment.

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Comverge is an Equal Employment Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment and will not be discriminated against on the basis of disability or veteran status. (Minorities / Female / Disabled / Veteran)

Green Energy Job for College Student (degree12954)

Vancouver Mayor voices support for province to integrate more wind energy

VANCOUVER, Oct. 1, 2015 /CNW/ – Today, the Canadian Wind Energy Association (CanWEA) and a group of leading wind energy companies met with Vancouver Mayor Gregor Roberston and senior city officials. The meeting focused on the importance of diversifying B.C.’s power sources with renewable generation like wind energy and the role municipalities play in advocating for a cleaner energy future.

“The city of Vancouver has emerged as an important leader in Canada on the issue of climate change and support for renewable energy,” stated Ian Baillie, CanWEA’s B.C. regional director. “Mayor Robertson has been a champion of green economic development in cities and vocal in supporting low-carbon technology.”

Earlier this year, Vancouver became the first city in Canada to set a target for shifting to 100 per cent renewable energy sources by 2050 or sooner. Having a provincial electricity grid that maximizes its renewable potential is critical for Vancouver in achieving this goal. B.C.’s energy demand is projected to increase by the end of this decade, creating an opportunity for the province to allow investments in more renewable energy.

“Our province is blessed with ample renewable energy sources, and wind energy can play an important role as we shift to a low-carbon economy,” said Mayor Robertson. “Vancouver has set the goal of using 100 per cent renewable energy as part of our Greenest City plan. At a time when we’re seeing countries like China and the U.S. commit to reducing their greenhouse gas emissions and making the switch to clean energy, investing in clean energy in B.C. makes sense for our economy and our environment.”

Mayor Robertson has committed to attending a CanWEA hosted renewable energy dialogue planned for the spring of 2016 that will bring together leading renewable energy companies, associations, environmental advocates and political leaders to discuss the future of renewable development in British Columbia.

Wind energy development across Canada has soared to new levels, and costs have come down at rates faster than projected. In British Columbia, wind energy represents a $10 billion dollar economic opportunity. “The wind energy industry wants to invest in British Columbia, create jobs and advance the economy,” adds Mr. Baillie. “Wind energy is a cost-effective complement to B.C.’s conventional hydropower that provides a hedge against volatile natural gas prices while also helping to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, fight climate change, and bring economic benefits to local communities.”

Today, the province has almost 500 MW of installed wind energy capacity, ranking fifth in Canada and supplying nearly 2 per cent of the province’s domestic electricity demand.

About the Canadian Wind Energy Association

CanWEA is the voice of Canada’s wind energy industry, actively promoting the responsible and sustainable growth of wind energy on behalf of its members. A national non-profit association, CanWEA serves as Canada’s leading source of credible information about wind energy and its social, economic and environmental benefits. Join us on Twitter and for insight on industry issues join the conversation at www.windfacts.ca.   

 

Vancouver Mayor voices support for province to integrate more wind energy

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