Meetings

Ask The Experts
A Quarterly Series from ACT

Next Event:

"Smart Grid" Technology and the Effect
it will have on Your Home and Business
John McLain, Principal, McLain and Company
Thursday, October 29, 2009
12:00 PM EST

The term SMART GRID is often found prominently in news articles about this country's energy policy/crisis. According to Wikipedia, “A smart grid delivers electricity from suppliers to consumers using digital technology to save energy, reduce cost and increase reliability and transparency. Such a modernized electricity network is being promoted by many governments as a way of addressing energy independence, global warming, and emergency resilience issues."

Hear how, when fully implemented, the SMART GRID will dramatically change the way in which consumers and businesses interact with their local energy supplier (i.e. the utility).  The roles of supplier (utility) and provider (consumer) will blur as the Smart Grid takes control of both the utility system of generating plants far away, the solar panels on the roof, and many of the energy-using equipment and systems in your home or office.  Eventually, even the car in your garage and your iPhone may become part of the Smart Grid to help solve (deleted big) some of this country's biggest challenges in energy and related environmental impacts.

John McLain is a principal at McLain & Company, providing educational consulting services for instruction and curriculum design for physical classrooms virtual E-Learning classrooms. He is also:

  • Project manager with Portland General Electric, focused on providing training & educational classes, courses, and seminars to industrial and commercial customers as well as employees. He has 40 years of electric utility industry experience including distribution field operations, corporate planning & budgeting, information technology, ethics & compliance, and marketing program management.
  • Adjunct Faculty member at Clackamas Community College, teaching a series of classes on energy resource management curriculum design of new classes.
  • Member of the American Society of Training & Development.

    • John has a Bachelor's Degree in business/accounting from California State University at Northridge, an MBA in organizational effectiveness from Marylhurst University, and is currently enrolled to obtain a Masters of Education in instruction and curriculum design from Portland State University.

    How to Register: ACT's Ask the Experts series is a quarterly series created exclusively for ACT members. Nonmembers are invited to attend one session for an introductory fee of $25. Advance registration is required to participate. Registration closes two business days prior to the event. Members may register by sending an email to AskTheExperts@ConsumerExpert.org or calling our office at (804) 559-6519. Nonmembers may register online.

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