Sign up now for Confined Space Entry webinar: MEUW is hosting a Confined Space Entry online training on Tuesday, April 6. The three-hour webinar begins at 8:30 a.m. and is designed to refresh participants on regulatory requirements and hazard controls for Permit-Required Confined Spaces. It will be conducted by Tim Palet, an instructor who brings decades of knowledge and experience on the subject. Topics to be covered include air monitoring, fall protection, ventilation, and non-entry rescue. Registration details are here.
“Early Bird” pricing for Electric Operations Expo registration ends Thursday: The 2021 “Electric Operations Expo” will take place on Thursday, April 29, at the Sauk County Fairgrounds in Baraboo. This outdoor event will feature breakout sessions, a large trade show, equipment demonstrations, and a lot of networking. MEUW is holding the event in partnership with the Wisconsin Electric Cooperative Association (WECA) and Wisconsin Utility Suppliers Association (WUSA). Personnel from cooperative and municipal utilities have been invited to take part. Full details and registration information is available here. The registration fee will increase on April 2.
Latest episode of “Electric Wire” podcast now online: The Customers First! Coalition (CFC) recently released a new episode in its podcast series. “Regulation, Reliability … and Texas” explores what happened to cause the widespread and prolonged power outage that plagued Texas in February. A panel of experts discuss what can be done to prevent a similar event in Wisconsin as well as what type of grid investments might be needed to prepare for extreme weather events.
CFC’s “Electric Wire” podcast seeks to help advance dialogue and education about energy issues across the state and features interviews with guests who have ties to Wisconsin. This most recent episode is the 11th in the series and was released March 12.
To access the podcast episodes, search for The Electric Wire wherever you subscribe to podcasts, or listen at CFC’s YouTube channel. You can follow @theelectricwire on Twitter to get notifications of new episodes, pictures and other information about the podcast series.
WPUI offering series of online courses about Regional Transmission Organizations: The Wisconsin Public Utility Institute (WPUI) is holding a multi-day web conference in April to provide a comprehensive overview of regional transmission organizations (RTOs) in North America. Participants can expect to learn how and why RTOs were created and the fundamentals about their many functions, as well as how RTOs help to maintain operational reliability. The online program will take place over five days – April 20, 21, 23, 28, and 30. The course will end with a discussion of current issues facing RTOs today and tomorrow. For registration information and more details, click here.
April 18 is a day to show appreciation for lineworkers: National Lineman Appreciation Day has been celebrated officially since 2013. Commemorated by a Resolution in the United States Senate, April 18th is set aside each year to express appreciation for the men and women who put their talents to work as electrical line workers.
Together, MEUW member utilities employ more than 300 lineworkers across Wisconsin, and we are once again planning to use social media to recognize the hard-working folks who commit themselves to their customers and communities. Utilities are encouraged to share photos of their line crews that we can post and share on MEUW’s Facebook and Twitter pages. Send the pictures to news@meuw.org to help us recognize Wisconsin’s public power lineworkers.
Nomination period for MEUW Board of Directors now open: MEUW is currently accepting nominations for interested individuals to serve on the association’s Board of Directors for a two-year term beginning May 14, 2021. This year’s election will be for Directors and Alternate Directors in odd-numbered districts. The Nomination Form and additional information is available here. The deadline to nominate someone is Friday, April 16.