I’m currently in Chicago, IL, attending the 34th annual WORLD ENERGY ENGINEERING CONGRESS (WEEC), a three-day conference for end users and energy professionals designed to shine a light on how various economic and market forces—as well as new technologies, regulatory developments, and industry trends—all merge to “shape your critical decisions on your organization’s energy and economic future.”
Every year, the Association of Energy Engineers (AEE) hosts WEEC for “energy engineering and management professionals from throughout the US, as well as over 80 nations abroad.” The conference also includes a special track designed for federal energy managers—FEMWorks 2011. This special, multi-track portion of WEEC was first introduced as part of the 2006 WEEC agenda, and provides federal energy managers with a comprehensive series of workshops. Additional free technology workshops will also be held in the exhibit hall, and participants can sign on to several free tours of “local energy installations of interest.”
Participating speakers and presenters—all of whom are top names in energy efficiency engineering and technology—will cover a variety of topics, including:
*energy efficiency and energy management
*renewable, green, and alternative energy
*combined heat & power/cogeneration/distributed generation
*smart grid and electric metering innovations
*integrated building automation & energy management
*lighting efficiency
*HVAC systems and controls
*thermal storage and load management
*boilers and combustion controls
*geoexchange technologies
*solar and fuel cell technologies
*applications specific to federal energy management programs
*energy services and project financing
I’m looking forward to hearing from a variety of voices, and I’ll be tweeting all the latest news and insights throughout the conference. Make sure to check this space in the next few weeks for a full report on the event.