Power Connect Newsletter

“We learned a lot in a short amount of time and it is knowledge that is practical for me and will help me in my day-to-day work.” Ettore Glitz, AES Engineering, was one of the 200 engineers to attend Generac’s 11th annual Engineering Power Symposium at the Hilton Milwaukee City Center. The three-day event is designed for the practicing engineer to walk away with a better understanding of generator sizing, application and code compliance. This year, Generac Industrial Power awarded all-expense paid trips for five engineers to attend the annual Power Engineering Symposium.

“To maintain professional licensure, engineers need to obtain continuing education credits (CEU),” said Ann Givens, senior industrial manager, Generac Industrial Power. “It is important for today’s engineers to stay current with modern technology, but sometimes those credits aren’t easy to obtain.”

Generac Industrial Power made the decision to offer sponsorship opportunities to make sure more individuals were given the chance to improve their skills in their current job and help gain new knowledge in their field. Ethan Hoffman of McElhanney said he applied for the sponsorship to learn more about the processes of designing and building generators. “I wanted to get a better understanding of generators,” he said. “I specify generators for a number of different projects and this was a great opportunity to learn more, see how the units come together and expand my knowledge. My background is more in the field and I have maintained a number of generators, but being able to come to this event and see how they come together has been very valuable.” 
 
The engineers were able to participate in five, 90-minute educational PDH and CEU courses covering topics from generator sizing and paralleling to better understanding common codes and standards. The event also included interactive tours of Generac’s world-class manufacturing facilities and peer-to-peer networking and social opportunities, going beyond the classroom.

“It was a very well organized event,” said Hoffman. “Having the engineers from Generac, who have been here for 25 years, be there in the classroom with you to answer questions, pulling from that experience has just been excellent.”

Each attendee had the chance to work one-on-one with Generac’s engineering and product development teams. That kind of access to the professionals who design our products, analyze trends and work with government regulations gave participants and opportunity to expand their technical knowledge.

For some who attended, it was also a chance to learn more about the specifics of natural gas generators. “Going into this I didn’t know a lot about natural gas generators,” said Austin Lloyd, Merrick & Company. “My company so far has been specifying predominately diesel generators. Coming to this event offered a great chance to learn about natural gas generators and even the bifuel generators. This opportunity will give my team and I the chance to make a more informed decision when specifying generators.”  

If you were unable to attend the Spring 2019 Engineering Symposium, you will have another opportunity this fall. Generac Industrial Power is hosting its first Fall Engineering Symposium September 15-17th at the Grand Geneva in Lake Geneva and will again be offering sponsorship spots. For more information, click HERE.