It’s time for Itron Utility Week (IUW) 2020! While it is a completely virtual experience this year, we’re still featuring much of the same content you’ve come to expect from IUW, including thought-provoking keynotes, panel discussions, breakout sessions, a virtual Knowledge Center and opportunities to learn from leaders and peers. This year’s event kicks off on Tuesday, Oct. 27 at 8 a.m. PDT and there is still time to register (at no charge) Grid operators schedule and dispatch generation resources to meet demand in as cost-effective manner as possible. In a perfect world, the least costly solution would be to schedule and dispatch generation where the supply stack of generation exactly crosses the demand curve. With perfect foresight, generation would exactly offset demand. Because grid operators do not have perfect foresight of demand and there is always the possibility that a failure will occur somewhere within the electric grid, operators schedule an excess level of generation in the form of spinning reserves. This type of risk-adverse scheduling is common practice throughout the industry. In fact, most grid operators are held to a regulatory-prescribed minimum operating reserve margin. These operating reserve margins are accepted as a reasonably societal cost for avoiding generation shortages.

To read more about market trends that will drive the next evolution of operational load forecasting models, click here.here.

In addition to all of our amazing breakout sessions, there is so much more to experience at #IUW20. To make the most of the event, keep these items in mind:

• Be sure to check out our Knowledge Center, including the Itron Experience, to see a sampling of Itron and partner solutions that are helping to redefine resource management for energy and water providers and smart communities—many of which are featured in breakout sessions for IUW20. Learn more about our collective solutions through a variety of videos, virtual demos, presentations, case studies, brochures and more.
• Itron’s vibrant partner ecosystem is essential to delivering innovations that exceed the expectations of our customers. We encourage you to check out our partner landing pages and on-demand sessions to learn more.
• Speaking of on-demand, we have several on-demand sessions you can watch anytime, anywhere including, “Expect the Unexpected: 2020’s Lessons for Innovation and Continuity” and a panel discussion with Itron’s three business line leaders on the factors driving change in our industry. Good news! All of our content will be available on-demand through the month of November.
• We want to hear from you! Please be sure to share your feedback by filling out session surveys and complete the post-event survey (watch for this in your email) to be entered to win an Amazon Fire HD 10 Tablet.
• Have some fun! Test your knowledge in our Knowledge Center and be entered to win Bose Audio Sunglasses and a wireless speaker. Don’t forget to share you experience on social by following @ItronInc on Twitter and using #IUW20 when tweeting about the event. Each day, we will be awarding a UV Smartphone Sanitizer and Universal Charger to the top social media user who uses the #IUW20 hashtag.

There is so much to explore at Itron Utility Week, and we can’t wait for you to join us! Visit www.itron.com/iuw to learn more.