Importance of Integrating Renewable Energy Resources into the Grid

Ryan Cross, Vice President of Engineering, Electric Power Systems, Electric Power Systems

As a Vice President at EPS Engineering & Design, Ryan Cross supports clients in electric substations, electric transmission and distribution lines and critical infrastructure security throughout the United States. Cross started his career as a substation designer and then moved to project manager. Over the years of experience, he worked in operations, customer management and account management.

Could you tell me about some current trends that are prevalent in the industry?

One of the largest trends that we have seen over the years is the steady addition of this renewable energy. Getting them connected to the grid without the need for extra-large, high-voltage transmission lines is important, whether it be for solar or wind farms. However, I don't believe this trend will last much longer. The more renewable energy we can incorporate into the system and how we manage it, the more important and advantageous it will be going forward. We're continually working to incorporate more renewable energy into the grid and gradually phase out coal facilities.

Could you tell me some challenges that you face in your day-to-day activities?

One of the challenges is to link renewable energy sources to the grid, whether that is through extra-large or huge transmission lines. Integrating these renewable sources into the grid also depends in part on harmonics and other factors related to the actual power quality on the grid. Additionally, we encounter difficulties from a permitting aspect. It's kind of the same old story: people want renewable energy and green electricity, but they don't want them in their backyards, cities, or other nearby locations because they do take up a lot of space. There have been allegations that wind farms with very tall turbines can harm birds and bats, which creates a challenging dynamic as well.

We’re continually working to incorporate more renewable energy into the grid

Another important challenge is the regulatory or legal issues which are no different than other industries. There is a shortage of good talent who can maintain the grid's dependability and enable the necessary growth and development. That information comes from engineers, field technicians, testing personnel, constructors, and everyone else involved in creating or maintaining the grid.

What technologies or techniques have you used to make your daily tasks more efficient?

Software packages with smarter design capabilities, 3D design, and other tools have become increasingly popular over the past few years. When it comes to brand-new facilities, this is something that really allows you to shorten the design process. However, it has taken four or five years for them to be integrated into smart designs where the software packages can actually do some designs work for you and speed up the design process. It's not always simple to implement for existing facilities that require modifications.

On the construction side, it basically comes down to recruiting more people into the trades and then standardizing more of these designs. It helped in discover that our clients in this sector of the economy are actively seeking to standardize some of their designs and procedures in order to eliminate the inefficiencies that come with constantly trying something new and instead focus on more repetitive labor.

What one piece of advice would you give to aspiring professionals in this field?

The industry as a whole is so short-staffed; I would say the ability to plan in advance and start having those conversations is extremely important, whether that's consulting companies or contractors. Like 10 or 15 years ago, if you fell behind on a project and required certain pieces of material, you could pay extra to have them brought to you right away. Those options are simply not available today. today there is more demand than supply. Therefore, the capacity to plan ahead and think through what you want to accomplish over the coming year is important. It will let you begin fleshing out those plans and enables you to create partnerships between your clients and contractors to position yourself in a strong position to be extremely successful.