NEMA Currents Blog

Energy Efficiency to Bring Energy Independence “Back to the Future”

For those of you who were hooked by the title, sadly this is the only sentence where Marty McFly will be mentioned. But fear not, movie quotes are still in play. As mentioned in my last blog entry , commercial building retrofits present a very cost-effective option for reducing energy consumption and...

Published Thu, Jul 22 2010 2:12 PM by sorensone

Filed under: Energy Efficiency, renewable energy, transmission corridors, Economic Crisis, enLIGHTen America, Lighting

Standards, Consensus, and the 80/20 Rule

A standards geek knows that “consensus is general agreement—not necessarily unanimity.” Recently, a NEMA member commented publicly on standards development, collaboration, and the “80/20 rule,” which generally states that: 80% of effects are generated by 20% of causes, or...

Published Thu, Jul 22 2010 9:15 PM by Johnson, Jean

Filed under: Standardization

What’s next now that the punch bowl is empty?

The bad news for the housing market continues to mount (see here , here and here ). The dreaded payback effect from the homebuyer tax credit is causing sales to look particularly weak right now. However, the excess supply situation, which has been a big issue for several years already, will continue...

Published Fri, Jul 23 2010 2:43 PM by legob

Filed under: Economics

Smart grid impact deepens

The promise of a more efficient electric power grid is coming closer and closer to reality. Many of the overarching concepts have been defined and now considerable activity is underway to define the myriad of interactions between the multitude of actors in this huge play. One such activity, sponsored...

Published Fri, Jul 30 2010 9:58 AM by Moldoveanu, Andrei

Filed under: Energy Efficiency, Smart Grid, Electrical Grid, demand response, Standardization, High Performance Buildings, energy, efficiency

CPSC Public Database - Useful, or Ripe for Misuse?

In May 2010, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) issued a proposed rule to establish a Publicly Available Consumer Product Safety Information Database . The database, which will be populated by consumer-submitted “reports of harm” on alleged incidents or risks of injury, illness...

Published Fri, Jul 30 2010 10:02 AM by Owen, Sarah

Filed under: CPSC, Consumer Protection

Sifting for Gold

Today’s first take on real GDP growth for 2010Q2 showed the U.S. economy expanded at an annualized rate of 2.4 percent and 3.2 percent in the past year. This is roughly in line with the average rate of real GDP growth during the post-WWII era, but given the fact that growth tends to be above-average...

Published Fri, Jul 30 2010 4:01 PM by legob

Filed under: Economics

Roadside EV Charging: Got Juice?

Two ballyhooed new models of all-electric vehicles will be coming on the market this year. One model will go 40 miles on a full charge, the other will go 100 miles. For some that will be enough to go about business until the vehicle can be recharged at home or the workplace. For others, however, some...

Published Mon, Jul 26 2010 9:09 PM by Winchester, Greg

The Master's Voice (Illumination Innovation, Part 2)

If you follow the development of LED lighting, you probably already read the "Postings" blog of Jim Brodrick, LED program manager at the Department of Energy. But have you ever heard "the master's voice"? On the landmark occasion of a new LED lighting demonstration project with...

Published Wed, Jul 07 2010 6:34 PM by Updyke, Craig

Filed under: LED, efficiency, Lighting

The Meaning of Standard Has Never Been So Significant

Although the development and implementation of standards often goes overlooked their importance has never been greater. Standardization creates similar domestic (and often international) expectations ensuring that the products we buy, the services we receive and the messages we communicate are comparable...

Published Mon, Jul 12 2010 4:35 PM by wassong

Filed under: Safety and Standardization, Standardization, safety

Storm clouds on the horizon

Today’s jobs report doesn’t paint the picture of a robust economic recovery. After excluding the 225,000 net decline in Census 2010 workers, total payrolls increased by 100,000 during the month of June. Construction and financial activities remained sore spots, shedding nearly 40K on net...

Published Fri, Jul 02 2010 12:55 PM by legob

Filed under: Economics

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Energy Efficiency to Bring Energy Independence “Back to the Future”

Standards, Consensus, and the 80/20 Rule

What’s next now that the punch bowl is empty?

Smart grid impact deepens

CPSC Public Database - Useful, or Ripe for Misuse?

Sifting for Gold

Roadside EV Charging: Got Juice?

The Master's Voice (Illumination Innovation, Part 2)

The Meaning of Standard Has Never Been So Significant

Storm clouds on the horizon