New ‘microgrid’ test beds will foster state industry opportunities

Partner universities in the new Center for Renewable Energy Systems (CRES) are developing complementary facilities in Milwaukee and Madison to help corporate partners explore applications in the fast-growing microgrid industry, CRES leaders announced today (Oct. Officially opening this fall, CRES is the sister organization to the Wisconsin Energy Research Consortium (WERC) that will direct sponsored research with companies and government agencies. While WERC focuses on pre-competitive research of broad interest to the energy industry, CRES will take on applied R&D projects with individual companies or groups of partnered companies that are interested in commercializing the technology. CRES is a synergistic partnership combining the knowledge and skills of the extensive community of energy, power and control researchers with world-class laboratories at Wisconsin's four largest research engineering schools: the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, UW-Madison, Marquette University and the Milwaukee School of Engineering. WERC and CRES together seek to stimulate both scientific discoveries and technology innovations that will lead to new products and processes, positioning Wisconsin as a nationally recognized hub for energy, power and controls research. The microgrid initiative will be a major early focus of the new center. Facilities will include working microgrids at both UW-Milwaukee and UW-Madison.