CWEEL East Africa Chapter Visits Kengen Olkaria 280MW Geothermal Plant

The CWEEL-EA team organized a technical site visit to the Kengen Olkaria 280MW geothermal power plant on June 24, 2017. This plant is the single largest geothermal plant in the world from a single site. The trip attracted 40 participants, both women and men, drawn from different professions which included students, environmentalists, electrical and electronics engineers, IT experts, lawyers and advocates all with a passion for renewable energy and environment. The participants were taken through the history of geothermal power in Kenya, its production and evacuation from the site. The visit was quite informative and well received, it generated a lot of conversation on utility scale quite informative and well received, it generated a lot of conversation on utility scale power production and sources and their effects on grid stability and environmental sustainability.

The Council of Women in Energy and Environmental Leadership (CWEEL) is a division of the Association of Energy Engineers (AEE). It supports the role of women in the energy and environmental industries by; assisting in the career development activities for existing professionals, enabling young women aspiring to leadership roles to find mentors that will support their own development and enabling networking among professionals in the energy and environmental industries. The CWEEL-Eastern Africa falls under the Association of Energy Professional in Eastern Africa (AEPEA) which is a professional body for all professionals working in the energy sector. It is registered in Kenya and accredited as chapter of the AEE since 2014. It is the second local chapter of the AEE in Africa after the South African chapter.

One of AEPEA’s objectives in Kenya is to promote renewable energy, energy efficiency, conservation and management in accordance to the existing standards, policy, legal and regulatory framework and uphold the highest standards of professionalism in the Energy sector. The Kenya Energy Mix to the national grid by energy source stands at 47% geothermal, 39% hydro, 13% thermal and 1% wind1. Geothermal supplies in Kenya are located within the Rift Valley with an estimated capacity of between 7,000 MW to 10,000 MW spread over 14 prospective sites. It has the highest availability at over 95 per cent with no adverse effects on the environment. Kenya Electricity Generating Company Limited, (KenGen) is the leading electric power generation company in Kenya, producing about 75 percent of electricity capacity installed in the country. The company utilizes various sources to generate electricity ranging from hydro, geothermal, thermal and wind.

For more information contact the CWEEL-EA Liaison Caroline Makenzi on +254720399764 or on email info@aepea.co.ke

CWEEL Jordan Meeting on Solar

The Association of Energy Engineers local Chapter in Jordan organized the Council on Women in Energy and Environmental Leadership 7^th meeting in 2017 with a four hour awareness seminar about Jinko Solar PV Modules technical presentation.

The meeting started with a brief introduction from Eng Suhair AlMhairat, CEM®, REP™, CSDP® about the CWEEL Jordan activities and welcomed the two presenters from Jinko Solar. The first part of the presentation was delivered by Eng Ali Hamam about the company production and sales facilities around the world and its accomplishment in 2016 by producing more than 6.7GW bringing the total dispatched quantity to 20GW. And the 2^nd part was delivered by the Technical Service Manager – Kevin Robinson. Jinko Solar already dispatched 94MW to the MENA region and out of this quantity was 74MW to Jordan. This quantity covered around 50 projects, with the largest project 23MW. Among these projects were 7 universities, mosques, and other type of buildings.

The presentation discussed the types of PV modules, testing and certification and the upcoming new technologies like the MCT Technology for the Polycrystalline cells that will be available by end of 2017, half-cell, bifacial cells, Multiwire technology, High Efficiency Shingle Technology, the glass to glass modules which are used on large utility scale because of it 30 year warranty and low degradation of 0.5% annually, and the losses that are used in PV syst modeling

The Double IEC testing is a new feature for Jinko Solar, since they are conducting double testing that are required for UV, HF (Humidity and Freezing), DH (Damp and Heat), TC ( Temperature Cycles)

The 1500V PV Modules were presented which reduce the number of strings, cables, and combiner boxes. Kevin mentioned that the production lines are increasing in power on yearly basis by 5Watt. He also mentioned that within few weeks, Jinko customers can scan the bar code on the module and do complete tracing on the PV module, checking their flash testing and EL records.

Enlightened Management Principles to Achieve Your Goals & Those of Your Company

By Janine Finnell, Executive Director, Leaders in Energy and CWEEL Board Member

I recently attended a seminar focusing on achieving optimal performance from energy managers, engineers, and team leaders.  Whether you are a first time Manager or a seasoned Manager/Director with years of experience, this course is for you!  We all need to be cognizant of our communication style and those of the team members we manage.  Our role as leaders is to maximize our employees’ potential in order to achieve results.  This course allows you to dedicate time to reflect and be aware of how your style affects the team you manage.

Seven concepts resonated with me that you may find helpful in improving your capabilities as a manager which are provided below.  The two-day “Management Essentials^TM” seminar was offered by the Association of Energy Engineers (AEE) on March 20-21, 2017 in conjunction with its GLOBALCON event in Philadelphia, PA.  It was designed to provide a clearer understanding of fundamental management strategies and how to most successfully and effectively apply them for optimum results. The seminar was organized by the Council on Women in Energy and Environmental Leadership (CWEEL), a component of AEE, which helps women professionals to advance in the energy industry.   Seminar attendees included managers from both private and public organizations.   The program featured nine modules titled: Human Fundamentals, Management Fundamentals, Communications Essentials, Motivation and Inspiration, Evaluation, Developmental Coaching, Corrective Coaching, Delegation, and Visioning.

The course instructor, Jim Hornickel, is a seasoned management specialist and the CEO of Bold New Directions, Inc.  who has worked in over 50 countries worldwide.  His company focuses on transforming people and performance through learning.  The seminar drew from the latest knowledge across a spectrum of disciplines from management science, psychology, and neuroscience research on the brain.  Jim included role playing and exercises with partners to demonstrate and help us better understand key management strategies.

Concepts that were covered in the seminar, which may be helpful to you and your team, included:

• Strive to do five new things a day to help you to have greater flexibility, enhanced versatility, and more capable problem solving. Neuroscience research shows that new patterns can be developed in the brain to bring about more creativity and flexibility from engaging in new daily activities.    Examples include switching the placement of a watch normally worn on one arm to another, sleeping on a different side of the bed, taking a new route to work, etc.  By exposing the brain to novel, adaptive experiences, it is challenged to work in different ways that help to create new neural pathways.
• Develop SMART goal setting by establishing Specific, Measureable, Actionable, Resources, and Time specific goals.   Incorporate SMART goals to help both you and your employees know whether all are doing their job effectively.   In addition, obtain consensus regarding a schedule of periodic reporting to see what progress is being made.
• Make it a practice to “Catch People Doing Something Right” every day. On the other hand, when a team member knows what to do and how to do it, but is not getting it done, use “corrective coaching” to remedy the situation.  Point out “What you did well was____” and “What you can do even better is ____.”  This approach is recommended as an alternative to the more traditional “sandwich” technique where an issue needing improvement is sandwiched in between two positive comments.
• Utilize enlightened and more effective manager – leader styles (referred to also as servant leadership, consultative leadership, collaborative leadership, transformative leadership, and co-active leadership). This style is supplanting the old hierarchical “command and control” management where managers led “at” team members rather than leading “with” employees.  Collaborative styles utilize more two-way communication and acknowledge that everyone is creative and resourceful. It is your job as the manager to be the detective to uncover the strengths and weaknesses inside them.
• Improve your conscious listening skills by learning to identify and use more open-ended questions (What…, How…, Tell me more about…, Help me to understand…) versus close-ended questions (Are…, Will…, When…, Where…, Did…, and Who…). We were also introduced to four behavioral styles including the Doer, the Thinker, the Talker and the Guardian to also help us to understand ourselves and our team members from the “Outside In.”
• Ask yourself “What am I missing?” A video was presented on “The ‘Monkey Business’ Experiment” that allowed us to become aware of the concept of selective attention to enable us to be aware that it can be easy to miss important details.  This can also be helpful in recognizing our blind spots.
• Identify your key values and what motivates you and similarly learn about the key values and motivators of your team members. This will enable understanding of how to inspire and motivates team members and how to better understand them from the “Inside Out” as a component of emotional intelligence.  As expressed in the Bold New Directions materials, “Emotional intelligence is the ‘something’ in each of us that is a bit intangible.  It affects how we manage behavior, navigate social complexities, and make personal decisions to achieve positive results.”

These and other concepts offered through this seminar will truly help me in strengthening the organization that I direct and for me to strive to obtain the best from my other team members.  This was only the tip of the iceberg in terms of the valuable content conveyed in this seminar.   You may wish to consider taking this course in the future at an Association of Energy Engineers conference which is offered throughout the year in various locations in the United States.

The class demonstrates an appreciation technique. Shown (l-r front row): Deborah Lenny, Elizabeth Flattery, and Jamie Paulson; (l-r standing) Janine Finnell, Jennifer Gorka, Jim Hornickel (Instructor), Miguel Quiroz, and Bradley Johnson. Brett Crumley was also an attendee.

3rd Annual Energy & Sustainable Solutions Extravaganza

The Association of Energy Engineers National Capital Chapter and Leaders in Energy will join forces with George Washington University for the 3^rd annual Energy and Sustainability Extravaganza.  Our theme is “Energy and Sustainable Solutions for Tomorrow’s Campuses.”   The Extravaganza is a three-part, all-day event full of networking opportunities and speakers.  The event includes:  a Council on Women in Energy and Environmental Leadership (CWEEL) luncheon panel on “Career Perspectives in Sustainable Solutions” (open to both men and women to attend); an afternoon Showcase with sustainability directors and facility managers from DC-area universities and vendors displaying their solutions; and an evening networking Reception (catered by Purple Onion). Come for one or more components.  Better yet, join us for the entire day!  Click here for more details.

Why the scientific community cannot leave women and girls behind

Abo-Hamed is the founder and CEO of H2GO Power, a company that provides safe methods of hydrogen production and storage to generate power on the move. She won Best Energy Startup award in the world at the 2016 HT Summit. “The opportunities that I was presented with as a researcher made me feel that I  can do more if I transferred my research into technology solutions that solve pressing demands for energy in underprivileged societies.”

Her comments were supported by Jordan-based One Young World Ambassador Ayah Alfawaris, who said there was “a clear gap between education and work” in her country. “I can confidently say that education is a priority for almost every family in Jordan and students get fair opportunities regardless of their gender. But sadly, very few of the women who graduate from science fields end up working.”

Continue reading the full article.

Energy Efficiency and Energy Saving Training

CWEEL Jordan held its third event for 2017 with five hour training in Energy Savings and Energy Efficiency. The training was conducted by two engineers from Cayan Company; Eng Haytham Shalakhti and Eng Bruce Lee from Best. British Energy Saving Technologies (BEST) gave presentations and showed the participants samples of devices that can be installed on large electrical equipment to monitor the consumption and reduce the energy consumption when the equipment is not needed. In addition, system monitoring device was also displayed and discussed. The training was rich in content with a high level of interaction with the participants. Attendance certificates were distributed at the end of the event.

Management Essentials: Empowering Energy & Engineering Professionals in Their Career

Join us March 20-21, 2017 in Philadelphia, PA for the Management Essentials Course, designed for energy managers, facility managers, energy engineers, energy professionals, utility and esco reps, project managers and team leaders. This experiential training seminar is designed to provide managers and team leaders with a clearer understanding of fundamental management strategies and how most successfully and effectively to apply them for optimum results. Its purpose is to strengthen a manager’s ability to lead professional teams collaboratively using a relationship-based process. Going beyond the old, typically ineffective top-down model, the new model presented is intended to show managers how to utilize a more personal and effective management paradigm to grow morale, promote productivity and deliver greater profitability. These techniques facilitate the strengthening of essential communication skills, and show participants how the resulting improved morale can have a significant impact on achieving greater productivity, improved profitability, and a generally more positive corporate culture. Participants will leave this program with the tools needed to utilize better management skills, as well as an improved ability to get work done through others, and to achieve corporate, project and team goals.

CWEEL Jordan Held 4 Hour Training in Thermal Imaging Advanced 3rd Party Testing

Eng Jeries Dayeh, CEM® delivered an interactive training that was attended by around 40 engineers from the public and private sector, energy service companies, consultants, contractors, and student energy engineers. Thermal Imaging camera was also used by the trainers to explain how to take the pictures correctly.

Girls of Energy

The U.S. Department of Energy has an online place to learn about the amazing scientists doing exciting things and solving some pretty big challenges.  Check out this page, watch the videos, and download some fun activities! https://www.energy.gov/diversity/girls-energy

 

CWEEL Jordan Held 2 Solar Log Basic Training in December

CWEEL Jordan held 2 trainings in December, each a five-hour training course in “Solar Log”. The training was delivered by Eng Hamzeh Buqaei, CEM®, CEA®, CMVP®.

Around fifty people attended the course from the public and private sector, Taffila University, Jordan University of Science and Technology, Al Balqa’a Applied University, Energy Service Companies, Royal Scientific Society National Energy Research Center, Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, Energy and Minerals Regulatory Commission. The event was a great networking opportunity for people looking to work in the energy sector.

Eng Suhair AlMhairat, CEM®, CSDP®, REP™, gave a presentation about CWEEL activities in Jordan since 2014 and encouraged the attendees to participate and contribute to the chapter as well.

Eng Buqaei gave two detailed technical presentation about the important of using solar monitoring equipment at the operation and maintenance stage. Different models were presented application for different sizes of projects.

At the end of the five hour training, Eng Suhair and Eng Hamzeh distributed attendance certificates to the attendees. About half of the attendees were non-members coming to the CWEEL Jordan events for the first time.