XENDEE Corporation, Converge Strategies, Barrett Energy Resources Group, and Principal Investigator RMI have launched a new Airport Microgrid Implementation Toolkit designed to expedite the transition of airports and aerospace facilities to secure on-site Microgrids and distributed energy resources (DERs). The project, which was funded by the Airport Cooperative Research Program, seeks to provide airports with a standardized framework for increasing resilience and avoiding the disruptive impacts of electrical power loss. The toolkit itself is available for free online and leads airport staff through eight guided modules that introduce Microgrid concepts and best practices.

“When one of the world’s busiest airports came to a standstill in 2017 because of a power failure we saw how airport blackouts can cause cascading impacts not just regionally but across the country. This event underscored the importance of understanding the critical functions that would be impacted by electricity disruptions,” said Meredith Pringle, Director at Converge Strategies. “This toolkit seeks to address these concerns, and offers Airport staff an actionable framework for validating how a Microgrid or distributed energy resources could strengthen the energy resilience posture of their airport.”

To access the new toolkit, airport personnel can navigate to the Airport Microgrid Implementation Toolkit website and register for free. This will grant access to download the toolkit as well as a user guide that walks personnel through all eight modules explaining definitions and Microgrid concepts as it progresses. This toolkit also systematically leads airport personnel through the information gathering process, which is meant to organically involve other departments at the airport and to make sure the future needs of the airport are considered and the right maintenance decisions are being made.

“Energy resilience and security are becoming more important with each passing year as temperatures rise and the energy grid continues to age,” said Adib Naslé, CEO of XENDEE. “This toolkit was designed to help make the distributed energy transition process possible for airport facility owner/operators.”

With the energy goals of the airport defined as well as metrics like their critical loads, energy supply, and energy consumption, the toolkit will generate a project validation report. This report includes current and future energy needs, equipment already onsite, and suggestions for how much capacity will be required to meet the facilities’ security and sustainability goals. With this information, projects can easily be submitted to contractors for bids, or airports can engage with the project team directly and utilize their Microgrid design, optimization, training and consulting services directly through the US Government’s GSA catalog.

As more facilities complete the Airport Microgrid Implementation Toolkit, the project team will be updating and adapting their framework based on feedback and real world results. This will allow the framework to remain responsive as it addresses the ever evolving operational needs of modern aerospace facilities.

“The toolkit was developed and enhanced by our workshops and research at the Ithaca-Tompkins and Massport’s Hanscom Airports. However as more facilities move through the process and provide feedback we can add more data points and continue to refine the toolkit to address new technologies and emerging challenges,” said Dr. Michael Stadler, CTO of XENDEE.

A report on this toolkit, as well as its ability to address vulnerabilities in the existing electrical system, has also been published by the Transportation Research Board and is available here.

About XENDEE: XENDEE develops world-class Microgrid decision support software that helps designers and investors optimize and certify the resilience and financial performance of projects with confidence. The XENDEE Microgrid platform enables a broad audience; from business decision makers to scientists, with the objective of supporting investments in Microgrids and maintaining electric power reliability when integrating sources of renewable generation.

About Converge Strategies, LLC: Converge Strategies, LLC is a consulting company focused on the intersection of clean energy, resilience, and national security. We build partnerships with the military, civilians, and all levels of government to accelerate resilience and security in the clean energy transformation. For more information, visit www.convergestrategies.com.

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XENDEE Corporation, Converge Strategies, Barrett Energy Resources Group, and Principal Investigator RMI have launched a new Airport Microgrid Toolkit designed to expedite the transition of airports to secure on-site Microgrids and DERs.