Next week in Tokyo, I will make a presentation to a Japanese audience regarding the status of smart grid in the U.S.

Like cloud computing, smart grid gets a lot of attention in Japan. However, smart grid may mean different things or at least have a different focus in the two countries.

Because of the differences in power grid infrastructure and the sizes of the countries, smart grid in Japan is somewhat different from that in the U.S. The Japanese power grid was wiped out by WWII and reconstructed from scratch. That is why, in general, Japanese infrastructure is newer than that of the U.S. The U.S. is about 25 times bigger than Japan, and there is no comparison in the size of its infrastructure.

When I talk to people in Japan, I am often told the following:

• Power is plentiful in Japan. Tokyo Electric Power Co. has enough power capacity to satisfy demands.
• The Japanese power supply infrastructure is more solid than that of the U.S. For example, annual power outages total 4 minutes in Japan and 97 minutes in the U.S.

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		Energy Impact of Increased Server Inlet Temperature
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Two of the motivations for smart grid in the U.S. are the lack of a power supply and the fragile power delivery infrastructure. Japan does not seem to have those problems. That is why Japan’s smart grid tends to focus on the lower stream—distribution to households but not transmission. Two main areas of Japanese smart grid are electrical vehicles (EV) and a solar panel on each household’s rooftop.

In the Japanese media, smart grid is covered rather sensationally and sometimes overhyped. My presentation will be an overview and a status report of smart grid in the U.S., as follows:

• IT Trends in the U.S.
• Smart Grid Background
• Smart Grid Overview
• Smart Grid Technologies
• Smart Grid Progress
• Problems
• Japanese SMBs’ Business Opportunities
• Future

I hope I can present the reality of smart grid in the U.S. so that the Japanese audience can use that information for their environments

Tags: Smart Grid