Knowledge as a catalyst: digital power systems take hold in industry

It's been a hot topic for months: energy surpluses are getting scarce, and governments are looking for ways to increase their electricity capacity. The situation is especially critical because the success of the emerging energy transition depends on it.

“It's now essential to closely manage power supply and demand, and industrial companies need to be proactive in optimizing their consumption. Digital power systems are one of the tools you can use to get there,” says Marc-André Perron, electrical engineer.

Digital power systems deliver electricity while gathering vast amounts of information to optimize existing processes and make decisions easier.

For example, they provide industrial clients with better insight into their operations and detailed knowledge of their consumption to:

• Lower energy consumption.
• Stabilize the network during disruptions and respond quickly to problems.
• Make it easier to integrate renewable energy and optimize storage capacities.
• Manage the energy mix for decarbonization.
• Automate operations based on priorities.
• Increase operational and facility safety and security.
• Analyze the viability of new projects.
• Monitor, operate and maintain systems remotely.

To upgrade their systems, major energy consumers need to:

1. Carry out a site inventory.
2. Identify what can be retained, reused or recovered.
3. Develop a plan to achieve objectives.

And although this is a long-term process, the environmental and monetary benefits of optimizing consumption are immediate.

“By transmitting reliable data between various producers and consumers, digital power systems are helping improve practices and processes across all sectors of our societies,” says Eric Labrie, Project Manager, Electrical Engineering. “As we strive for a low-carbon industrial future in a context of growing global energy demand, we'll need to make major efforts to ensure our power systems are modernized, reliable, efficient and well-managed over the coming decades.”