As energy demand grows, utilities are looking for new ways to reduce strain on the power grid without compromising the comfort and safety of homes and businesses. A Utah-based company is using an unexpected tool to help: smart heat tape.
Thomas Clardy, founder and CEO of Powder Watts, and Kai Kuck, engineer and co-founder, return to Cool Science Radio nearly a year after their first appearance to discuss the company's progress. Powder Watts uses connected heat tape systems to help manage electricity use, including in applications that prevent pipes and roofs from freezing. By coordinating when these systems draw power, the technology can reduce energy consumption and provide flexibility to the grid.
Clardy and Kuck discuss the company's growing role in grid support, its work with Utah utilities including Rocky Mountain Power and Heber Light & Power, and incentives that can help homeowners and businesses upgrade their systems. The conversation explores how technologies already installed in buildings could become part of a larger strategy for managing energy demand.
