The company sells wind industry original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) electrical products such as power cable, cable tray, lighting fixtures and cable harnesses, according to a recent interview with Robert Connors, division president, Gexpro Services, published in the May/June issue of Wind Systems magazine. That article said Gexpro also provides wind OEMs with products and services for their "nacelle, blade, and tower applications (including) bolts, fasteners, brackets, ladders, platform assemblies, and a lot of other large-diameter hardware for the tower internals."

To build relationships with these customers Gexpro Services banks on its experience in national account contracts, lean manufacturing and the Quality process.

According to the company’s website, Gexpro Services also works closely with GE’s Wind Energy unit. Says the promotion, "Gexpro Services’ product expertise and procedural best practices are helping GE manufacture more wind power with fewer man-hours and lower product cost than ever before. Working closely with GE Wind Energy, the Gexpro Services team in Pensacola, Fla., developed a world-class kitting program for machine heads and hubs.

"From sourcing and specifying to staging and shipping, Gexpro is delivering kits for more than 2,000 wind turbines each year. The massive kits include scores of parts, from fractions of an inch to ten feet across –- delivered together and through a LEAN pull methodology. Only a company with the resources and flexibility of Gexpro Services could execute on such a complex operation so simply and error free."

Essentially an "energy internet," the smart grid will use two-way digital communication to improve energy efficiency, bolster system reliability and detect power outages and integrate renewable energy into the grid and reduce carbon emissions. In Ohio, Duke Energy soon will launch a mass deployment of smart grid technology, including more than 700,000 electric smart meters and 450,000 natural gas smart meters at customers' homes and businesses. In Indiana, Duke Energy is seeking approval from the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission to install approximately 800,000 smart meters. Duke Energy submitted its applications to the U.S. Department of Energy, which will award $4.5 billion in smart grid grants nationwide as part of the economic stimulus and infrastructure bill passed by Congress and signed into law by President Obama earlier this year. Duke Energy plans to eventually convert its entire electricity-delivery infrastructure into an advanced, state-of-the-art smart grid.

September 24-25, 2009
Selling Energy Solutions: A Hands-on Workshop for Distributors on How to Sell Green
Hilton Chicago O’Hare; National Association of Electrical Distributors (NAED) Registration info

October 19-22
Solar Power 2009
San Jose, Calif. Solar Energy Industry Association (SEIA), 866-229-2386, www.solarpowerconference.com

October 21-22, 2009
Changing the Landscape of Existing Buildings; New York;
McGraw-Hill Construction; (800) 371-3238; Event Info

Nov. 11-13, 2009
GreenBuild International Conference and Expo
U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), Washington, D.C., 800-795-1747, info@greenbuildexpo.org; www.greenbuildexpo.org;

November 17, 2009
Green Retrofit Conference, Chicago; sponsored by McGraw-Hill Construction, American Institute of Architects and U.S. Green Building Council;(800)371-3238; Registration info