Author:
Rob Ivester, Deputy Director, Advanced Manufacturing Office
Date
02/03/2015
PDF
The excitement and drive to deliver was evident to me last week when I joined nearly 100 PowerAmerica members for their kick-off meeting at NC State University in Raleigh, North Carolina. PowerAmerica, also called the Next Generation Power Electronics Manufacturing Innovation Institute, will develop advanced manufacturing processes and work to accelerate the commercialization of wide bandgap (WBG) technologies.
NC State University leadership, General Nick Justice and Dr. John Muth, as well as Dr. Kathleen Hogan, DOE Deputy Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency, expressed strong support for the work PowerAmerica is undertaking. Dr. Hogan reminded the audience that about $200 billion is spent annually to power U.S. manufacturing facilities and that PowerAmerica’s work will directly support President Obama’s goal of cutting energy waste, doubling U.S. energy productivity by 2030, and increasing our nation’s manufacturing competitiveness.
The January kick-off meeting was also a chance to celebrate and give an enthusiastic “hooah!” to General Nick Justice, the new Executive Director of PowerAmerica. General Justice, a retired U.S. Army Major General, was energetic about PowerAmerica’s mission and the positive impact he envisions the Institute will have on our country’s future. Dr. John Muth, Deputy Director of PowerAmerica, spoke about the upcoming strategic roadmap planning for the Institute and provided summaries of the three work focus areas: wide bandgap devices and fabrication, wide bandgap power electronic applications, and education and workforce training.
Here in the Advanced Manufacturing Office (AMO), our senior WBG expert, Dr. Anant Agarwal will manage DOE’s investment in the new Institute. At the meeting, Dr. Agarwal talked about the optimism surrounding this Institute and said he expects that highly efficient wide bandgap-based power devices will be able to achieve price parity with traditional silicon-based power devices in five years. He said that this will be possible through PowerAmerica’s efforts to advance the commercial foundry model in which existing silicon device manufacturing lines will be modified to also produce WBG semiconductor power devices. Dr. Agarwal also strongly supports the Institute’s graduate student training in WBG-based power electronics because it will create R&D and manufacturing jobs in our country.
For me, the positive energy in the room was clearly captured when several industrial members told me they now saw the big picture and believed strongly in the value of being a part of this institute.
