Swanson School’s Dr. Gregory Reed named Director of Pitt’s Center for Energy

PITTSBURGH (December 17, 2014) … Gregory Reed, PhD , professor of electrical and computer engineering at the University of Pittsburgh's Swanson School of Engineering, has been appointed Director for Pitt's Center for Energy in the Swanson School, according to an announcement by Gerald D. Holder, PhD, U.S. Steel Dean of Engineering. Dr. Reed succeeds Brian Gleeson, PhD , the Harry S. Tack Chair Professor, who was named Chair of the Swanson School's Department of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science in August 2014.

"Greg has done a tremendous job in helping to grow the Center for Energy and advance the University's reputation as a regional nexus for energy research," Dean Holder said. "I want to thank Brian Gleeson for establishing a strong foundation as inaugural director and I expect Greg to further build upon the Center's strengths and regional and national visibility."

"Energy represents one of the foremost grand challenges of engineering and science for our country and around the globe, while the Pittsburgh region, with our strong concentration of energy and power related industry and abundance of strategic resources, represents one of the nation's energy capitals for both technology and talent," Dr. Reed said. "Pitt's energy-related efforts are resulting in critical technology innovations through advanced research and development activities, as well as in educating a next generation of engineers, scientists and future leaders for the energy and power sectors.

"Dr. Gleeson established a solid foundation from which to build, and I am very honored to have been selected by Dr. Holder as his predecessor."

Dr. Reed has served as the Center's Interim Director since August 2014 and as Associate Director since the Center's inception. He also serves as Director of the Swanson School's Electric Power Initiative and Power Systems Lab, and as Director and Technical Lead of the Grid Technologies Collaborative for the U.S. Department of Energy's National Energy Technology Laboratory. In 2012 he was named an inaugural member of the National Academies of Science and Engineering's Energy Ambassador Program. He is the founder and chair of Pitt's annual Electric Power Industry Conference (EPIC), established in 2006, and co-founder/co-chair of the DOE NETL Grid Technologies Collaborative Conference. In addition to these roles, he is the owner and principal consultant of Power Grid Technology Consulting, LLC.

His research interests, teaching activities, and related pursuits include advanced electric power grid and energy generation, transmission, and distribution system technologies; power electronics and control technologies (FACTS and HVDC systems); micro-grids and DC infrastructure development; renewable energy systems and integration; smart grid technologies and applications; and energy storage.

Dr. Reed has nearly 30 years of combined industry and academic experience in the electric power and energy sector, including positions in engineering, research & development, and executive management throughout his career with the Consolidated Edison Co. of New York Inc., ABB Inc., Mitsubishi Electric Corp., and DNV-KEMA.

He has authored or co-authored more than 75 papers and technical articles in the areas of electric power system analysis, the applications of advanced power systems and power electronics technologies, and power engineering education.

He is an active member of the Institute of Electrical & Electronic Engineers (IEEE), including the IEEE Power & Energy Society (PES), Power Electronics Society (PELS), and Industrial Applications Society (IAS); and is also a member of the American Society of Engineering Education (ASEE). Past IEEE positions include governing board member of the Power & Energy Society, as well as the president of the IEEE PES Pittsburgh chapter.

Dr. Reed earned his PhD in electric power engineering from the University of Pittsburgh (1997), M.Eng. from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (1986), and B.S. from Gannon University (1985).

About the Center for Energy
Established in 2008, the Center for Energy is dedicated to improving energy technology development, including energy and electric power delivery and reliability, advanced materials for energy applications, carbon management and utilization, energy sustainability and efficiency, and energy resource diversification. Joining the Center for Energy is a team of more than 90 faculty members campus-wide working in energy research from the Departments of Chemical Engineering, Chemistry, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Industrial Engineering, Information Sciences, Geology, Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science, Physics, and other areas for the purpose of leveraging their work and expertise.

The Center for Energy's key goals include attracting world-class faculty to Pitt, training the next generation of high-level engineers, scientists and leaders to work in key areas of energy research, facilitating technology transfer related to energy for economic development, increasing energy support, and raising the stature of our region as a leader in energy. In 2012 the Center received a $22 million grant from the Richard King Mellon Foundation - one of the largest private foundation grants in Pitt's history - to create new faculty positions and graduate fellowships, and to establish a fund for spurring innovative research.

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