Racing toward high-tech solutions

Chris Morris

By Richard N. Velotta (contact), In Business reporter

Fri, Jul 3, 2009 (3 a.m.)

Katherine Holland

Nevada isn’t as far off the mark in addressing complex economic development problems with technology as people might think, an expert with IBM says.

Katherine Holland, general manager of IBM’s Global Life Sciences, said Nevada is on par with most states in developing solutions to water, energy, transportation and crime problems, and she said her company is eager to work with entrepreneurs to develop “smart technology” to facilitate solutions.

But she warned that states with an edge in intelligent solutions have governors who are working well with their legislatures.

Holland, an Incline Village resident who serves as a volunteer in information technology assessment for Nevada’s Spending and Government Efficiency Commission, addressed the Technology Business Alliance of Nevada on how technology is helping build a smarter planet.

“We absolutely get it,” Holland said about Nevada. “There’s no doubt in my mind that we understand where we are as a state and where we want to be, and we understand the steps to get from A to B. And I can tell you that we are not in a different place from at least 45 other states.”

Holland travels around the globe to bring entrepreneurs together with private developers and government leaders using the resources of the IBM Research Organization, one of the top research teams in the country with a 14-year record of delivering the most patents to the marketplace per year.

The organization has a “first of its kind” solution team to assist clients find answers to problems with no existing resolution.

The team addresses a number of issues such as energy, traffic, food, infrastructure, retail, banking, telecommunications, water, public safety and education. Holland said the company could contribute to Nevada’s efforts to develop the state into a renewable energy supplier, help solve the worsening water problem and develop a high-speed rail system to Southern California.

She said Nevada has known for years it has a vast supply of renewable energy resources — solar, wind and geothermal. But what the state lacks is a grid system to deliver the energy. That is one place where her company could help, Holland said.

IBM already is developing a nationwide smart utility grid for water and electricity for Malta.

“We’re not an energy company,” Holland said, “but we have the ability to help these companies with ongoing operation and maintenance of the control systems that manage the grids.”

The grids use sensors, meters, digital controls and analytic tools to automate, monitor and control the two-way flow of energy from the power plant to socket. Company officials say they can optimize grid performance, prevent outages, restore power quickly and allow consumers to manage their usage down to individually networked appliances.

Malta relies heavily on foreign oil to meet its utility needs, but the new smart grid system will enable users to monitor electricity usage in real time, set variable rates and reward customers who conserve energy and water.

Holland thinks that although solar and wind applications have promise for Nevada, there is even more potential in geothermal, and smart technology could jump-start the state’s potential in becoming an energy exporter.

The expense of developing a grid is what has kept renewable energy on the back burner, Holland thinks, but oil costs versus the price of harnessing renewables is starting to pencil out in favor of moving forward.

“Could we have done it before?” she said. “Yeah, but if you actually looked at it from either a state or from a public or private perspective, was it economically the right thing to do? Probably not. Are we there now? Probably so. But then, you’ve got this lead time to create the infrastructure to distribute it.”

Holland has been watching the issue of high-speed rail between Las Vegas and Southern California with interest because her company has experience in developing smart technology to solve transportation problems.

IBM opened the Global Rail Innovation Center in Beijing and is using scheduling optimization to develop a smarter railroad. Optimization involves studying geography and history and identifying transportation needs to determine how best to run enough trains to meet demand while reducing road congestion and greenhouse gas emissions and making highways safer.

Holland is optimistic about Nevada, perhaps because she sees bigger problems in California.

“I am passionately committed to seeing Nevada excel in this area,” she said. “The size and geographical location (of Nevada) give us such an incredible advantage over other states. I want us to be No. 1. If it is energy production, we could become the model of energy generation and transmission. If we were the first to build a high-speed train, we’d be a model for transportation.

“Trains and the West go together. Rail technology has continued to improve. We’ve talked about a train from Southern California to Las Vegas for a long time, but the price of the technology has held us back. With President (Barack) Obama’s emphasis on the Midwest and the West, maybe we’ll finally realize our dream here.”