CASEnergy Coalition Attends Nuclear Business Opportunity Conference in Dearborn, Michigan
The CASEnergy Coalition attended the Nuclear Business Opportunity Conference on Sept. 27-28 at the Ford Community & Performing Arts Center in Dearborn, MI.
The Conference’s sponsors included GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy; PTACS of Michigan; Metropolitan Growth and Development Corporation; Southern Wayne County Regional Chamber; the City of Dearborn and DTE Energy.
Conference participants and speakers included the following individuals and organizations among others:
- Mayor Jack O’Reilly;
- U.S. Senator Carl Levin;
- U.S. Congressman John D. Dingell;
- House Republican Leader Kevin Elsenheimer;
- U.S. Senator Debbie Stabenow;
- Speaker of the MI House Andy Dillon;
- Danny Roderick, SVP, GE Hitachi Nuclear;
- Ed Wolbert, President & CEO, Transco Products Inc.;
- Mark Schmidt, Supply Chain Manager, NIST Manufacturing Partnership;
- Bob Powers, Senior Director of Federal Programs, Nuclear Energy Institute;
- Dr. David Nixon, President, Monroe County Community College;
- Stan Stasek, Director of Quality Management, DTE Energy;
- Lisa Rice, Owner, Energy Steel;
- Dan Greffe, Plant Director, ClydeUnion Pumps;
- Ron Moffett, Deputy Director, MI Defense Contract Coordination Center;
- Lawrence Jackson; SBA Loan Officer, Downriver Community Conference;
- Traci Smith, Director of Business Programs, USDA – East Lansing;
- Kent L. Hibben; Small Business Specialist, U.S. Department of Energy; and
- Paula Boase; Director of Economic Development, Downriver Community Conference.
Many speakers touched on the importance of continued support for nuclear energy here at home, including the need for strong bipartisan political support, public support, labor support, environmental communities’ support and others.
Speakers also noted that Michigan is an ideal location for potential further growth in the industry due to its skilled workforce, its industrial infrastructure and its easy access to the Great Lakes.
Other speakers touched on safety issues related to the industry and the fact that the nuclear energy industry has a near perfect safety record. In fact, The Nuclear Regulatory Commission holds nuclear power plants to the highest security standards of any American industry.
Others mapped out the need for workers at new plants over the next several years and how the public’s perception has changed over time to view nuclear in a much more favorable light – 62 percent of Americans, nearly two-thirds, are in favor of using nuclear power as a way to generate electricity, according to the latest Gallup Poll. This figure marks the highest percentage of those who support nuclear energy since Gallup began polling on the topic of nuclear energy in 1994.
Additionally, speakers discussed the need to relieve our dependence on foreign oil and demonstrated how the nuclear industry could play a big role in achieving that through powering our clean energy future. Electricity needs in the U.S. are expected to increase by 28 percent over the next 20 years. This number could only continue to increase with the development of electric vehicles and other technology that will rely on electricity.
In addition to speaker presentations, CASEnergy and other organizations and companies hosted booths at day-long supplier expos to pass out educational materials on nuclear energy and to talk to suppliers about how they could become more involved in the industry. As a result, many companies and people decided to join the CASEnergy Coalition! Special thanks to all those who joined the Conference and CASEnergy.
Overall, the conference brought in more than 100 nuclear suppliers operating in the state of Michigan and beyond and was a testament to the diverse set of skills and trades the U.S. nuclear energy industry needs from suppliers today and will need in years to come.
