Identifying Modernization Goals & Community Priorities

You have identified a gap in your infrastructure and are now starting to explore the oppositions available to you.

Key considerations may include:

1. Establishing Objectives
   • Formalize internal discussions to define modernization goals based on anticipated utility needs.
   • Identify current needs that a modernization project would address.
   • Engage stakeholders in the information gathering process.

Assessing Feasibility

You’ve moved past initial internal discussions and are now focusing on defining specific needs and planning context.

Key considerations may include:

1. Regional and Local Plans:
   • Identify relevant plans for land use, economic development, emergency response and associated data sources and agencies. Determine timeline intersections and potential collaborations for cost savings.
2. Needs Assessment:
   • Short and long-term planning to identify current and future residential, industrial and commercial needs, considering best and worst-case scenarios.
3. Historical and Social Factors:
   • Identify factors that could limit resource availability or affect community acceptance of technologies. Determine necessary resources, programs and time to address these barriers.

Making a Modernization Plan and Building a Team

You’ve narrowed the set of potential technologies that may address your need. You are now conducting scenario planning and also building your team.

Key considerations may include:

1. Scenario Planning:
   • Compare multiple technologies or implementation approaches based on cost-effectiveness, performance requirements, necessary ancillary upgrade requirements or other key factors.
   • Combine considerations from internal priorities, community energy needs assessment, feasibility study and team building to select preferred scenario.
2. Workforce Requirements:
   • Determine and assess the staff capabilities and needs.
3. Team Formation:
   • Planning and team building may start at different times but will influence each other. Begin engaging with key stakeholders and building the coalition that will be needed for the project to succeed.

Developing an Implementation Plan

You’ve narrowed in on specific technologies and have explored how each would function for your system. Now, you need to pick a technology and develop a specific implementation plan.

Key considerations may include:

1. Regulations:
   • Assess federal, state, and industry standards and regulatory requirements.
2. New Locations and Facilities:
   • Study the history of land use and the surrounding community.
3. Employee Readiness:
   • Ensure employees are educated and comfortable with maintenance and operations plans.
   • Determine if hiring is necessary to fill any new roles.
4. Cost:
   • Identify financing options.
   • Develop short and long-term operation management plans.
   • Plan for software updates and associated costs.
   • Plan for predictive maintenance and associated costs.

Deploying a Low-risk Technology

You’ve determined a low-risk technology that you want to pursue. Now, you need to understand the benefits and costs associated with this technology and how to deploy it.

Characteristics of low-risk technologies include:

Security: Well-understood with extensive testing and lower security risks but still need updates.

Regulatory Compliance: Must meet industry-specific regulations and standards.

Environmental Impact: Less resource-intensive and lower environmental impact, with established mitigation practices.

Scalability: Easily scalable with well-documented processes.

Maintenance: Maintenance requirements well defined, necessary expertise known, supply chain for parts well established. 

Performance: Reliable and consistent, suitable for operational environments, though may lack cutting-edge improvements.

System Integration: Well-established, widely adopted, with lower complexity and well-documented implementation processes.

Demonstrating a New Technology

You’ve identified a new or emerging technology that you want to pursue. Now, you need to understand the benefits, costs and risks associated with this technology and how to demonstrate it.

Key elements of the demonstration may include:

Security: New technology may introduce security risks requiring careful assessment and mitigation.

Regulatory Compliance: Generally compliant but certain parameters must be proven.

Environmental Impact: Assess and minimize the environmental implications.

Scalability: Scaling up may present several unknowns, require substantial resources, and could face capacity limitations.

Maintenance: Novelty may necessitate extra maintenance, workforce specialization, and troubleshooting.

Performance: New technology performance must be benchmarked and may require tuning.

System Integration: Integration into existing systems may present novelty and require significant expertise and resources.