Led by ECSE Professor Luigi Vanfretti, the group was hosted by AGILe's Dr. Reza Pourramezan and Dr. Rahul Kadavil. The AGILe team began by providing a comprehensive overview of the facility and its mission: to enable an affordable, reliable, and low-carbon future for the state's power grid.
Bridging the Classroom to Practice
The central theme of the visit was connecting the core course topics of modeling and simulation to real-world industrial practice in the power grid field. AGILe is a cutting-edge facility designed to prototype and safely test solutions in a close-to-real environment, leveraging a vast array of advanced simulation technologies. Students were able to see the very concepts discussed in their coursework, including real-time hardware and software in the loop simulation.
In addition, the students learned about AGILe’s new initiative: developing a Comprehensive Digital Twin of the NY State Grid. This digital twin aims to provide a virtual representation of the NY State Grid, spanning its lifecycle, updated from real-time data, and linked to simulation technologies, machine learning, and reasoning to aid complex decision-making. This technology is designed to enable realistic technology testing, predictive operations, education and training, and long-term decision support.
The AGILe team conducted a walk-through of the 10,000 sq. ft. testing facility at the Albany Nanotech Complex, showcasing the powerful hardware and software components that enable them to simulate complex scenarios. This included demonstrations of the lab's extensive capabilities, which feature various simulators, software applications (e.g., ePhasorSim, HYPERSIM), and hardware devices like Relays and a Substation Mockup.
This visit served to inspire ECSE students. Equipped with their knowledge of cyber-physical systems modeling, they are prepared to play an important role in achieving New York State's ambitious energy goals, such as reaching 100% zero-emissions electricity by 2040. The experience served as a powerful motivator, demonstrating that their current learning directly contributes to the resilience and innovation of the nation's energy infrastructure.