Heydt earns top electrical engineering honor
October 9, 2009
Gerald Heydt, a professor in the School of Electrical, Computer and Energy Engineering, has been selected to receive the 2010 Richard H. Kaufmann Award from the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) for exceptional achievements in electric power quality, and transmission and distribution engineering.
IEEE is among the largest engineer organizations in world. Its Kaufmann Award is an IEEE Technical Field Award, considered among the most prestigious honors in the engineering field.
It recognizes significant contributions to electrical engineering in the industrial environment through the design or application of systems technology, as well as apparatus, devices or materials for plant power distribution, drive systems, process control or other utilization systems.
Heydt is to receive the award given during the IEEE Power and Energy Society General Meeting on July 27, 2010 in Minneapolis.
Heydt’s work focuses on electric power quality, transmission and distribution engineering, power systems modeling and computer control, and the dynamic response of electric power systems. He is the author of two books in this area – one being the first book on electric power quality.
He has been a member of the National Academy of Engineering since 1997 and is an ASU Regents’ Professor, the highest recognition bestowed on faculty members at Arizona’s state universities.
Heydt came to ASU in 1995 after 25 years at Purdue University. He is the site director of the Power Systems Engineering Research Center (PSerc), which is a nationwide power engineering center based at ASU. Researchers at 13 universities are part of PSerc, as well as close to 50 power industry-related companies. Heydt also is a part of the Future Renewable Electric Energy Distribution Management (FREEDM) National Science Foundation Engineering Research Center. The center’s goal is to integrate renewable energy resources into power distribution systems.
Heydt’s work outside academia has included stints with Commonwealth Edison Company, the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratories, EG&G and various positions around the world with the United Nations Development Program.
The Kaufmann Award was established by the IEEE in 1986 “for outstanding contributions in industrial systems engineering.” It may be presented annually to an individual, or team of up to three persons.
The Award honors Richard Harold Kaufmann in memory of his important contributions to industrial systems engineering and his service to the IEEE Industry Applications Society.
