WSU News Archive

By Hope Belli Tinney, WSU News

 

 

 

CAMAS, Wash. - Adding renewable energy to the U.S. power grid is tricky, mostly because the grid demands precision and we can’t control when the wind blows or the clouds clear for a sunny day.

 

That’s why Nancy Kroner’s work is so important. Kroner, owner of Versalence LLC, helps power companies better control water, the only significant renewable energy source that can be controlled.

 

Versalence is fast becoming an industry leader in work related to hydroelectric generation units, work that includes building relationships with industry leaders, policy makers and the public to ensure a continued stable, reliable and renewable power infrastructure.

 

More specifically, Versalence provides both project management and project engineering, along with generation unit maintenance and repair, to help hydroelectric power companies more precisely regulate the water flow hitting the turbines.

 

If the wind is blowing, power facilities need to keep air turbines spinning or they’ve lost that energy, Kroner said. Water, on the other hand, can be stored and metered out on an as-needed basis.

 

Kroner’s company works with power companies to "teach" hydroelectric control units - units she compares to an intricate Swiss watch¬ - to respond immediately to fluctuations caused by changes in wind force. These units, some as old as 100 years, originally were designed to control instabilities but were "detuned" over the years.

 

The goal, Kroner said, is to have such precise control of water flow that companies can maximize the efficient use of both wind and water resources.

 

 

But how do you turn engineering expertise - expertise that is specific not just to a specific industry, but to a specific component within a specific industry - into a sustainable small business?

 

That was the problem Kroner faced when she made an appointment to meet with Janet Harte, a certified business advisor with the Washington Small Business Development Center in Vancouver.

 

Created in 1980 as a partnership between the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), Washington State University and other institutions of higher education and economic development, the Washington SBDC provides one-to-one confidential business advising, demand-driven training and market research to both new and established small business owners at no cost to the client. Harte is one of 30 certified business advisors working in the Washington SBDC network.

 

Harte had scheduled a one-hour meeting with Kroner; 90 minutes into a discussion of water turbines, generators, voltage and frequency, as well as cash flow, contracts and staffing, they were still talking.

 

"She got it,” Kroner said. Not only did Harte understand the significance of Kroner’s expertise, but she "got” that Kroner faced unique challenges as a woman small business owner selling engineering expertise in a male dominated industry.

 

Working in a male dominated field is a challenge Kroner faced early in her career. Just out of high school she joined the U.S. Air Force and became a fighter jet crew chief, responsible for the launch, recovery and inspection of the F-4, F-16 and SR-71. One day her supervisor took her aside and told her something she never forgot.

 

"You made this plane fly like crazy; you know it and I know it,” Kroner remembers him saying. But, he told her, it was unlikely she’d ever get the recognition she deserved. Instead of waiting for external validation, she’d have to focus on internal satisfaction.

 

"I was 19 years old and he completely changed the way I looked at the world,” Kroner said. After leaving the military, Kroner earned a degree in mechanical engineering at Colorado State University and found her calling in hydroelectric generation working for the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation.

 

"I loved the feeling of raw power while working on the fighter jets, and hydropower continues to energize me in the same way," she said.

 

At that first meeting with the SBDC, Kroner said, she wasn’t even sure what questions to ask, but Harte knew what to ask and where to start: "Jan started me with the basics on the first meeting, stopping just at the point where I was a little overwhelmed,” Kroner said.

 

 

Though Kroner’s engineering bona fides are solid, and she understands the industry - she had helped her previous employer grow from a company of five to more than 30 in five years - creating a business plan for what she wanted to accomplish was difficult.

 

Over the next several months, Kroner said, Harte helped her analyze her options and develop a business plan, a financial proposal and a strategy for hiring and retaining employees.

 

Kroner, a disabled veteran, started her business in 2008 with $30,000 of her own savings. At the time she was a sole proprietor but has since added employees according to her staffing needs. Her largest contract to date earned Versalence $167,000 and required a full-time staff of three, with three part-time employees.

 

As the company continues to grow, Kroner is hoping to expand her staff with veterans who will work with and learn from experienced engineers, many of whom have retired from one career but want to continue working and sharing their expertise on a part-time basis.

 

 

In the past four years, Versalence has earned contracts, both large and small, from government and private clients including the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers, U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, Xcel Energy, Pacificorp, Seattle City Light, Energy Northwest and City of Centralia.

 

"Nancy fills a unique niche in hydroelectric power generation,” said Ed Williams, general manager of Centralia City Light. Kroner was instrumental in designing the digital governors that regulate water flow on turbines at the Yelm hydroproject on the Nisqually River, he said, and she continues to be one of the foremost experts in the field.

 

Centralia City Light gets about 25 percent of its power from the Yelm hydroproject, Williams said, and Kroner is modifying the system so the city will be able to shift exclusively to hydropower in the event of a massive regional power outage.

 

Creating a governor, or generation control unit, that can respond to that kind of fluctuation is exceptionally complicated, Williams said, but Kroner is up to the challenge.

 

"This is where Nancy really shines,” he said. "She has a unique business expertise and she brings that expertise to bear on problems that are really down in the weeds.”

 

Her expertise might be "down the weeds,” but it’s also critical to U.S. security. The goal, Williams said, is to be able to power up the Yelm hydroproject from a "black start,” or when there is zero power in the system.

 

The less time Kroner has to spend worrying about cash flow and financial projections, she said, the more time she can spend thinking about load capacity and electricity distribution networks. Working with Harte, her SBDC business advisor, has allowed her to do just that.

 

"The road hasn't always been easy,” Kroner said, "but with Jan's expert guidance, I have been able to not only weather the storms, but also build a successful business in a trying economy.”

Learn more about Versalence here.

     

To find the SBDC center nearest you, go here.

     

 

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Contacts:
Nancy Kroner, nkroner@versalence.com, 360-833-8443
Janet Harte, jharte@vancouver.wsu.edu, 360-260-6372

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