SPOKANE, Wash. — More than 450 engineers and consultants from major power companies and research institutes from around the world are gathering in Spokane Oct. 26-28 at Washington State University’s 26th Annual Western Protective Relay Conference. It will be held at the International Ag Trade Center, 344 W. Spokane Falls Blvd., with vendor suites at the Doubletree Inn next door.
Automated power protection and relaying was an $875 million worldwide business in 1999, according to the Newton-Evans Research Company. Most critical to a society dependent on electric power are “protective relays,” which, in the most simplistic of terms, enable lights to merely flicker instead of go out in a power storm. Or, when an outage is unavoidable, they help locate the faults for quick restoration.
Conference attendees will learn the latest technologies in electrical power protection, technical papers will be presented, speakers will lead workshops, and 43 vendors will display their wares. Sponsors are WSU’s College of Engineering and Architecture, the School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, and Conferences and Institutes. For registration information, contact WSU Conferences and Institutes, 509/335-3530, or see
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