Registration for all 2024 IEEE PES GM Technical Tours can be paid and completed in the main event registration link.
Bullitt Center
Date: Monday, 22 July 2024 1:00 PM – 3:00 PM
Activity time with Transfer: 2 Hours
Living Building Guided Tour – The building is sustainable by onsite water, solar energy and heating/cooling. Rain is collected on roof and stored in cistern for use in the building. Solar panels (575) on roof harvest free energy for building usage on sunny days. Excess solar energy is automatically sold to connected utility’s grid. Thermal wells provide heating/cooling throughout the building.
The University of Washington Center for Integrated Design (CID) in partnership with the Bullitt Foundation leads the tour program on behalf of the Bullitt Foundation – building owners.
The Bullitt Center is described by Architectural Digest as “the greenest office building in the world”. Opened April 2013, the Bullitt Center was designed to meet the Living Building Challenge (LBC), a performance-based green building standard that aims to design our built environment so that it abides by the same principles that govern the natural world. The Bullitt Center is a certified Living Building – net zero energy, net zero water, made with no toxic materials, produces no waste, promotes human and planetary health and its beautiful.
The University of Washington Center for Integrated Design (CID) in partnership with the Bullitt Foundation leads an in-person tour program of the Bullitt Center. Tours include visiting, the mechanical and electrical rooms, the grey water and rain-to-potable water treatment systems, the toilet water system, the “irresistible” stairs, and the offices of PAE on the 3rd floor.
Out of an abundance of caution, tour attendees are required to bring and wear a face mask during the tour.
Price: $60 USD
Maximum: 15 Guests
Pre-registration required
Inclusions: Guided Tour, Deluxe Motorcoach Transportation, Taxes, Gratuities, Coordination and Management
Museum of History and Industry – MOHAI
Date: Monday, 22 July 2024 2:00 PM – 5:00 PM
Activity time with Transfer: 3 Hours
Museum of History and Industry – MOHAI contains artifacts, photos & archival materials around Puget Sound area. Exhibits of Boeing airplanes, sawmill, and military hardware. The timeline spans from the time of Oregon Trail to 2000’s. MOHAI is private museum and locates at south end of Lake Union, Seattle WA.
Tour attendees will take an easy walk to the South Lake Union Streetcar station.
Price: $30 USD
Maximum: 50 Guests
Pre-registration required
Inclusions: South Lake Union Streetcar Roundtrip Ticket, Admission to the Museum, Guided Tour, Taxes, Gratuities, Coordination and Management
Washington State Ferries Electrification
Date: Tuesday, 23 July 2024 9:00 AM – 12:00 PM
Activity time with Transfer: 3 Hours
Tour M/V Tacoma by Washington State Ferries (WSF).
Washington State Ferries (WSF) is embarking on an ambitious initiative to begin the transition to an emission-free fleet through a hybrid electric ferry system. WSF operates the largest ferry system in the United States. It is also the biggest contributor of greenhouse gas emissions of any state agency in Washington, burning 19 million gallons of diesel fuel to support 24 million passengers every year.
This shift to hybrid electric ferries is in response to governor and legislative direction as well as alignment with the agency’s own long-range planning initiatives. To transition to a hybrid electric fleet, WSF is working on the three key elements of the electrification system – building new vessels, converting vessels, and electrifying the terminals.
WSF will present on the overall System Electrification Plan. The diesel-electric vessels are being converted to “plug-in” hybrid with sufficient electric range to drastically curtail diesel use. WSF’s first electrification project, the conversion of the M/V Wenatchee to hybrid-electric propulsion, is scheduled to be in trials during the week of the PES General Meeting. Therefore, we will tour the M/V Tacoma, a vessel of the same Jumbo Mark II class that has not yet been converted with a presentation about what changes will be made.
Please join us for a look at Washington’s electric ferry future!
A government issued photo ID will be required for entry.
Price: $30 USD
Maximum: 40 Guests
Pre-registration required
Inclusions: Guided Tour, Deluxe Motorcoach Transportation, Taxes, Gratuities, Coordination and Management
Climate Pledge Arena
Date: Tuesday, 23 July 2024 10:00 AM – 12:00 PM
Activity time with Transfer: 2 Hours
This expertly guided, behind-the-scenes journey tells the rich story and transformation of Climate Pledge Arena, from the 1962 World’s Fair to the $1.15B redevelopment completed in October 2021. This fully electric stadium eschews gas and operates fully on electric systems including massive heat pumps. Learn how the most sustainable arena in the world operates and brings the best in entertainment to life while exploring areas of the arena not typically open to the public, like team locker rooms, star dressing rooms, and the owner’s suite located at center ice.
Light walking is required to the monorail and around Seattle Center.
Price: $58 USD
Maximum: 24 Guests
Pre-registration required
Inclusions: Roundtrip Monorail Ticket, Admission to the Arena, Guided Tour, Taxes, Gratuities, Coordination and Management
Snohomish PUD – Arlington Microgrid
Date: Tuesday, 23 July 2024 1:00 PM – 5:00 PM
Activity time with Transfer: 4 Hours
Located just east of the Arlington Airport, the Snohomish PUD’s Arlington Microgrid and Clean Energy Center demonstrates how renewable energy and battery technology can increase grid resiliency and disaster recovery. A microgrid is locally grouped generation and load that is normally connected to the grid but can be isolated or disconnected to operate independently.
All attendees are required to wear closed toe footwear appropriate for walking on sand, gravel, and grates.
A government issued photo ID and cell phone number will be required for entry.
Price: $40 USD
Maximum: 60 Guests
Pre-registration required
Inclusions: Guided Tour, Deluxe Motorcoach Transportation, Taxes, Gratuities, Coordination and Management
Historic Snoqualmie Falls Hydro Plant Tour – Puget Sound Energy
Date: Wednesday, 24 July 2024 12:00 PM – 5:00 PM
Activity time with Transfer: 5 Hours
The Snoqualmie Falls Hydroelectric Project is Puget Sound Energy’s oldest power-generating operation and the world’s first completely underground power plant. More than a century after its construction, the facility still produces clean, cost-effective electricity. This is a working museum. The tour will include: Plant 1 built in 1898-1899 just upstream from Snoqualmie Falls inside a bedrock cavity 270 feet below ground, Observation Deck for a view of beautiful Snoqualmie Falls and The Train Depot Historical Museum.
Hard hat and Safety glasses will be provided. Sturdy shoes are required, no shorts. This tour will include walking, stairs and going underground 285 ft by elevator to tight spaces.
A government issued photo ID and cell phone number will be required for entry. A “Release of Liability” will be provided at the site and is required to be signed.
Price: $46 USD
Maximum: 30 Guests
Pre-registration required
Inclusions: Guided Tour, Deluxe Motorcoach Transportation, Taxes, Gratuities, Coordination and Management
Sound Transit Operations and Maintenance Facility
Date: Wednesday, 24 July 2024 1:00 PM – 4:00 PM
Activity time with Transfer: 3 Hours
Sound Transit is opening its doors for a select group of 20 individuals to embark on an exclusive guided tour of its SCADA command center and Operations Maintenance Facility for the light rail. The SCADA command center is the brains behind the light rail system, monitoring and managing its operations. Get an inside look at the advanced technology that keeps Seattle’s public transit running smoothly. The tour concludes at the Operations Maintenance Facility, where you’ll witness the skilled maintenance and repair work that keeps the light rail vehicles in top-notch condition. This intimate tour offers a unique opportunity to delve into the heart of Seattle’s public transit.
Sturdy shoes are required, no shorts. This tour will include walking.
Price: $40 USD
Maximum: 20 Guests
Pre-registration required
Inclusions: Guided Tour, Deluxe Motorcoach Transportation, Taxes, Gratuities, Coordination and Management
University of Washington: Clean Energy Institute (CEI)
Date: Thursday, 25 July 2024 10:00 AM – 12:00 PM
Activity time with Transfer: 2 Hours
Clean Energy Institute (CE) created the Washington Clean Energy Testbeds to accelerate the development, scale-up, and adoption of new technologies in solar harvesting, energy storage, and systems integration. This open-access facility in Seattle, founded on the principle that users retain all intellectual property, offers customized training and use of instruments for fabricating prototypes, testing devices and modules, and integrating systems. The Testbeds also houses meeting and office space where users from academia and business work and collaborate. Through Entrepreneur in Residence and Investor in Residence programs, and community-sponsored events, the Testbeds are an active gathering space for cleantech innovators and investors.
Price: $35 USD
Maximum: 30 Guests
Pre-registration required
Inclusions: Guided Tour, Deluxe Motorcoach Transportation, Taxes, Gratuities, Coordination and Management
King County Metro
Date: Thursday, 25 July 2024 1:00 PM – 4:00 PM
Activity time with Transfer: 3 Hours
King County Metro has committed to transitioning its entire fleet to zero-emission vehicles by 2035. To support this deployment, Metro and City Light partnered on a project to build out a new charging facility at the South Base campus. The South Base site is approximately 52,000 square feet and includes chargers that can charge up to nine buses simultaneously. The chargers generate enough electricity to power up to 192 homes. This year, King County Metro expects to launch 40 battery-electric buses that will serve routes in the diverse, communities of south King County that rely on transit. These low-income communities and communities of color are priority focus areas for City Light in its Transportation Electrification Strategic Investment Plan (TESIP).
Attendees will be picked up in one of King County’s new electric buses!
Sturdy shoes are required, no shorts. This tour will include walking.
Price: $30 USD
Maximum: 50 Guests
Pre-registration required
Inclusions: Guided Tour, Transportation, Taxes, Gratuities, Coordination and Management
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The tour starts at the Southshore Bay housing development. This neighborhood serves 37-homes utilizing the Emera Technologies’ BlockEnergy. The BlockEnergy utilizes rooftop solar, energy storage and smart distributed controls throughout the community. The tour will then continue at the Tampa Electric Big Bend Modernization project, which re-powered the Big Bend Unit 1 with state-of-the-art combined cycle technology and eliminated coal as that fuel’s unit. The tour will also include the Tampa Electric Floating Solar and Clean Energy Center, and a stop at a local plaza with several fast food offerings for lunch.
