Third innovation award in 2019
Skagerak Nett is the winner of the Cineldi Award for 2019. The electricity distribution network company shares the award with one of its own employees, Eivind Gramme. This is the third innovation award Skagerak Nett receives in 2019.
About Cineldi
- Cineldi, short for Centre for Intelligent Electricity Distribution
- Develops the electricity grid of the future.
- Works towards digitalising and modernising the electricity distribution grid for higher efficiency, flexibility and resilience.
- Cineldi enables a cost-efficient realisation of the future flexible and robust electricity distribution grid.
CEO Øivind Askvik is pleased to see that the systematic work to create an innovation culture in the company show results.
- Skagerak Nett must understand our customers' needs and develop new work methods and solutions. The fact that the world around us is changing requires us to be innovative and constantly challenge ourselves, he says.
The jury gives the following argument for awarding the Skagerak Nett Cineldi Award for 2019:
"Skagerak Nett is innovative and contributes in many arenas in the Cineldi programme. The company is one of the user partners with the most co-workers actively contributing to Cineldi. The company contributes with several co-workers in all the expert groups, participates in several pilots and initiates cooperation with external demos/pilots."
Room to try out new ideas
Askvik says that one of the success criteria to create an innovation culture is that all employees are empowered and given room to try out new ideas, as long as it does not directly affect HSE or the customers' power supply.
- We have many talented people and entrepreneurs in Skagerak Nett who work with innovation, he says proudly.
Shared award
One of these is Eivind Gramme who shares the award with Skagerak Nett. Gramme is responsible for regulatory affairs and participates with great enthusiasm in several expert groups.
- It's important for me to understand what the future power system will be because it's important for how the future regulation and power grid will be. That's why I get involved in research and development work, he says.
The jury argues that Gramme both takes the initiative and actively contributes to the research, in addition to always being positive and happy to share his knowledge.
- It's great fun to get attention for efforts and dedication, he says, but also emphasizes that he has received the award together with Skagerak Nett.
Cineldi is an important centre
Eivind Gramme think Cineldi does lots of good and important work.
- In Cineldi, we can achieve things that we don't solve elsewhere, because the research center is so academically wide and well-funded.
Askvik supports the jury's argument for Gramme as award winner.
- Eivind Gramme is a talented co-worker who contributes in many areas. He really deserves the award.
The Cineldi Award is the third innovation award Skagerak Nett receives this year. Earlier they received an award for a solution that enables installers to work more independently and efficiently, and one for a project with Sintef and other distribution network companies that use sensors to give customers power back automatically in the event of a power cut.