RICHMOND, Va., May 27, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Inventors don't
always walk around in lab coats; at Dominion, they might wear hard
hats, drive bucket trucks, construct pipelines, or develop
databases.
"The energy and utility industries are going through a period of
rapid change," said Mary Doswell,
senior vice president-Alternative Energy Solutions at Dominion.
"New technologies and new ways of doing business are emerging in
all areas. Dominion must be at the forefront because a company that
fails to innovate will be left behind."
In March, Dominion (NYSE:D), licensed a unique type of
electrical fitting that enhances the safety of equipment exposed to
dust in a variety of environments, thanks to the innovation of
employee Kenneth Sykes, a power
generation engineer based in Richmond.
"Safety is always our top concern at Dominion, so we are
constantly challenged to look for ways to make our jobs safer,"
said Sykes. "I originally came up with this idea after hearing
about food processing plants and the risks to those plants from
combustible dust. It's very rewarding to have developed a product
that will protect the electrical junction boxes from dust in our
power stations, eliminating a risk before it ever becomes a
problem."
The product was developed and refined through Dominion's IDeAS
program (Innovations, Developments and Solutions). Developed in
2013, the program was designed to encourage, support, and protect
employee innovations. Ideas submitted by employees run the gamut
from safety devices and software to training and more. Where
possible, these innovations are developed into viable commercial
offerings and business opportunities.
Because of the product's versatility, use of the fitting
eventually will expand to other industries, such as chemical
processing, marine and paper industries.
About Dominion
Dominion is one of the nation's largest producers and
transporters of energy, with a portfolio of approximately 24,600
megawatts of generation, 12,200 miles of natural gas transmission,
gathering and storage pipeline, and 6,455 miles of electric
transmission lines. Dominion operates one of the nation's
largest natural gas storage systems with 928 billion cubic feet of
storage capacity and serves utility and retail energy customers in
13 states. For more information about Dominion, visit the company's
website at www.dom.com/.
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SOURCE Dominion