From the Desk of RMEL Executive Director Rick Putnicki

A NOTE ON THE RMEL FOUNDATION’S SOLD OUT GOLF TOURNAMENT
Sponsorship opportunities are still available – see below for details!

I wanted to start today’s message with a quick note on the unprecedented and very fast sell out of the Annual RMEL Foundation Golf Tournament. I know many companies and RMEL Foundation supporters are disappointed to not have made it in this year’s Tournament. We began promoting the Golf Tournament following RMEL’s Spring Conference, and the tournament sold out in nine days! We had no way of predicting this outcome. The amount of support for this event is simply amazing, and we on the RMEL Foundation Board and on the RMEL staff have been shocked by the immediate sellout. We understand that this has left many major RMEL Foundation supporters and past Golf Tournament participants unable to play, and we will be looking at changes we can make in 2023 to allow more supporting companies to participate.

This is a Golf Tournament for a great cause – RMEL Foundation electric energy scholarships for kids – and it is truly amazing to see all of the support for those kids! Thank you to everyone who did sign up, and thank you for all the calls and emails to join the waitlist and/or to sponsor this event. While foursome spots are sold out, your company can still sponsor the event and we can deduct the amount of the foursome/twosome spots for the Diamond and Gold sponsorships. Please review sponsorship opportunities on page 3 of the brochure, and give us a call at (303) 865-5544 or email us at info@rmel.org to become a sponsor.

SUPPORT SCHOLARSHIPS AND DONATE TO THE RMEL FOUNDATION AUCTION
Donation Deadline is September 16, 2022

The  RMEL Foundation provides scholarships to deserving students pursuing careers in the electric energy industry. The annual RMEL Foundation Auction will be held in during the 2022 In-Person Fall Convention on October 11th. We will use the same bidding app that we have used for the past couple of years, and we will send more details to access that app before the auction. Over the past 22 years, more than 500 scholarships have been awarded totaling more than $1 million. Your support is needed to continue the Foundation's scholarship efforts. You are encouraged to donate an item to the auction and join the VIRTUAL auction to bid on donated items.

ACCESS ON DEMAND SPRING CONFERENCE SESSIONS

If you didn’t get the chance to join us at the Spring Conference, more than 20 On Demand Spring Conference Sessions are now available for your viewing. We recorded video, audio and presentations slides for most of the sessions, and you can sign up to access those now. These sessions include Day 2 Keynote Brad Jones, CEO, ERCOT; the Executive Panel General Session; plus many of the sessions from the Generation, T&D and Management tracks! Take a look at the Spring Conference brochure to get more details on the On Demand sessions available. If you attended the Spring Conference, you already have access to these sessions. Use your Swapcard login to access the sessions. Please contact us if you need assistance logging in.

NOMINATIONS ARE NOW OPEN FOR RMEL AWARDS!

RMEL is seeking nominations of exemplary individuals in the electric energy industry for the Distinguished Leadership Award, Industry Leadership Award and the Honorary Life Membership Award. These awards are presented to individuals to commend outstanding work and leadership at their organizations and in the electric energy industry. A nomination form for each nominee must be submitted by July 29th.

UPCOMING EVENTS

We hope you can join us at these events this summer and at the RMEL Fall Convention October 10-12 at the Hilton Denver Inverness Hotel in Denver, CO! Get more details below.

COMPLIMENTARY WEBINAR FOR RMEL MEMBERS - OPTIMIZING TRADITIONAL AND INNOVATED TRENCHLESS TECHNOLOGIES FOR UNDERGROUND CABLE CONSTRUCTION
June 16, 10:00-11:00 a.m. Mountain Daylight Time

Trenchless Constructions are getting more popular in underground transmission & distribution industry due to permitting, environmental, and safety considerations. This presentation will discuss why, where, and when to use trenchless construction, and what technologies are available in the market, including case studies using traditional and innovated technologies, and provide you a clear strategy on how to plan your next underground cable construction project.

2022 RMEL DISTRIBUTION CONFERENCE
June 21-22, Colorado Springs Utilities, Colorado Springs, Colorado

The electric utility industry is rapidly changing, both on the technology side and from a policy standpoint. Utilities are partners in innovation with customers. The distribution impacts and opportunities continue to multiply. This conference covers design, operations, maintenance and regulatory/policy issues. You won’t want to miss this opportunity to work together with RMEL’s diverse membership (representing all different types of electric utilities) to collectively address the power industry’s biggest distribution challenges. The conference is structured with presentations and roundtable sessions to give attendees time to discuss what’s keeping you up at night and put everything from the conference together in a unique and tangible way.

TRANSMISSION RESILIENCY, RESPONSE AND RESTORATION CONFERENCE
June 22-23, Tri-State Generation & Transmission Association, Westminster, Colorado

This conference will explore different aspects of preparing for and responding to natural disasters from the perspectives of resiliency (examples: wildfires and Nebraska storms), response (examples: mutual assistance) and restoration.

2022 RMEL FALL EXECUTIVE LEADERSHIP AND MANAGEMENT CONVENTION
October 10-12, 2022, Hilton Denver Inverness Hotel, Denver, Colorado

Look for more details soon about RMEL’s first IN-PERSON Fall Convention since 2019! We are looking forward to getting everyone back together at the event that started it all back in October 1903! Since that first meeting, the Fall Convention has grown and evolved into one of the industry’s leading events for senior management. The Convention provides a relaxed forum for networking with your peers and colleagues to find and share solutions to the critical issues that keep you up at night. The primary focus of the Convention is the educational presentations. Utility executives offer their insight and thoughts on a variety of issues, trends, challenges and the direction they are leading their companies. Speakers are primarily CEOs, senior executives and other top leaders from inside the industry discussing the issues that matter most to you. Find significant value in the two day streamlined format. Make the connections you need and learn from education presentations that will benefit you and your company.

JOIN THE RMEL TEAM

RMEL is looking to expand their TEAM! If you know of anyone interested in building a career and being a part of this great Association team, please send me a note!

SEE YOU SOON!

We will continue to add more in-person events to the RMEL calendar, and we look forward to continuing RMEL’s traditions (since 1903) of education and networking for the electric energy industry!