"In October 2012, as Hurricane Sandy hit the East Coast of the United States, millions of homes went dark. Falling trees pulled electrical wires to the ground and power substations filled with water. In New York City more than 700,000 citizens had no electricity, while in New Jersey and Pennsylvania more than three million people lost power.
But despite the cloak of darkness all around it, Princeton University was a beacon of light ─ its microgrid was busy churning out more than 11 megawatts of electricity in the days and weeks after the storm, lighting up the campus and attracting thousands of area residents eager to recharge their smartphones and laptops.
This tragedy showcased the benefits of a microgrid, which is a small-scale power grid that operates independently or in conjunction with a municipal or local power grid. College campuses, hospitals, military bases and even forward-thinking companies like Google are increasingly building these discrete power systems into their infrastructure. These independent power systems serve as back-up power or help through power generation, distribution, and controls that include voltage regulation and switch gears to support the community’s power grid during periods of heavy demand or crisis."
