Rob Cuzner, associate professor of electrical engineering, has been named director of UWM’s Center for Sustainable Electrical Energy Systems (SEES). The center provides a framework for multi-disciplinary research and teaching activities on energy, with a focus on sustainable developments in electric energy.
Simultaneously, Cuzner was named UWM’s site director for GRAPES (GRid-connected Advanced Power Electronic Systems), a National Science Foundation industry/university research center that works to make the grid more reliable, greener and less expensive. In Wisconsin, GRAPES partners with industry to develop new technologies for storing, controlling, and distributing energy so that innovations are compatible with the existing grid and safe from cybersecurity threats
Cuzner is a sustainable electric energy expert with 24 years of industry experience.
“Society’s energy demands continue to change as we increasingly rely on electric cars, trains, machines and more,” he says. “During this transition, UWM has emerged as a leader in researching the components of an advanced power system deemed key to meeting this changing demand: power electronics and distribution systems.”
These two components, he says, make the control of energy more flexible and adaptable to the changing needs of power grid and transportation systems.
About Cuzner’s research
Cuzner’s timely research focuses on improving the resiliency and efficiency of microgrids, transportation electrification and evolving power electronics-based power distribution.
His research has been supported by the Office of Naval Research, U.S. Navy, U.S. Air Force, NSF, NASA and industry partners including Eaton Corporation and Leonardo DRS and has included projects on naval base microgrids and space station microgrids.
Cuzner has helped develop standards in the area of shipboard power conversion architecture for the IEEE and is co-editor for IEEE Electrification Magazine.
Prior to joining UWM, Cuzner worked in industry for 24 years developing systems for power generation, power conversion, and variable speed motor drives for both Navy and industrial applications.
More about Cuzner’s latest research and the Center for Sustainable Electrical Energy Systems.