Eaton is a power management company doing business in more than 175 countries. Their energy-efficient products and services help customers effectively manage electrical, hydraulic and mechanical power more reliably, efficiently, safely and sustainably.
Eaton is a Social Events Partner of the 2023 EUEW Business Convention and a returning supporter, after the previous collaboration in 2018. At Eaton, sustainability is very important. The general theme of the 2023 EUEW Business Convention is energize transition, with a very strong focus on sustainability. Philippe Bertrand, Vice President, Commercial Policies, Electrical Sector EMEA, explains how this topic brings Eaton and EUEW together and why this partnership is important.
Eaton is returning as partner of the EUEW Business Convention after the previous collaboration in Bonn. Why is it important for Eaton to continue as supporter of this major industry event?
Over the past five years, world economics have impacted the electrical market significantly. Ambitious objectives have been set in most European countries for reducing carbon emissions from the residential and commercial buildings sectors, as well as from the mobility sector through the growth in electric vehicle sales. This means that all market actors must review their business models and value propositions, both to direct customers/partners and end users. Property developers, building owners and homeowners are investing in devices and solutions such as solar panels, heat pumps, battery energy storage systems, and electric vehicle chargers. Electrical wholesalers are playing a vital role by providing their expertise and by selling components and solutions to integrators and installers.
Eaton has developed and launched an integrated approach to the energy transition for building owners, which is called ‘Buildings as a Grid’ for the commercial and industrial sector. Eaton is partnering with EUEW Business Convention to enable its representatives to understand, with delegates, how the electrical industry will shape up in the future, what the market’s new requirements will be, and how Eaton should grow its collaboration with electrical wholesaler partners.
This year’s general convention theme is “Energize transition: a key role for the electrical wholesalers” focusing on translating the very important role of electrical wholesalers in the energy transition. How is Eaton impacted by the acceleration of this process? Why is it important for the company to become more sustainable as more opportunities arise in this sense?
The energy transition will mean that energy flows through the grid in more directions, and through more devices, than ever before. This clearly creates opportunities for manufacturers and electrical wholesalers to be actively involved in educating the market based on new standards and new government rules to reduce energy consumption and gain greater efficiency in electricity usage. Eaton is offering a complete suite of applications and solutions, with its Buildings as a Grid offer focusing on how to combine renewable energy applications with energy storage and assets such as electric vehicle chargers.
At Eaton, our own commitment to sustainability includes working towards stringent 2030 targets by reducing carbon emissions from our operations by half, lowering product and supply chain emissions, certifying all manufacturing sites as zero waste to landfill, and achieving carbon neutral operations.
The first 100 registrations for this year’s convention were received within just one week of opening registrations. EUEW was very pleasantly surprised by the interest the EUEW Convention is gaining in the industry as well as in its wider ecosystem. What do you expect will be the main takeaways for Eaton with the participation in this year’s EUEW Business Convention?
We want to gain a deeper understanding of the opportunities and challenges that the energy transition presents for the electrical wholesaling sector, and how this affects the support that components and applications manufacturers, such as ourselves, can provide to help our partners develop their businesses successfully. We want to listen and learn from delegates at the convention, as well as share with them some of the thinking we’ve been doing over the past five years as we have worked on our new approaches to the way power is distributed, stored, and consumed.
Our main takeaway will be increased clarity on how to collaborate with electrical wholesalers in their role as key actors in the energy transition. If we achieve that, we’ll be happy!
