Ohio State University startup aims to revolutionize power outage prevention
StormImpact, a startup originating from The Ohio State University, has the capability to decrease the consequences and occurrence of power outages caused by extreme weather conditions. The company achieves this by integrating weather science, data analysis, machine learning, and essential human knowledge to offer power companies valuable insights that aid in mitigating outages, disturbances, and repairs.
As concerns about the potential impact of severe weather rise, and customers and authorities pay more attention, utility companies are actively searching for advanced technology to enhance their storm prediction capabilities. To meet this demand, StormImpact has developed state-of-the-art models that give utilities vital information to make informed decisions and minimize the impact of severe storms.
“The primary cause of power outages is weather related, and especially trees blowing onto power lines or trees losing limbs and falling on power lines,” said Steven Quiring, co-founder of StormImpact and professor of climatology at Ohio State. “Most of the repairs are done not by their own staff, but by contract crews that they bring in. They need to make a call well before the storm occurs so that people can be there and positioned and ready”.
StormImpact leverages historical data and specific geographic information to create a more proactive approach when responding to severe weather. It incorporates custom model performance and dynamic risk assessments tailored to individual clients, empowering businesses, communities, and utility companies to proactively allocate resources, minimize disruptions, and safeguard assets. The machine learning models they employ examine numerous factors to deliver practical insights regarding possible service interruption and infrastructure harm prior to severe storms. Tailoring these models to specific regions and customers results in an average cost reduction of 20% for storm response expenditures. Quiring co-founded StormImpact with Senior Researcher Brent McRoberts and former Ohio State astronomy graduate student Scott Hull. Today, the platform is used by more than 20 operating companies, including those owned by FirstEnergy, Southern Company and American Electric Power.
“I get excited when I see technology get licensed and get used in the market in ways that can benefit people,” said Chris Wilson, Senior Licensing Officer at The Ohio State University. “This comes down to potentially saving lives and minimizing the harm that can be caused by these storms.”
Divisional Dean of Social and Behavioral Sciences Ryan King expressed admiration for Quiring, acknowledging his exceptional scientific expertise and the groundbreaking product created by his team, which has swiftly gained remarkable success.
"Steven is a great scientist, and his team developed an innovative product that can benefit the community and enable companies to deploy resources more effectively and efficiently. I’m delighted to see StormImpact be so successful so quickly. It’s a credit to Steven and the TCO office at Ohio State," said King.
The Ohio State University’s Technology Commercialization Office helped the startup’s technology become licensed. Every year, the team collaborates with hundreds of researchers, joining forces to transform brilliant innovations into tangible solutions that can profoundly impact people's lives. Their mission is to connect these groundbreaking technologies with companies that are poised to maximize their potential. Through their efforts, they have created a straightforward pathway for commercializing and licensing technologies to existing companies, ensuring that these innovations reach the market and make a meaningful difference.
“This company definitely owes its start to Ohio State,” Quiring said. “The research and support staff here and the people that I got to work with made the magic happen. We produced a product that was something that the utilities valued and that we realized we could grow and expand to serve a lot more utilities and other sectors of the economy.”