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Gary Swofford to speak at EE commencement
Gary Swofford, a 1968 graduate of the BSEE program, has over 40 years of experience in the energy industry. He currently serves as General Manager of Swofford Energy Consulting, LLC. Previously he held positions as Chief Operating Officer, Senior Vice President, Vice President of Engineering & Operations, and Vice President of Rates & Customer Services for Puget Sound Energy (PSE).
Mr. Swofford brings a deep understanding of the issues driving power utilities to adopt networking technologies. He provides insight into what motivates consumers and the regulatory world to embrace advanced metering programs that encourage consumers to use energy more efficiently and cost effectively. While at PSE, Mr. Swofford was instrumental in implementing one of the first large scale, fixed wireless networks for a US utility. He also directed the operational aspects of several innovative customer service programs, including a voluntary time-of-use pilot pricing program that resulted in more efficient operations and a dramatic improvement in the energy consumption habits of consumers.
Mr. Swofford continues to be active in the utility industry since his retirement in early 2004. He serves as a board member for Tantalus Systems Corporation, a company that develops, manufactures and markets two-way data communications networks for electric, water and gas utilities. He also provides guidance to companies in the emerging technology sector, and has been involved in a number of prominent national power organizations including the Electric Power Research Institute.
In addition to his BSEE from the University of Washington, Mr. Swofford also holds a degree in Engineering Economy for Public Utilities from Stanford University.
