Learners Live

Wesco Cares Scholarship Program

Wesco has partnered with Independent Electrical Contractors (IEC) as well as ELECTRI International, an electrical construction foundation established by the National Electrical Contractors Association (NECA), to establish a new scholarship program for future electrical workers. The Wesco Cares Scholarship Program supports the next generation of tradespeople and fortifies our commitment to the electrical industry. The $200,000 in scholarships will be awarded to qualified and deserving students entering skilled trades in the U.S. electrical industry. As the largest electrical distributor in North America, Wesco understands the critical role of tradespeople in powering our world and moving the electrical industry forward. Similarly, IEC and ELECTRI are tireless advocates of the electrical industry and are both committed to supporting the next generation of contractors. By helping to reduce the financial costs associated with trade school and apprenticeship expenses, the scholarship program will help encourage interest in the trades and contributes to an increase in skilled labor. Wesco Cares | Scholarship Program | Wesco

Wesco’s Scholarships Support More than 100 Apprentices through NECA/ELECTRI’s Project Management Program

Wesco International announced that more than 100 apprentices will graduate next month through the NECA/ELECTRI Project Management Apprenticeship, supported by the Wesco Cares scholarship program. Wesco executives will be onsite at the annual NECA Convention held in Chicago, IL, Sept.12-15, to discuss its strong partnership with ELECTRI International and the success of the scholarship program to date. The scholarship program launched in 2024 aims to address labor shortages and cultivate future industry leaders.  Wesco’s Scholarships Support More than 100 Apprentices through NECA/ELECTRI’s Project Management Program | Electrical Wholesaling

Eye on the Storm by Tim Kridel

The new ANSI/NEMA C137.10 standard is designed to keep streetlights on during extreme weather. But in normal times, it also creates opportunities in the smart cities market. By the end of this decade, the North American smart city market will be worth close to $1 trillion, a roughly fourfold jump from 2024, Grand View Research A new standard from NEMA’s Lighting Systems Division should help electrical contractors and electrical design firms grab a share of that burgeoning market by leveraging upgrades aimed at bolstering outdoor lighting resiliency. ANSI/NEMA C137.10-2024 creates a vendor-agnostic format for data produced by sensors installed on light poles along roadways and pedways. That standardization enables municipalities, utilities, and other lighting infrastructure owners to have a mix of hardware and software vendors without risking data incompatibility. ANSI/NEMA C137.10 Standard and Lighting System Interoperability | EC&M

The Genesis of the U.S. Space Force – On December 20, 2019, President Donald Trump signed the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2020, officially creating the United States Space Force, a new and independent branch of the U.S. military. The establishment of the Space Force marked a historic shift in how the U.S. views and manages its military operations in space, reflecting the growing importance of space as both a domain of strategic competition and national security. The Space Force is tasked with ensuring the U.S. maintains its superiority in space, focusing on both the defense of space assets and the development of offensive capabilities. Its mission includes:

  1. Space Operations: Overseeing space-based systems, such as satellites, that provide essential services to the U.S. military, including communication, reconnaissance, and missile defense.
  2. Space Security: Protecting U.S. space infrastructure from threats, including anti-satellite weapons, cyberattacks, and other potential forms of disruption by adversarial nations.
  3. Space Research and Development: Developing and deploying cutting-edge space technologies, including space-based defense systems, that ensure the U.S. maintains an edge in space exploration and military operations.
  4. Supporting National Defense: Integrating space capabilities into broader national defense strategies, ensuring that U.S. forces can operate effectively in space as part of a multi-domain approach to warfare.

The Space Force is designed to streamline and strengthen the U.S. military’s space operations, which were previously under the purview of the U.S. Air Force. By separating space operations into a distinct branch, the government hoped to increase focus on space as a critical area of national defense and enhance the U.S. military’s ability to respond to emerging threats. Source: Day in History