National Engineers Week: Marshall Ripley
At Avangrid, we’re accelerating transformation for our customers and communities by pioneering a brighter energy future. By balancing decades of experience with a relentless pursuit for forward-thinking innovation, we’re creating a smarter, stronger grid, growing our energy generation system, and pursuing new solutions every day. In honor of National Engineer’s Week, we are highlighting the brilliant minds behind the innovations we’re making. Meet Marshall Ripley, Principal Engineer in Central Maine Power’s Distribution Planning Department.
What made you pursue engineering?
I grew up in a STEM family with a lot of engineers/scientists around. Science and math always interested me, especially electricity and magnetism so Electrical Engineering seemed like a good fit.
What drew you to the utilities industry over other engineering fields?
I took all the power classes I could in college and specialized in power systems for my master’s degree because that is the field of electrical engineering that was most likely to get me out from behind my desk and outside during my workday.
How do you see engineers playing an important role in the future of energy?
We have a huge increase in renewable energy generation, and a push to electrify everything. Utility engineers have the exciting challenge of adapting the grid to accommodate these changes.
What advice do you have for high school and college students interested in pursuing a career in engineering?
The power industry used to be seen as somewhat stagnant and drove new engineers to other fields like tech. With the rapid development of technology, renewable generation, and beneficial electrification, the field is anything but stagnant and there is a new focus on power today. That creates a lot of opportunities for graduating engineers in power.
