Detroit

DTE Energy installed seven Bigbelly units, the city of Detroit's first smart, solar-powered trash compactor and recycling units. The pilot program supports the company's Energize Detroit neighborhood revitalization initiative. Waste Management of Michigan installed the units and will maintain them for DTE Energy. The solar panel on the unit extracts energy from the sun to continuously charge the battery powering the system. When the unit needs to be emptied the smart system sends a signal to Waste Management of Michigan.

IKEA plans to increase the solar array atop its Detroit-area store that opened eight years ago in Canton, MI. In September, IKEA began work on a 44,000-square-foot expansion to the store, atop which new panels will be installed beginning spring 2015, with a completion by summer. The 40,000-square-foot solar addition will consist of a 240.9-kW system built with 765 panels, and will produce 287,490 kWh more of electricity annually for the store.

Itron is collaborating with DTE Energy on a smart cities demonstration project in Detroit to support leading-edge smart technologies. Components of the project include mobile apps, an educational kiosk, unmanned aerial vehicles, a smart electric vehicle charging station, intelligent streetlights, water leak detection, smart metering technology and analytics. The apps help cities and citizens to better manage energy from their smartphones and online.

Tollgrade Communications partnered with DTE Energy in a Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) commitment to action for a comprehensive grid modernization project in Detroit that will roll out over the next three years. DTE Energy is deploying Tollgrade's LightHouse MV smart grid sensors and predictive grid analytics platform at key substations and feeders within its distribution network.