Recognizing the momentous technical and societal trends occurring in transportation electrification, the IEEE recently approved the formation of a Technical Council focused on the subject, to be called the Transportation Electrification Council (TEC).  It will come to official existence next year on 1/1/2024. Technical Councils are very much like IEEE Societies, except that their field of interest overlaps with the technical focus of a number of IEEE Societies, and accordingly Councils are formed by member Societies. This is particularly appropriate in this situation where the new Council will work on and for an industry and application which involve many different electrical engineering specialties.

It is the case with Industrial Electronics Society, which elected to become a member of the Council.  As a member of IES, you will be eligible to be a participant of the Council for free. Make sure to be on the look-out for that option when renewing your IEEE membership in late 2023 for 2024.  In the meantime, you can become a member of the Transportation Electrification Community (TEC), a predecessor organization to the Council. If you have not done so yet, you can join TEC either by checking the appropriate box during 2023 membership renewal, or by logging on your IEEE member profile and adding this membership to your portfolio (https://www.ieee.org/membership-catalog/productdetail/showProductDetailPage.html?product=CMYEV740).

As a Technical Council, TEC will have its own independent budget and more importantly will be able to develop new programs for members, such as local chapters, conferences and symposia, publications, standards, etc.  Eventually, this will give transportation its rightful place within IEEE, reflecting the major technical and societal transition we are experiencing with a shift with more electric, if not full electric, modes of transportation. The Council will cover all modes of transportation (road, off road, air, rail, water) as well as component and system issues, from propulsion technology to autonomous vehicles and the network they are or will rely on.

So, if you work in the transportation industry, or simply have an interest in the field, please participate in current or future TEC activities. Better yet, volunteer, suggest new initiatives, or take the lead in developing programs for transportation engineers, managers, and researchers.

Bruno Lequesne, Chair, Transportation Electrification Community (2019-2022)

Check the TEC website at tec.ieee.org