Hassan Obeid, Jon Williams, Sean Ewart
Three keynote speakers for the Retool’26 Conference have been announced.
The one-day conference is scheduled for Tuesday, June 9 at the Chautauqua Harbor Hotel. It will feature nationally recognized speakers and panelists, all focused on Energy Innovation and Industry 4.0. The conference is organized by the Jamestown Board of Public Utilities (BPU) as part of the BPU’s Retool WNY initiative.
Two keynote speakers will open the morning session, both focused on energy storage systems and off-grid solutions for modern manufacturing.
Hassan Obeid of Cummins Inc.’s New Energy Solutions Division, based in Minneapolis, MN, leads a team researching Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS), stationary proton-exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFC), and microgrid power systems for the global company, which has an engine manufacturing plant in Jamestown, NY. Obeid is the global technical sales leader and has worked at Cummins for more than eighteen years.
The second morning keynote speaker will be Jon M. Williams, founder and CEO of Viridi Parente, Inc. of Buffalo. Viridi is a leader in the development and production of scalable battery systems, including the largest in-building battery storage system. The company recently installed a battery backup system for the Erie County Wastewater Division to modernize a wastewater pumping station and to reduce reliance on diesel fuel.
Viridi has deployed indoor, behind-the-meter installations across industrial, medical, commercial, and municipal buildings, and recently completed the purchase of a battery storage production facility in California, enabling expansion of its product lines nationwide. Williams will focus his remarks on energy as an asset for manufacturers and how energy storage systems, coupled with AI and advanced analytics, can help meet future energy needs on production lines.
The lunchtime keynote speaker will be Sean Ewart, New York’s Deputy Secretary for Energy. Ewart will speak about the need to balance economic development and energy policies to attract new businesses and ensure the state has sufficient energy now and in the future. Ewart has been an advisor on energy policy in both the public and private sectors and has worked in the Executive Chamber for five years.
Tickets for Retool’26 are available at: Retool26.eventbrite.com with early bird pricing available through May 3.
Tune to Community Matters tonight at 5:00 p.m. to hear more about this year’s Retool Conference with BPU Business Development Coordinator Ellen Ditonto.
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