POWER FOR GLENMAR INTRODUCTION TO THE ROLE-PLAY SCENARIO

1. INTRODUCTION

Power for Glenmar is the latest version of an evolving series of simulated case studies on renewable energy that have been developed in The Robert Gordon University, Scotland. The first of the series was produced for use in an inter-school competition run over the winter of 1977-78 by the North of Scotland Hydro-Electric Board. The competition involved trying to devise the best possible scheme for meeting the future electricity requirements of the hypothetical Scottish Island of Elaskay using the island's natural energy resources (peat, solar energy, wind energy, tidal energy and hydroelectric power). It was known as Power for Elaskay, the name under which the case study that formed the basis of the competition was subsequently published by the Institution of Electrical Engineers (IEE) as a free-standing exercise for use in schools and colleges. Ellington and Bin Aris describe the scenario in their forthcoming book "A Practical Guide to Instructional Design" thus:

"Power for Pemang is a structured problem-solving and decision-making exercise that involves investigating the technical and economic feasibility of exploiting the various natural sources of energy available on the island on which it is based and then devising a 50-year rolling programme for using these resources to meet the island's future electricity needs."

Although Power for Elaskay has proved extremely popular, and has achieved extensive use in many parts of the World, the scenario around which it was built has now become rather dated. For this reason, a second version, incorporating all the various technological developments and cost changes that had taken place since the original exercise, was produced. This was known as Power for Pemang. It was based in South-East Asia, partly because the first large-scale use of the new exercise was to be in Singapore, where the author was to run it with 500 electrical engineering students at Ngee Ann Polytechnic. These proving trials turned out to be highly successful, and Power for Pemang was published by the IEE and is generally available to schools and colleges. Power for Glenmar brings educational role-playing up to date by incorporating virtual team working across the Internet. Power for Glenmar also sees a return to Scotland, albeit a mainland location. The site and data for the exercise are drawn from the real world with some alterations for the sake of the exercise. As in the case of the original exercise, Power for Glenmar is a structured problem-solving and decision-making exercise that involves investigating the technical and economic feasibility of exploiting the various natural sources of energy available in the area to meet the local community's electricity needs. In the case of Glenmar these natural energy resources are timber, wind energy and hydroelectric power. This document introduces the scenario.

2. ADAPTATION OF POWER FOR PEMANG

With a number of modifications, the Power for Pemang scenario lends itself to the GIS CPD project. There are some basic changes that were required to the scenario, which included:

• updating of the figures for costs
• updating the energy output values for the production capabilities of more modern version of generation technology
• "re-import" the scenario back to Scotland for consistency with the available data from MLURI (the area did not have to be identifiably Scottish, but it should be logically consistent in its geography)
• substitution of short rotation coppice production as the wood for fuel in place of the tropical forest supplies of Pemang
• creation of geographical data sets for use by the players
• changing the focus of the final presentations to the production of a written report with cartographic output in place of multi-media presentation (this could be hosted temporarily on the forthcoming GISUtrac web site)

Another modification was that there will not be a number of groups concurrently involved. However, this was highlighted as a possible future development. The planning will be short to mid-term so that there will be no need for the production of a rolling programme beyond an allowance for reasonable spare capacity in the final electricity production. This adaptation of the scenario provides an additional layer of geographical analysis as a substitute for some of the planning work and thus brings the scenario more into line with objects of this GIS training project.

3. OVERVIEW OF THE POWER FOR GLENMAR SCENARIO

The site is a realistic but fictitious place that could be in Scotland but could also be in almost any coastal upland region of the Northern hemisphere. It consists of a comparatively isolated rural location that is currently supplied by an aging fossil fuel power station. The power station is to be phased out and the inhabitants have been invited to take part in a participatory planning process as part of a Local Agenda 21 scheme.

During the sessions it has emerged that the area's inhabitants (stakeholders) want to investigate the possibility of investing in alternative energy to supply their region. The players are a group of 'rural affairs experts' who have been called in to assist the locals make an informed decision about which technology to choose. The area's local authorities and inhabitants have pooled their knowledge (the data available to the players at the start). However, the players will need some additional information for which they must pay out of a budget provided by the clients (the area's inhabitants).

The object of the game is to identify suitable sites for the production of energy within the constraints set by the landscape and restrictions on land use. The technologies under consideration include wind power, hydro electricity and short rotation coppice wood for fuel. More information is supplied in the data sheets.

4. OVERVIEW OF THE ROLE-PLAY

A small group of participants has been invited to test the trial version of the Power for Glenmar project and to comment on their experiences of virtual team working. The task is a comparatively simple GIS-related problem. The scenario has been deliberately kept fairly simple for this trial. The main focus of the project is for a group of people, who have almost certainly never met, to use the internet as a vehicle for cooperative working towards the solution of a problem. Space has been set-up on the Robert Gordon University Virtual Campus, complete with discussion forums, hosted by experts to guide the participants and stimulate the virtual team-working environment. The discussion group hosts will provide advice and help as necessary. However, the hosts will not lead the group to the solution. That must be reached by the cooperative actions of the group. GISUtrac (Geographical Information Systems Unit for teaching, research and consultancy) welcomes all participants to the trial of the Power for Glenmar project.