"What a microgrid is, is the ability for a battery to operate, separate from a utility, a number of lots," said Scott Hansen, vice president of KB Homes Forward Planning and Land Development. "If you want to think of it like an island of power unto itself." … The idea started two years ago with a federal grant and joint partnership between University of California-Irvine, KB Homes, SoCal Edison and SunPower. "How do we provide reliability to our customers? How do we provide them with a product that we know that no matter what happens, our lights are on, our homes are still fully functional?" said Hansen. And that's how the microgrid was born. Read More