Illinois Institute of Technology (Illinois Tech) recently played host to a landmark event in the progression toward sustainable transportation with the third annual EV Readiness Community Award Ceremony. This highly anticipated gathering took place in Chicago on August 7, 2025, bringing together city leaders, industry experts, and elected officials to celebrate 17 northern Illinois municipalities that have demonstrated significant commitment to advancing electric vehicle (EV) infrastructure and policy initiatives. Notably, the ceremony underscored the critical role that effective local governance and cross-sector collaboration play in steering the future of transportation away from fossil fuels and toward clean, electrified alternatives.
The EV Readiness Community Award Ceremony, co-led by ComEd and the Metropolitan Mayors Caucus, has emerged as a flagship program to recognize municipalities that have implemented tangible policies and infrastructural developments facilitating the electrification of urban transport systems. These policies range from streamlined permitting processes for EV charging stations to comprehensive municipal fleet transitions that prioritize low-emission vehicles. The event served as a platform for award recipients to be commended for their forward-looking strategies and for the innovations they have introduced amidst the rapid electrification wave sweeping across the region and the broader United States.
Distinguished guest speakers included Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson, U.S. Senator Dick Durbin, ComEd CEO Gil Quiniones, and Illinois Tech President Raj Echambadi. Their remarks highlighted the critical importance of building resilient energy infrastructure capable of supporting the increased energy demand associated with widespread EV adoption. Emphasis was placed on the necessity for municipal governments to embrace integrated energy systems that incorporate renewable generation, advanced storage, and adaptive grid management technologies to mitigate strain on existing grids and optimize energy consumption.
A centerpiece of the ceremony was the exploration of Illinois Tech’s cutting-edge energy infrastructure, described as a national model in energy resilience and smart grid innovation. The university’s microgrid, which began operations in 2013, is heralded as the first operational smart microgrid in the United States. It integrates photovoltaic solar arrays, large-scale battery storage, and sophisticated energy management controls enabling it to operate independently or “island” from the main grid in emergency situations, thereby guaranteeing uninterrupted power supply for vital campus functions and ongoing research activities.
This microgrid architecture stands as a testament to the advanced control strategies and system architectures foundational to next-generation urban energy systems. By integrating distributed energy resources with real-time monitoring and automation, the microgrid demonstrates how localized grids can improve reliability, reduce costs, and enhance sustainability. The resulting financial savings—exceeding $10 million since its launch—evidence the economic viability of such intelligent energy infrastructures alongside their environmental benefits.
Illinois Tech’s ongoing commitment to energy innovation is exemplified by its current development of a trigeneration system, slated for completion in 2026. This system aims to deliver cooling, heating, and electricity with significantly higher efficiency by capturing and repurposing waste heat generated during power production. Utilization of this capture refrigeration cycle is projected to reduce the university’s carbon emissions by approximately 40 percent and conserve up to five million gallons of water annually, underscoring a holistic approach to resource optimization within the built environment.
The implications of such technology extend beyond the university’s campus, serving as a replicable model capable of transforming urban energy ecosystems at scale. The integration of trigeneration systems within microgrid frameworks exemplifies an emerging trend toward decentralized, multi-vector energy networks, which optimize thermodynamic efficiency and enhance system resilience through tight coupling of electrical, thermal, and cooling loads.
Mohammad Shahidehpour, director of the Galvin Center for Electricity Innovation and key architect of the Illinois Tech microgrid, emphasized the educational dimensions of these innovations. He noted that the university’s approach is not only creating clean energy solutions but also fostering an environment where students actively participate in designing the resilient energy systems necessary for the future. This fusion of advanced infrastructure and hands-on learning is cultivating a new generation of engineers and researchers equipped to address complex sustainability challenges.
Among the honored communities, the City of Chicago achieved a prestigious Gold status, a testament to its comprehensive EV readiness policies and infrastructure rollout. Other recognized municipalities included River Forest and Rolling Meadows, highlighting the broad geographic reach of the EV Readiness Program. Since its inception, the initiative by ComEd and the Metropolitan Mayors Caucus has supported 38 communities, facilitating the widespread deployment of EV charging infrastructure, improving regulatory frameworks, and engaging residents in EV adoption efforts.
ComEd’s CEO, Gil Quiniones, reaffirmed the utility’s commitment to empowering these communities with the essential tools to lead the transportation transition. The program’s success exemplifies the critical intersection of utility companies, municipal governance, and academia working collaboratively to overcome technological, regulatory, and infrastructural barriers inherent in the electrification journey. Such partnerships are pivotal for realizing the ambitious federal and state targets for EV adoption, which include Illinois’ goal of surpassing one million electric vehicles on the road by 2030 under the Climate and Equitable Jobs Act (CEJA).
Illinois Tech’s leadership also reaches into advanced vehicle technology development through its involvement in the national EcoCAR EV Challenge. In this competitive program, a team of 46 students is engineering a Cadillac LYRIQ with state-of-the-art automation and vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication capabilities. V2X technology enables vehicles to interact intelligently with infrastructure, pedestrians, and other vehicles, enhancing safety, energy efficiency, and traffic flow. This initiative exemplifies how the academic institution is nurturing the convergence of energy, automotive, and communication technologies imperative for the next generation of sustainable transportation.
President Raj Echambadi succinctly described the award ceremony as a tangible manifestation of what can be achieved when academia, government, and industry unite to tackle some of society’s most pressing challenges. The event not only celebrated past achievements but also forged a vision for scalable, technology-driven solutions that promise to reshape urban mobility, reduce carbon footprints, and create equitable access to clean transportation options.
The broader significance of Illinois Tech’s microgrid and trigeneration projects lies in their demonstration of a resilient urban energy architecture capable of accommodating increasing electrification while minimizing environmental impact. Such systems stand as scalable blueprints for cities facing similar challenges globally, where decarbonization, energy reliability, and economic considerations intertwine. The ceremony served as a powerful reminder that the path toward sustainable transportation is not solely about vehicle technology but equally about the evolution of the supporting energy ecosystems that enable widespread, efficient EV adoption.
As the Midwest and the nation move toward ambitious climate and energy goals, the synergy between innovative university programs, forward-thinking utility frameworks, and proactive municipal leadership will increasingly define the rate and quality of success. Illinois Tech’s role as both a crucible of applied research and a testbed for real-world energy solutions positions it uniquely at the forefront of this transformative movement. Through education, technology deployment, and strategic partnerships, the university is catalyzing a future where urban energy systems and transportation infrastructure coalesce seamlessly in service of sustainable, equitable communities.
Subject of Research:
Electric vehicle readiness, smart microgrid technology, sustainable urban energy infrastructure, trigeneration systems, and vehicle-to-everything (V2X) technology.
Article Title:
Illinois Tech Hosts EV Readiness Awards, Showcasing Innovations in Smart Energy and Transportation Systems
News Publication Date:
August 7, 2025
Web References:
https://www.iit.edu/microgrid
https://www.iit.edu/
https://www.iit.edu/wiser/research/galvin-center-electricity-innovation
https://avtcseries.org/about-the-ecocar-ev-challenge/competing-teams/illinois-institute-of-technology/
Image Credits:
Credit: ComEd
Keywords:
Electric vehicles, Vehicles, Transportation, Smart microgrid, Trigeneration, Sustainable energy, Energy infrastructure, EV Readiness Program, V2X technology, Urban energy systems, Energy resilience, Clean transportation
