Wednesday, January 23, 2002
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Wednesday, January 23, 2002 |
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EMC's Whiteside takes office in state association During its annual meeting, the Georgia Electric Membership Corporation elected Coweta-Fayette EMC President and CEO Michael C. Whiteside secretary-treasurer of the 2002 Board of Directors. Georgia EMC is the statewide trade association representing the state's 42 electric membership corporations. Through this statewide network, the customer-owned EMCs provide electricity and related services to 3.7 million people, nearly half of Georgia's population, across 73 percent of the state's land area. "I'm honored to serve on our statewide board," commented Whiteside. "Our cooperative is among the fastest growing in the nation, so it's of utmost importance that we stay abreast of all issues that affect the electric utility industry; our membership and involvement in GEMC assists in that endeavor." A native of Cochran, Ga., Whiteside holds an associate degree in electrical engineering from Middle Georgia College; he also attended DeKalb Technical College and Georgia State University. After tenure with Southern Engineering Company of Georgia, he went to work for Coweta-Fayette EMC in 1974 as administrative assistant to the manager. At the time, the cooperative was serving approximately 11,358 members. Under Whiteside's management since 1983, the company has grown to the extent that it now serves more than 55,000 residential, commercial and industrial meters. Among its customers are a number of "choice loads," or companies large enough to select their providers of electricity. As the company grew, so did technological advances and the need to keep up with them. Introducing a logo that reflected the company's ability to do so, as well as subsidiary company Relyco Resources, which manages an array of products and services, in 1998, Whiteside and his team of professionals installed electronic enhancements to monitor the company's electric distribution system. The cooperative also installed a new, automated telephone system and provided customers the ability to review and pay their monthly bills over the Internet. "Through participation in GEMC, our local EMC and our members realize many benefits that we might not be able to accomplish on our own," said Whiteside. "As we collectively stay abreast of issues pertaining to deregulation of the electric utility industry, ban together for such necessary programs as 'green power' the use of renewable energy sources and are able to combine our resources to provide economic development services to all of the counties in Georgia, it becomes obvious that volunteer time spent in this capacity is very important. Our statewide organization also provides a multitude of training opportunities for our employees. Cooperation is what spawned the creation of EMCs." Coweta-Fayette EMC provides electric power to members in Coweta, Fayette, Heard, Meriwether, South Fulton, Clayton and Spalding counties. The EMC's subsidiary, Relyco, offers and manages services that are available to members and nonmembers, including home security and monitoring, pagers, installation of BOSE sound equipment and a Surge and Lightning Damage Protection Program. Georgia's 42 electric membership cooperatives now serve more customers than any other state network of EMCs in the nation. For information about Coweta-Fayette EMC or any of the Relyco products and services, phone 770-502-0226. |
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