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Upon graduation from
Schenectady High School as
an honor student excelling
in physics, Dr. Concordia
was hired immediately by the
General Electric Company to
work in their general
engineering laboratory.
During his first year on the
job, he developed a way for
engineers to detect cracks
in railway tracks, which
greatly improved rail
safety. In 1934, he
graduated from the company's
prestigious three-year
engineering program, and he
soon became GE's consultant
to public utilities around
the world advising them on
systems protection and
reliability.
During World War II, Dr.
Concordia's work included
development and research on
generators and turbines for
Naval vessels, research on
superchargers for airplanes,
and developing the concept
of electric drives for
ships. Near the end of
the war, he was named Chair
of the American Institute of
Electrical Engineers (AIEE)
sub committee on large scale
computing devices.
This work led him to being
named the first Chair of the
Institute of Electronic and
Electrical Engineers (IEEE)
in 1947. In this role
he pioneered the idea that
synchronous machines'
voltage-regulator
characteristics affect their
stability and his
synchronous concept
contributed to the
networking of electrical
power systems around the
world.
During his career, he
published 130 papers, was
awarded six patents, earned
a Doctor of Science degree
from Union College, and
received an honorary
doctorate from Iowa State
University. His awards
and honors include the Lamme
Medal, the Steinmetz Award,
the Philip Sporn Award, and
the IEEE Medal of Honor.
Following his retirement
from GE in 1973, Dr.
Concordia worked as a
consultant for companies
around the world, and he was
an active member in the
IEEE, the American
Association for the
Advancement of Science, the
American Society of
Mechanical Engineers, the
National Academy of
Engineering, and the
National Society of
Professional Engineers.
In 2003, the IEEE initiated
the "Charles Concordia Power
Systems Engineering Award"
to recognize major
contributions to the
development of high voltage
power systems worldwide.
When he died on December 25,
2003, he was eulogized as
"perhaps the world's
best-known power systems
engineer."
Dr. Concordia's
distinguished career brought
honor to our school district
and to our community; he is
a worthy addition to our
Hall of Fame.
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