From Westinghouse to Now
First Pittsburgh edition of the established Power Magnetics at High Frequency workshop expands the format with hands-on demonstrations and pairs with AMPED’s annual industry workshop the following day at the Energy Innovation Center.
The Advanced Magnetics for Power and Energy Development (AMPED) Consortium and the University of Pittsburgh Swanson School of Engineering will host the PSMA/AMPED Power Magnetics at High Frequency Satellite Workshop on Tuesday, Aug. 18, 2026, at the Energy Innovation Center (EIC) in Pittsburgh. The full-day program, sponsored by the Power Sources Manufacturers Association (PSMA), brings together engineers, researchers, and manufacturers working on the magnetic materials and components that move electricity through everything from data centers and electric vehicles to the grid itself.
Registration for the workshop is now open; the preliminary agenda and workshop updates are available here. Registrants for the Aug. 18 satellite workshop will receive complimentary access to the AMPED annual industry workshop on Wednesday, Aug. 19, also at the EIC.
The Pittsburgh event builds on the reputation and single-track format of PSMA’s annual pre-APEC Power Magnetics at High Frequency Workshop, a fixture of the international power electronics calendar for more than a decade. It marks the first time the workshop will be held in Pittsburgh, a region with deep roots in electric power dating to the founding of the Westinghouse Electric Corporation and a present-day concentration of magnetic materials suppliers, power transformer manufacturers, utilities, and university research programs.
“Pittsburgh is a natural home for this workshop,” said Matt Wilkowski, workshop chair, design consultant at Würth Elektronik, and co-chair of the PSMA Magnetics Committee. “The region’s heritage in electric power is matched today by an unusual concentration of magnetics expertise, from materials suppliers and component manufacturers to the utilities and end users that put the technology to work. Pitt’s research community, through the AMPED Consortium, gives us a partner that can bring all of that together in one room. Bringing the workshop here lets us reach a community that has shaped power magnetics for more than a century and is shaping it again now.”
The Aug. 18 program runs from 8 a.m. to 6:15 p.m. and follows a single-track format. A morning technical session focuses on advanced magnetic materials and their applications, and an afternoon session turns to electromagnetic interference and compatibility (EMI/EMC) – the engineering work that keeps power electronics from interfering with one another or with surrounding equipment. Throughout the day, technology demonstrations and posters from industry and research organizations will be open during breaks, lunch, and a closing networking hour, giving attendees direct access to the engineers and scientists behind the work.
“The satellite workshop format lets PSMA take this conversation directly into the regions where the work is happening,” said John Horzepa, technical director of PSMA. “Our annual pre-APEC workshop has built a strong international following, and the model translates well when we partner with a university and an industry consortium with the depth that Pitt and AMPED bring. The combination of technical presentations, demonstrations, and posters under one roof is what attendees consistently tell us they value most, and Pittsburgh gives us the right audience and the right setting to deliver it.”
Keynote presentations are scheduled by Sam Kernion of Core Power and Andy Lemmon of the University of Alabama. Additional confirmed speakers include Scott Sudhoff of Purdue University, Jake Perez of Vacuumschmelze, Narayanan Rajagopal of GE Vernova, and JC Sun of Bs&T.
“This workshop is exactly what the AMPED Consortium was built to do – connect Pittsburgh’s manufacturers, utilities, and university researchers with the wider power magnetics field,” said Paul Ohodnicki, RK Mellon Faculty Fellow in Energy and director of the University of Pittsburgh Center for Energy. “Partnering with PSMA, and hosting at the Energy Innovation Center, lets us pair a national workshop with our own annual AMPED industry day. Attendees get two full days of technical exchange in a region that is helping decide what the next generation of power magnetics will look like.”
How2Power, a leading online resource for the power electronics industry, is serving as media partner for the workshop.
About the AMPED Consortium
The Advanced Magnetics for Power and Energy Development (AMPED) Consortium is a University of Pittsburgh-led, industry-engaged initiative based at the Swanson School of Engineering’s Center for Energy. AMPED builds on Pittsburgh’s legacy in the electric power industry, including the original headquarters of the Westinghouse Electric Corporation, a pioneer of the electric power grid. Today, the Pittsburgh region and Pennsylvania remain pre-eminent in electric power conversion and grid technologies, spanning soft magnetic materials, distribution and power transformer manufacturers, and the utilities and end users that deploy them. More information is available at pittamped.github.io.
About PSMA
The Power Sources Manufacturers Association (PSMA) is a non-profit professional organization that advances the power sources industry through education, technical exchange, and collaboration among its member companies. PSMA’s Magnetics Committee organizes the annual Power Magnetics at High Frequency Workshop and related industry programs. More information is available at psma.com.