A single add-on registration will provide DTECH attendees with expanded educational content + networking opportunities with partners PLMA and SECC in San Diego on Monday, Feb 2, 2026
Indianapolis, IN – October 7, 2025 – Energy industry association, PLMA, The Flexible Load Management Community, and the Smart Energy Consumer Collaborative (SECC), a nonprofit organization that studies Americans’ energy-related behaviors, interests and values, today announced that they are bringing a new experience to DTECH® 2026 in San Diego for utility professionals interested in load flexibility, distributed energy resources (DERs), and residential customer engagement.
With customer-sited DERs and load flexibility programs becoming essential to delivering reliable and affordable electricity to customers, PLMA and SECC are merging two existing DTECH events – PLMA’s Symposium on DER Grid Services and SECC’s Consumer Symposium – into a single, combined program that will explore two key angles of the distributed, flexible energy transition: grid operations and customer engagement.
The combined Symposia on DERs and Customer Engagement on Monday, February 2 will be available to all DTECH 2026 attendees for an additional $299 registration fee, and with this registration, attendees will be able to experience a joint keynote address in the morning, a follow-up panel with utility leaders in DERs and customer engagement, and several combined networking opportunities, including lunch, breaks, and a closing cocktail reception on an outside terrace.
In the second half of the program after lunch, SECC’s 2026 Consumer Symposium and PLMA’s Symposium on DER Grid Services will function as two separate tracks on customer engagement and grid operations, respectively, and attendees can pick-and-choose the sessions that are most relevant to them. PLMA’s sessions are ideal for utility planning, operations, and program management professionals, while SECC’s program will be geared toward utility marketing, residential program management, market research, and customer service professionals.
“We are looking forward to exploring the nexus of grid operations and customer engagement with SECC at DTECH,” said PLMA’s Executive Director Rich Philip. “These combined symposia will provide unparalleled education and networking opportunities for anyone interested in DERs, load flexibility, and related residential customer programs and services. We invite you to join us at DTECH 2026 as we dive into the customer-centric, flexible future of energy.”
Registration for the Symposia on DERs and Customer Engagement is available now via DTECH, and the event agendas will be available through both PLMA and SECC later this Fall. To learn more about PLMA’s Symposium on DER Grid Services, including sponsorship opportunities, contact PLMA’s Executive Director & CEO Rich Philip. For more information on SECC’s 2026 Consumer Symposium, including sponsorship and speaking opportunities, please contact SECC’s President & CEO Nathan Shannon.
About PLMA, The Flexible Load Management Community
PLMA serves the energy industry as the leading association for load flexibility experts, practitioners, and vendors to share best practices, hands-on experiences, technology advances and education, plus leadership and mentorship opportunities, all with a focus on DR, DERs and managed charging. PLMA is inclusive of all participants and encourages organizations with an interest in flexible load management to join us. Learn more at www.flexload.org.
About the Smart Energy Consumer Collaborative (SECC)
The Smart Energy Consumer Collaborative (SECC) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that works to learn the wants and needs of energy consumers in North America, encourages the collaborative sharing of best practices in consumer engagement among industry stakeholders, and educates the public about the benefits of smart energy and energy technology. To learn more, visit us at www.smartenergycc.org or follow us on LinkedIn.
CLICK HERE for more information about the event.
