Dr. Robert Degeneff, President of Utility Systems, Inc. (Latham, New York) has received the prestigious 2008 Herman Halperin Electric Transmission and Distribution Award from the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc. (IEEE). With more than 375,000 members in more than 160 countries, IEEE is a leading authority in many technical areas ranging from aerospace systems to electric power and consumer electronics among others.

The Halperin Award was established in 1986 and is awarded annually by the IEEE Board of Directors for outstanding contributions in the field of electric transmission and distribution. Award winners must have demonstrated works of technological importance and successful application, originality, leadership, the ability to publish their work.

An IEEE Fellow, Dr. Degeneff has spent nearly four decades in the power engineering field as an engineer, as a professor at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, N.Y. and as founder and president of Utility Systems Technologies (UST). He holds eight patents, published seven dozen papers, and has authored several chapters in books on electric power. In addition, he is a professional engineer in New York and a member of several professional societies including Eta Kappa Nu.