Control Room of the Future (CROF) Research 

In this research we aim to enable expert control room operators to make effective and efficient critical decisions particularly while under pressure.   In this research, we are mostly focusing on the energy sector but aim to ensure the research is relevant beyond energy to other control rooms. 

Control room operators use a large volumne of information every minute of the day across multiple screens, applications and interfaces. As energy grids transition to renewable sources the decision-making and forecasting becomes ever more complex. Research is needed to not only improve the predictions to ensure the grid can accurately react to changes in weather and the market and maintain stability, but to innovate the way in which the data is provided in control room to reduce operator's cognitive load, particularly at critical periods.  This may include redesigning interfaces, ensuring ease of collaboration, automating tasks and using AI where relevant. Importantly we must ensure that our expert operators are in-the-loop and can intervene when necessary.  

Our research uses mixed-method human-centric approaches which ensures we capture data that hasn't been captured before at the same time as ensuring we listen to those who are the most experienced in the field. 

The stream of research is full of rich insights across multiple years of research provided in a timeline below. This stream of energy control room research began for me in 2019. We are currently funded to mid 2027 under Stage 6: AR-PST funding by CSIRO and into 2028 via Merry's Zema PhD scholarship.   

The research is scalable and is globally relevant. We seek further collaborations to expand our research and amplify the impact of our research beyond energy to all sorts of control room operations.