Power Onward: S1E3 - The real MVP of sports

Show ID [00:00:22]: 

This is Power Onward, the podcast that unveils how power technology shapes your everyday life. 

Kim [00:00:31]: 

The crowd roars, the scoreboard shines. The game is down to the final seconds, and you're praying your team hits that home run, scores a touchdown, or hits a clutch three at the buzzer. Sports are filled with unforgettable moments, but behind every one, there's something even more important at play, and that's power. Without a reliable power system, the lights go out, the game stops, and the stadium falls silent. So what does it take to power some of the biggest sports venues in the world? And why does it matter beyond game day? I'm Kim. 

Alijah [00:01:05]: 

And I'm Alijah. 

Kim [00:01:06]: 

And today we will be talking about sports and how power generation is the sleeper MVP of our favorite teams. Alijah, thanks for joining us today. Can you tell us a little bit more about what you do at Cummins? 

Alijah [00:01:18]: 

Yeah, absolutely. Thanks for having me. So I'm a marketing communications manager here at Cummins, specifically working in power generation, and I'm in charge of our content marketing strategies. So creation of ads, fun stufflike this, A lot of editorial content as well. 

Kim [00:01:32]: 

I like it. Connecting. You're kind of doing the work that connects what we do to what everyone else does, which is kind of the work that I'm trying to do, too. 

Alijah [00:01:39]: 

The way I think about my job is mostly storytelling, trying to take the complex and make it digestible for people. 

Kim [00:01:45]: 

I love that we need that in our lives because I do not understand engineer speak to save my life. So this will be a great way to introduce our audience and our listeners to more of what you do and how we can connect the dots. So when it comes to sports, how does power extend beyond the plays? 

Alijah [00:02:02]: 

Yeah. So power is all around in sports. In a lot of ways. It's the unsung hero of your favorite events. Everything within the stadium and around the stadium, from scoreboards to the lights, the concession stand, everything requires power. So it's very important and in a lot of ways, the most important part of an event. 

Kim [00:02:23]: 

That is so fair. I feel like a lot of venues these days are cashless venues as well. So you're using mobile pay. A lot of the action that we don't think about tends to be powered by this. 

Alijah [00:02:33]: 

Absolutely. I think we've all been in situations, whether you're at a grocery store or whether you're at an event and you know the POS is down and for whatever reason and you have to have cash and who has cash in 2025? 

Kim [00:02:44]: 

I feel like it's unsanitary now. I don't even think I want to hold cash. 

Alijah Landing [00:02:46]: 

I don't want to touch money anymore. 

Kim [00:02:48]: 

Good thing we get tap to pay. So there's a lot to take into account. You mentioned like scoreboards and, you know, just things on the court and things outside for more of the fan experience. Why does that all matter? Like, why does keeping power on matter? 

Alijah [00:03:02]: 

Sure. So I think the best example that I look to is Super Bowl XLVII. I think the most memorable part of that event is the 34 minute power outage that happened right after halftime in the middle of the game. Delays like that are not ideal. They're incredibly unfortunate for the fans in attendance, the fans at home, but they're also super costly for all the parties at play. From a reputational standpoint and also financially. 

Kim [00:03:25]: 

Definitely I think we don't think about the financial impact at home. I remember watching that game and I'm thinking, okay, like any minute this will come back on. And we're seeing players stretch and try to keep warm and you're thinking about how your team's affected, but you don't really think about the marketing standpoint and all the things that are not actually running for the fans that are there present at the game. 

Alijah [00:03:44]: 

Exactly. So many factors. They gotta figure out how to stretch that time. And time is money. 

Kim [00:03:49]: 

That's a great point about the super bowl, but that's one game. What about those larger scale events that takes place across several days, like All-Star Weekend? What's different about what powers one game versus a larger scale event? 

Alijah [00:04:01]: 

Sure. So for larger games, there's just a lot more auxiliary components to those games. One, for example, TV studios. The bigger the game, the more studios, the more publications that are in town. They need power to make their setups work. Also for those events, a lot of times they take over the whole city. All Star Weekend Super Bowls. They will host fan zones, pop up shots, festivals, lots of different activations all across the city. 

Alijah [00:04:24]: 

Those activations require power and they require quick and easy and agile power as well. Just because they're set up sometimes in parking lots, just in random empty zones. So that's what they require. They require quick power for those situations. But a few stadiums I've recently read have also been opting for microgrid solutions. 

Kim [00:04:43]: 

Can you explain what a microgrid is? 

Alijah [00:04:45]: 

Yeah. So there's a lot of different definitions out there, but simply put, a microgrid is an independently sourced power solution and it has multiple energy sources, so a lot of these are sustainably focused. So think wind, solar, battery, but you can also integrate diesel and natural gas. 

Kim [00:05:02]: 

That's interesting. How does that differ from a generator set though? 

Alijah [00:05:05]: 

So a generator set is one source of power. It's a single source of power. Microgrids require multiple sources of power. It's very helpful, for example, for places that the power grid goes out and you have multiple sources to fall back on. And it's also helpful for situations where you can't get power or power is just not an option, such as remote islands. Cummins has done a lot of work within microgrids for remote communities, so having those multiple sources is very helpful. 

Kim [00:05:33]: 

From well lit fields and climate controlled environments to the big screen showing every highlight and fueling the entire fan experience. Ultimately, Cummins keeps the games going, ensuring that all sports fans can enjoy their favorite teams and events without disruption. Thank you so much for joining us today to tell the story about Cummins power generation and sports, Alijah. 

Alijah [00:05:52]: 

Absolutely. Thanks for having me. 

Kim [00:05:53]: 

All right, so what's the big idea for this episode? Sports are all about energy, but not just the kind you see on the court. In the field. Behind every game and every packed stadium, there is an integrated power system that keeps everything running from the massive scoreboards, the backup generator sets. It's all there to help prevent blackouts and power surges, and this enables fans to have an unforgettable time. When you think about power and sports, it's easy to focus on the players, but the real MVP? It's the power technology that keeps everything running. 

Show ID [00:06:35]: 

Thank you for listening to Power Onward. Your support means the world to us. If you enjoyed this episode, please don't forget to subscribe, rate and review on your favorite podcast platform. If you want to dig deeper on what we covered today, check out the show notes for additional links or go to cummins.com/podcast. Until next time, Power Onward. We're from Cummins, the company that's been innovating toward the future for more than 100 years. We're no strangers to rapid change, global shifts and economic uncertainty. We want to be your constant during the energy transition, whenever, wherever, forever. Power onward.