Cees (pronounced case) Links is an engineer and the chief executive officer at GreenPeak Technologies, an international supplier of low-power wireless-system modules compatible with IEEE 802.15.4 and ZigBee. Based in Utrecht, the Netherlands, Links has been a pioneer in the wireless industry and was involved in the establishment of the IEEE 802.11 standardization committee and the Wi-Fi Alliance. Links holds a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering and a master’s degree in applied mathematics from Twente University of Technology (Enschede, Netherlands).

Why did you select engineering and high technology as your profession?

As an engineer and manager, I am very fortunate to be able to combine creativity and innovation in my job. It is very exciting to watch products come to life, especially when these products have been designed by your own company. Whether it is software that goes live or a chip that is integrated into a laptop, seeing our products deployed in state-of-the-art products brings enormous job satisfaction. Creativity and the drive for true innovation are at the core of every high-tech-engineering job. I get a real thrill knowing that thousands of people use my company’s Wi-Fi chips in their laptops every day. Bringing comfort to people’s everyday lives is a bonus.

Can you briefly describe your career choices that led you from student to chief executive officer?

My career has not been the result of planned career choices but a natural progression from entry-level engineer to chief executive officer. I started my career at NCR Computers, where I helped develop and launch the world’s first wireless-LAN product and learned to align customer requirements with technology challenges. I continued my work in the wireless-LAN area with AT&T, Lucent Technologies, and Agere Systems, where my responsibilities grew to include product management and marketing, and I became fascinated with growing companies. Eventually, I worked my way up to general manager and, finally, vice president of Agere Systems. I still take great pride in the deal we closed with Apple Computer in 1999, which ignited the wireless-LAN industry by making wireless LAN a standard notebook feature. At GreenPeak Technologies, I enjoy the thrill and challenge of building a business from scratch again.

Many people are not aware of the tremendous waste of energy in our environment and the tremendous opportunity for conserving that energy. For example, lights can be switched off when no one is in a room, and temperature can be lowered when employees are not using a meeting room. With the help of sensor networks, consumers and plant managers can better identify wasteful energy use and institute automated procedures, like switching off lights and lowering temperature, that facilitate the design of smarter, more efficient homes, buildings, and industrial plants.

Until now, wires and cables have limited the widespread adoption of sensor networks by making them difficult and expensive to install and maintain. Wireless alternatives have emerged that simplify installation and reduce cost. But high power consumption and the corresponding need for regular battery replacement have made these wireless networks difficult and costly to maintain.

To combat this problem and facilitate the widespread deployment of wireless-sensor networks, GreenPeak has developed an ultralow-power- communication technology that uses energy harvested from the environment. GreenPeak’s wireless technology is also self-forming and self-healing, which simplifies installation.

GreenPeak’s long-term vision is to build a smarter world by developing a communications platform with advanced sensing-interfacing capability that enables us to better control our lives, homes, and environment. We believe that, in a connected world, people can live in a more comfortable and safer environment with less energy waste.

What are the biggest technical challenges in achieving your vision?

The sensors used in wireless-sensor networks are often small and cannot hold large batteries. As a result, the batteries must be regularly replaced, which creates a real maintenance headache. GreenPeak has overcome this problem by developing alternative solutions for powering wireless-sensor networks based on a different and low-power architecture that can use energy harvested from the environment. The biggest technical challenge is managing energy consumption without reducing range or functionality, like speed and standards compliance.

How will ultralow-power-network technologies further develop?

Low-power technology for wireless-sensor and -control networks will evolve in several stages. In the first stage, wireless-sensor networks will replace standard wired implementations, thereby making sensor networks much easier to install and significantly less expensive. Eliminating battery replacement will also simplify maintenance and provide a higher level of safety and comfort, which will enable ultralow-power wireless-sensor networks to find widespread adoption in home, office, and industrial settings.

Which engineering specialties are most valuable to your company, and are they difficult to find?

GreenPeak needs engineers who have combined expertise in the areas of data communications, energy-harvesting technology, and sensor applications, which are usually three separate technical domains. We are fortunate that the Benelux area has such a rich tradition in engineering, which is acknowledged worldwide as the best. This rich tradition has enabled us to draw on a ready pool of topnotch engineers and build a world-class team with know-how that spans all three of the aforementioned disciplines.

What are your favorite leisure-time activities?

I am happily married and have three daughters and a son. It is important to me to spend as much time with my family as possible or play the piano and enjoy a glass of wine. I also play in the local volleyball competition, where I enjoy playing and winning as a team, and I also love a strategic game of chess.