PODOSKI, Roman

P. attended the gymnasium in Tarnopol and graduated from the secondary modern school in Lwow; in 1880, he began studying at the Faculty of Mechanics at the Technical College in Lwow. After two years, he transferred to the Faculty of Electromechanics of the Technical College in Zürich, where he received his diploma in 1896 in the field of electrotechnics, and worked as an assistant for F. Weber for a year. Later he became employed in a company that managed the Zürich tramcar, where he worked intensively on the electric drive. In 1898, he moved to Cologne, where he ran the department of electric traction at the „Helios AG” company. He was also responsible for building tramways in Como and Catania (Italy). In 1903, he returned to Ukraine and founded a company for the construction of power stations in the Russian area. Due to the Russian Revolution, he had to abandon his company and move to Warsaw, where he participated in the electrification of local tramcars. In 1919, he started lecturing at the Technical College in Warsaw, with a series of lectures on tramways and electric railways. In 1924, he was the first to be habilitated at the Faculty of Electrotechnics of the Technical College. From Poland's independence onwards he participated in the electrification of railways. In 1919, he submitted a draft for the electrification of Warsaw's railway knot (which was only realised in 1937) and of the main Polish national railway.
Research into tramway rails encouraged P. to elaborate the Polish standard SEP: PNE/27, »Guidelines for the Protection of Metal Structures from Electrolytic Consequences of Dispersion Currents«. From his reports at international congresses „Union Internationale des Transports Publics“ (UITP) in Rome (1928) and in Warsaw (1930), corresponding UITP provisions were derived. P.’s works, regarding the measurements of the power of engines between 1926 and 1929, led to the introduction of the term »alternating current«, which was accepted to international technical terminology. During the 1930s, P. contributed substantially to the energy independence of Upper Silesia from German power stations. From the German Upper Silesia power stations (Oberschlesische Kraftwerke A. G.), the Polish Silesia power stations (Schlesische Elektrizitätswerke A. G.) were created, and P. was appointed their director. In 1946, he became the chairman of the Chair of Electrotechnics at the Faculty of Electrotechnics of the Technical College in Warsaw.