BridgeThings

How IoT-based Smart energy Metering Solution Benefits to the Utility Sector.

An IoT Based smart energy meter accurately tracks utilities (Gas, electricity, and Water) energy consumption, and it works like a traditional meter. Unlike standard meters, it sends reading data directly to the service provider or client. 

Smart metering is a way for enterprises to preserve a record of how much energy they’re using so they can customize their usage if necessary.

 In Addition, to measure usage, smart meters record various data points on consumption, including when a resource is being used, how much is being used at a time, and where it’s being delivered. 

Many utility companies have adopted smart metering as an active method for data tracking usage across their customer bases to better determine costs and infrastructure needs. 

How can smart metering help businesses?

The primary advantage of smart metering is the specific knowledge of your business’s energy and other utility usage. Most smart meters coordinate directly into an interface that gives you a precise readout of your use, breaking it down by the time of day, day of the week, and month. Having this data at your fingertips can help you better assess your usage and keep up-to-date reports of your resource usage.

Understanding how much you’re wasting at any given time can inspire you to originate action to reduce consumption. Some interfaces compare usage with a monetary measurement, like a rating of watts per hour, supporting you to see how much electricity is fetching you by the minute.

Smart Energy meter solutions and capabilities  

Monitoring system
Monitoring

Remote monitoring assists in developing a greener ecosystem by accumulating hundreds and thousands of data and analyzing them to get more reliable performance. Intelligent remote monitoring in water meter systems assists in identifying leakage by smart sensors. These water-flow monitoring systems work on wireless networks where software analysis is completed at a centralized hub or control center.

Benefits of remote monitoring
  • Define the downtime
  • Keeps a record of the health status of your equipment
  • It helps to diminish the total cost of ownership
  • Enhances the productivity
Predictive Maintenance
predictive maintenance

All the transformers, utility center street by street, can be brought under the radar of monitoring through IoT’s predictive maintenance systems. In any significant electric interruption throughout history, unexpected maintenance problems play an important role. Emergency weather conditions also ruin the power facilities that take longer to recover.

Benefits of Predictive maintenance:
  • Recover quickly from catastrophic failure
  • Improve the equipment stability
  • Take sufficient preventive measures to minimize maintenance costs
Online Service & Maintenance solution
ontime service

Active maintenance claims the right solution at the right time. That is what IoT smart metering solutions allow the customers. Right from addressing critical concerns like high water pressure, natural calamities that interrupt day-to-day actions are prioritized accordingly.

Benefits

  • Fault management in smart energy meter solutions allows different levels of escalations.
  • Major and minor issues are consolidated by setting alert systems
  • Offering continuous supply through smart metering
  • Handles hazardous problems with no additional cost or time
Data Analytics through Reports & Dashboards
Analytics Dashboard

Business Intelligence tools like Tableau, Power BI, Etc.. are organized to provide in-depth data insights driven by the enormous data from the IoT sensor devices. 

Benefits

  • Advanced reporting software produces precise data for the customer in the form of reports.
  • Schedule reports that are categorized based on critical Key performance criteria and send to the appropriate team
  • Create a custom report on the go with no coding or prior knowledge to operate these tools
  • Get granular data concerning site-level or region-level crucial issues.

BridgeThings provides a prominent smart metering solution that assists in converting the current meters into an innovative metering solution. Whatever data is collected from the sensors is directly uploaded to the cloud. From there, we can remotely monitor the behavioral patterns, power consumption peak time, failure rate, factors causing slow down, etc., and then make an informed business decision.

Wireless Technology in IoT-LPWAN Solutions

Wireless technologies play a crucial role in building complex IoT applications. In today’s IoT ecosystem, there are models of wireless technologies, such as LAN, WAN, LPWAN solutions, and each has additional features and specifications for various use cases.

LAN-Local Area Network
WAN-Wide Area Network
LPWAN- Low Power Wide Area Network

Lpwan solutions

These distinct types of wireless technologies differ in distance, transmission rate, and power consumption. In this study, we are going to add one of the wireless technologies in IoT– LPWAN. This class of wireless technology is used in extended coverage and long-distance communications, as it enables long-range transmissions.

What is LPWAN?

LPWAN Low power wide area network is a type of wireless technology, and it requires low power, has extended operating ranges, and typically transmits a limited amount of data per day. Organizations are looking to reduce the manufacturing and lifetime operating costs of IoT devices select LPWANs. it Can accumulate data from a different device, For example, Sensor., meters or gauges 

Sensors are linked to form a communication network, and all data forwarded to a cloud platform

Cloud Platform

LPWAN Features 

  • wide area-long distance transmission
  • low -power consumption
  • Security and privacy  

LPWAN Applications 

  • Environmental monitoring (Air pollution, temperature, humidity)
  • Smart meter reading (water, electricity, gas)
  • smart Agriculture(water quality, Ph level, oxygen levels)
  • Real-time traffic control systems 
  • management of parking spaces in parking lots

While some stories are shared, others are available only with precise solutions. It’s, therefore, necessary to assess all of them to recognize
which fits your requirements. Below we have a smart review of LPWAN Technologies.

LoRaWAN (Long-Range Wide Area Network)

LoRaWAN uses gateways to send messages, connecting devices, and network servers. These gateways adjust the radio frequency packets they receive from endpoints into IP packets that travel over the network.

A LoRaWAN network server maximizes network size and battery life by using adaptive data rate (ADR), allowing for a dynamic tradeoff between communication range and message duration for each endpoint individually. Among LoRaWAN’s key benefits are:

  • A comprehensive coverage range between Five and Fifteen kilometers, with shorter ovens in urban areas
  • A single gateway can manage multiple IoT devices or End nodes.
  • Widely used solution for IoT applications 
  • By using the Adaptive Data Rate Technique, we can increase battery life and Network capacity 

Organizations should consider LoRaWAN when:

  • An extensive coverage range is required.
  • Data rates above 27 Kbps are not necessary.
  • Latency is not an obstacle: No real-time or Crucial applications
  • The limited time during which the channel occupies (duty cycle) will not interfere with the essential operations of the device.

NB-IoT (NarrowBand Internet of Things)

NB-IoT is Low Power wide Area network Lpwan Technology invented to decrease power consumption and boosts system function and spectrum efficiency, especially in underground and remote locations. NB-IoT Key

selling point is price savings derived from two factors: Lack of complexity in the underlying technology and its absence of need for a cellular gateway to the whole and transmits sensor data. NB-IoT key benefits are :

  • Lower device manufacturing costs determined from simple construction and leveraging chipsets specifically engineered for NB_IoT. 
  • Power ability due to its simpler waveform and the ability to “sleep” when not in use.
  • Strong coverage under urban environments.
  • Reliable coverage Under Urban Environments
  • Reliability and Assured quality of service obtained by performing within an authorized spectrum.
  • It supports large numbers of devices over a wide geographic area
  • A simple implementation is achieved by installing on current networks and leveraging existing cellular infrastructures
  • A Simple Implementation is accomplished by installing on Current networks and leveraging present cellular bases

Industries should consider NB-IoT when:

  • The device will be placed in underground or hard-to-access locations.
  • It doesn’t require mobility.
  • It will not need the high bandwidth necessary to transfer large amounts of data, including large files, voice, or video.
  • It will require an extended battery life.
  • A highly scalable solution is needed to handle an extensive network of sensors.

When is LPWAN the right choice?

Choosing the right connectivity technology is always tricky. IOTS have Distinct options and LPWAn is one Type of wireless technology LPWAN Low power wide area Network Technology is the best choice when devices or sensors are located underground, in remote areas or  deep with urban support, and the primary application for LPWAN’S include smart water metering, gas and fule detectors, smart lighting, and smart agriculture.

How to save energy in commercial buildings?

Enery save in Commericial buildings

Energy consumption is rising over the years in Commercial buildings -shopping malls, hotels, retail, hospitals, office buildings, retail.
And Businesses don’t know how to save energy in Buildings. Below we will look at several sustainable methods through which businesses can become more energy-efficient and self-reliant.

Regular Audits

Regular Auditing in building premises is the primary step that helps to reduce energy consumption. It will give an idea to the resource which devices are consuming more power. 

New-Age technologies 

IoT is the latest technology that is used in Building premises to monitor energy efficiency. IoT can gather information from sensor devices embedded within the system. It Can collect data such as water flow, air pressure, light, and temperature. When integrates with BMS allows continuous monitoring, control & Provides Real-time analytics. It will enable increased productivity and cost savings, revenue benefits.

Focus on insulation

Like India, sunlight is heavy in a tropical country and can make a commercial building use more energy what it needed. Thus, by optimizing and strengthening its insulation, businesses save bills and become more energy efficient. The building’s external layer can be designed and enclosed with insulation materials to reduce heating and cooling needs. In addition to that, fixing doors and windows to avoid air leakages in existing buildings can be a significant step towards this.

HVAC maintenance

Regular preservation is necessary for HVAC systems to reduce costly repairs, Run Scheduled Preventative Maintenace programs, Use Smart technology, and Commercial thermostats to save energy costs..

Energy-Efficient Lighting:

The smart lighting solution is one of the best ways to reduce energy consumption. It integrates with sensors that assure enough light is required and go low on wattage otherwise.

Huge expansive parking lots are one great example where modern facilities require 24×7 lighting. Lighting unoccupied space is a complete waste of energy. BridgeThings smart lighting identifies unoccupied spaces and dims downlights to a preset lower wattage to ensure that energy is not wasted while the spaces are still lit. With wireless capabilities, our smart lighting solution can turn a set of lights into a virtual zone, that brightens up or dims down at once based on the sensor inputs. This ensures there is ample light available when a particular space is being used.  

In conclusion, every commercial building owner or facility manager wants to reduce energy costs and use sustainable and renewable resources. The ways mentioned above can help businesses to start their first step towards energy savings.