First-of-its-kind energy management system to debut as a 1,000 customer pilot this summer
JACKSON, Miss.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Battelle has selected the SmartSynch GridRouter™ communications module to serve as the Home Energy Manager (HEM) component to compliment its Active Demand Management System (ADM). Battelle’s ADM enables real-time pricing and pre-programmed home energy management. The groundbreaking system will debut as a 1,000 customer pilot as part of AEP Ohio’s gridSMART® Demonstration Project designed to put energy management in the hands of 110,000 central Ohio homes and businesses while also improving energy efficiency and reliability.
“SmartSynch’s GridRouter™ enables all of the variables in the Demand Response equation to communicate across multiple networks”
As part of AEP Ohio’s gridSMART Demonstration Project, 1,000 of the 110,000 participants will receive the GridRouter-based HEM, which provides an automated interface allowing consumers to pre-program settings to control home heating/cooling, water heaters and appliances to their preference and have more control over their energy consumption at the same time. The high availability system will allow AEP Ohio to shave peak load, while enabling consumers to save on their energy bills.
Battelle’s system also has the ability to manage commercial loads, distributed generation and distributed storage, while taking wind and weather forecasts into account for greater optimization.
Launched in December 2009, the GridRouter™ was the industry’s first universal smart grid communications solution, enabling utilities to seamlessly communicate with any device on the grid regardless of make, model or communications technology.
Battelle will utilize the GridRouter to support its HEM controlling and communicating with smart appliances within a residential home environment via Wi-Fi, while communicating with a Smart Meter via ZigBee communications protocol within the residence. Additional cellular communications capability will be via EV-DO or HSPA, whichever is specified by the utility.
“SmartSynch’s GridRouter™ enables all of the variables in the Demand Response equation to communicate across multiple networks,” said Mani Vadari, Battelle’s Vice-President of Energy Infrastructure. “We’ve worked diligently on product testing for more than a year, and the simple fact is the GridRouter’s utilization of high-bandwidth cellular networks uniquely qualifies it to manage the continuous stream of two-way, real-time data, commands and other content occurring within a home or commercial building.”
“It’s a great accomplishment when the world’s largest independent R&D organization chooses to work with you on a smart grid innovation of this magnitude,” said Stephen Johnston, SmartSynch’s Chief Executive Officer. “As utilities evolve their demand side management strategy from load shedding to load shaping, all eyes will turn to intermittent renewables and energy storage, and products such as the GridRouter™ to help integrate them onto the grid so they may realize their full potential.”
About Battelle
As the world’s largest independent research and development organization, Battelle provides innovative solutions to the world’s most pressing needs through its four global businesses: Laboratory Management; National Security; Health and Life Sciences; and Energy, Environment and Material Sciences. It advances scientific discovery and application by conducting $6.5 billion in global R&D annually through contract research, laboratory management and technology commercialization. Headquartered in Columbus, Ohio, Battelle oversees 22,000 employees in more than 130 locations worldwide, including seven national laboratories which Battelle manages or co-manages for the U.S. Department of Energy and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and a nuclear energy lab in the United Kingdom.
Battelle also is one of the nation’s leading charitable trusts focusing on societal and economic impact and actively supporting and promoting science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education.
About SmartSynch
SmartSynch is a company that creates smart grids for the utility industry. Since 2000, we have been the only provider of open standards, IP-to-the-endpoint smart grid solutions that utilize a cellular network as the communications backbone. Our clean-tech innovations in the two-way delivery of real-time energy usage data over cellular networks, in lieu of proprietary networks, have to-date simplified deployments for 150 major North American utilities, while enabling their clean-energy initiatives and delivering greater Returns on Resources. Our products and services include SmartMeters™ and SmartBoxes™ that immediately IP-enable the grid, software solutions, and network management services for utilities and their customers.
SmartMeter is a trademark of SmartSynch, Inc.
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