Using Software to Reduce Energy Consumption

Itron's Philip Mezey examines the tools available to help utility companies improve their efficiency.

“The ability to collect information hourly from customers gives the utility a great deal of insight”
-Philip Mezey, Itron

What software tools is Itron using to help utility companies reduce energy consumption and improve energy efficiency?
Philip Mezey. We are focused on a broad solution. Our offering begins with data creation at the meter level, then collection systems that gather information out of electricity, gas, and water meters, but the foundational software that we offer in the meter data management space is a tool called Itron Enterprise Edition. It’s responsible for storing and organizing all of the energy information that Itron technology gathers out in the field, both residential and commercial industrial data. We then validate, edit and estimate that information and then store it away and organize it in a way that makes it very, very accessible for other analytic applications that come along.

We then wrap that whole package in a service-oriented architecture that makes it possible not only for our analytic applications to get access to the information, but also for third party access to that same data. On top of that we provide a number of customer portal and customer care applications that allow consumers access to their energy information so they’re able to understand how and when they’re using energy and water, which benefits consumers by allowing them to be more responsible. When we all understand how and when we’re using energy and water, there’s potential to reduce usage directly. We also provide applications that allow our utility customers to directly control load and to send signals to customers when energy is particularly scarce, allowing end users to actually curtail their overall energy use.

What technologies are used to collect meter data?
PM. Itron offers a wide range of products that are used for collecting energy information: everything from our existing set of handheld computers, which the company has been building for the past 30 years; to mobile collectors in which an operator drives around in a van; to fixed networks in which radios are placed at the top of poles, so that it’s possible to collect that information on a much more rapid basis. And that technique of radio collection, radio frequency (RF) collection, is used for our advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) product called OpenWay, which has a collection engine associated with it so that it’s possible to collect energy information very rapidly. In other parts of the world power line carrier technology is used whereby we’re collecting the data through the power lines themselves, using a broad range of technologies and software tools. Itron’s operations in North America collect around 80 to 90 percent of all of the commercial industrial electric information, and at the residential level collect better than 50 percent of all of the residential data through its collection systems.

Why is it important for utility companies to manage data, and how can this improve their reliability?
PM. Typically utility companies have collected consumption information from the bulk of their customers once a month, and they have very little information about what’s going on in their distribution network, down to the customer level. By having the ability to collect information hourly from customers, and even in some cases every 15 minutes, it gives the utility a great deal of insight as to how and when customers are using energy, as well as how their distribution network is performing. Among other things, they can identify areas of theft or diversion, or other technical losses, making it possible for them to optimize the distribution network – there are tremendous opportunities for savings and improvement there as well.

What is energy forecasting and what tools are you using to develop and implement forecasting solutions?
PM. Forecasting tools allow utilities to understand what their energy needs are going to be. Itron offers a suite of energy forecasting tools that are used to forecast around 80 percent of the energy that flows through independent system operators (ISOs) in North America. We also have those tools deployed on a worldwide basis, allowing markets to function. When ISOs interact with wholesale markets, it gives them and players in the market a better view of what’s going to be required for power purchases. Itron software has a wide variety of applications in the ISO market, providing better visibility and liquidity. Our forecasting tools are also used at the market level in places like New York’s ISO, which is doing day-ahead, hour-ahead and even 15-minute power markets.
   
What load research services do you provide to electricity and gas providers?
PM. Load research is the process of understanding market segments – how to segment the utility market properly and how to understand the usage patterns of those market segments so that better rate structures can be designed to more fairly charge individual market segments. Through the use of our forecasting and analytic tools, we’ve been able to develop a next-generation load research tool that again allows our customers to more effectively understand electricity and gas usage profiles and segments, and to design better programs to serve those customers.

What are the benefits of AMR readings for both customers and utility companies?
PM. For automated meter reading (AMR) specifically, that data is collected in a more accurate and timely fashion resulting in more accurate billing with fewer customer complaints. The data is collected remotely so that a meter reader does not need to enter the customer’s property in order to access the meter itself, which is safer for the meter reader and less disruptive to the customer, allowing data to be collected much more accurately. AMR is simply a much more cost-effective way of reading meter data and therefore it lowers the utility’s overall operational costs, which benefits the utility and ultimately the customer.

How will the development of AMR contribute to AMI as a whole within the next few years?
PM. As customers see the opportunities of automation – and by customers, I mean our utility customers – and see how much money they can save through better collection techniques, they’ll see the opportunity as they’ve seen with AMR in reducing their overall reading costs. AMI essentially offers the same type of benefit as an automated meter reading system, but allows the data to be collected much more frequently and at a much greater degree of granularity. This means that utilities can then provide customers with very accurate information about how and when they’re using energy, and the utility also has a better view, which is of tremendous operational value. AMI also, in addition to the standard AMR meter read, provides some very advanced capabilities at the meter level allowing for home area networking, communication into the home, the ability to remotely disconnect the meter to support net metering, and a variety of other applications.

Philip Mezey became senior vice president and COO for Itron North America in April 2007. He has served as Group Vice President and General Manager, then Senior Vice President, for Itron’s Software Solutions group. Mezey joined Itron in March 2003 as Managing Director of Software Development, Energy Management Solutions group.