Control4 has been selected by NV Energy to provide its home energy management devices to customers who want to better manage their energy consumption.
Control4 ADVANTAGE software will help NV Energy manage residential load on a large scale. Integrated with NV Energy’s demand response management system, Control4 ADVANTAGE will allow the company to communicate with and manage any number of home area networks on the Control4 EMS 100 platform. Customers with EMS 100 devices will have multiple options for participating in demand response programs, including event-driven rebate programs as well as those triggered by price or rate tiers. ADVANTAGE also gives NV Energy the option to customize messages or service offerings for their customers.
“This is the first true rollout - not a pilot - of customer-driven demand response using home area network technologies. The Control4 EMS 100 solution supports NVE's aggressive and innovative approach to demand response,” said Richard Walker, President, Control4 Energy Systems.
According to NV Energy, as part of its NVEnergize smart grid deployment, a certain number of customers will have access to smart-grid-compatible home area network solutions. The technology will provide customers with energy consumption and cost information and allow them to voluntarily participate in demand response events. NV Energy manages a growing DR portfolio which includes direct load control, price-responsive load control, energy information programs, advanced consumer gateways, distributed solar, and energy storage. Over the next several years, NV Energy is working to expand its DR portfolio from 150 MW to a goal of close to 400 MW.
Customers participating in NV Energy’s programs will be able to access and use the data collected by smart meters to wisely manage energy in the home. Consumers will be equipped with the Control4 EC-100 energy controller, a 4.7" touch-screen with an engaging full color interface that provides up-to-the-minute feedback on their electricity consumption and costs, analyzes their electricity usage by end-use, and accommodates additional energy management applications and load controllers on their home area network. Customers will also be given the Control4 WT-100 wireless thermostat that can automatically react to price signals or demand response events signals to reduce peak load requirements. Control4's EMS 100 solution gives residential energy consumers an easy way to participate in demand response and makes energy management a part of their everyday lives.
The Control4 EMS 100 gives consumers a choice regarding their participation in demand response events. Consumers will be able to create their own rules for reducing demand based upon factors such as price, comfort, and economic preferences. In addition, the EMS 100 system keeps the utility and home area networks separate to enable the exchange of only authorized information.
NVE intends to roll out a minimum of 20,000 EMS 100 systems to customer homes by 2012 and will monitor consumer reception of the devices in an ongoing effort to create an appealing customer experience. The open platform and over-the-air update capability of the EMS 100 makes the solution easily upgradeable and scalable for future expansion.
