Special equipment is needed for load shedding. In addition, the individual
energy-consuming components must also be compatible for load shedding.
For example, the electrical ballasts for the light fixtures in a building must con-
tain internal devices that allow them to receive signals from the EPMS or have
the EPMS trigger the lighting control system.
Demand response can significantly reduce peak electricity rates and volatil-
ity. A study carried out in 2007 by the Brattle Group showed that even a 5%
drop in peak demand in the United States could produce enough savings in
generation, transmission, and distribution costs to eliminate the need for
installing and running some 625 peak-power plants, creating $35 billion in
savings over the next two decades.
Electricity Usage Metering and Submetering
The use of “smart meters” is becoming more prevalent as electricity prices rise.
A smart meter identifies consumption in more detail than a conventional
meter, sends data back to the local utility for monitoring and billing purposes,
and may provide information and data to the consumer directly. This makes
possible real-time pricing for all types of users, as opposed to fixed-rate pricing
throughout the demand period.
An electric meter is a device that measures the amount of electricity con-
sumed at a particular location. In order for a utility to accurately bill a cus-
tomer a meter is needed to record consumption. When billing a customer,
utilities record the electricity usage as well as the time when the electricity
was used, since prices may vary throughout the day (Fig. 5.3).
Meters can be incredibly useful to a utility customer. Meters provide infor-
mation allowing customers to control electricity consumption and demand,
determine typical consumption, evaluate opportunities for improving energy
efficiency and confirm savings from building and/or building systems improve-
ments. Conventional meters cumulatively measure, record, and store aggre-
gated kWh data which are used for billing or energy management purposes.
Newer smart meters allow utility customers to monitor demand, power
outages and power quality in real time.
Smart meters have many advantagesover conventional meters. Smart
meters have the capability to measure and record interval data and commu-
nicate the data to a remote location. Smart meters allow utilities to introduce
different prices for electricity based on the time of day and the season, which
can be used to reduce peaks in demand. Smart meters can locate power
quality issues such as transients, voltage disturbances, power factors and
harmonics.
64 Smart Building Systems for Architects, Owners, and Builders