Wattwatchers CEO Gavin Dietz profiles one of the less well-known products in our solution suite, the Auditor 6M+3SW, which offers circuit-level monitoring and control in real-time through the cloud. We know the product name is not the most exciting bit of nomenclature, but it’s what it does that counts most – as load control and load shifting in homes and businesses become more and more important to the energy transition and electrification.
FOCUS ON FUNCTION: MONITORING + CONTROL
From time to time I like to share how our smart energy solutions are being used out on the consumer frontline, the homes and businesses of Australia, and increasingly in other countries as well.
Most people who know about Wattwatchers are very familiar with the top-selling Auditor 6M, our 4G-communicating, six-channel, real-time monitoring workhorse.
But what about its lesser-known close family member, the Auditor 6M+3SW?
It brings with it the same great monitoring capabilities as the Auditor 6M, then adds up to three switches for remotely controlling on/off loads like electric hot water, pool pumps and even EV charging.
You can check out the detailed spec sheet here, and a related Support document here.
Once installed, you can remotely control circuits on and off using the API, our dashboard and our app. It controls single phase and three phase circuits.
Why is control important?
Out on the grid edge, where 10 million-plus Australian energy customers are connected to the electricity system, the value proposition for controlling when key appliances run is getting more and more attention.
Wattwatchers has been building a suite of devices to service the needs of the grid edge, and it’s fast becoming the Auditor 6M+3SW’s time to shine.
Already about a third of Australian homes are installed with rooftop solar, an additional 300,000-plus are being added every year, PV systems are getting bigger on average each year (now approaching 10kW), and generous old-style gross feed-in tariffs are well and truly on the way out.
Add in record high electricity prices for the main grid, and the global pressure to cut carbon pollution, and the case for controlling loads to maximise the benefits from solar is compelling.
The 6M+3SW can help.
There are hundreds of dollars per annum in savings to be gained by simply manipulating the timing of large energy consumer appliances in your property. Not to mention the ease of changing the schedules remotely and seeing instantaneous outcomes.
How can you use it?
Wattwatchers’ customers range from individual household and small business consumers through to software providers, utilities, corporations and governments.
So depending on which you are, the 6M+3SW may fit your needs in different ways.
Here’s a bunch of use case examples we’ve seen that may help to get your own creative juices flowing:
- Householders’ do-it-yourself control of appliances (our MyEnergy app supports this).
- Landlords control of electricity supply in short stay accommodation, with hot water a typical target (on when tenants are staying, and off when the property is vacant).
- In warehouses, monitor and schedule charging time for electric forklift fleets.
- With electric vehicles on a rapid rise, micro-manage EV charging in the context of whole of site electricity use and demand charges, controlling when chargers are available and when not.
- For software-as-a-service partners, incorporate switching automation into your own customer-facing solutions, for applications across the built environment.
- For commercial and industrial (C&I) buildings, add demand flexibility capabilities by coordinating control of strategic equipment.
Do-it-myself
Wattwatchers is already the most widely-deployed electricity monitoring solution in Australia, collecting energy data and delivering it to the app of your choice.
Now we’re in a controlling mood too!
BTW I’m a bit funny like this, but I’ve never felt comfortable recommending things to other people that I don’t use myself. Check out my solar and pool pump graph below, perfectly aligned = zero cost and zero carbon!
