6 Benefits of Smart Meters for Utilities

Smart meters implementation turns the tables in the electric utilities sector. These devices are gaining widespread adoption across numerous households and businesses by offering real-time insights into energy consumption.

Electric utilities in the US already have over 111 million smart meters, making up 69% of all installed electric meters. The same applies to the UK, where the number of advanced meters implemented is about 29.5 million, 52% of all electric meters.

From cost-effectiveness to sustainability — the benefits of smart meters are undeniable. In this post, we’ll get a more in-depth look at what advantages these high-tech devices offer businesses and how to implement them.

As an experienced IoT software and hardware development vendor, WebbyLab has worked extensively with smart metering solutions. We implemented them in 2Smart Standalone and MyBox projects and can tell you more about their prospects for businesses.

What Is a Smart Meter, and How Does It Differ from the Regular One?

A smart meter is an electronic device that measures and records electricity, gas, or water consumption data in real-time and sends that information to the utility provider. 

Let’s see what makes it different from any other conventional meter.

The main distinction between a utility smart meter solution and a regular meter is their communication capabilities. A smart meter offers two-way communication features and advanced data collection, while a conventional one can only measure energy usage.

Smart meters use wireless or wired networks to transmit data directly to the utility provider, eliminating the need for manual meter readings. They also offer real-time information about energy use, enabling customers to monitor their usage patterns and adjust their behavior to reduce consumption.

In contrast, traditional meters require manual reading, which can be time-consuming and prone to errors. They also provide limited information on energy consumption, with customers only receiving periodic bills based on estimated usage.

6 Benefits of Smart Meters

Smart meters significantly outperform traditional ones. They offer improved measuring accuracy and energy efficiency, leading to a better customer experience. Let’s consider the advantages of smart meters in greater detail.

Cost Savings

With smart meters, businesses can gather real-time data on energy usage, which allows them to identify inefficiencies and areas of excess consumption. Using the collected insights, they can implement energy-saving strategies, resulting in tangible cost savings.

Improved Efficiency

Smart meters allow businesses to track their energy usage more accurately, enabling them to optimize their operations and reduce waste. It can lead to increased efficiency and productivity and a more sustainable approach to business.

Accurate Measurement

Smart metering solutions offer continuous and automatic data collection, allowing for a more accurate energy usage measurement. As a result, companies can benefit from more precise billing and improved energy management.

Managing and Maintaining EV Charging Stations with MyBox

One of our projects, MyBox, a platform for an EV charging station manufacturer, covers processes such as data transfer, accurate measurement of energy usage, and billing.

We have developed a business platform that enables connecting an unlimited number of devices, namely meters, through suitable firmware. This firmware contains parameters for connecting to our MQTT broker and a unique Device ID for each counter instance.

If necessary, the meter telemetry of each end user can be downloaded to their external personal account, where resource usage statistics will be displayed, and payment for services will be made. Thus, our MyBox app enables accurate measurement of energy consumption and a convenient billing process.

A dashboard of a MyBox platform.

Better Planning and Forecasting

With access to detailed energy usage data, businesses can better plan and forecast their energy needs, helping them to avoid unexpected surcharges or shortages. Companies can also negotiate more reasonable energy rates with suppliers.

Enhanced Sustainability

Smart meters provide businesses with the data to identify areas of high power consumption and implement sustainability initiatives to reduce their carbon footprint. As a result, smart meter eco benefits also involve improving the company’s reputation and helping businesses gain customers’ loyalty.

Improved Customer Experience

Smart meters can help businesses deliver a better customer experience by providing more accurate billing information and reducing the likelihood of estimated bills. Thus, companies will receive fewer customer complaints and improve their satisfaction levels.

What Are the Risks of Smart Meters?

While smart metering benefits are apparent, these solutions come with some risks. Here are a few of the concerns:

Security Risks

Since smart meters connect to a network, they are vulnerable to hacking and cyber-attacks. If a smart meter is compromised, it could lead to unauthorized access to personal information or disruption of energy services.

Privacy Concerns

Smart meters collect detailed energy usage data, potentially revealing personal information about a business’s or household’s activities. This data could be misused or exploited if not appropriately protected.

Connectivity Issues

Another potential risk with smart meters is poor signal strength or connectivity issues. It’s especially true for those meters that rely on wireless connections. If the signal is weak or interrupted, it can lead to inaccurate or incomplete data.

Yet, companies can mitigate these risks by properly implementing smart meter technology. For example, strong data privacy protections and cybersecurity measures can help to prevent unauthorized access to personal information.

Smart Metering Implementation: A Quick Guide with Example

If you want to implement such an IoT device as a smart meter into your system, you need to follow the next steps:

1. Plan the Implementation

The first step in implementing smart metering is to develop a plan that outlines the goals of your project. It should include a timeline for implementation, a budget, and a scope of work.

2. Build the Infrastructure

Smart metering requires an advanced communication infrastructure to transmit energy usage data from the meters to the utility company. Thus, you need to upgrade your existing infrastructure or build one from scratch, which can involve installing new communication devices, sensors, routers, etc.

3. Install the Smart Meter

The next step is to install smart meters in homes and businesses. It can involve coordinating with customers to schedule meter installation appointments and implement the meters correctly.

4. Determine the Data Management Means

Smart meters gather and store large amounts of data, so you should cover its management and analysis needs. It may require the implementation of new software and data management systems.

5. Test the Smart Metering System

Once you have installed smart meters and covered the software part, you should test your system to ensure its proper operation and accurate data collection. You should also address any identified issues before full deployment.

6. Provide Ongoing Maintenance and Support

After you have deployed your smart metering system, you should provide continuous maintenance and support. It may involve monitoring the meters for malfunctions, providing technical support to customers, and upgrading the system to keep up with changing technology and customer needs.

Smart Meters as Part of the Smart Home Ecosystem with 2Smart Standalone

WebbyLab’s smart home automation solution 2Smart Standalone allows electricity, gas, water, and heat smart meters to be implemented. Our team can do this through various communication protocols and means, including Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, NB-IoT, LPWAN, GPRS, Zigbee, Modbus, Z-Wave, and KNX.

We usually need an additional device to connect smart meters, a gateway supporting the necessary communication protocol. Or our experts can connect the meter with 2Smart Standalone by writing a software bridge to support the protocol.

After connecting smart meters to 2Smart Standalone, the smart home user can display their readings on a dashboard and develop automation scenarios based on the data received. For example, the customer can receive alerts about suspicious things like a uniform flow of water, which may indicate a leak. The dashboard also allows users to take readings at any time remotely.

A dashboard of a 2Smart Standalone smart home automation platform.

The only obstacle to smart meters implementation is whether the utility service provider will allow the collection of energy consumption data. However, customers can use such devices within their smart homes if their security policy doesn’t restrict this.

How Can Webbylab Help You with Creating Smart Meters for Your Needs?

As you can see, smart meters offer a range of advantages to electric utilities and businesses. By providing real-time data on energy usage, these devices can improve billing accuracy, reduce meter reading costs, and enable more precise management of energy supply and demand.

If, after learning about the main smart meter features and benefits and discovering the core implementation steps, you’re looking for a reliable partner to cover the metering system installation tasks, WebbyLab is here to help.

We’ll thoroughly study your project requirements and suggest viable solutions using our extensive experience with smart metering systems and IoT prototype implementation. Our team will provide top-notch software and hardware development services to reduce your utility bills and increase productivity. Got interested? Feel free to get in touch with our experts.