• The NES System
• The LonWorks Device Networking Platform

The Smart Grid

Everything Is Connected

The grid is usually thought of as the electricity distribution infrastructure that’s owned and operated by utilities: generation plants and equipment, transmission and distribution infrastructure, and meters. Adding intelligence and communications to these assets can make utilities more efficient, reduce their cost of operations, increase the quality of service they deliver, and improve system reliability. Customers benefit, as well.

But, the smart grid is not just those things owned and operated by the utility; it’s everything connected to the electricity network. Every device that consumes electricity is part of the smart grid, including:

• Appliances in homes
• HVAC equipment in commercial buildings
• Streetlights in cities and towns

The smart grid is not just the portion that generates, transmits, distributes, and measures energy; it’s also all of the loads that consume that energy. Working together, intelligently, as part of a smart grid, the loads themselves play a critical role in helping to balance supply and demand, reduce peaks, and shift consumption.

The Power of the Smart Grid

When smart systems in homes, buildings, and cities are linked with pricing and other information available through a modern, advanced metering infrastructure, the power of the smart grid becomes apparent.

• Consumers and businesses can intelligently and automatically reduce and manage their load in ways that work best for them.
• Utilities can promote automatic demand response programs that empower their customers to actively participate in energy management.

Our Products Enable the Smart Grid

The NES System is the world's most capable and adopted advanced metering infrastructure solution. More than 27 million homes are already on a smart grid using the underlying technology of the NES System, and over 1.5 million more are slated to upgrade to a smart grid.

Our LonWorks infrastructure products are incorporated in thousands of devices from the world's leading control and smart device manufacturers.

For over 20 years, Echelon has built ecosystems to enable smart networks, buildings, factories, homes, and cities. The smart grid is helping to bring it all together.