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Onzo Smart Energy Kit selected for energy management project in Amsterdam
Onzo’s award-winning Smart Energy Kit has been chosen as the only energy display to be rolled out to households in Amsterdam, as part of a pioneering project to make people more aware of their energy use.
Under the Sustainable Neighbourhood project, 500 homes in the North West district of the Dutch capital have been equipped with Echelon’s smart meters. Of these, 50 have also been given Onzo’s Smart Energy Kit as part of a six month trial to find out how much energy home owners can save when given easy-to-understand information about their electricity consumption.
Organisers of the initiative have also arranged neighbourhood days out to give participants tips on energy saving, and awareness of the project has been generated through an online campaign.
Students of the University of Amsterdam are working with the main energy utility involved, Liander, throughout the trial to test the effectiveness of smart meter and Smart Energy Kit in reducing energy usage. Initial feedback from participants has been positive, with many asking to increase their energy saving targets to make the experience more challenging.
The Sustainable Neighbourhood project is one of several projects being launched as part of the Amsterdam Smart City initiative , which is bringing together government, businesses and residents to develop and test smart projects that will save energy in the future.
In 2010 Onzo launched the Smart Energy Kit in the UK, comprising a sensor, in-home display and personalised website. The sensor is clipped onto the electricity meter cable and wirelessly transmits information about a household’s electricity usage to the display, which shows that information in real time. That data can then be uploaded to the website where people can receive energy saving tips and track their energy usage over the past 30 days.
For the Amsterdam Project, Onzo has developed a low-cost sensor that connects with the Echelon Multipurpose Expansion Port in its smart meters given to Amsterdam residents, providing billing quality data to the display.
Joel Hagan, CEO of Onzo said: “We are thrilled to be the only energy display accepted to be part of this project. Combining Onzo’s technology with Echelon’s shows how a smart meter combined with an easy to read display can be a really effective way of informing consumers about their energy use.
“We have valued all the positive feedback project participants have given us so far and eagerly await the test results showing how much energy they have saved.”
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NOTES TO EDITORS
Amsterdam Smart City
Amsterdam Smart City is an initiative set up to illustrate how energy can be saved, now and in the future. It was founded by Liander and the Amsterdam Innovation Motor, and now involves a number of other partners from the business, government and local communities. Together, these partners are developing and testing a series of smart projects in Amsterdam which will save energy. http://www.amsterdamsmartcity.com
