Dive Brief:
- ComEd will partner with energy analytics provider Bidgely on a six-month program expected to launch in the spring, aimed at giving customers greater insight into how their homes consume energy.
- During the pilot, 250 participants will be selected to receive a home energy monitoring device to connect directly to their ComEd smart meter and provide real-time data to the Bidgely cloud.
- Another 2,500 customers will have access to Bidgely’s HomeBeat Web & Mobile platform, which utilizes information collected and sent over the ComEd smart meter network.
Dive Insight:
ComEd said it will be the first utility to offer Bidgely's newest home energy management technology to customers, providing them with personalized energy reports detailing how and when they use energy in their home. Bidgely’s HomeBeat Energy Monitor allows the utility to offer real-time energy insights like high-usage alerts via mobile push notifications within minutes of use.
“Our goal is to maximize the value our customers realize from our investment in smart grid technology,” said Val Jensen, senior vice president of customer cperations for ComEd. “We are building a platform for product and service innovation that will unlock customer value that we’re only beginning to glimpse. The pilot with Bidgely is proof of this, and we are pleased to lead the industry in testing this innovative technology with our customers to help them better manage their energy use.”
ComEd said the program is part of its SmartGridExchange, a collaboration between the utility, entrepreneurs, technology start-ups, universities and customers to explore and design new products and offers that utilize the intelligence of the smart grid and smart meter.
Utility Dive got a chance to catch up with CEO and Founder Abhay Gupta and the rest of the Bidgely team at DistribuTECH this week. What sets their technology apart from other home energy management providers, Gupta told Utility Dive, is that its software allows the user to view and control the energy use of individual appliances in the home without adding any additional hardware like smart plugs. Instead of relying on other gadgets, Bidgely's system identifies energy consumption by the energy demand profile of each appliance and allows the user to control them from desktop and mobile apps.
