Energy Hub could help businesses forge a more sustainable future
The EU aims to be climate-neutral by 2050 – an economy with net zero greenhouse gas emissions. This objective is at the heart of the European Green Deal and in line with the EU's commitment to global climate action under the Paris Agreement. Forging a more sustainable future requires action by all sectors of the economy – it would actually be impossible without businesses and organisations committing to action. The Green Deal should be on the radar of every business that wants to build up competitiveness. The EU-funded SuperEH project supports businesses and organisations in better managing their resource usage and curbing energy costs. The project unveiled Energy Hub, an integrated solution that harnesses the Internet of Things (IoT), advanced data analytics, machine learning algorithms, sophisticated power and voltage control, and loads control to enable organisations to monitor and manage their energy consumption. “Our Energy Hub offering could help organisations reduce costs by up to 15–25 %, enabling a swift return on investment – within 3 years,” notes Haim Guz, SuperEH coordinator and PowerSines CEO.
Cutting costs and carbon emissions through voltage optimisation
The concept behind voltage optimisation is simple. Power from the grid is supplied at a higher voltage than necessary because of the old electrical distribution networks in place. As a result, the voltage supplied is greater than the voltage at which equipment is designed to operate most effectively. Voltage optimisers are essentially transformers that largely improve power quality by balancing overvoltage and phase voltages, and filtering harmonics and transients from the supply. PowerSines’ voltage optimiser is based on patented technologies that provide optimised and pure sinusoidal voltage to the load. “The ‘ComEC’ is a voltage stabilisation system that is composed of several transformation cells and controlled by a microprocessor. Each transformation cell utilises the PowerSines Induced Negative Voltage (INV™) technology for dynamic voltage optimisation. Connecting and disconnecting transformation cells enables different voltage reduction levels and stabilisation of the output voltage,” explains Guz. Another technology patented by PowerSines is the ‘Voltage Vector Combination’. The technology controls the voltage supplied to electric motors and other heavy loads by utilising the space vector and the voltage magnitude of three-phase electric power systems. It does so, while keeping a pure sinusoidal waveform without harmonics. This voltage optimisation topology was evolved to the ‘Super Variable Vector Combination’ that reduces the number of transformers and boasts smaller dimensions, weight and price without compromising on performance.
Energy Hub application features
An advanced cloud-based platform allows managers to determine the consumption patterns across multiple sites, as well as smartly and automatically manage loads according to advanced rule-engine algorithms. Dashboard-based analytics enables energy comparison between different sites, normalised by square metres, number of people and more. Additionally, machine learning algorithms help identify anomalies and patterns in data sets. Guz sees three crucial factors driving market demand for his company’s latest offering. First, government regulations and incentive programmes, including commitments as part of the Paris Climate Accords, have businesses and organisations looking for innovative energy efficiency solutions. Second, advances in technology, including IoT, have made solutions such as the Energy Hub highly cost-competitive. Finally, as businesses increasingly see their competitors adopting sustainability and energy-efficiency initiatives which help their bottom lines, the market itself will act as a powerful accelerant.
Keywords
SuperEH, businesses, PowerSines, Energy Hub, voltage optimisation, IoT, carbon emissions, European Green Deal, Voltage Vector Combination, energy consumption
