A lot has been done for saving electricity and other resources but Smart Meters has set a milestone in managing the electricity. Now with these modernized meters; the electricity bill is under your control. They have been accepted by many countries to save electricity and manage it. With time many new meters are coming up with smart technology to make it more efficient and reliable. For better control on the distribution and automation on the power supply; these meters are fitted with advanced distribution automation programs

What is a smart meter?

A smart meter is an electricity meter which reads the consumption of electricity in the similar manner as a normal meter but has the capability of two way communication between the meter and the centralized system. It can also be monitored remotely to change the mode of payment or for tariff -information. An in home display is also provided with these meters which display the information to the consumer about the amount of consumption of electricity in units as well as pounds. With the implementation of these smart meters, people will know about the operation of power industry and how they consume energy.

Benefits of smart meters to the consumers

This advanced technology has not only helped the country or the power grid to save and manage energy but they have been a huge success with the benefits it provides to the consumers. People will have the benefit of having access to up to date information about the tariffs, real time usage of electricity in units as well as in amount. Consumers can manage their budgets properly by saving electricity and money. This technology also helps in getting accurate bills as the manual meter reading will be replaced. This automotive distribution technique will help in accurate distribution of energy and efficient management and generation of power supply. Smart metering is cost effective and helps in more use of low carbon generation power. One can easily switch the energy suppliers with the data the consumers are accessible to. The meter is designed in such a manner that it is suitable to all energy suppliers.

Steps undertaken to improve the efficiency

Implementing such a change in the society is not an easy task, a lot of planning and studies are still going to make this more effective and to integrate these smart meters installations and distribution automation programs. By end of 2020, this technique will make a remarkable change in the power industry and will cover up most of the homes. A lot of articles and writings are floating on the internet to educate and create awareness among people for the advantage and benefits of smart metering and how to reduce the consumption of electricity and less carbon emission. Different slots are allotted as off peak, mid peak and on peak where the rates of the energy consumption are different. Consumers can use the electricity during off peak hours and save electricity and in turn money also.

Summary

This effective technique will not only save electricity but will help people to do a lot for the environment. Smart metering has been widely accepted by the consumers with the number of advantages they get, and it has also marked a great change in the mindset of people in using and saving energy. These smart techniques are said to be launched soon on gas and water supply.

This post is contributed by Spire MT, a leading supplier of Electrical Energy Meters, Handheld Ultrasonic Flow Meter,, Transit-Time Flow Meter,Wireless Telemetry Systems. and many more. For more information visit at http://www.spiremt.com

Smart meters have been accepted with open arms by the consumers. These are electric meters that read the electricity usage in the same manner as the normal meters but have the ability of two way communication from the meter to the centralized power grid. This has the advantage to the utilities to update the tariff information remotely. Smart metering has helped in efficient management and distribution of electricity. With more and more countries adopting this technique, a lot has been done to make it more reliable and undeviating. There has been a lot of discussion on whether these meters are beneficial to the customers or not than the conventional meters. Let’s discuss the advantage of these smart meters to the consumers, utilities and the environment.

Benefits to the consumers

• The first and foremost advantage is to control the electricity bill and usage of electricity. With the help of smart meters consumers can consume energy during off peak hours when the rates are minimal; this will help in saving your money as well as energy.
• With Smart meters, consumers have the benefit of having access to up to date information about the usage of electricity in units as well as in amounts as these meters comes with an in home display. One can manage their monthly budget in a proper manner and reduce their power bills.
• Consumers get detailed information on how the power industry operates.
• With full access about the tariffs and other information, consumers can easily switch the electricity suppliers.
• This technique is an efficient mean to make the consumers aware for reducing their usage of energy and saving power.
• Accurate electricity bills are assured with Smart meters.
• Consumers are protected from the unnecessary sales techniques to sell additional products by the company salesman while installing the new meters.

These smart meters are not only beneficial to the consumers but are also a great boon to the electricity suppliers as the companies can change the tariff information remotely. Removal of manual meters helps in monitoring the system more quickly and efficiently. Smart meters allows more control on the distribution of electricity with the real time data that they provide with the help of this technique, thus enabling them to reduce power cuts or black outs. The companies also get the benefits of optimizing their income as a consumer can change the supplier without changing the meter. These smart meters are designed to suit all electricity suppliers.

Smart meters are also beneficial for the environment as a lot of energy is saved with the help of this application. With more people getting an insight in the consumption of energy, they have become more conscious in making efforts to reduce the usage of energy and less carbon emission. It reduces pollution and helps in making a better and a greener environment.

Smart meters have been therefore widely accepted by many countries and it is estimated that by 2020, it will be installed in most of the houses which in turn will help in managing the electricity and power grid more efficiently.

This post is contributed by SpireMT, a leading supplier of Electrical Energy Meters, Handheld Ultrasonic Flow Meter,, Transit-Time Flow Meter, Wireless Telemetry Systems. and many more. For more information visit at http://www.spiremt.com

With the so many Companies manufacturing smarter products today, there are now Companies, which have come up with solutions enabling people to cut down on their heat consumption costs. One such Company is Itron, which has recently come up with its state of the art product for measuring heat energy costs more accurately. This device is proving to be a revolution in managing, calculating, and thus allocating rightly the energy produced by thermal generators, and used by consumers. Itron, with this new 'thermal energy' measuring product, anticipated the pulse of the market, and the growing need for products like the one just launched. And as a smart move, in order to suffice the requirements of the general consumers, it introduced its revolutionary product 'EquiScan', just at the right time, before anybody could think of manufacturing the same.

At most societies and multi-housing apartments, thermal energy happens to be the primary source for heat. Most of the times it so happens that while billing the consumers, it becomes a challenge to accurately calculate the amount of energy which has been used by a consumer, so it becomes all the more difficult to decide on what to be charged (billed) to the customer.

To stop this racing problem, and to inculcate the practice of 'fair billing', this all new product EquiScan has been introduced as an 'eye opener', for all those using thermal energy for their regular household or commercial work.

Another very significant role of EquiScan having been seen to be played apart from rightly measuring and billing the customers for the amount of thermal energy used is that this device is actually helping the residents of various residential apartments and commercial holding, to inculcate in themselves a habit of saving energy, using the same more consciously.

Moreover, owing to its simplistic design, this marvel device is extremely simple to use and operate. Essentially, being a 'Plug-and-play' device, EquiScan consists of various components like 'heat cost allocators', master radio units’, ‘water meter communication modules', 'master radio units', and an 'application software'. Further, with an easy installation procedure, this device is also extremely cost effective to be maintained.

As a consumer I have been using the product and have found it to be extremely useful and efficient. It has enabled me to majorly cut down on my consumption of thermal energy since the time I have starting using it, and has also probed me to become more conscious about using this natural resource called 'heat', more carefully that I used to do earlier.

If you are also much dependent on 'thermal energy', for carrying your regular house hold works and commercial activities, then I would advise you to use EquiScan, and give it a try at least once. The results are apparent!

This post is contributed by SpireMT, a leading supplier of Ultrasonic Heat Meters, Handheld Ultrasonic Flow Meter,, Transit-Time Flow Meter, Ultrasonic Flow Meters. and many more. For more information visit at http://www.spiremt.com

Telemetry refers to a highly advanced and automated communication system where measurements are made and data collected without a person having to be present physically. In simple words this system can help you take measurements of various elements, processes and activities without any human contact. Businesses are fast employing this technology as it is helping them increase their productivity. Law enforcement agencies, meteorological agencies, disaster management agencies etc. are among the primary users of this technology. Today this technology has been further advanced with the data being transmitted wirelessly across large distances. Let us now discuss some of the advantages of wireless telemetry systems

• Real-time Data Collection

Wireless telemetry systems allow us to measure and collect data at remote or inaccessible points and this data can be transmitted easily over large distances in real time. The advantage of being able to look into events and processes as they happen are innumerable. Apart from monitoring the events as they happen this also allows us to exercise more control over the outcome of the event or the process.

• Reduces Operational Costs

One of the biggest advantages of using this system is that it helps you in reducing operational costs. Since the data is collected and transmitted automatically from faraway locations there is reduced requirements of human resource have to collect the data manually. This can help any organization cut operational costs substantially.

• Reduces Risks On Human Life

There are occasions where people have to work in highly dangerous situations. This might involve monitoring an active volcano or keeping track of a tornado. Wireless telemetry systems don’t require a person to be physically present and take a risk on his/her life. All the data that needs to be collected can be done from the comfort of a lab hundreds of miles away.

• Prevents Natural Disasters

Wireless telemetry systems are finding extensive usage in disaster management. For example this system can be used to measure the rising level of water in a river for flood control or measure the speed of wind on high sea barges. Fed with such information in real time can help reduce the impact of natural calamities if not prevent them.

• Collects Data From Moving Objects

This technology can be used to collect data from objects that are in constant motion. For instance this technology can be applied to pin point the exact location of a train over a large railway network or measure its speed at any instant.

• Data Sharing

Since the data collected us transmitted wirelessly this also gives us the scope of sharing this data. For instance information regarding an imminent flood like situation can be shared between different entities such as the government, disaster management agencies, healthcare; transportation etc. that can help tackles such situations in a much smoother way.

These are some of the popular advantages of wireless telemetry systems. Since this system is finding its usage across a number of businesses and agencies one can easily argue that there are many other advantages associated with this system.

This post is contributed by SpireMT, a leading supplier of wireless telemetry systems,Handheld Ultrasonic Flow Meter,, Transit-Time Flow Meter, ultrasonic heat meters and many more. For more information visit at http://www.spiremt.com

Flowmeters find extensive usage in different industries. They are used to measure the flow rate of fluids which can either be in the liquid or gaseous state. One of the technologies that has found acceptance across the board is the use of the ultrasonic flowmeter. Such flowmeters give much more accurate data over the traditional flowmeters. Today with the advancement of the digital signalling has been powering these meters that allow industries to keep a tab on the exact flow of liquid or gas in a pipeline. Small and large businesses are fast adopting this as a preferred means of measuring the flow of liquid.

Doppler flowmeters and Transit Time flowmeters are two distinct types of instruments that are being used in the industry. Often we tend to confuse one for the other as both these instruments make use of the ultrasonic technology to measure the flow of liquid. There are however many difference in the way these flowmeters work and here we shall take note of the differences between Doppler flowmeters and Transit Time flowmeters. To understand the differences between the two we need it is important that we understand their working mechanism.

Doppler Flowmeters

The mechanism of this type of flowmeters is based on bouncing signals which was proposed by Christian Doppler in what is famously known as Doppler Effect. The theory is that the frequency shift is in direct proportion to the velocity of the liquid. Here the signals bounce off small particles or bubble in the moving fluid in a pipe and create what is popularly known as the 'Doppler Shift'. This is turn creates what we know as return signal frequency. Here the flowmeter measures the Doppler Shift and then it calculates resulting speed of the reflective particles. This is further multiplied by the internal diameter of the pipe through which the liquid passes to produce volumetric flow.

However this kind of flowmeters has a have disadvantage as they are don't work with liquids that don't have enough sonically reflective particles in your flow stream. While those who promote this technology criticise this argument the fact remains that if there is no reflective particle in the liquid for the signal to bounce from there is no way that it will offer you accurate results on the flow of the liquid.

Transit-Time Flowmeters

Transit-Time flowmeters also makes use of the ultrasonic technology. These work by measuring the time taken by an ultrasonic signal transmitted from one sensor, to cross a pipe where the liquid is flowing and be received by a second sensor. Here two different components namely the upstream and downstream time measurements are compared. This difference in time (Transit-Time) is calculated using a bunch of powerful algorithms to produce an accurate flow velocity. If there is no flow the transit time would be equal in both directions. When there is flow of liquid the sound travels faster in the direction of flow and slower in the direction of flow. This technology is more reliable and less expensive compared to Doppler flowmeters.

The downside of this measurement technique is the fact that the fluid should be clean and should not contain any bubble or solid particle as this will result in the higher frequency sound being attenuated and making them too weak to transverse the pipe.

You can clearly make out from the above working mechanism that both these technologies are effective in measuring the flow of liquid. However industries must make a choice based on the type of liquid that they are going to measure as both these systems have their own disadvantages.

This post is contributed by SpireMT, a leading supplier of transit‐time flow meter,Handheld Ultrasonic Flow Meter,, Transit-Time Flow Meter, Electrical Energy Meters and many more. For more information visit at http://www.spiremt.com

By definition Flowmeter is an instrument that is used for measuring linear, nonlinear, mass or volumetric flow rate of a liquid or a gas. It is extensive used in the oil and natural gas based industries where the flow gas and liquid needs to be measured accurately. Technology has come a long way since the days of the initial flowemeters and there are many different ways in which the flow of liquid can be measured. There are a number of technologies such as differential-pressure, turbine and positive-displacement that are being used to measure the flow of gas and liquid. Some of these technologies are far ahead of the others in terms of their application in the industry. Here in this short write-up we shall take a look at four flowmeter applications that you must watch out.

1. Multiphase Flowmeters - In the oil and gas industry fluids are known to be different states of matter i.e. liquid, gas and steam. While most traditional flowmeters are known to measure a single type of flow liquid, gas or steam we are seeing extensive usage of multiphase meters in the oil and gas industry. When the oil comes out of the well it is a mixture of all these components and it serves as a great advantage to the business to measure the fluid before the different components are separated using a separator in the wellhead. They can serve in a variety of functions in the industry such as well testing, custody transfer, and allocation metering.

The downside for these multiphase meters remains their prices as they are highly expensive and not within the budget of small businesses. In fact many wells cannot justify the expenditure behind multiphase flowmeters due to their production limit. In terms of technology these multiphase meters are way ahead of traditional technologies that are being used and in years to come they might find their way into the small oil and gas industries.

2. Delivery Network - Delivery of the fuel through the distribution chains is an important part of the petroleum industry. Here fuel is loaded into truck and delivered to homes, businesses, transport industry such as airplanes, ships etc. Here again there is immense competition among technologies. Traditionally this market belonged to positive-displacement flowmeters however Coriolis flowmeters are fast becoming the preferred technology for most businesses. With approvals from various industry bodies such as the American Petroleum Institute is making fast inroads into the market. One of the biggest advantages of this kind of flowmeter is the fact that it can be applied in a small ecosystem where other technologies don’t make a sound financial decision. These include district energy metering, residential metering, boiler inlet measurement, steam flow measurement, flare gas measurement, and open channel measurement among others.
3. Custody Transfer of Natural Gas – One of the areas of great importance in the natural gas industry is custody transfer. Natural gas goes through a series of transitions and till it reaches the customers. On many occasions the ownership of the gas is transferred from one company to another till it reaches the consumers. Thus flowmeter play an active role during the custody transfer. Like in the case of delivery network traditionally differential-pressure or turbine flowmeters were used for this purpose. But over the last decade and half ultrasonic flowmeters are being used for custody transfers having received necessary approvals from the American Gas Association (AGA). There is however a downside to the ultrasonic flowmeters as they have to be calibrated on a regular basis. This involves sending the flowmeter to a calibration facility. This requires a business to in place for their ultrasonic meters. Also sending the meters for calibration from faraway distances is both expensive and time consuming.
4. Stack Gas Measurement - With the growing voice for environment protection and the influence of the Environmental Protection Association (EPA) the need stack flow measurement accelerated has accelerated. The advantage with this flowmeter technique is the fact that it can be used for continuous emissions monitoring (CEM). Thermal flowmeter suppliers have developed multipoint flowmeters which are used to measure flow at as many as 16 points in the stack which results in higher levels of accuracy compared to single-point thermal flowmeters. Apart from this differential-pressure and ultrasonic flowmeters also being used stack gas measurement. While the differential-pressure flowmeters use averaging Pitot to measure the flow ultrasonic flowmeters measure it by sending a signal back and forth across a pipe allowing them to cover large diameters pipes.

There are a low of development that are taking place in the world of flowmeters to make them efficient as well as make their usage diverse. In the coming years we might see newer technologies and applications making their way into the market.

This post is contributed by SpireMT, a leading supplier of Digital Flow Meters,Handheld Ultrasonic Flow Meter,water flow meter, Transit-Time Flow Meter and many more. For more information visit at http://www.spiremt.com