MachineQ unveils IoT power monitoring

MachineQ has launched an internet of things (IoT)-based power-monitoring offering to enable companies with consumption data to manage energy use better, as well as gain operational efficiencies, proactive maintenance, managed costs and improved sustainability.

In addition to assisting enterprises in monitoring and managing their energy consumption, the service is designed to help them understand asset utilisation, providing actionable data to optimise asset use.

MachineQ’s service offers a number of ways to monitor power consumption accurately using IoT sensor devices that can extract data at the receptacle, equipment or breaker level. The MQpower CT is a wireless, self-powered current transformer that can be clamped to electrical conductors at the breaker or asset level to measure real-time current consumption in a non-invasive way.

Additionally, the offering can aid predictive maintenance for critical equipment such as an ultra-low temperature freezer. By detecting anomalies in power consumption, which often indicate equipment issues, lab managers can proactively service or replace units before they fail. For instance, if a freezer starts using more energy to maintain its set point temperature, this could signal the need for maintenance or indicate that the unit is nearing the end of its life.

The MQpower SP is a smart plug load device that enables businesses to plug in equipment and assets to extrapolate energy data, including daily energy usage, instantaneous current, voltage, active power and power factor. It supports a variety of plug types, including US (type B), UK (type G), EU (type F) and FR (type E). MQpower SP and MQpower CT both support regional LoRaWAN frequencies globally.

“We’ve seen increased demand from current and prospective customers seeking ways to understand power consumption and obtain executable data to help them reduce energy utilisation,” said Bryan Witkowski, head of product and strategy at MachineQ.

“This solution offers customers flexible options to help not only monitor, but also help manage their energy usage. Plus, with many companies focused on sustainability initiatives, this solution can help play a vital role towards measuring and achieving those efforts.”

Looking at use cases, the Comcast subsidiary sees the power-monitoring service as particularly relevant for high-energy consumers, such as food service companies, laboratories and hotels, which consume more energy than typical commercial buildings due to their energy-intensive equipment and asset-intensive operations.

It cited an Energy Star report showing that fast food restaurants and convenience stores consume nearly 900 BTU of energy per square foot of space. This is about 2.5x more energy than in any other commercial building.

Another key industry, said MachineQ, is life sciences, where sustainability efforts are top of mind, while pharmaceutical companies have asset-heavy, power-intensive lab operations.

The tech firm believes that the power-monitoring service can provide lab managers with valuable insights by tracking the energy consumption of equipment, such as centrifuges, and correlating that data to its frequent or infrequent use. It adds that linking consumption and utilisation data can help identify opportunities to reduce energy aid sustainability efforts and help determine whether to reallocate the asset to another location, decommission it or make better purchasing decisions.

The offering also complements smart metering capabilities by providing a holistic view of energy consumption and actionable insights to monitor, control and manage consumption more intelligently. These use cases run on the same scalable network infrastructure, thus helping customers to lower the total cost of ownership of their IoT investment over time.