Smart heating: the future of smart consumption?

The future of energy consumption will be a smarter one; that is certain. Energy customers are going to be better informed on how and when to use energy to cut consumption and lower bills. But which technology is the right choice to achieve this is less certain.

The smart meter rollout due to start next year seems the obvious choice.  Besides the benefits of accurate billing and faster switching times, smart meters will provide real time data on energy usage directly visible to customers on in home displays which supporters believe will revolutionise our relationship with how we use energy.

But there are those in the industry who believe that by the time the roll out programme concludes in 2020, some elements will already be outdated. That is certainly the conclusion of the Institute of Directors (IoD), whose recent report on smart metering highlighted outdated technology as a “key concern” and a predominant factor, amongst many others, in its calls for either the in-home display element to be removed, or to scrap the whole scheme in favour of a far simpler smart phone meter-reading app. 

Co-operative Energy seems to agree with the Iod, also being of the opinion that the technology is already outdated in its hearing with the Competition and Markets Authority earlier this month, and that “technology such as British Gas’ Hive and Google’s Nest indicated the future of energy consumption.”

The fact that all big six energy suppliers already offer some form of smart energy heating product indicates that they feel smart thermostats will play a pivotal role in the future of energy consumption, but does that really mean smart thermostats have superseded the entire smart meter roll-out and it should therefore be abandoned? 

The Energy and Utilities Alliance chief executive Mike Foster said this view was “failing to see where the future will lie” and the real value of smart metering: real-time information. Foster appears to have hit the nail on the head.  Real-time data collected by smart meters will be an invaluable data source; it just won’t be of much interest to customers themselves.

“It’s the interaction of the time of use tariff via the smart meter talking to the controls, that’s where the maximum benefits can be gained for the household,” Foster says.  No need for that in-home display then.

Perhaps the path ahead leads to a combination of real-time data with existing smart heating systems, not one or the other.  Daniel Yates, chief executive of enterprise software company Opower believes the real business opportunity for suppliers will be taking the “hugely valuable” data collected by smart meters and using it to enrich their smart product offerings and indeed, their entire business models.

So with smart heating systems set to play an important future role in the customer’s relationship with their energy consumption, and with the smart thermostat technology constantly at the sharp end of innovation, what are energy suppliers, and indeed other businesses, offering customers now?

 Smart Heating Systems:

Virtually all smart heating systems on offer require the professional installation of a hub to the boiler, a wireless thermostat and a broadband connection to give remote heating and water control via a smart phone.   

British Gas – Hive Active Heating

The Hive system is simple but fairly comprehensive, offering energy savings through the use of schedules, temperature email alerts and geolocation technology.

Scottish Power – Connect

The Scottish Power offering does not require the internet as the hub communicates via a smartphone app, or by text. 

EDF – Heatsmart

Using the Netatmo thermostat, Heatsmart allows control via smart phone, PC and tablet. The Heatsmart system includes an “auto-adapt” feature that uses outside temperatures and a home’s heat loss to adjust the heating, and ongoing analysis to monitor heating patterns. 

Npower – Nest Learning Thermostat

This system is able to self programme a schedule based on past preferences that continually adapts to the user’s life, turns itself down when nobody is at home, and records an energy use history to help customers understand what they used and when.  A green leaf also informs the user when an energy efficient temperature has been chosen.

SSE – Tado smart thermostat

Tado uses location tracking to turn save on heating and hot water when the user is not at home, and tell when they are returning to fire things up again.  If all occupants have the app installed on their phone the thermostat will ensure whoever returns home first finds the house the right temperature.

Eon – Energy Saving Toolkit

Eon has partnered with Opower to provide a cloud-based information service.  Users log on, input data about personal energy use to be given personalised insights and tips on the actions they can take to save energy such as unplugging unused devices, setting thermostats more wisely and turning off unused lights.  Users can also compare their usage to other similar households.

Heat genius and Honeywell Evohome

A step up in both control and price, both these systems allow for individual room control so specific rooms can be set to warm up and cool down at different times of the say, such as bedrooms in the evening and morning.