4 Important Questions to Ask When Designing Additional Metering Systems

To achieve the desired result for the client and avoid the problems mentioned above, it is important that the development team and the leasing team focus on the following four elements and communicate them to their design team:

1. Why is the additional measurement necessary?

It is important to make sure that everyone understands why the client requires an additional metering system, as this will determine the network architecture, the types of meters and the cost of capital.

Typical reasons for incorporating additional measurement systems include:

Private billing of public services for the payment to the tenant.

Ability to achieve objectives of rating systems such as Greenstar, etc.

Ability to comply with commercial building revelation requirements and associated NABERS qualifications.

General monitoring of energy and public services to identify faults in the plant and possible efficiency improvements.

Leak detection: where are the elements of risk and can be organized meters to monitor them.

Lease requirements.

2. What type of meters do you need?

The types of meters required to influence the selection and cost of the system. The consideration of the following aspects will help to better determine the types of meters needed:

Types of services (electricity, gas, water, thermal energy)

Make sure you understand all the utilities that require measurement, whether to pass the costs of consumption to the tenants, the supply of energy or other reasons.

HLI vs low-level type:

The cost of the meters varies considerably and it is important to understand what information the meter client requires. Why install smart meters capable of delivering a multitude of parameters when this level of information is not required, and low-level pulse meters could easily achieve customer results at a significantly lower cost?

Precision requirements:

Precision levels for electricity, gas and water consumption meters are widely recognized and adopted due to the mandatory requirements; however, the accuracy requirements for thermal energy meters are driven in part by the industry's expectations. automatic adoption Ensure that this is passed on to all interested parties, including the leasing team, to address any agreement.

3. How will the meter information be collected and processed?

Ensuring that you understand how the client intends to perform the public service consumption activities will help avoid system installations that customers can not use effectively. It also guarantees an excess of capitalization for systems that are over-specified or that leave the client with an important responsibility of continuous maintenance.

Manual reading or automated systems.

Early understanding of the client's methodology for recording, analyzing and managing meter outputs will determine the type of systems, which in turn, will have a large influence on cost and delivery.

Dedicated energy management systems (EMS) or integration to building management systems (BMS)

Is it necessary to develop a new SGA or integrate into an existing system? Can the existing system be easily scaled to accommodate new meters and associated data?

If there is an existing BMS, consider whether or not it has the ability to perform precise functions of the measurement system.

4. Where will it be located to guarantee ease of access?

Adequate access to measurement systems will ensure that information is readily available and can be used efficiently and effectively.

Manual reading and OH & S

If the manual reading of the meters is required, ensure that due attention is paid to the ease of access to the responsible personnel, while ensuring that the meters are not subject to tampering.

Also, consider consolidating locations to make it easier to find all the meters and minimize the time required to complete the reading tasks.

OH S

Make sure that the meters are not located in areas that pose safety risks to personnel, such as off-road roads, at accessible levels from the ground, away from the roof edges, etc.

If the above problems are transmitted and understood in the early stages of the project, measurement systems that facilitate the life of the landlord can be delivered and the loss of revenue from an underdeveloped meter systems can be avoided.

If you would like more information on how to overcome design challenges in multi-tenant facilities, or if you would like advice on your measurement design, please contact Step Engineering at 403-476-9560. We provide best class Metering Facility Design Services in Canada, Alberta, Calgary, and USA Region.

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