GE Appliances and Tantalus Systems are working together to change the way home appliances, HVAC systems and water heaters use real-time data to manage energy delivery and consumption.

GE Appliances, in partnership with Savant, will integrate its EcoBalance system with Tantalus’ TruSense gateway to cycle individual home appliances, including air and water heating products, to support grid modernisation initiatives.

EcoBalance allows consumers to control their energy management of home appliances, HVAC systems and water heaters. The TruSense gateway is installed between existing meters and meter sockets, eliminating the costly and labour-intensive process of replacing all the meters in a utility service area.

“We helped electrify America and, with our portfolio of innovative smart products and the technology of Tantalus, we can use our shared capabilities to help save consumers money and help save the country’s electrical grid,” said Kevin Nolan, CEO of GE Appliances (geappliancesco.com). “GE Appliances products are currently in half of all US homes, and we have an install base of 26 million connectable appliances, so we have the capacity to work with demand management systems to make a significant impact on saving electricity.”

Tantalus helps more than 285 utilities and energy providers modernise their distribution grids by harnessing the power of data across devices and systems deployed from the substation to home appliances, water heaters, HVAC systems or electric vehicle chargers. By adding Tantalus to EcoBalance, products will be able to communicate with energy companies. For example, refrigerator defrost or ice cycles can run during off-peak hours, water heaters can be charged with energy for use later in the day, and HVAC systems can be adjusted a few degrees to save energy and reduce peak demand.

These capabilities can be leveraged to help utilities reduce their carbon footprint and balance energy load profiles, without sacrificing performance or style. In addition, the technology is useful when utilities are planning for natural disasters. Certain items, such as water heaters, can be charged with electricity in advance of an incoming storm and used as a thermal storage device if power is disrupted.

“In partnership with GE Appliances and Savant, Tantalus’ new TruSense gateway will provide utilities with the visibility, command and control they need over the distribution grid and allow them to better serve customers as a wider range of smart appliances and electric vehicles are adopted,” said Peter Londa, CEO of Tantalus Systems. “By harnessing the power of data from devices located behind the meter, we can further accelerate grid modernisation efforts. We are honoured to join GE Appliances’ EcoBalance system and work alongside their team to improve a utility’s resiliency, reliability and sustainability.”

North Carolina-based Tantalus (www.tantalus.com) is a technology company dedicated to helping utilities modernise their distribution grids by harnessing the power of data across all their devices and systems deployed throughout the entire distribution grid.