Schneider Electric announced its entrance and commitment to the residential market on the show floor at this month’s Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. Schneider’s Square D Connected Home comprises devices and applications to help homeowners consolidate connected home, appliance and energy management into one intuitive digital experience.
 
In addition, the company previewed a collection of switches, dimmers, receptacles, plugs and sensors that will be available later in 2020 across USA, Canada and Mexico.
 
French company Schneider Electric brings nearly two centuries of expertise in energy management and automation to benefit the residential segment, providing consumers with digital control, safety, insights and efficiency in their homes. One in five homes globally use Schneider Electric products. Square D is a well-recognised brand in the US market, and it joined Schneider Electric in 1991.
 
As more homes become connected and the world increasingly relies on electricity, it’s expected that international energy consumption will double by 2050. In addition, extreme weather conditions and rising demand place strain on grid infrastructure and can result in blackouts or power outages. Schneider Electric provides the digital tools, insights and control to help homeowners manage their electricity usage and reduce disruption.
 
“The consumers’ relationship with electric power has traditionally been one-sided: your utility delivers it, you use it and you pay the bill,” said Manish Pant, executive vice president at Schneider Electric. “However, even with the rising number of connected home devices, energy management – perhaps the most critical for safety, control and sustainability – has yet to be thoughtfully addressed for the consumer. We believe it’s time to give consumers the needed digital tools to feel confident, safe and committed to using energy in ways that both enhance their day-to-day lives and reflect their values and ideals long into the future.”
 
A survey of US homeowners found that nearly three-quarters consider efficiency the primary benefit of smart home technology, followed by energy conservation (59 per cent).
 
Schneider Electric marries the consumer’s lifestyle needs for a smart home with its understanding of the new electric world, where homes are becoming more electric and more digital, as well as a world with a growing availability of renewable energy sources. Schneider designs products and services as an open platform to enable interoperability between connected home devices. This allows consumers to live in comfortable, digitally connected homes with greater control over electricity use contributing to a more sustainable and beautiful world.
 
The Wiser Energy system, a connected home option from Square D, helps educate consumers on the energy usage of devices across their home, including devices that are not smart or connected. It detects and identifies all appliances within the home and uses Schneider Electric’s grid-to-plug advantage to manage the flow of electric energy delivered from the electric grid to the devices and appliances plugged in at home.
 
Consumers can then use the Square D version of the Sense app or voice assistants including Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant to track energy usage digitally, receive updates if the dryer cycle is still running, or get alerts if an appliance is malfunctioning or requires service. This information allows homeowners to reduce the risk of potential expensive energy bills, deliver protection and safety for their home, or, for those with alternate energy sources such as solar, control and manage how appliances leverage different energy sources.
 
The Square D Energy Hub is powered by Wiser Energy and helps provide consumers and contractors with an enhanced automation and intelligent backup power experience for the home. The Energy Hub is designed to support critical loads during power outages, while giving the homeowner the ability to adjust dynamically how backup power is delivered to their devices as needed.