The Sacramento Municipal Utility District is set to roll out a smart grid.
this week, the Sacramento
Municipal Utility District (SMUD) is
set to take its first step toward what promises to be the most significant
development in electricity in a century: the “smart” grid.
Thursday, the SMUD
board is scheduled to approve a 30-month rollout of 620,000 meters for the Internet age. Instead of
today’s “dumb” odometer-style counters, the devices will be brainy
hubs in a new electrical nervous system that promises to save money and power
and foster the next tech
boom.
The big change: Smart meters can talk.
At first, the discussion will stay mostly between the meter and SMUD. A home’s power usage
will be beamed straight to the utility, eliminating the meter-reader’s monthly
visit. If your power goes out, the meter will tell SMUD instantly (now, the utility usually learns of
outages when customers call).
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