Lesstricity

Project Outline

In 2005, the DTI reported that electrical appliances on standby soak up around 6% of the total UK domestic electricity consumption and the country's 200 largest companies wasted £61 million annually as a result of leaving computers on standby overnight. This resulted in an electricity wastage of nearly 20,000GWh in 2004, far exceeding the total electricity generated from renewable sources in the UK of 14,171GWh in the same year and an equivalent carbon emission of nearly 2.5MtC was estimated for this wastage.

So, when it comes to the impact businesses are having on the environment - what does the future hold; and, more importantly, what are we doing to change it?

With a keen focus on environmental and social responsibility, The Technology Strategy Board has announced it is to invest in the LESSTRICITY - Wireless Electricity Management System R&D project to tackle the ever increasing problem that energy consumption is having on the planet. This development aims to assist businesses to reduce their carbon footprint and the impact they are currently having on the environment.

LESSTRICITY aims to develop a centralised wireless management system capable of eliminating the wasteful use of electrical power from appliances left switched on or in standby mode. The LESSTRICITY system will be self-sustaining and flexible to enable control of both multiple and remote buildings. This innovative system will offer easy installation into new and existing buildings, transparency to users, low operating cost, and an "advanced metering" capability for expansion into an integrated Building Management System (BMS).

The initial target market for the LESSTRICITY technology will be the industrial, commercial and public services sectors, which make up of nearly 52% of the UK electricity consumption with a year-on-year rise of approximately 4% and where incentives to monitor power use are high. A DEFRA report in 2004 showed that UK businesses wasted 30% of energy purchased and for many, a 20% cut in energy costs would represent a bottom-line benefit equivalent to a 5% increase in sales and rising given the price increase of £5-10/MWh annually.

Built around a wireless sensor network (WSN), this unique centralised energy saving/management system offers the advantages of quantifiable cost savings and ROI, non-intrusive installation into existing and new buildings, transparent operation to users and self-sustainability. Once the cost model of the technology is established at the industrial and commercial levels, the system will be introduced to domestic users. It is estimated that successful development of the LESSTRICITY system could potentially save up to 5-10% of total UK electricity consumption, an estimated saving of £600-800million and a reduction in emissions of 1.5-2MtC - in line with the objective in the UK's Climate Change Programme and Energy Policy

The LESSTRICITY consortium represents a complete synergistic supply chain, being composed of an RTO, industrial companies and technology end-users.