In today's technologically advanced world, power monitoring has become an essential aspect of building management. From ensuring energy efficiency...
The Importance of Power Monitoring in UK Social Housing
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The Importance of Power Monitoring in UK Social Housing
In today’s technologically advanced world, power monitoring has become an essential aspect of building management. From ensuring energy efficiency to preventing costly downtimes, power monitoring provides a comprehensive solution for managing and optimising energy usage. This is especially crucial in UK social housing, where efficient energy use can significantly impact the quality of life for residents.
Whether dealing with older housing stock or new builds, implementing power monitoring systems is vital for maintaining and improving living conditions.
What is Power Monitoring?
Power monitoring involves the continuous tracking and analysis of electrical energy usage within a building or housing complex. It can utilize power meters and sensors to measure voltage, current, and other electrical parameters. These components work together to provide detailed insights into energy consumption patterns, helping to identify inefficiencies and areas for improvement.
Vericon’s PowerSense offers comprehensive energy usage monitoring that is both connected and agnostic, making it a versatile solution for various housing setups, including older housing stock and new builds.
Benefits of Power Monitoring:
Energy Efficiency:
Power monitoring helps identify areas of energy wastage, allowing housing managers to implement strategies to optimize energy usage. By analyzing power consumption data, inefficiencies can be pinpointed and corrected, leading to significant energy savings.
Cost Savings:
Reducing energy consumption directly translates to lower utility bills. Additionally, power monitoring can prevent equipment failures by identifying irregularities in energy usage, thereby avoiding costly repairs and downtime. For social housing, these savings can be reinvested in other essential services.
Preventive Maintenance:
With real-time data from power monitoring systems, potential electrical issues can be predicted and addressed before they escalate. This proactive approach to maintenance ensures the longevity and reliability of electrical systems, reducing the likelihood of outages that could disrupt residents’ lives.
Decarbonisation:
Improved energy consumption through power monitoring significantly contributes to decarbonisation efforts. By identifying and eliminating energy inefficiencies, housing providers can reduce the carbon footprint of their properties. This aligns with the UK’s broader goals of achieving net-zero emissions and promoting sustainability.
Applications of Power Monitoring:
Older Housing Stock:
Many social housing units in the UK consist of older buildings that may have outdated electrical systems. Power monitoring can help identify and address inefficiencies in these older systems, ensuring that they operate more efficiently and safely.
New Housing Stock:
In new builds, power monitoring can be integrated from the outset to ensure optimal energy usage. This proactive approach helps in maintaining energy efficiency and reducing long-term operational costs.
Individual Residences:
Residents in social housing can benefit from power monitoring by improving energy efficiency and reducing utility bills. Smart home technologies that integrate power monitoring can provide real-time feedback on energy usage, empowering residents to make informed decisions about their energy consumption.
Critical Facilities in Social Housing:
Ensuring uninterrupted power supply in community centers, healthcare facilities, and other critical infrastructure within social housing complexes is vital. Power monitoring ensures these facilities operate smoothly by detecting and addressing potential power issues promptly.
Portfolio Management
Housing providers can monitor a full portfolio of homes through a single portal. This centralised management system allows for a holistic view of energy consumption across multiple properties, making it easier to identify patterns, address inefficiencies, and implement energy-saving measures on a broader scale.
How Residents Benefit:
Residents benefit from reduced utility bills and more reliable services. By identifying and addressing energy inefficiencies, housing providers can ensure that residents have access to consistent heating, lighting, and other essential services without unexpected interruptions.
Vericon’s PowerSense also aids in monitoring future heating systems as the industry transitions away from gas-fired boilers, ensuring residents continue to receive efficient and sustainable heating solutions.
The Integration of IoT and Smart Technologies:
The integration of Internet of Things (IoT) and smart technologies is set to revolutionise power monitoring. Advanced sensors and analytics will provide even more granular insights into energy consumption. These technologies facilitate real-time monitoring and control, allowing for immediate adjustments to optimise energy usage.
Vericon’s smart technologies, such as the HomeHub App, offer features like direct communication with residents and real-time monitoring, enhancing the overall effectiveness of power monitoring systems.
The Integration of IoT and Smart Technologies:
The integration of Internet of Things (IoT) and smart technologies is set to revolutionise power monitoring. Advanced sensors and analytics will provide even more granular insights into energy consumption. These technologies facilitate real-time monitoring and control, allowing for immediate adjustments to optimise energy usage.
Vericon’s smart technologies, such as the HomeHub App, offer features like direct communication with residents and real-time monitoring, enhancing the overall effectiveness of power monitoring systems.
Power monitoring is not just a luxury but a necessity in today’s energy-conscious world. By adopting power monitoring solutions, housing managers can enhance energy efficiency, reduce costs, and ensure the smooth operation of their facilities.
Improved energy consumption through power monitoring plays a crucial role in decarbonisation efforts, supporting the UK’s commitment to achieving net-zero emissions. The ability to monitor a full portfolio of homes through a single portal further simplifies management and maximises efficiency.
Embracing these technologies will pave the way for more sustainable and efficient building management practices, ultimately improving the quality of life for residents.
Would you like to find out more?
For more information about how Vericon’s power monitoring products can benefit your housing projects call 01242 582 555 or email [email protected]
Together, we can make a significant impact in combating fuel poverty and ensuring a better future for social housing.
Simplifying Emergency Lighting Testing for Social Housing Professionals
Ensuring the safety and compliance of emergency lighting in social housing properties is a critical responsibility for landlords. Traditional testing methods can be cumbersome, costly, and time-consuming. However, Vericon Systems offers an innovative solution to streamline this process, making it more efficient and reliable with our EmeRed device.
The Importance of Emergency Lighting Compliance
All landlords have a statutory requirement to ensure the emergency lights within a property are operational and capable of illuminating an area for three hours according to BS5266. This is essential to guarantee that residents can safely exit a building or that emergency services can enter during a crisis.
Introducing EmeRed: A Smarter Solution
The EmeRed device is a retrofittable product designed to carry out all statutory testing requirements under BS5266, BS50172, and other relevant standards. Once installed within an existing emergency luminaire or pre-installed in a new fitting, the EmeRed device automates the testing process for the next 10 years.
Key Benefits of EmeRed
Cost-Effective Compliance:
With a return on investment of under two years, EmeRed significantly reduces the costs associated with traditional testing methods.
Automated Testing:
EmeRed conducts monthly operational “flick” tests and an annual three-hour drain down test, simulating a loss of power and ensuring the battery’s capacity is sufficient.
Streamlined Reporting:
The system prepares monthly compliance reports and stores them for convenient downloading. Exception reporting ensures that the electrical team is notified only when a light requires attention.
Risk Mitigation:
Unlike traditional methods, EmeRed tests lights individually, ensuring that no adjacent lights are tested within 36 hours of each other, thus never leaving an area at risk.
Simplified Commissioning Process
The commissioning process for EmeRed is straightforward. An electrician follows a simple three-step app-based process, creating an accurate asset schedule and confirming the electrical works are correct. This includes capturing essential details such as lamp type, battery type and capacity, and inverter type.
Enhancing Safety and Efficiency
Traditional emergency light testing methods often involve isolating the permanent live supply to a complete lighting circuit, which can leave an area without emergency lighting for 24-36 hours. EmeRed’s individual light testing approach ensures continuous coverage and eliminates the need for additional risk mitigation measures such as supplying torches or manning corridors.
Would you like to find out more?
For more information about EmeRed and our other products complete the form on this page and we will be in contact, alternatively please get in contact us by calling 01242 582 555.
Ensuring Efficient and Reliable Boiler Performance
Heating system failures are not only a major source of tenant complaints but also contribute significantly to reactive maintenance expenses. As such, social housing providers must adopt innovative strategies to optimise heating management, improve efficiency, and ensure reliable performance. Let’s explore traditional gas boiler monitoring and how social housing providers can leverage advanced solutions from Vericon Systems to achieve these goals.
The Challenge of Heating System Failures
Heating and hot water system failures account for the highest share of reactive maintenance expenses in social housing. These failures are disruptive, costly, and generate the most complaints from tenants. The traditional approach to boiler maintenance, which relies heavily on reactive repairs following a failure, is inefficient and often results in prolonged periods of discomfort for tenants.
The Benefits of Boiler Monitoring
Monitoring the health of a boiler enables maintenance providers to shift from a reactive to a proactive maintenance approach. By leveraging advanced monitoring solutions, maintenance teams can remotely manage issues, dispatch engineers proactively, and schedule preventive maintenance. This integrated planned and preventative maintenance program not only reduces downtime but also extends the lifespan of the boiler, ultimately leading to cost savings and improved tenant satisfaction.
How Vericon Can Help
Vericon Systems offers innovative boiler and air source heat pump monitoring products designed to meet the unique needs of social housing providers. Our BCM (Boiler Control Module) and other monitoring solutions provide real-time insights into the health and performance of heating systems, allowing for timely interventions and efficient management.
Key Features of Vericons Boiler Monitoring Solutions:
Remote Monitoring:
Enables maintenance teams to monitor the health and performance of boilers remotely, reducing the need for on-site visits.
Proactive Maintenance:
Allows for the early detection of potential issues, enabling proactive maintenance and reducing the likelihood of system failures.
Data-Driven Insights:
Provides valuable data on boiler performance, helping maintenance teams make informed decisions and optimise heating management.
Cost Efficiency:
Reduces reactive maintenance expenses and extends the lifespan of heating systems, leading to significant cost savings.
Optimising heating management is essential to improving efficiency and ensuring reliable performance. By adopting advanced boiler monitoring solutions from Vericon, social housing providers can transition to a proactive maintenance approach, reduce downtime, and enhance tenant satisfaction.
Investing in these innovative products not only addresses the immediate challenges of heating system failures but also paves the way for a more efficient and cost-effective future.
Would you like to find out more?
For more information about how Vericon’s boiler monitoring can benefit your housing projects call 01242 582 555 or email [email protected]
Optimising Efficiency with Air Source Heat Pump Monitoring
As housing providers strive to meet the evolving needs of residents while adhering to regulatory standards, the adoption of innovative technologies becomes crucial. One such technology that is revolutionising the sector is the installation of air source heat pumps, particularly when integrated with comprehensive performance monitoring.
Why Air Source Heat Pump Monitoring?
Airsource heat pumps (ASHP) offer an eco-friendly alternative to traditional heating systems. They extract heat from the air outside and use it to heat homes, significantly reducing carbon footprints and energy costs. However, to maximise their efficiency, consistent monitoring and proactive maintenance are essential. This is where Vericon Systems steps in with its advanced software and hardware solutions.
Unlocking Real-Time Insights
Vericon’s monitoring solutions provide housing providers with real-time insights into the performance and efficiency of ASHPs. By utilising advanced data analytics and AI-driven algorithms, Vericon enables proactive management of heating systems. This not only optimises energy usage but also enhances the overall resident experience by ensuring consistent and reliable heating.
Proactive Maintenance and Risk Management
One of the standout features of Vericon’s monitoring system is its ability to generate proactive maintenance alerts. By analysing data patterns, the system can predict potential issues before they escalate, allowing for timely intervention. This reduces the risk of system failures and minimises downtime, ensuring residents are not left without heating during critical times.
Vericon’s solutions include comprehensive risk management tools. These tools help identify properties at risk of fuel poverty by monitoring room temperatures and energy usage. By flagging these risks early, housing providers can take necessary actions to support vulnerable residents.
Seamless Integration and Autonomous Intervention
Vericon’s solutions are designed to integrate seamlessly with existing infrastructure. Our hardware can be taken off a traditional gas boiler and installed directly onto the new ASHP. This agnostic approach ensures that housing providers can adopt the technology without overhauling their current systems. Once integrated, the system autonomously intervenes based on the insights generated, delivering actionable intelligence that enhances operational efficiencies and reduces costs.
Enhancing Resident Engagement
A unique feature of Vericon’s ASHP monitoring system is the booster notification icon on the touch screen interface. This feature informs residents when the booster heater is being used, empowering them to manage their energy consumption more effectively. Such engagement not only fosters a sense of responsibility among residents but also contributes to overall energy conservation efforts.
Future-Proofing
Vericon is committed to continuous development and innovation. The in-house development team is constantly working on expanding the system’s capabilities.
Further enhancements include other future heating options like hydrogen boiler monitoring, ensuring the system remains at the forefront of technology and continues to deliver unparalleled benefits.
Ensuring Compliance and Validating Competency
Compliance and competency validation are integral to maintaining high standards in social housing. Vericon’s system includes an audit trail that details all user-system interactions, ensuring transparency and accountability. Additionally, the system records engineer details through QR code scans, which can be cross-referenced with training records to validate that only suitably qualified engineers are performing repairs.
Adopting Vericon’s air source heat pump monitoring solutions presents a transformative opportunity for social housing providers. By unlocking real-time insights, enabling proactive maintenance, and fostering resident engagement, Vericon helps providers optimise efficiency and sustainability.
With continuous development and a commitment to innovation, Vericon stands out as the ideal partner for housing providers looking to enhance their operations and improve the resident experience.
Would you like to find out more?
For more information about how Vericon’s heating monitoring products can benefit your housing projects call 01242 582 555 or email [email protected]
Prioritising Resident Safety: Combating Fuel Poverty and Enhancing Energy Efficiency
The official number of people who live in a low income household with poor energy efficiency in England in 2024 is 3.17 million, according to the latest government statistics. With over 8 million adults in 2023/24 living in cold and damp homes contributing to worening pressure on the public health system.
Vericon Systems, a leader in smart building solutions, offers intelligently designed remote technology that provides powerful data to improve efficiency, reduces costs, improves compliance, and continuously improves the living conditions of people in rented accommodation.
Source:Inside Housing Survey
Current Challenges
Aging Infrastructure
Much of the UK’s social housing stock consists of older buildings with poor insulation, leading to high energy consumption. Upgrading this aging infrastructure is essential and retrofit projects are happening up and down the country.
– Poor Insulation
Inadequate insulation means more heat escapes, requiring more energy to maintain comfortable temperatures but also means that the external walls are colder increasing the risk of condensation and therefore mould.
– Drafts and Leaking Air
Traditional building techniques and building products weren’t focused on air tightness, for example drafts around doors and windows, resulting in higher greater loss of heat and therefore increased costs to maintain heat in a property.
– High Energy Consumption
Inefficient heating systems and poor building design lead to excessive energy use.
– Increased Maintenance Costs
Older infrastructure often requires more frequent and costly repairs.
How does this link to Fuel Poverty?
– Energy Bills
Poor insulation and inefficient heating systems lead to higher energy consumption, which in turn results in higher energy bills. If the heating system in a property is working harder than it needs to, to keep a property warm, the chance of a breakdown is increased. For residents who are already financially vulnerable, this can lead to significant hardship.
– Health and Safety Risks
Inadequate heating can lead to cold, damp living conditions, which can cause or exacerbate health issues such as respiratory problems and mental health conditions. These conditions can lead to mould growth which in turn can lead to legal action being taken by the resident.
– Resource Constraints and Problem Awareness
Upgrading the infrastructure is essential to address these issues, social housing providers often face limited resources. This means they must prioritise the most urgent repairs and upgrades. However, these upgrades can only be made if housing providers are aware of the problems.
It’s understandable that residents might feel hesitant to report issues due to feelings of embarrassment, such as struggling to pay a gas bill, or confusion about the root cause of a problem, like the unexpected growth of mould in their home. This hesitation can sometimes prevent the essential repairs and upgrades that are needed.
Lack of Real-Time Data
Without access to real-time energy usage and environmental data, it is challenging for social housing providers to identify inefficiencies and areas for improvement. Implementing data-driven solutions is crucial for effective energy management and resident safety.
This lack of data leads to several issues
– Delayed Detection of Problems
Without real-time monitoring, inefficiencies such as excessive energy usage or poor heating performance may go unnoticed until they are escalate into significant issues.
– Reactive Maintenance
Housing providers are often forced to rely on reactive maintenance, addressing problems only after they are reported by residents or forced to take action, rather than proactively preventing them at a fraction of the cost.
– Inaccurate Assessments
In the absence of accurate data, it becomes difficult to assess the true performance of properties and identify which buildings need urgent upgrades. These assessments may include interviews with residents which doesnt give the full picture about how the property is being used.
How does this link to Fuel Poverty?
– Energy Bills
Without the ability to monitor energy usage in real-time, it is difficult to identify and rectify inefficiencies. This results in higher energy consumption and, consequently, higher energy bills for residents.
– Missed Opportunities for Improvement
Real-time data can pinpoint areas where minor adjustments, such as addressing an ineffective or switched-off extractor fan, could drastically lower energy consumption. By identifying these issues early, costs can be limited to £100 instead of thousands, breaking the cycle of inefficiency and high expenses.
– Health and Safety Risks
Environmental factors such as humidity and temperature can impact the health and safety of residents. Without real-time data, issues like mould growth or inadequate heating may not be addressed promptly, leading to adverse health effects.
everaging Vericon Systems to Enhance Resident Safety
Smart Building Technologies for Safety
Installing Vericon technology gives social housing providers the data needed to take proactive steps forward in caring for their vulnerable residents.
This technology provides real-time data on various aspects of the property, such as boiler activity, room level temperature & humidity and energy usage.
By identifying issues early, housing providers can take proactive measures to address them, ensuring that properties are maintained to a good standard while highlighting fuel poverty risks. This not only helps in maintaining the aging infrastructure but also improves the living conditions for residents.
By installing these technologies, social housing providers can:
– Ensure Safe Living Conditions
Maintain consistent and adequate heating levels, while preventing dangerous temperature fluctuations that may compromise resident health.
– Reduce Energy Costs
Optimise energy use and reduce waste, leading to lower energy bills for residents and the housing provider.
– Proactively Address Maintenance Issues
Detect and address potential issues before they escalate, ensuring the safety and well-being of residents.
– Validate work packages
Where work has been carried out to address a specific issue real time monitoring can confirm he validity of the work but also highlight any additional issues created by the works.
– Enhance Asset Management
Extend the lifespan of heating systems, while reducing downtime in the colder months. Learn more about the Vericon Summer Boiler Health Check.
Real-Time Data and Analytics
Vericon’s remote monitoring capabilities allow social housing providers to detect and address maintenance issues proactively, preventing potential safety hazards caused by faulty equipment or infrastructure. Regular maintenance and timely repairs can extend the lifespan of heating systems and other energy-related infrastructure, reducing the risk of safety incidents.
– Boiler Monitoring
Ensure the safety of residents by continuously monitoring the boiler’s performance and detecting any malfunctions or potential hazards. It also enables efficient energy usage and allows housing providers to have a better understanding of their assets. This data can also highlight fuel poverty related risks such as:
- Flow temperature
- Target room temperature
- Is there an active gas supply
– Temperature & Humidity
Vericon technology enables remote monitoring giving housing providers real-time visibility into property environmental conditions.
Vericon’s advance algorithms will analyse the data collected from sensors placed within the property to determine the risk level and the severity, allowing the most serious cases to be addressed first. The data, available online will give an insight to the changes throughout the day, and additional in sight to the cause before planned works or interventions are defined. This data can also highlight fuel poverty related risks such as:
- Single room occupancy
- A vulnerable resident
- A void property
– Power Usage
By monitoring power usage, housing providers can identify areas with high energy consumption and implement energy-saving measures for significant cost savings on utility bills. This data can also highlight fuel poverty related risks such as:
– Inconsistent Appliance Usage
Erratic patterns of appliance usage might show that residents are only using certain appliances at specific times or days.
– Underheating
Residents maybe using significantly less electricity than expected, it may indicate that they are underheating their homes to save money.
The integration of Vericon Systems’ smart building technologies presents a viable solution to enhancing resident safety, improving energy efficiency, and reducing fuel poverty in social housing. By leveraging real-time data, remote monitoring, and proactive maintenance capabilities, social housing providers can ensure safe living conditions, optimise energy use, reduce costs, and stay compliant.
These advancements are crucial in creating a more sustainable, safe, and fair future for social housing residents.
Would you like to find out more?
Contact Vericon Systems today to book a demo and see firsthand how intelligently designed remote technology solutions can transform your housing operations and support your residents.
Tel: 01242 582 555 or email [email protected]
Together, we can make a significant impact in combating fuel poverty and ensuring a better future for social housing.