Landis+Gyr deploys 10 million connected devices for Japanese utility

Landis+Gyr has deployed over 10 million advanced meters and devices on Tokyo Electric Power’s (TEPCO) IoT utility network. “In doing so, this complex project has now reached a breadth and deployment pace which is unparalleled in the utility industry,” said Landis+Gyr in a statement. The installation is a part of TEPCO’s grid modernisation project.

“The target for completion is in 2020, and I believe it can be accelerated, as benefits provided to meeting the customer needs are strong,” commented Hiroshi Yamaguchi, executive vice president, TEPCO.

Driving this connected platform is Landis+Gyr’s IPv6 multitechnology network that connects utility and consumer devices using RF Mesh, G3 PLC and cellular communications, providing Wi-SUN compliant connectivity to the premise.

Currently, the network is moving data between devices at a rate of 513 million interval reads per day. Upon completion, the TEPCO deployment will include more than 27 million meters and millions of other devices transmitting 1.3 billion interval data packets daily. All of these messages are processed by Landis+Gyr’s head-end system and meter data management solution.

“The challenges of routing and managing this magnitude of data are real, but we’ve been able to meet deployment objectives and are positioned to complete the project ahead of schedule,” said Richard Mora, CEO of Landis+Gyr.

Landis+Gyr’s network and grid management technology supports multiple smart grid and smart city initiatives at TEPCO. For example, deregulation of the Japanese electric market in April 2016 required all meter reads for customers using an alternative retailer to be pushed to a common portal every 30 minutes, allowing the energy retailers near real-time access to customer data. Other performance targets include the ability to operate 6.5 million demand response requests per hour over the same network.

With an average of 1 million smart meters and devices being installed every three months, the utility eclipsed the 10-million-meter mark in less than three full years of deployment. Within seven years, TEPCO will have 30 million utility and consumer devices operating on the network.

TEPCO is the largest electric utility in Japan and 4th largest in the world. The utility provides electric service to 45 million people in Japan’s Kantô region, which includes the city of Tokyo, Yamanashi Prefecture and the eastern portion of Shizuoka Prefecture.