For panel builders and consultants
Panel builders and consultants: specify monitoring and control that stay in the plant.
Your client asks for an energy monitoring system, and may want some loads controlled too. You want a line in the BOQ that is easy to wire, easy to hand over and keeps the client’s data off someone else’s server. Here is how KONDUKTOR® EMS fits your panel, with a specification you can paste into your tender.
What changes in your panel
| Item | What you do |
|---|---|
| Meters | Use multifunction meters with RS-485. Up to 10 meters on one Modbus RTU bus, mixing brands and single-phase with three-phase. A meter without RS-485 cannot be read. |
| Wiring | One RS-485 line from meter to meter, connected to the gateway. |
| Gateway | One gateway for each bus. More meters, or a panel too far away, means another gateway. No server PC. |
| Network | Gateways join the plant WiFi and show in one plant-wide view that follows the single-line diagram. |
| Control | Add Modbus I/O cards and wire them to the loads your client picks. The system then holds demand under the limit, avoids peak-rate hours, limits solar and DG, and switches off idle machines, with no PLC programming. We engineer it as part of the project. |
| Handover | Your client gets Admin, Operator and Viewer logins, and opens the dashboard in a browser on the plant network. |
Getting the RS-485 wiring right
- Run it as a daisy chain from meter to meter. No star, no long spurs.
- Use shielded twisted pair, and keep it away from power cables.
- Fit a 120 Ω termination at both ends of the line.
- Give every meter its own Modbus ID and the same serial settings.
- One master on each line. If a PLC, SCADA or display already polls the meters, the gateway needs its own line or the meter’s second port.
- Check the plant WiFi signal at the panel with the door closed.
What to send us
- The make and model of every meter, with the register map if you have it.
- The single-line diagram, showing what each meter reads.
- CT and PT ratios.
- The loads your client wants controlled automatically, if any.
We confirm the register map for each meter before installation, and we quote per project.
Specification text for your tender
Free to use. Paste it into your tender or edit it as you like. You do not have to name us or buy from us. Values in [brackets] are yours to set.
- Scope. The system shall record energy, demand, power factor, voltage and current continuously at every point listed in [metering schedule].
- Existing meters. The system shall read installed multifunction meters over RS-485 Modbus RTU, including a mix of makes and of single-phase and three-phase meters on one bus. Replacing working meters shall not be a condition of supply. The bidder shall confirm the register map of every meter make and model before installation.
- Data location. All readings, history and the dashboard shall be stored and served inside the owner’s premises. No reading shall be sent to servers of the bidder or of any third party.
- Data ownership and export. All recorded data belongs to the owner. The owner shall be able to export meter, billing and history data to Excel and CSV files that open without the bidder’s software.
- Working without Internet. Reading, recording, alerts and the dashboard on the plant network shall continue with the Internet disconnected.
- Power failure. Recorded data shall survive a power failure. The clock shall be battery-backed and logging shall restart on its own. Energy used during the outage shall be filled in and marked as estimated.
- Retention. Daily energy and billing figures shall be kept on site for not less than [3] years. The bidder shall state in writing how long 15-minute and hourly data are kept for the quoted number of meters. The system shall take an automatic full-detail backup to a computer inside the plant, kept for as long as the owner chooses.
- No dedicated server. The system shall not need a dedicated server PC.
- Bill figures. For each meter the system shall show kWh, kVAh, Maximum Demand with date and time, power factor and TOD zone units. It shall work out the monthly bill in the format of the DISCOM tariff entered, and shall show the gap when the billed amount is entered.
- Alerts. Alert limits shall be configurable. Alerts shall be evaluated on site without a browser open, and alert history shall be kept on site.
- Access. The system shall provide at least three login levels: Admin, Operator and Viewer.
- Remote access. Any remote access shall be encrypted, shall need no inbound ports on the router or firewall, shall not be exposed to the public Internet and shall be limited to approved devices.
- Updates. The system shall install only software signed for that device.
- Expansion. Further panels shall be added by adding a gateway, shown in one plant-wide view, without replacing what is installed.
- Automatic control. The system shall hold back or switch off the non-essential loads listed in [load schedule] through Modbus I/O modules as the running demand interval nears a configurable limit, and shall restore them in steps. It shall also follow TOD zones and shift schedules. It shall fail safe on loss of communication, keep a manual override and log every action.
- Deviations and demonstration. The bidder shall state every deviation from these clauses in writing, and shall demonstrate clauses 3, 5 and 6 on working equipment, with the Internet disconnected, before acceptance.
What your client gets
- Every reading stays in the plant, and the data is theirs.
- kWh, kVAh, Maximum Demand with the time it happened, power factor and TOD split for each meter.
- The month’s bill worked out in their DISCOM’s format, and the gap against the actual bill.
- Alerts, and remote access with no ports opened on their router.
- Automatic control of chosen loads through Modbus I/O cards, engineered as part of the project: demand held under the limit, peak-rate hours avoided, solar and DG kept within limits, and idle machines switched off.
See how on-premises monitoring works and how sub-metering splits a plant by panel.
Common questions
Can I keep the meter brand I already use?+
Yes, if the meter has RS-485 and speaks Modbus RTU. Different brands and single-phase and three-phase meters can share one bus. Tell us the make and model, and we confirm the register map before installation.
How many meters can one gateway read?+
Up to 10 on one shared bus. For more meters, or a panel too far away for one line, add another gateway. Gateways show together in one plant-wide view, and no server PC is needed.
What do you need from me before installation?+
The make and model of each meter, the single-line diagram, and the CT and PT ratios. Send the register maps if you have them, and check that the plant WiFi reaches each panel.
Can the system control loads as well?+
Yes, through Modbus I/O cards wired to the loads your client picks, with no PLC for you to program. Tell us which loads, their priority and the limits, and we engineer it as part of the project. It works alongside the protection relays, not in place of them.
Can I paste this specification into my tender?+
Yes. It is free to use and you can edit it. You do not have to name us or buy from us. Change the values in brackets to suit the job.
Got a panel or a tender? Send us the meter list.
Share the make and model of each meter and the single-line diagram. We confirm what can be read and quote for your project.