WEB-ENABLED ION® POWER METERS BY POWER MEASUREMENT USE MODBUS® MASTER TO EXTEND REACH ACROSS FACTORY FLOOR

July 27, 2001
VICTORIA, BC (July 27, 2001) — Power Measurement, a leading provider of enterprise energy management systems, has added Modbus® master communications capability to its web-enabled ION 7500™ and ION 7600™ energy and power quality meters. The feature extends the "reach" of the meters' monitoring and control capabilities across a factory floor, within a utility substation, or throughout a commercial facility by integrating a network of Modbus-compatible devices. This provides facility managers, utility engineers and systems integrators with a low-cost solution for sub-metering, sub-feeder monitoring, or equipment monitoring and control.

VICTORIA, BC (July 27, 2001) — Power Measurement, a leading provider of enterprise energy management systems, has added Modbus® master communications capability to its web-enabled ION 7500™ and ION 7600™ energy and power quality meters. The feature extends the "reach" of the meters' monitoring and control capabilities across a factory floor, within a utility substation, or throughout a commercial facility by integrating a network of Modbus-compatible devices. This provides facility managers, utility engineers and systems integrators with a low-cost solution for sub-metering, sub-feeder monitoring, or equipment monitoring and control.

Typically installed at a key electrical distribution point, an ION 7500 or ION 7600 meter with Modbus master capability can perform tasks similar to a remote terminal unit (RTU), reading physical parameters such as temperature, pressure, gas or steam flow, or equipment on/off status from a variety of Modbus slave devices such as breakers, heating/ventilating system sensors, or other utility meters. It can also integrate downstream energy measurements on feeders, processes or tenants by reading other ION meters or third-party sub-metering equipment on a Modbus network. Unlike an RTU, each ION meter can also aggregate and process collected data on-board, display it locally on its large LCD screen, and communicate information to head-end systems over reliable Internet, Ethernet, serial, or modem links.

Both ION meters offer new MeterM@il® features, making energy, power quality, and Modbus device information accessible through e-mail. With MeterM@il, the ION meters can be configured to send alarm messages to key facility personnel for timely notification of critical conditions. Also, trended data can be sent on a scheduled or event-driven basis via e-mail, to support integration with applications such as energy reporting services. The company soon also plans to make Modbus device information accessible from any popular Web browser using each meter's new WebMeter™ feature.

Both the ION 7500 and ION 7600 meters can also make automated control decisions based on data from networked Modbus devices, for applications such as load shedding or power factor control. The meters can monitor and trend on Modbus device data to help identify inefficiencies, then take direct corrective actions or alert staff to the problem via email, web, pager or other methods.

The ION 7500 and ION 7600 meters are also fully supported by the ION Enterprise™ energy management software by Power Measurement, and provide communications protocol compatibility with third-party automation systems, including support for industry-standard XML format information exchange.

Support for Modbus master communications is now available on all ION 7500 and ION 7600 panel-mount meters, as well as on the company's ION 8400 and ION 8500 socket-mount models. For more information, call Power Measurement toll free at 877-METER-IT or visit the Power Measurement web site at www.pml.com.

Power Measurement is the leading provider of enterprise energy management systems for energy suppliers and consumers worldwide. The company's ION® web-ready software and intelligent electronic devices comprise a complete real-time information and control network that supports billing for complex energy contracts and helps improve power quality, reduce energy costs and keep operations running enterprise-wide, 24 hours a day.

ION, ION Enterprise, MeterM@il and WebMeter are trademarks of Power Measurement. Modbus is a trademark of Modicon, Inc.

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