BALTIMORE — Constellation, a business unit of Exelon, has announced the nationwide launch of VirtuWatt™ Link, a web service application to facilitate automated load response program participation. According to the company, VirtuWatt Link allows a facility’s existing building automation system to manage load curtailment automatically based upon energy market signals and pre-set scenarios, without the installation of redundant or proprietary building controls hardware.

By reducing the upfront cost associated with load response automation, VirtuWatt Link enables a broader range of facility types and sizes to participate in a wider array of energy market programs, said Constellation. VirtuWatt Link is an extension of the company’s VirtuWatt energy management platform, which allows commercial and industrial customers to monitor energy usage in real time and schedule load curtailments for load response programs.

“VirtuWatt Link provides a leap forward for our customers and building automation vendors in making facilities behave intelligently, by efficiently connecting existing automation infrastructure to energy market signals,” said Gary Fromer, senior vice president, load response for Constellation. “This nexus of market access, intelligence, and surgical action enables commercial, industrial, and institutional power users to be proactive and strategic about how and when electricity is used, without compromising business operations or requiring wholesale replacement of existing controls infrastructure.”

Companies that offer a variety of energy management and automation solutions, from customer-specific to broad-in-scope, are teaming with Constellation to implement VirtuWatt Link as a pre-integrated, value-add option.

During the beta release of the solution, Trane created a VirtuWatt Link adapter for its Tracer™ and TIS platforms, which is now live and supporting load response programs at Trane’s Texas facilities.

Vedero Software, a software provider of automated demand response services for office complexes, schools, hospitals, and data centers, has integrated the VirtuWatt Link product with its cloud-based energy and load management platform.

VirtuWatt Link is designed to provide comprehensive load response and security services, including authentication access control, ISO event dispatch notification and acknowledgement, and utility meter usage data. It can be integrated to any energy management or controls system that utilizes web services. Its architecture is designed to handle demand response market signals and energy data from utilities and independent system operators (ISOs), and is built to accommodate developing demand response protocol standards, such as OpenADR 2.0.

For more information, visit www.constellation.com.

Publication date: 12/24/2012