Next-generation IoT meter readers produced by Guru Systems are set to be installed in hundreds of homes at Barking Riverside, a brand new neighbourhood of 10,800 homes being built on the former Barking power station site in London and one of the biggest regeneration programmes in the country.

The development is being delivered by Barking Riverside Limited, a joint venture between the London & Quadrant (L&Q) New Homes and the Mayor of London. The scheme will create a brand new riverfront town in East London which, in addition to the thousands of new homes will include new schools and commercial and cultural offerings along 2km of the Thames river.

As part of the scheme, L&Q will build a new heat network to provide low-carbon heat to buildings on the site, and the project will see Guru Systems’ Hub 2 devices installed on 670 homes.

The Hub II, which was unveiled by Guru Systems at the beginning of 2018, has been designed to improve residents’ experience of living on heat networks. It is the most advanced smart payment and utility monitoring system available, providing real-time data to residents and heat providers on energy usage via a wireless mesh network.

The technology is always on and eliminates the need for manual meter reads, ensuring residents are only charged for the heat they use.

Casey Cole, CEO at Guru Systems, said:

We are delighted to be working with L&Q to install our smart technology to homes across this major regeneration project, which will benefit hundreds of families by providing them with a simple way to control and monitor their energy use.

Heat networks are playing a vital part in the UK’s transition to a low-cost, low-carbon energy system. Our aim is to enable residents living on the networks to have the best possible experience, and to make designing, building, and running heat networks more efficient for both developers, operators, and customers.

Guru Systems has designed Hub 2 in conjunction with residents living on heat networks to ensure it is the most accessible, user-friendly system ever built, with a full colour display showing credit balance, instantaneous demand and consumption, tariff and standing charge data, CO2 emissions, and a custom messaging service.

The system can manage and monitor up to five utility accounts and control three external control devices, such as shut-off valves.

Hub II meters also provide data to Guru Systems’ award-winning Guru Pinpoint platform, which monitors the overall performance of a heat network and spots inefficiencies and faults on a network before they cause costly inefficiencies that can lead to rising bills.

Guru Systems technology is currently installed on more than 100 heat networks across the UK.