Power usage monitoring made easy

Gemini Data Loggers has developed an Energy Logger, a safe and non-invasive tool for monitoring power usage of individual devices and complete premises/installations. It provides the level of performance required by experts with the simplicity of use required by energy management novices, and is suitable for assessment of energy efficiency of both single and three phase power supplies.

The Energy Logger enables clear assessment of energy efficiency for rapid identification of power hungry or inefficient equipment, peak load and unnecessary idling times – in turn allowing significant cost savings to be made through implementation of new equipment and processes.

The Tinytag Energy Logger can be used as both a hand-held unit for spot checks and as a data logger for longer term monitoring. Operation is deliberately easy; logging can be initiated by the touch of a button, so users do not need a laptop to operate the device on site. In common with all Tinytag products, the logger is configured with Tinytag Explorer software that does not require user training and which has been developed for flexibility and simplicity.

Lightweight, portable and self-configuring, the device does not require the exposure of any live wires or terminals so it is also safe. Non-invasive flexible coils are used to monitor the current in each phase of a three phase supply while the voltage information may be obtained via a standard 13A wall socket. As a result, novice users are able to quickly and simply record energy usage information, whilst expert users can use the unit to record more detailed information about the supply. For example, the instrument provides 'Power Factor' (PF) data which is a measure of power transmission efficiency. The PF is significant because of the way power companies bill their customers; they will usually charge a higher rate for industrial or commercial customers with a low PF.

The Energy Logger will prove an essential tool for organisations aiming for a reduction in their energy consumption and assist them with their objectives for achieving or maintaining the ISO 14001 environmental standard. In such cases the Energy Logger provides straightforward, detailed and accurate assessment of energy usage, enabling the necessary steps to be made for improved performance.

Nigel Palmer, Sales Manager at Gemini Data Loggers, is delighted with the Tinytag Energy Logger. He says "Cost reduction is obviously a major benefit of this device; not just in terms of lower electricity bills, but also, for many organisations, in compliance with the CRC EES regulations. Electricity consumption is also a significant component of a company's carbon footprint and as such the effective evaluation of energy efficiency is an important part of environmental or sustainability policy.”

The Energy Logger is the latest in a series of data loggers that have been developed by Gemini for a wide range of applications over the last 19 years. It joins a range of conventional stand-alone data loggers and a radio data logging system designed to support a range of energy efficiency applications, by monitoring temperature, humidity and other environmental parameters.

• Tiny Tag products are marketed in Ireland by Manotherm!