The challenge most maintenance and engineering managers face when making energy-management decisions is that they have little or no hard data. The most effective way of gathering that data is through submetering technology. By installing submeters on various electrical loads throughout a building, managers gain hard data on the location and timing of energy use. With that knowledge comes the ability to manage use and costs.
Now, the National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA) has issued a new standard designed to improve the accuracy of submeters. The standard, Electrical Submeter—Current Sensor Accuracy ANSI/NEMA SM 31000-7-2021, covers metrological requirements and associated testing for current sensors used with electrical energy submeters to assess accuracy. It applies to multiple sensor technologies with a variety of outputs. These sensors enable current measurement for AC and DC electrical submetering.
The entire SM 31000 standards series assists facility managers as they expand the use of electrical submeters in energy management applications by giving them confidence in quality measurement. This standard series is written for Nationally Recognized Testing Laboratories (NRTL) U.S. Department of Energy, state and local energy departments, facility managers, and electrical engineering firms.
