N.C. a linchpin in U.S. smart grid
A report published Sunday by Greentech Media suggests that the Research Triangle area of North Carolina is quite a linchpin in the “smart grid” industry.
For starters, the 610,000 smart meters that Raleigh-based Sensus USA Inc. shipped in the first three months of the year made it the second-largest such vendor in the United States and gave the Raleigh-based company a 21 percent market share, according to Green Tech Media.
Moreover, national leader Itron (Nasdaq:ITRI), while based in the Spokane, Wash., area, counts Raleigh as one of its largest locations, and recently disclosed plans to double its local presence to 400 employees. Itron accounted for fully 34 percent of the smart meters shipped in the first quarter.
And Raleigh-based Elster Solutions LLC, the smart-grid arm of a German company, ranked No. 5, with an 8 percent share.
The term “smart meter” refers to devices that can communicate usage data back and forth with the customer and with the utility company. Smart meters are the most immediately visible aspect of “smart” utility grids, which use software and mathematical algorithms to make utility service more efficient and reliable.
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