Antas srl, now Getec Italia, is one of the companies of the Giglio Group, founded in 1948, which has always operated in the services sector and today represents an important reality within the Italian market.

The technical experience developed and consolidated over the years by Antas allows the provision of a multitude of services in the residential, commercial & public, and industrial sectors, including:

• Integrated Energy Service,
• Facility Management,
• Renewable Energies,
• Cogeneration,
• Project Financing,
• and Energy Efficiency.

Antas was awarded the CONSIP SIE3 Convention for the assignment of the integrated energy service for public administrations, for the following lots: 1 – regions Liguria, Piedmont, and Valle D’Aosta; 4 – Emilia Romagna region; 6 – regions Marche and Umbria; 8 – regions Abruzzo, Molise, and Puglia.

For its monitoring and control systems, Antas chose Electrex solutions and commissioned them to develop customized hardware devices called SEB to meet their specific needs.

The first devices were put into operation in 2016, and as of June 2024, these are the numbers:

• A total of 9,358 instruments provide data to a central control room.
• Approximately 53,000 distinct data series or profiles are stored.
• Over 6 billion data records have been stored and are instantly available online.
• The Consip record table occupies about 960 Gigabytes, but thanks to dynamic data compression tools, the required storage is just over 10 Gigabytes. This allows online access to all time series data from all instruments, starting from the first installations in the second half of 2016.
• Additionally, over 1.2 million data records are received and saved from the field every day.

Antas’ strategy and the selection of the supplier of the control and monitoring system

One of Antas’ objectives was not only a fulfillment of specifications as listed in the tender. The goal of this project was to be an opportunity for innovation. The monitoring and control system had to be the starting point for an integrated energy management system.

Other key requirements for Antas were the reliability of the systems and assuring technical assistance rapidly.

At the end of the market analysis, Antas decided to implement the Electrex systems with the same company they developed a solution that would meet immediate and future objectives.

The development of the customized solution for Antas

Given that the most relevant parameters were the electrical ones, it was therefore decided to install the “head” of the system, called SEB, near the power distribution main panel.

For reasons of time, stability and reduction of electromagnetic pollution, wired connections have been preferred.
The instruments were placed inside a pre-wired panel, equipped with a UPS-charger and battery that could be quickly installed and put into operation.

The SEB, has been designed, so it may become the “head” of a modular and scalable system that is also an “active” node serving as an actuator.

Ease of installation

The SEB is built in a way that maintenance technicians do not need to open it. While the wiring of the instruments in the field is simplified thanks to the use of special polarized connectors that prevent also installation errors.
These and other engineering choices reduce invasiveness and time of the installation. The uniformity of the installed devices is guaranteed and their maintenance is facilitated over time.

Characteristics of the SEB

– Power Quality Energy Analyzer & Wi-Fi Web Data Manager with RJ45 Ethernet port, Wi-Fi, single-three-phase internal analyzer suitable for harsh environments also. Power Quality and Harmonic Analysis.
– Datalogger and Gateway between the Ethernet and / or Wi-Fi port and the RS485 port for communication and acquisition in Modbus protocol from slave instruments.
– The instrument can communicate directly with the Wi-Fi network / devices without the need to be connected via an Ethernet cable to a LAN.
– Embedded Web server with programming functions also remotely and display of the main instantaneous measurements on a web page.
– FTP server.
– Alarms / notifications via Email.
– Perennial astronomical clock / calendar battery powered.
– Remote firmware update.
– Consumption less than 2W.

Field equipment

Where necessary, thermal meters are integrated through the Satellite Connection Module located in the HVAC area.
Communication between the SEB and the Satellite Connection Module will take place via power line / conveyed waves.

Connectivity

If the Satellite Connection Module is used,  near the SEB unit can be placed:
– the Communication Module for communicating via Power line / conveyed waves and for remotely accessing the system
– the version equipped with a switch, when the end user makes available a wired Ethernet connection
– the version equipped with a router, when the end user does not provide a wired Ethernet connection or in case will opt for external communication via UMTS

Main features

– Instantaneous RMS measurements including THD on voltages and currents, maximum and minimum voltage values ​​and maximum current and power values, neutral current; imported / exported powers, averages, points, energies (Ea and Er) in import and export
– Identification of the correct phases sequence
– Average active and reactive power with one-minute sliding window
– Programmable integration time

Monitored parameters

– Electric energy: consumption, production, Power Quality (interruptions, harmonics, etc.)
– Other energy carriers: gas, water, etc.
– Environmental parameters: temperature, humidity, lux, CO2
– Process parameters: compressed air, produced parts, etc.
– Operating time of machines and systems, etc.

Energy Automation functions

Execution of complex operations such as switching ON/OFF, sending alarms / notifications and automate tasks conditioned by events, aimed at obtaining a higher energy efficiency of the systems.

Power Quality Analysis

Interruptions and micro-interruptions and other events according to EN50160 standard. UNIPEDE international indexing and graphical temporal representation of events.

Thermal energy

Acquired and logged through the impulses coming from the thermal meters. The impulses can be acquired directly from the SEB or from the Satellite Connection Module through the dedicated input with which they are equipped.
Whenever possible, the thermal counters can be powered directly by the SEB to extend the battery life of the counter.

Environmental parameters

Relative to the external temperature and the internal temperature and humidity, they are acquired and recorded using specific transducers / sensors connected to the special inputs with which the SEB is equipped. The use of digital probes ensures accuracy and consistency of reading over time.

SEB: “system head”

The Seb is to all intents and purposes the “head” of a system that can also be expanded by adding other devices integrating other measurements and managing even complex functions of Energy Automation.
For this reason, the SEB has been equipped with an RJ45 Ethernet and Wi-Fi port for communicating with other external equipment (PC, router, etc.) and a RS485 master port (Modbus RTU) for the adding further devices in the RS485 subnet.

Examples of possible implementations

– Analysis of air quality (CO2) to optimize the refreshing activity and avoid waste
– Measurement of the differential pressure of the operating rooms in hospitals
– Automatic lighting management based on detected lux, calendars and events
– Load management

The SEB can also act as the “head” of a monitoring and management system for renewable energies (photovoltaic, cogenerators).
Through the ability to measure energy in import / export, it is possible to discriminate the energy purchased and / or injected into the network as well as being able to monitor the individual branches of the plants.

SEB programmability

Via web pages and / or Ladder language (the de facto standard of the PLC) to create scenarios and functions of Energy Automation aimed at optimizing the management of the systems and at obtaining energy efficiency objectives.

Application example

Detection of the CO2 value with relative management of the air refresh. This approach guarantees a comfortable environment and significant savings fro mthe heating system.

Integration with home automation systems

The lighting and power consumption of the HVAC system are also managed according to the status of the security system. Through integration with other systems, it is possible to define scenarios and / or generate alarms when there are unexpected events.

Method of data acquisition

1 – Direct access to the peripheral

Reserved for the Antas operators through which they can program systems, update firmware, detect instantaneous measurements, check for malfunctions, etc.

2 – The Energy Brain software

Reserved for Antas operators who can use the software installed in the Antas HQ to acquire data from the field which will then be made available to users via the Cloud platform, detect instantaneous and historical measurements, make simulations, calculate returns and baselines, etc.

The Energy Brain platform also allows you to manage all the technical parameters of the instruments in the field from a single location, thus representing an integrated platform for remote control.

3 – Energy Brain Cloud

Mode reserved for Consip and contracting administrations. This is the platform that allows you to view the historical data (electric energy, external temperature, internal temperatures and humidity, thermal energy, etc.) acquired by the instruments via an internet browser on various devices such as PCs, tablets, smartphones.

Contact me to schedule a call! I will be glad to answer any questions you may have.

About us

Since 1993 Electrex designs, develops, manufactures and markets, Made in Italy, instruments and software for energy  management and control.

The Electrex solutions are used in the Energy Efficiency and Energy Automation applications, for the industrial, commercial, public, civil, and renewable energy sectors allowing a rapid return on investment.

The solutions provided up to now allow the management of over 400,000 measuring points and more than 700,000 points are controlled via Energy Automation applications.

Electrex, one of the first companies to operate in these sectors, has acquired over the years a considerable experience and competence that few other companies can claim to have. With over 40% of the staff dedicated to R & D, we demonstrate our strong commitment to innovation and continuous improvement in order to anticipate the needs of our customers.