Carrier Electronics Providing ''Smart'' Thermostats to First Internet-Based, Home Comfort Control System.

Business Editors

FARMINGTON, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 7, 2000

Carrier Electronics, a division of Carrier Corporation, will provide "smart" thermostats to a pilot program for Puget Sound Energy customers. The "Home Comfort Control" system will be demonstrated to select Puget Sound Energy customers, enabling Washington state's largest energy utility to work directly with residential customers to improve management of peak energy demand, while also providing customers with two-way control of their home thermostats over the Internet.

The "Home Comfort Control" system combines the monitoring and control technologies and expertise of CellNet Data Systems and Silicon Energy Corp.

The two-way, closed loop system works by providing constant energy consumption information from participating customers through CellNet's wireless network. This network information is delivered to and analyzed by Silicon Energy's software, created specifically for utility load management. To better manager load balances, a signal can be sent via the two-way CellNet wireless network to the Carrier "smart" thermostats installed in the homes of participating Puget Sound Energy customers.

The Carrier thermostat will then adjust the home's temperature by two- to six- degrees for a period of up to four hours, in order to reduce overall energy demand. The customer may manually override the adjustment via the Carrier thermostat or via a secure Internet site should he or she choose to do so.

"Carrier thermostats were selected for this cutting-edge program because they have a proven track record for helping homeowners reduce energy costs through easy-to-use programming," says Kenneth Fox, vice president and general manager, Carrier Electronics. "This pilot program represents an important step in connecting homeowners with their homes through the Internet. It also serves as a critical link for energy management between energy suppliers and their customers."

The two-way thermostats also notify Puget Sound Energy as to which specific customers have adjusted their home thermostats, as well as which homes have manually "opted out" of the automatic thermostat adjustment. Future capabilities of the system may include features such as interactive home energy management via an Internet link, bill payment, extended absence or vacation temperature monitoring, and home alarm system monitoring.

The overall goal of the program has both demand- and supply-side benefits. On the demand-side, the "Home Comfort Control" system provides utility customers with more ways to gain control over the supply and costs of their energy usage. On the supply-side, it helps Puget Sound Energy to more efficiently acquire and manage natural gas and power supplies, passing along the savings to its customers.

CellNet Data Systems, Inc. is an industry pioneer and leading provider of low-cost telemetry services -- defined as the ability to transmit and receive data for the remote monitoring and control of devices. CellNet networks are the largest and fastest growing of their kind in the world, providing connectivity for millions of devices in the energy industry and other Commercial Data Service markets.

Puget Sound Energy is Washington state's largest energy utility, providing electric and natural gas service to more than 1.3 million customers, primarily in Washington state's Puget Sound region.

Silicon Energy Corp. is a technology leader in enterprise-wide energy information decision support, demand monitoring and management, and system control. Silicon Energy's Enerscape suite of software tools is a Web-based system that connects directly to existing metering and control devices to deliver: detailed enterprise-wide management cost and benchmarking reports; timely and comprehensive facility management information; facility operating status and alarms; and executable load management strategies.

Carrier Electronics is a division of Carrier Corporation, the world's largest manufacturer of heating and air conditioning systems and equipment. It is a subsidiary of United Technologies Corporation, provider of a broad range of high-technology products and support services to the aerospace and building systems industries.