Remote Control and Scheduling
Seeing a system left running after hours does not switch it off. Once you can switch what you see from the same screen, monitoring stops being a report and becomes an operating tool.
Schedules
Set the calendar once, it runs every week
Every control point runs on its own weekly schedule. Switch-on and switch-off times are defined day by day, with weekends, public holidays and exception days held in a separate calendar.
The schedule follows the site’s actual trading calendar rather than a fixed assumption. On a site that trades on Saturday, Saturday is not a weekend; when the shift pattern changes, the calendar changes and the rules stay put.
- A weekly schedule per point
- Holiday calendar and exception days
- Times that follow sunrise and sunset
For lighting and signage an astronomical calendar replaces fixed times: switch-on follows sunset, switch-off follows sunrise. The schedule then drifts with the seasons on its own.
Schedule Map
point × hour · weekPoints
From a plug to a contactor, one screen
The hardware behind a control point varies, but on the panel they all look the same. A smart plug for a single appliance, a relay module for a circuit, a contactor inside the board for a motor or a lighting group.
Each point’s current state, its last command and who issued it are all on record. If a point is switched by hand, the panel marks it as a manual override and suspends the schedule for that point.
- Smart plug: single appliance, metering and control together
- Relay and contactor: circuits, motors, lighting groups
- Smart breaker: metering, remote switching and protection in one body
Whatever is controlled is also measured. Saying “I switched it off” is not enough; whether the power actually fell to zero afterwards shows on the same screen.
Control Points
live state| Point | Hardware | Now W | State |
|---|---|---|---|
| Signage · entrance | Relay | 0 | Scheduled · off |
| Window lighting | Contactor | 1,840 | Scheduled · on |
| Office HVAC | Smart plug | 920 | Manual override |
| Warehouse lighting | Contactor | 0 | Scheduled · off |
| Water heater | Smart plug | 2,100 | Rule · cheap hours |
Rules
Conditions other than time
A time schedule is the simplest rule. Anything the panel measures can become a condition: price, temperature, power, occupancy or an alarm state.
Rules are written in the site’s own terms and every trigger is logged. Whether a rule actually fires is not a matter of belief; it is read from its history.
- Load shifting against hourly prices
- Shedding secondary loads as the capacity limit approaches
- Automatic isolation on an alarm condition
The capacity rule earns its keep quickly: as the contracted limit approaches, predefined secondary loads are shed in order and the peak is broken before any charge is triggered.
Suggested Rules
evidence-based-
Tie signage and window lighting to the solar calendar
9,460£/yr
out-of-hours load 93 tracked -
Move water heating to the night tariff
4,120£/yr
hourly price 87 -
Shed secondary loads at the capacity limit
6,350£/yr
capacity charges 79 -
Tie office HVAC to the trading calendar
2,890£/yr
out-of-hours load 90
Annual total 22,820£/yr
What gets controlled, and how
| Layer | Hardware | Typical use |
|---|---|---|
| Single appliance | Smart plug | Water heater, office equipment, advertising panel, test load |
| Circuit | Relay module | Signage, external lighting, irrigation, charging circuit |
| Group | Contactor | Lighting group, air handling unit, pump |
| Switching and protection | Smart breaker | Metering, remote switching and protection in one body |
Commands travel through the on-site gateway; no separate cloud account or third-party app is involved. If the connection drops, a point returns to its last safe state and the panel records that it did.
Permissions and safety
Remote control carries a different responsibility from monitoring: a command moves a real load on site. Authorisation is therefore separate.
Control rights are granted per user and do not come bundled with viewing rights. Every command is stored with who issued it, when, and at which point. Critical points can be marked view-only, and no command can reach them from the panel.
Life-safety and process-safety chains are out of scope. Emergency stops, protection relays and interlocks stay in their own hardware; the panel does not replace them, it observes their state.
Common questions
Does it go into the existing board?
Yes. Relays and contactors are added inside the board and smart plugs simply plug in. The existing installation does not need to change.
What happens if the internet drops?
Schedules are held on the site gateway as well, so they keep running without a connection. Records are uploaded once the link returns.
How does a manually switched point return to schedule?
A manual override is treated as temporary and the point rejoins the schedule at the next step. It can also be left permanent if you prefer.
How many points can be controlled?
There is no limit; the count is set by the hardware on site. Hundreds of points across hundreds of sites run from the same calendar.
Let us measure what is happening on your site.
In a one-hour call we look at your existing setup and set out exactly which measurement points are needed and what you would be able to see.