In an effort to expand the adoption of smart grid across the rural areas, WattBoss Maker Electranetics has inked a deal with The National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA). Electranetics will be a featured supplier in NRECA's National Discount Program, which provides electric cooperatives with more than 100 discounts on business products and services.

As a result of this partnership, NRECA members will receive price discounts on Electranetics' WattBossTotal Consumer Energy Control devices. The offer starts from early 2012, company officials stated in a press release.

NRECA is the national service organization for more than 900 rural electric utilities---most of them are consumer-owned, not-for-profit electric cooperatives. These utilities provide electricity to approximately 42 million consumers in 47 states and sell approximately 12 percent of all electric energy sold in the United States.

The WattBoss solution comprises IQ Outlets, IQ Light Switches and IQ Control Boxes that have been designed to allow electricity consumers to identify priority and non-priority electrical devices, lighting and HVAC and to select at what energy price they should be turned on, off or put into standby mode.

“Electranetics is pleased to enter into this national relationship with NRECA to help make the Smart Grid practical for consumers. This is a win-win. Because WattBoss-connected non-essential devices can be shut down according to a consumer's pre-selection and then automatically repowered, it also provides a great tool for rural electric utilities to load shed and load shape. If potential brownout situations develop, lower priority items pre-selected and pre-enrolled by the consumer are turned off, providing a rural electric utility with quick response that prevents potential brownouts,” Electranetics CEO Michael H. Freeman explained in a statement.

WattBoss software is suitable for both home and business environments. The WattBoss connected devices provide usage information to electricity consumers to help them enjoy meaningful cost-cutting plans and projections.

Energy consuming devices are managed by the WattBoss iPULSE software that has been designed to improve energy efficiency through "cruise control." For instance, if a television has not been used from midnight until 6 a.m. for an entire month, WattBoss will prompt the consumer that it is turning off the television at the wall thereby eliminating the need for costly standby power. The consumer can then accept or reject the efficiency prompt.

“I understand that the WattBoss will also give electric co-ops a way to easily shed loads when conditions on the grid require. WattBoss outlets are one of the new generations of Smart Grid products that can help our members. They have applications for all our Smart Grid areas of focus and investment including communications, efficiency and demand response, reliability and power quality and distributed generation and renewable energy,” NRECA's CEO Glenn English noted in a statement.

In the release, Electranetics claimed that WattBoss provides other consumer benefits, including ground fault circuit interrupters/arc fault circuit interrupters (GFCI/AFCI) safety and security monitoring features, remote medical device monitoring and home/business security, and enabling consumers to have a high-speed wired home network for consumer audio, data, and HDTV.