Retail Chain Energy Monitoring

The problem

Hundreds of stores have similar equipment but very different bills, and head office cannot tell which store wastes energy because there is no data between invoices.

Solution overview

MILESGO gateways collect data from electricity meters, VRV / VRF air conditioning systems, lighting control panels, refrigeration case and rack controllers over Modbus RTU / Modbus TCP, and deliver it to a cloud platform (MQTT), the energy management system, SMS, email and messaging alarms as MQTT. Field equipment keeps its own protocol and control logic; integration is done by configuration and point mapping, not custom code.

Typical scope

electricity meters
VRV / VRF air conditioning systems
lighting control panels
refrigeration case and rack controllers

Protocol path

Modbus RTU / Modbus TCP → MQTT

Implementation checklist for the project manager

Standardise one configuration template per equipment type so further sites are copied, not rebuilt.
Fix a site / asset naming convention before the first site so data from all sites can be compared.
Check 4G signal and the SIM data plan at every site before committing to cellular backhaul.
Record CT ratios, meter IDs and multipliers in the point table; wrong multipliers are the usual cause of billing errors.
Roll out in phases: pilot one site or area, confirm data quality, then replicate.
Agree KPI definitions (for example OEE components or kWh per unit) with operations before building dashboards.

Project deliverables

Signed point table and protocol mapping
Gateway configuration files and backups
IP address plan and network drawing
FAT and SAT test records
As-built documentation and operator training

System architecture

Field layer: electricity meters, VRV / VRF air conditioning systems, lighting control panels, refrigeration case and rack controllers, connected over Modbus RTU / Modbus TCP. Edge and integration layer: MILESGO protocol gateways and edge controllers, mounted on DIN rail in existing panels, polling each device, time-stamping values and buffering them locally. Upper layer: a cloud platform (MQTT), the energy management system, SMS, email and messaging alarms, which receives the data as MQTT. Remote access for maintenance runs over VPN rather than open internet ports.

System composition

Field devices: electricity meters, VRV / VRF air conditioning systems, lighting control panels, refrigeration case and rack controllers
Edge / integration: MILESGO protocol gateways and edge controllers
Upper systems: a cloud platform (MQTT), the energy management system, SMS, email and messaging alarms (MQTT)
Tools and commissioning: Web-based configuration, point table import/export (Excel), off-site simulation and on-site diagnostic tools

Software and AI capabilities

Consumption baseline and deviation alertsPilot
Anomaly detection on trend dataRoadmap

Delivery steps

1
Site survey and point list
Inventory devices, protocols, register maps, panel space, power and network paths.
2
Design and point table sign-off
Map every point to the target protocol and system; agree it with the client and the upper-system contractor.
3
Configuration and FAT
Build the gateway configuration off site, simulate it and test against the signed point table.
4
Installation and wiring
Mount gateways on DIN rail, wire RS-485 / I/O / Ethernet, apply the IP plan.
5
SAT and alarm tests
Verify values against local readings, test every alarm and command end to end.
6
Handover and support
Hand over configuration backups, point table and as-built documents; train operators.

Customer value

Consumption visible by area, system and time period
Configuration templates reused across sites
Data ready for cloud platforms and analytics
Remote diagnosis and fewer site visits

Tell us about your project

Send the protocols, point count and target system. A sales and engineering pair reviews every submission.

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