May 13 2014
Emerson, a leader in the thermostat and HVAC controls industry, today announced the release of its first universal Wi-Fi thermostat. The Sensi™ thermostat and intuitive app give homeowners remote access from smart phones, tablets or PC’s, and marks Emerson’s entry into a product category expected to grow to $600 million globally by 2018, according to ABI Research.
“With the remarkable popularity of smartphones as controllers, and the growing availability of Wi-Fi in homes, Emerson saw an important opportunity to make this technology widely available and affordable for consumers,” said Ed Purvis, executive vice president at Emerson. “Our industry-leading position in HVAC components and controls, along with our expertise in power management and system connectivity, has enabled us to develop a superior product.”
While several remote-access thermostats exist in the market, the Sensi thermostat brings key benefits which solve some basic issues faced by consumers today. Emerson believes the resolution of these issues will open up the market for even faster adoption of this technology for consumers that previously would have settled for a standard, mid-price thermostat.
First, Emerson’s knowledge of power management in HVAC controls resulted in the first Wi-Fi thermostat that can operate on two standard replaceable AA batteries. This means a consumer, in most cases, can use existing wiring in the home and not have to rely on continuous common wire power from the HVAC system to operate.
Second, while focusing the user experience on the Sensi app, Emerson was able to keep product hardware cost in line with more traditional thermostats. The app walks consumers through easy installation and provisioning steps on their phone. Once connected, a homeowner can either set up an energy saving schedule, or control the system with a simple override command, avoiding wasteful energy usage.
“We are really excited about this product today, but maybe more so about the potential it brings our business in the future,” continued Purvis. “We are already working with partners to develop an Application Programming Interface (API) for energy management solutions, and see this as just a piece of a larger connected home platform for Emerson Climate Technologies.”
Sensi is the first Wi-Fi thermostat to meet the new Energy Aware standards requiring +/- one degree accurate temperature control. It is currently available through Emerson’s professional HVAC wholesale and contractor network, as well as select retail and online stores.
For more information, visit SensiComfort.com or EmersonClimate.com.