Voltivus Builds a Reliable Private Network with RAKwireless and LoRaWAN®

Voltivus Builds a Reliable Private Network with RAKwireless and LoRaWAN®

Quick Look: Use Case Summary
Principal Emphasis RAKwireless Product Value
Supporting Themes IoT Insight and LoRaWAN®
Industry Energy Management
Sub-Industry Smart and Real-Time Power Monitoring
Deployment Area Commercial, Industrial, and Multi-Tenant Properties
IoT Product(s) Used RAK7268V2 Gateways, WisDM Device Management Tool, LoRaWAN Network

Highlights

Voltivus upgraded its energy monitoring by switching from public to private networks with RAKwireless IoT devices. Public networks caused signal drops and delays, limiting data reliability. With RAK’s gateways and WisDM tool, Voltivus built a stable LoRaWAN network that supported real-time energy insights across various industries. The result was faster setup, stronger performance, and scalable coverage that made energy data more accurate and accessible for their clients.

Company Profile

Voltivus helps businesses see how they use energy. They do this by providing smart sensors that track electricity use in real time. Their innovative smart sensors, like the HotDrop, clip onto wires without cutting into them and measure power instantly. The device uses a magnetic ring to read voltage and power from electrical lines.
This means companies can easily get energy usage data from places where energy visibility was once difficult or impossible. Voltivus runs on a Hardware-as-a-Service (HaaS) model that provides clients with both the sensors and the platform to view and manage energy data. Their sensors help businesses optimize power use across many different sectors:
  1. Healthcare: Tracks hospital machine energy use to lower bills.
  2. Telecom: Measures power use for each carrier on shared towers.
  3. Real Estate: Helps landlords bill tenants fairly and avoid penalties and demand charges.
  4. Hospitality: Tracks guest energy use clearly for fair and accurate billing.
  5. Refining: Monitors heavy equipment performance to save energy and prevent breakdowns.
Their smart HotDrop sensors gather all this power data in real time for their clients. However, the data couldn’t travel fast across public networks, given their shortcomings. They needed a private network that could move such critical data without delays or drops and could easily scale.

Problem Statement

Many businesses today rely on real-time data to make fast decisions and have smooth operations. However, when that data travels over public networks like Wi-Fi or cellular, things often go wrong. Signals drop in busy areas, networks slow down when too many people are connected, and companies must wait for telecom providers to fix issues. These problems make it hard to collect energy data on time. That’s when it becomes clear - you need your own private network now.

The Critical Blocker

Public vs. Private Network Challenge
Wi-Fi or cellular public networks could not provide Voltivus with the reliable data transfer it was looking for. This is because public networks are not built with your specific needs in mind. When your business depends on real-time data and consistent performance, shared public networks fall short with the following limitations:
  1. Public networks often give weak or uneven signals, which makes it hard for IoT systems to stay reliable.
  2. When too many users share the same network at the same time, it slows down and causes poor system performance.
  3. Nearby 3G or 4G towers can interfere with the signal and make the connection unstable or broken.
  4. You have to depend on third-party network providers to fix issues, especially during urgent outages.
These issues made it hard for Voltivus to timely and accurately deliver stable energy monitoring data. They needed a private network built just for their own devices for better control, stronger security, and more reliable data flow.

Location

United States

The Solution

Why Voltivus Chose RAKwireless?
Voltivus realized they needed a stable private network that they could easily scale and have full control over. They evaluated many IoT hardware vendors and gateway providers to build a private network. Ultimately, they chose RAKwireless to establish a private LoRaWAN network due to the following reasons:
  1. Superior RF Performance
    RAK's advanced gateways outperformed competitors in effectively receiving LoRa node packets. This stands true, especially for buildings where signal strength is usually weak.
  2. Quick Setup
    RAK7268V2 gateways took only about 2 minutes to install. This saves valuable time compared to alternatives like Multitech.
  3. WisDM Tool
    RAKwireless offered a network management tool that helped Voltivus easily monitor and understand performance across all its installation sites.
RAKwireless assisted Voltivus in building a private LoRaWAN network with stronger and more stable coverage that scales easily.

LoRa Makes Voltivus' HotDrop Even Smarter

Voltivus designed the HotDrop to be a smart electricity-reading sensor that operates without batteries and powers itself from magnetic energy. As it runs on such limited power, it needs a wireless network that won’t drain its limited energy.
That is where LoRa comes in. LoRaWAN is a wireless technology that can send small volumes of data over long distances with very little power. It also works well inside buildings where signals often get blocked. This made it the perfect match for the HotDrop.
With LoRaWAN, Voltivus was able to collect energy data from many places without draining the HotDrop sensor’s power. The two technologies worked together to create a simple and efficient way to track energy in real time, even in hard-to-reach or power-limited locations.

Outcome

A Better Network for Smarter Energy Use
RAKwireless helped Voltivus take control of its own private LoRaWAN network. Now their energy monitoring system runs with more reliability and less interference. Their tools work better and install faster. The Voltivus team spends less time solving network problems and more time improving energy performance.
Client Feedback

Partnering with RAKwireless has been a game-changer. Their superior RF performance, combined with the ease of setup and the invaluable WisDM tool, has empowered us to offer a more reliable and efficient energy monitoring solution. We're now more confident than ever in our promise to deliver unparalleled energy optimization.

~said the CEO of Voltivus

Getting Started
Let’s build smarter energy systems together.
Reach out to our team, and we’ll help you build your first Private LoRaWAN network.
https://www.rakwireless.com
inquiry@rakwireless.com