Atlanta Community to Be Equipped With Alarm.com

ATLANTA — The latest in smart home automation, solar energy and battery storage will be key elements of a new residential community in Atlanta that is being developed by Georgia Power and homebuilder PulteGroup.

Marketed as the city's first "Smart Neighborhood," the upscale development of single-family residences and townhomes will feature the latest smart home innovation technologies by leading partners from multiple industries. Home buyers will be able to control smart security devices via Alarm.com, as well as have the premises professionally monitored.

Other automation features will be provided by Alarm.com service provider GreenMarbles, said to automatically respond to homeowner activities, location and schedules by integrating thermostats, locks, lights, garage doors and water sensors.

The Georgia Power Smart Neighborhood will also demonstrate the effectiveness of residential solar energy with full-service solar integrator Hannah Solar installing rooftop solar panels and battery storage for each home. Batteries manufactured by Mercedes-Benz Energy will store solar energy for use when the sun isn't shining.

The batteries will be integrated with a Cloud-based platform by Sunverge Energy to manage load via smart thermostats and grid-interactive water heaters, with forecasting and scheduling operations to automatically provide energy bill savings when paired with Georgia Power's Smart Usage or Nights & Weekends energy rate.

Georgia Power is also collaborating with Southern Company R&D to better understand the interactions between rooftop solar and in-home battery storage and the existing electric grid for energy efficient homes. Additional research partners include the U.S. Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory, which will be developing the Smart Neighborhood's home energy optimization platform that will intelligently schedule each homes' major appliances, in coordination with solar and batteries, to minimize cost while optimizing each homeowner's comfort. The Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) is also providing design guidance, data analysis and final reports for the Smart Neighborhood project.

The Smart Neighborhood development, located in the city's upper west side, is scheduled to open later in the year.