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Step inside SRP’s house of innovation

The plain white house and garage next to the Santan Generating Station may not look like much. However, this house is home to our Innovation Test Center. 

It’s where we research the latest energy-saving technology, products and programs for our customers. 

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The inside of the Innovation Test Center.

The Innovation Test Center is like our very own science lab

The Innovation Test Center is consists of a manufactured home, garage, testing lab and solar panels.

These areas give us space to test a lot, including:

  • Traditional home appliances
  • Batteries
  • Electric vehicle charging stations
  • Smart devices for home automation

We’re putting automation technology to the test to support our customers

The research done here helps provide our customers with the most advanced energy-saving technology and solutions for their homes. Here are three benefits you can expect to come out of the Innovation Test Center: 

1. High-performing smart home energy product recommendations

In the test center, we try out many of the popular smart home automation products our customers use, including:

  • Smart thermostats
  • Automated lights
  • Smart plugs

We push these products to their limits to see how they perform in our harsh desert environment. This way, we can rule out options that aren’t a good fit and make the best product recommendations to customers.

A wall of thermostats inside the test center.

2. Faster troubleshooting and problem-solving

Our test center was intentionally created to reflect the environment of a typical SRP customer’s home. This allows us to test and fix common issues our customers may experience.  

Any problems that come up in a customer program can be recreated at the test center. These include: 

  • Radio frequency range issues that disrupt TVs or phones 
  • Timing delays with appliances 
  • Indoor temperature variations 

In other words, testing and fixing these problems in our center allows us to respond to our customers faster. 

3. New and improved energy-saving programs

The center allows us to rapidly test the latest energy-saving smart devices for homes, including thermostats, lighting and appliance controllers, and irrigation controllers.  

With this info we can better adapt our energy programs around these devices and design plans that help you save the most money and resources

Fun fact: Our programs have already created energy savings equivalent to what is needed to power more than 36,000 homes per year!

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SRP employees test some of the latest smart home technology to help inform our customers and programs on saving energy.

Testing today to prepare for a better tomorrow

At the end of the day, the Innovation Test Center exists for the benefit of our customers and the communities we serve.  

The work we do here helps us limit power plant emissions, lower costs, manage current demand and continue to plan for future growth. Additionally, it also helps move us closer to our 2035 Sustainability Goals.

Delivering a better tomorrow

See how we’re planning to deliver a better tomorrow for generations to come and securing a reliable future through innovation.  

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