New smart home development in Echuca

The $261 million development, which is titled McMahon’s Place, is to be situated at 8759 Northern Hwy, Echuca.

It will comprise of 1000 residential lots and each home will be fitted out with an energy-saving device called a Home Hub, which has been developed by X2M Connect.

X2M Connect chief executive officer Mohan Jesudason said the Home Hub typically sat alongside the electricity meter and allowed home owners to monitor consumption levels.

“Our device measures the flow of solar (if the home owner chooses to have solar) and it will also be linked to high energy using appliances such as hot water, air conditioning and heating systems,” he said.

“All of these systems communicate with the Home Hub, which is connected to our software platform.”

The Home Hub is able to be connected to the home owner’s mobile phone so that they can easily access their energy usage data.

Mr Jesudason said X2M Connect had also designed a community battery to increase the efficiency of solar energy.

“Households that have solar are only able to access solar power when the sun is shining, which is generally in the middle of the day, but when the sun is not shining, that energy is drawn from the grid,” he said.

“We designed the community battery so all the excess energy that is not used during the day then gets drawn into the community battery.

“In the evening when you want to use more energy, you end up drawing it from the community battery, so in essence the length of time that you are able to use renewable solar energy is extended.”

Mr Jesudason said there were many positive outcomes that arose from technology such as this.

“Homeowners will become more knowledgeable about energy usage, it will encourage them to use less energy, there is greater efficiency with renewables, there will be a significant reduction in their energy bills, their carbon footprint will be minimised,” he said.

“On top of that, this project will help to alleviate the housing crisis.”

As to whether this technology would significantly increase the price of the house, Mr Jesudason said no.

“That’s the beauty of it — this technology is not expensive so the cost to install is very affordable,” he said.

“There are government subsidies also on offer for renewable energy initiatives and you could also argue that having a smart home or an energy efficient home could potentially add to the value of your home.”

Although Echuca is not the first place in the world to install the X2M Connect housing technology, Echuca will be the first of many towns in Australia.

Many towns and cities across Australia have already committed to similar residential projects, such as Rockbank, South Morang, Warragul, Miners Rest and Hervey Bay.

Mr Jesudason said he was excited to start implementing this technology in Australia.

“We have already successfully implemented this technology in South Korea, Taiwan, Japan and China,” he said.

“We’ve been doing all this really good work in the APAC region and I’m just glad that we’re now able to do some of that work at home.”

Lots from 500sqm to 1000sqm are expected to be on offer at the development site.

A spokesperson for Campaspe Shire Council said it was awaiting final approval for the development from the Victorian Planning Minister.

“Council is in the process of rezoning the land. In the meantime, developers are progressing their plans,” the spokesperson said.