Smart Building with Sub-Metering: Interview with VIP’s Abuzar Ali Khan 

Sub-metering has become crucial for managing utility consumption in multi-tenant buildings and properties, particularly as sustainability and energy efficiency become central to the real estate market.

Abuzar Ali Khan, a project manager with VIP Sub-Metering Services, shares his insights on the complexities and importance of sub-metering in today’s construction landscape.

The Role of Sub-Metering in Sustainable Buildings

Sub-metering is the process of engineering, installing, and monitoring a system of meters within a property to segment energy usage by office spaces or residential units. These systems provide owners and property managers with the data required to bill tenants for individual utility and energy consumption accurately.

The demand for sub-metering is rapidly increasing in high-rise buildings and multi-unit complexes. This growth is driven by various factors, such as the need for sustainable and energy-efficient practices, enhanced cost management, and stricter regulations alongside consumer protections for new constructions.

"Sub-metering was once a niche field, but now it’s more prevalent day by day,” Abuzar Ali Khan points out. "In the past, all utility costs were included." 

Sub-metering has become crucial for managing utility consumption in multi-tenant buildings and properties.

The traditional approach involved including utility costs in rent, lease, and maintenance fees. This practice does not promote energy conservation among individual tenants because it separates actual usage from actual costs. This model is also not necessarily fair for consumers, as it can lead to increased rent and lease costs across all tenants despite their varying actual usage.

“Nobody wants or should pay extra for energy and resources they are not consuming,” Abuzar says.

Sub-metering is what enables this.

Sustainable Building

Abuzar has been in the utility and metering industry for the past 15 years, with proven engineering experience involving electrical, thermal, gas, and water metering systems. Prior to joining VIP, Abuzar worked extensively on substation metering, testing and commissioning and served as a lead project engineer.

This background has given Abuzar a unique perspective on the complexities of sub-metering projects. He brings this wealth of knowledge to his current role, where he oversees project design, compliance, installation, and data management. He ensures that every sub-metering system is tailored to meet regulatory standards and client needs.

“Developers want to have green buildings. Sub-metering is especially important for those who aim for greener buildings."
- Abuzar Ali Khan, Sub-Metering Project Manager

The large-scale shift to embrace sub-metering in Canada is what gets Abuzar excited about his work — which he explained isn’t just about fairness and consumer but is a fundamental application in directly influencing sustainability and conservation.

“Developers want to have green buildings," Abuzar adds. “And sub-metering is especially important for those who aim for greener buildings.”

Sub-Metering Planning & Process

As a regulated and permitted construction process, designing and installing an effective sub-metering system requires careful planning.

Sub-metering systems are an infrastructure component that must be closely planned and engineered into construction from the very beginning of a new project.

'We step in and propose a solution and integrate a sub-metering system with the existing infrastructure'

The Need for Proper Consultation

This is where consulting with sub-metering specialists and engineers can ensure your project is well-planned and executed.

“When clients send us their construction sets — their electrical and mechanical design drawings — we propose the type of meters, wiring methods, and communication protocols that would suit their project best,” Abuzar explains.

Integration is Challenging Retrofit Sub-Metering Projects 

"Let's say there's a building already occupied with tenants, but there are no sub-meters installed. We step in and propose a solution and integrate a sub-metering system with the existing infrastructure," he explains. 

The process requires understanding both the building's infrastructure and regulatory compliance. The choice of meters also depends on the client’s data management system.

Proper Planning Means Budgeting

Accurate budgeting and cost estimation are among the most important aspects of a successful sub-metering project. This helps ensure that developers and general contractors are fully aware of the financial requirements for a sub-metering system from the outset.

“Proper sub-metering planning should include detailed breakdowns that specify the required number of meters and offer a comprehensive cost projection that includes commissioning,” Abuzar says.

End-to-end consultation and project management ensures sub-metering systems align with a building's layout and technology preferences.

VIP Meter Services has licensed technicians to execute and directly oversee installation.

This end-to-end consultation and project management ensures the sub-metering system aligns with the building's layout and technology preferences.

It’s also vital to ensure no mistakes are made, which may not only disrupt a development’s future billing capabilities but also lead to costly project delays due to failed inspections, audits required to identify issues, and the work required to rectify the errors.

Preventing Mistakes in Installation

Proper installation is a specific challenge for sub-metering, which can involve new or retrofit projects. Lack of sufficient expertise can cause many issues.

 "We find these kinds of problems on-site quite often if somebody else is installing these meters," says Abuzar.

Proper oversight is required to ensure that meters get installed according to original design plans. This is where VIP can step in and provide oversight and manage the project.

Fixing errors can significantly impact a project's timeline, so proper sub-metering installation and verification prevent costly setbacks and delays.

Managing Data & System Integration

Data management is a key aspect of sub-metering that often gets overlooked in a sub-metering project, according to Abuzar.

"Sub-metering project managers also oversee the integration of meter data management system (MDMS)," says Abuzar. "Every meter has to be associated with the correct residential unit/suite number  and mapped correctly in the HES (head end system).”

Need Guidance for Your Sub-Metering Project?

Contact VIP Meter Services today for a consultation. Our team can guide you through each step of the process to ensure compliance, efficiency, and sustainability.