Itron, Inc. is an American technology company that offers products and services for energy and water resource management.[1] It is headquartered in Liberty Lake, Washington, United States. The company's products measure and analyze electricity, gas and water consumption. Its products include electricity, gas, water and thermal energy measurement devices and control technology, communications systems, software, as well as managed and consulting services.

Itron, Inc.
Company typePublic
NasdaqITRI
S&P 600 Component
IndustryTechnology
Founded1977; 47 years ago (1977)
Headquarters,

United States
Key people
Tom Deitrich (president & CEO)
ProductsSmart Meters and Modules
Smart Grid
Data Collection
Analysis Software
Data Management
Water Communication Modules
Internet of Things (IoT)[1]
Smart Cities
Demand Response[2]
Professional Services
Sensing + Control
Solar Monitoring
Natural Gas Detectors[3]
Distributed Energy Resources
Smart Streetlights[4]
RevenueIncrease $2 billion (2021)[5]
Number of employees
5,635[6]
Itron OpenWay electricity Smart meter with two-way communications for remote reading in use by DTE Energy

History

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Itron, a spinoff of Spokane-based Avista Corp., formerly Washington Water Power Co., was founded in 1977 in Hauser Lake, Idaho when a small group of engineers wanted to build a more efficient way to read utility meters.[7][8] In 1984, Itron experienced global expansion into the Asian market and developed new manufacturing plants in France and the U.K. By 2006, Itron consulting teams were created to offer services for energy efficiency programs, renewables, conservation and demand response. In 2010, Itron was recognized for its commitment to U.S.-based manufacturing when President Obama announced the award of $2.3 billion in Recovery Act Advanced Energy Manufacturing Tax Credits for clean energy manufacturing projects across the United States.[9]

Within the same year, Itron and Cisco formed an alliance to deliver Internet Protocol (IP) communications to the smart grid market thus changing networking capabilities for utilities. Itron is a founding member of the Smart Cities Council, having joined in 2013. Itron is also a partner of Microsoft CityNext helping with global Smart City initiatives. After developing Itron OpenWay Riva adaptive communications technology (ACT), Itron launched the Itron Riva Developers Community for the Internet of Things, for developers interested in developing software applications for the IoT space.[10]

Itron completed its acquisition of Silver Spring Networks in January 2018, two American providers of smart meters, grid networks, and software and services.[11] Silver Spring’s Gen5 platform, which provided many of the same features as Itron's OpenWay Riva, has been integrated into a common framework.[11]

Acquisitions

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2024 - Itron acquires Elpis Squared
2021 - Itron acquires SELC, a Street Lighting Controls company[12]
2017 - Itron acquires Silver Spring Networks
2017 - Itron acquires Comverge
2012 - Itron acquires SmartSynch, cellular communications and also acquires C&N GasGate Technology for enhanced smart gas distribution systems.
2007 - Itron acquires Actaris Metering Systems.
2004 – Itron acquires Schlumberger Electricity Metering.
2002 - Itron acquires software for distributed system design, field workforce management and energy forecasting.
1996 - Itron acquires UTS, bringing MV-90 metering software application to its product portfolio.
1995 - AEG Meters are acquired with production sites in Italy, Germany, Spain & South Africa.
1993 – Itron acquires two German companies, Heliowatt and Danyl.
1989 - Itron acquires a number of metering companies including Thorn Emi Gas Metering in the U.K. and Bosco Spa in Italy.

Utilities

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Various utilities have worked with Itron to deploy smart meters, advanced communications technology, analytics software and other resource management. Below are some of the utilities that have worked and partnered with Itron for smart meter projects.

Cities

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San Antonio implemented a six-month smart streetlight pilot program in partnership with CPS Energy, AT&T, and Itron.[4]

Through Itron, the city of Chicago overhauled its streetlights with smart LEDs. In March, the city installed 100,000 new lights—approximately one-third of its 270,000 goal. The project, costing $160 million, was predicted to lead to annual energy savings of $10 million.[14]

For the construction of a new highway, the city of Christchurch, New Zealand used Itron to deploy acoustical sensors at the site so the city can create a baseline before the highway is opened.[14]

The city of Copenhagen, which sees the heavy use of bicycles, has enlisted Itron's help to deploy traffic management capabilities with its smart streetlight infrastructure.[15]

The city of Paris plans to deploy sensors with its smart streetlights to monitor moisture levels in soil for water conservation.[15]

References

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  1. ^ a b Soper, Taylor (June 4, 2021). "Tech Moves: Ex-Microsoft COO Kevin Turner leaves Core Scientific; Magic AI founder joins ThruWave". GeekWire.
  2. ^ Malik, Naureen S. (November 19, 2021). "Texas Plans to Become the Bitcoin Capital, Vulnerable Power Grid and All". Bloomberg News.
  3. ^ Mitnick, Steve (November 11, 2019). "Fortnightly Top Innovators 2019". Fortnightly.
  4. ^ a b Sweeney, Erica (May 5, 2021). "Inside San Antonio's Office of Innovation, which plans to bridge the digital divide with smart technology and infrastructure". Business Insider.
  5. ^ Levine, Scott (December 31, 2021). "Why Shares of Itron Are Plummeting Today". The Motley Fool.
  6. ^ "Form 10-k Annual filing". U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. December 31, 2021.
  7. ^ McLean, Mike (July 22, 2019). "Itron tabs new CEO from within". Spokane Journal of Business.
  8. ^ "Investor highlight: Itron Inc. | Greater Spokane Incorporated". 24 March 2018.
  9. ^ "President Obama Awards $2.3 Billion for New Clean-Tech Manufacturing Jobs". United States Department of Energy. January 8, 2010.
  10. ^ "Internet of Things". itron.com. Archived from the original on 2015-09-19. Retrieved 2015-09-17.
  11. ^ a b c St. John, Jeff (May 16, 2018). "Itron's Acquisition of Silver Spring Networks Bolsters Smart Meter and Grid Networking Revenue". Greentech Media.
  12. ^ McCloskey, Brian (March 11, 2021). "Matheson Advises Itron on its Acquisition of SELC". Matheson Law.
  13. ^ Nhede, Nicholas (April 11, 2017). "Demand response project: PNM selects Comverge for rollout of DR initiative". Smart Energy International.
  14. ^ a b Buntz, Brian (September 13, 2019). "Itron Embraces Bottom-Up Strategy for Smart City Technology". IoT World Today.
  15. ^ a b Shea, Sharon (July 19, 2019). "Smart streetlights build smart city network backbone". TechTarget.
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