When should a developer bring in an embedded network partner?
At concept design, or as close to it as the project allows. An embedded network changes where the main switchboard sits, how risers run and how much space metering needs, so it is far cheaper to design in than to retrofit. We can still work with a project at DA or during construction, but the further along it is, the fewer of the savings are still on the table.
Who pays for the embedded network infrastructure?
It depends on the project and how the embedded network is structured. In some arrangements Active contributes to the cost of the infrastructure in return for operating the network. In others the developer funds it as part of the base build. We set this out at feasibility so it can be costed properly rather than discovered at tender.
What does the owners corporation inherit at handover?
An operating embedded network with documentation, a maintenance arrangement and a named operator. Meters are already being read and billed from day one. Where we handle the resident billing, residents also already have accounts and a support line to call. Nobody needs to go looking for a provider after the fact.
Does an embedded network make the project’s sustainability targets easier to hit?
It makes them achievable at a scale that individual connections do not. Because the site is treated as one large customer, rooftop solar, battery storage and EV charging are sized and shared across the whole building instead of being fitted lot by lot, which is what makes them stack up financially. The metering all sits under one operator, so generation and consumption can be reported at building level rather than pieced together after the fact.
How long does the process take?
Feasibility and modelling are quick. Embedded network design runs alongside your electrical design rather than after it, and so does exemption registration where we are handling it. The two things that set the real timeline are your construction program and the distributor’s connection process, and we work to both.
Is there a minimum size for an embedded network?
There is no fixed number. Whether an embedded network stacks up depends on the state, the financial model and how many services the building takes. A smaller building with electricity only can be hard to justify in one state and workable in another, and adding water, hot water or sustainable add-ons such as solar and EV charging can change the numbers. We never rule a site in or out until the feasibility is done, so it is worth the conversation at any size.