Verizon has announced a partnership with Honeywell “to help utilities speed up and simplify the deployment of new communication-enabled, intelligent sensors and controls for the smart electric grid.”

Honeywell is one of the leading makers of building control systems, with their equipment powering some 10 million buildings. In recent years, the company has been pushing into Internet of Things (IoT) territory, working to deliver smart building and utilities technology. The partnership with Verizon is a significant step in that direction, providing the telecommunications component the company needs.

“Working with Honeywell on these next-generation solutions will enable the reliability and scalability of the communications needed to deliver smart metering, manage distributed energy resources, conserve water, and make the digital world work better for utilities and consumers,” said Jay Olearain, director, Enterprise Products and IoT at Verizon. “Our Connected Utilities solutions bring connectivity and computing capabilities to all kinds of IoT devices, helping companies like Honeywell grow their leadership positions in the utilities space and expand their business models into new market opportunities.”

Verizon says its edge computing will help Honeywell integrate artificial intelligence and machine learning into meters. This will open a whole new world of opportunities for utilities to better manage the grid and energy demands moving forward.

“The Honeywell portfolio of utility applications and analytics expands with the new capabilities of wireless IoT,” said Ann Perreault, director, Connected Utilities, Honeywell Smart Energy. “By taking advantage of an already built, cellular infrastructure, our utility customers can more quickly deploy new capabilities based on interoperable communications, allowing them to facilitate innovation. This means that it is easier and more cost effective for utilities to apply analytics to plan for energy demand and to integrate emerging new technologies including micro-renewable generation, electric vehicles, battery storage and semi-autonomous control into the next evolution of the grid.”

The partnership will initially involve Verizon’s LTE, but the companies are exploring the benefits 5G can bring to the table as it becomes more widely available.