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PORTLAND, Ore.- Last fall, the Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance (NEEA) selected PECI to research the emerging technology of Energy Management Information Systems (EMIS) tools. That research has yielded a report and inventory, which focuses on the power of EMIS tools to reliably and accurately quantify energy savings from projects and programs.
EMIS tools with the ability to measure and verify energy savings offer a potential solution to what has been one of the energy efficiency industry’s biggest challenges: making energy savings more concrete and reliable.
“Reliable measurement of energy savings will make it easier for utilities, property management companies, and owners to invest in a whole-building approach to energy efficiency,” said Mark Rehley, NEEA’s Emerging Technology Operations Manager. “NEEA plans to leverage this data to help transform the Northwest’s commercial market.”
A key goal of the research was to understand the potential of EMIS to support verification of energy savings. After screening roughly 80 tools, PECI conducted in-depth reviews of 14 for the inventory. The results of this review show that many tools are developing the measurement and verification (M&V) capabilities required by utilities to estimate energy savings from efficiency projects and programs.
“Embedding the measurement of energy savings into EMIS in technically rigorous ways would be a significant boost to improving program cost-effectiveness for the energy efficiency market in the Northwest and beyond,” said Hannah Kramer, PECI Engineering Director. “We were excited to work with NEEA to document the capabilities of these tools.”
The inventory is not restricted to the M&V capabilities of EMIS. Another important finding of PECI’s research was that capabilities, such as benchmarking, are now superior and incorporated in nearly all tools. And a new set of capabilities is emerging that offers exciting opportunities to streamline delivery of energy efficiency services. Some of the most interesting emerging features are remote identification of energy savings opportunities and efficiency project tracking. These and other traits are documented in the inventory and discussed in the accompanying report.
PECI has been closely tracking the growth of the EMIS market and identifying approaches for incorporating the most promising tools into the design of energy efficiency programs. Coupled with more widely available interval metering and clear customer engagement strategies, these tools offer immense opportunity to more reliably and effectively save energy. PECI is currently working with utilities in the Northwest and California to test pioneering EMIS-based strategies in pilots and programs.
About PECI
PECI is a nonprofit corporation dedicated to creating the new energy economy. We are leaders in the field of energy resource management, with expertise in designing and implementing energy efficiency programs for utility and government agency clients. Our work helps millions of residential, commercial and industrial utility customers reliably save energy and money. We were founded in 1979 in Portland, Oregon and currently work with clients nationwide. To learn more, visit www.peci.org.
