10 techniques The dashboard portion is only part of what is
required by most organizations, as it is only part of an energy management software system. Accord- ing to Sara Volpe, vice president of marketing and communications at eSight Energy Inc., Schaum- burg, Ill., below are 10 techniques included within a dashboard that help aid companies improve energy effi ciency and comfort in metal buildings:
1.) Identify key consumption areas: Install meters to pinpoint areas of energy consump- tion and identify high areas of usage. This allows us- ers to target areas to undertake effi ciency programs, make investments and accurately forecast ROI.
2.) Base load: Once energy consumption data is being fed into an energy management platform, one of the fi rst places to look for savings is by monitoring energy usage during “out-of-offi ce” periods or when the building should technically be closed. There is always a base load of energy being used by a building, but this should remain relatively
constant from week to week depending on season. Identifying this usage allows users to easily and quickly spot any energy waste. There are extensive opportunities for improvements during inactive periods of the day. High-base load can often point to something as simple as the heating and cool- ing system not being confi gured correctly, and the visualization provided by a dashboard allows for the ability to address and reduce out-of-hours usage.
3.) Benchmark building performance: Benchmarking building performance provides on-going review to determine if a building is get- ting better or worse in comparison to itself, other buildings within the organization’s portfolio, and/ or similar buildings outside the organization. With analyses like year-on-year comparisons, energy managers can establish a starting point to track performance, provide on-going monitoring of build- ing trends and locate properties that are getting better/worse on a relative basis; thus providing accurate justifi cation for improvements.
4.) Carbon tracking: Convert energy us- age into tons of carbon dioxide in line with E2 Grid regions, supplier-published or user-defi nable emis- sions. Conversion of energy into carbon is a power- ful way to understand how to monitor and reduce carbon footprints and reduce environmental impact.
5.) Alarms: Dashboards can alert and action anomalies in data. For example, eSight’s Excep- tion Reporting Module generates alarms for auto- matic distribution via email to automatically notify when energy usage data is inaccurate, steps outside of tolerance levels, deviates from a target and more. Alarming tools enable a quick reaction to rectify a problem before it has the opportunity to continue or worsen.
6.) Performance analytics: Calculate performance effi ciency by analyzing consumption data versus production data to optimize effi ciency and create a business case for upgrades. Set targets for reduction, monitor on-going deviation
This dashboard displays techniques for analyzing energy consumption against a driving factor (which is specifi ed by the user, i.e. occupancy). The top right screen displays a Regression Analysis, top left displays a Deviation Analysis (from the regression line or specifi ed target). The bottom left displays a CUSUM Analysis (or Cumulative Sum of the Deviations over time), and the bottom right displays a Specifi c Energy Consumption Analysis. (Image courtesy of eSight Energy Inc.)