FEATURE ENERGY MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS
TAKING A HUGE BITE out of the Big Apple’s energy usage
Bryan Kennedy, VP Strategic Development, Electric Imp and Barry Gillibrand, Managing Director of LPRS explore how the latest electric imp connectivity platform is enabling bonded energy solutions, reducing building energy usage by some 15 percent in New York City
Founder of Electric Imp, conceived the idea for the Electric Imp connectivity platform in 2011. The former manager of the Apple iPhone hardware team through the first four generations of the groundbreaking smartphone and architect of the Nest Thermostat hardware, felt there should be a better, simpler way to integrate connectivity into devices. What was needed, Hugo concluded, was to take the best implementations of hardware, firmware and cloud service, consolidate them into a powerful Internet of Things platform, and let them be applied to any device in the world. Electric Imp, founded in 2012, is the result. For manufacturers seeking to bring
ccording to the New York City Government, buildings within its five boroughs are the single largest source of greenhouse gas emissions. In 2009, New York City enacted Local Law 87 to reduce energy consumption and carbon emissions by mandating that buildings over 50,000 square feet undergo periodic energy audits and retro-commissioning measures as part of the city’s Greener, Greater Buildings Plan. New York-based clean energy company Bonded Energy Solutions viewed the legislation as an opportunity, and concluded that the biggest compliance challenge building managers face is understanding how much energy their properties were actually using. The process of collecting, measuring and interpreting energy consumption data was inefficient, costly and labour intensive. Due to limitations of legacy energy systems and technology, data in buildings typically had to be gathered in person or downloaded from equipment every few days or it will be lost. To solve these challenges, Bonded Energy Solutions built online monitoring systems using the Electric Imp connectivity platform as a simple and
A 10 SPRING 2015 | ENERGY MANAGEMENT
inexpensive way to remotely check, accurately measure, easily consolidate and alter energy usage in real time. Electric Imp-enabled sensors were
placed on energy sources, such as gas and water meters, radiators and boilers, to collect room and heating device temperature and usage activity data, which was then sent to Bonded Energy Solutions’ backend cloud database for interpretation, management and storage. This connectivity platform streamlined the entire process by enabling connectivity to previously unconnected devices, centralising data gathering, and allowing system management and a single method of communication between disparate equipment and sensor mechanisms. Once in place, energy could then be checked at any time day or night and redistributed more efficiently throughout the entire building. Hugo Fiennes, CEO and Co-
Figure 1: The Electric Imp platform features fully integrated hardware, software, OS, APIs, cloud services and security, providing your devices with intelligence, scalability and flexibility
their products and services online, Electric Imp provides a complete end-to- end solution that makes it simple to connect nearly any device to the Internet quickly, securely and seamlessly. The connectivity platform features fully integrated hardware, software, OS, APIs, cloud servers, and security making it possible to effectively empower devices with greater intelligence, utility and flexibility. In an initial trial, Bonded Energy Solutions
“Bonded
Energy Solutions is now moving forward
with a more comprehensive trial program monitored by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority ”
implemented the monitoring system in the energy infrastructure of six residential buildings. The program resulted in a successful reduction of source energy usage – in other words, any form of energy entering the building, such as electricity, natural gas, oil and solar - by over 15%. Based on the successful outcome, the company is now moving forward with a more comprehensive trial program monitored by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) through the state organisation’s Multifamily Performance Program for Existing Buildings.
LPRS
www.lprs.co.uk 01993 709 418
Enter 202 / ENERGYMANAGEMENT
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