Survey Reveals Distributed Energy Resource Adoption is Catching On
Cost savings remain No. 1 driver of energy decisions, but professionals are looking to new alternatives
SPOKANE, Wash. — Ecova, an energy and sustainability management company, has released a new report, 2016 Energy and Sustainability Predictions: Findings from Leading Professionals, that provides the results of its third annual survey. The report aggregates findings from a survey of more than 700 energy, facility, finance, and sustainability professionals from numerous industries across North America, revealing trends in the way companies approach energy and sustainability management.
While cost savings remain the No. 1 driver of energy and sustainability management decisions, this year’s survey results indicate that professionals responsible for reducing resource consumption and costs are looking to new alternatives. Half of survey respondents indicated that they are leveraging meters, energy/building management systems (EMS/BMS), or other data collection/monitoring devices to manage resources at a more granular level. One-third of respondents are currently considering including distributed energy resources (DERs) in their energy management strategies while another 35 percent of respondents are already leveraging DERs at many of their sites.
“Companies are faced with complicated forces and challenges. In many ways we are at a turning point — the easier changes have been made and companies have gotten very sophisticated regarding managing resource consumption,” said Jana Schmidt, president and CEO of Ecova. “But bigger challenges lay ahead and there will be high value in solving them.”
The report discloses additional challenges and opportunities that energy and sustainability management professionals will face in 2016:
• Adoption of new alternatives to manage energy and resource consumption will increase as companies become more sophisticated and low-hanging fruit is captured.
– Asked for the first time this year, the adoption of DERs is catching on. The 2016 Outlook Survey reveals DERs as a growing investment priority among facilities management and procurement professionals. Asked if their organizations have invested in DERs, one third of respondents said DERs are currently being considered. Another 20 percent have already implemented DERs in pilot sites and 15 percent say they’re leveraging DERs at a majority of their sites. Thirteen percent of respondents indicated that DERs are the smartest investment made in 2015, up from just 8 percent in 2013.
– Up 5 percent from last year, companies are investing in connected solutions to gather energy data in near real-time, with over 30 percent of respondents indicating they have meters or EMS/BMS installed and another 20 percent with pilot programs in place.
• Water conservation and management is no longer a choice, it is becoming an imperative.
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– Nearly 60 percent of survey respondents implemented multiple measures to reduce water consumption.
– Quick serve restaurants led the way in implementing multiple conservation measures, with 64 percent of quick serve restaurant respondents suggesting a strong push for water conservation.
For more information on the survey and Ecova’s 2016 predictions, download the complete report or view the infographic.
For more information about Ecova, visit www.ecova.com.
Publication date: 1/11/2016
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