© Ecova, Inc. All Rights Reserved. http://www.ecova.com Tue, 15 May 2012 08:28:00 Tue, 15 May 2012 08:28:00 Jana Schmidt - Senior Vice President of Sales and Client Management at Ecova http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/may/update-on-our-acquisition-of-lpb-energy-management.aspx It’s been a busy time for Ecova! We’ve celebrated many milestones as we continue to become the leader in total energy and sustainability management for our clients. We recently provided an integration update on our acquisition of Prenova, and we wanted to be sure to share an update on the integration efforts from our acquisition of LPB Energy Management . As a reminder, we acquired Dallas, Texas-based LPB Energy Management in February 2012, which expanded our geographic reach and increased our client base to nearly 700 commercial clients, while enhancing our expertise in utility expense management and energy procurement. At the time of the LPB acquisition, we immediately began working to identify best practices in products, processes, and operations from both companies. Our initial work is complete, and we are moving ahead with system improvements that we believe will benefit our clients. Highlights of our system updates include: Expense and Data Management It’s essential that we offer the most comprehensive and up-to-date products. Our team has identified areas for opportunity, and as a result, we are transitioning to a single Expense and Data Management platform. The enhanced system will provide clients with additional vendor payment options and a more detailed level of data for reporting on costs, usage, and demand, as well as a deeper level of utility billing analysis to identify cost savings opportunities and billing anomalies.  Energy Supply Management We continue to invest in our Energy Supply Management (ESM) and procurement services. Our team is looking at consolidating our existing systems in order to build the market’s best reporting platform, which will improve hedge data management, workflow, budget support, market information, and user dashboards. Clients should see improvements in the availability of supply market intelligence, online contract management, and reporting consistency before the end of 2012. We are excited about our product enhancements and building on the good work of LPB Energy Management. As we continue our integration and product development efforts, we will provide additional updates on timing and on what these changes mean for our clients. http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/may/update-on-our-acquisition-of-lpb-energy-management.aspx http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/may/update-on-our-acquisition-of-lpb-energy-management.aspx Tue, 15 May 2012 08:28:00 Leo Berz - Director of Professional Services - Telecom http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/may/guidelines-for-eliminating-wasteful-telecom-spend.aspx We’re still staring down a tough economic environment which continues to cause budget restraints for many businesses, while new technology and business demands have been growing exponentially. Add these factors to the increase in mergers and acquisitions, as well as regulatory changes, and it becomes clear that it’s time for a telecommunications audit. Follow these guidelines to identify unused or unnecessary telecom services to help control your telecommunications spend and leverage opportunities: TELECOM INVENTORY ASSESSMENT It’s difficult to identify areas of opportunities if you don’t know what you have. Maintain a detailed inventory of all telecom services to validate invoice charges. Managing from telecom billing data alone will not provide the granularity needed to succeed; building inventories down to the individual Universal Service Order Code (USOC) from Customer Service Records (CSRs) is the only way to determine exactly what services you have and where they are located. VALIDATE LINE PURPOSES As business needs and technology change, so do the needs for lines and trunks. Conduct a telecom line inventory at least once every couple of years to determine if you are paying for something you don’t need or just aren’t using anymore (e.g. analog lines). When the use of modems for access or back up services migrates to Internet Protocol (IP) based services, lines can be abandoned or reused for non-approved applications. ESTABLISH TELECOM PROCESS STANDARDS Implementing a centralized system for ordering across your organization will ensure standards are met and inventory gets updated. The same is true for payment processing to ensure that invoice charges are correct and are paid on time to prevent potential service interruptions. KNOW YOUR TRUNKS Review your primary trunk groups on an annualized basis. We’re relying more on other forms of communications, such as email, instant messaging, and mobile devices while in the office, so it’s important to monitor your traffic volume to ensure you are not paying for more trunks than you need. TELECOM BUDGET ALLOCATION Allocate costs as far down the organization as possible to ensure charges are assessed to the budget owner to help identify additional opportunities for savings. To learn more about telecom cost savings opportunities watch our educational 30-minute webinar below, "Are you Paying for Unused Services?" from our Dial in the Savings webinar series. http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/may/guidelines-for-eliminating-wasteful-telecom-spend.aspx http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/may/guidelines-for-eliminating-wasteful-telecom-spend.aspx Tue, 08 May 2012 10:39:00 Paige Kindell - VP Resource Management Solutions http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/may/joining-forces-at-staples-strategic-energy-summit.aspx In early April, I had the opportunity to represent Ecova at the Staples 12th Annual Strategic Energy Summit . It was the first time the Strategic Energy Summit joined forces with Staples customers, store associates, and vendor partners to discuss the company’s sustainability and energy strategy today and beyond; no small feat for this global company with offices ranging in size from 4,000 to 30,000 square feet and facilities reaching up to 1 million square feet. The importance of examining the entire ‘supply chain’ from raw materials to manufacturing, distribution, consumer and end of life, was a common theme throughout the day, and reminded all of us that everything is connected and that even small, incremental changes can have positive environmental impact. The day-long Strategic Energy Summit produced a lively discussion and looked closely at topics such as trends in utility size and infrastructure, both from a regulated and unregulated perspective, tax credits and incentives, and the need to invest in renewable energy. Although divergent views were present, everyone agreed that our challenges represent opportunities for long-term sustainability. Time was also given to the importance of benchmarking and measurement, which provided an opportunity to share case studies and examples of sustainability ‘successes’ from Strategic Energy Summit participants. We heard from Kohl’s, who uses ENERGY STAR ® ’s Portfolio Manager to track and manage its energy consumption across locations to inform an overall energy efficiency program, which includes LEED certification and solar installs for some of their buildings. The Strategic Energy Summit illustrates what can happen when diverse stakeholders and industry leaders come together for a day of sharing and collaborating to encourage transparency, innovation, and new ways of thinking for long-term impact on these important issues. I left the Strategic Energy Summit with a sense of encouragement about the future and feeling great about our partnership with Staples. http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/may/joining-forces-at-staples-strategic-energy-summit.aspx http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/may/joining-forces-at-staples-strategic-energy-summit.aspx Wed, 02 May 2012 09:03:00 Dan Olson - Director of Product Management - Sustainability Solutions at Ecova http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/april/reducing-energy-consumption-in-the-retail-sector.aspx A deeper dive into Ecova’s recent Big Data whitepaper reveals that Ecova’s retail clients reduced their electricity consumption by 2,300,000,000 kWh between Q1 2009 and Q3 2011. Sound like a big number? Well, it is. This amount of conservation is equivalent to the carbon emissions from 3.7M barrels of oil and is enough electricity to power just shy of 200,000 US homes for one year. i To put this number in a global perspective – consider the following chart. Per capita electricity consumption varies dramatically across the globe. Whereas 2.3B kWh of electricity would satiate the annual electricity needs of 178,101 Americans, it would go far enough to electrify the lives of 4.0M people living in India. What are companies doing to keep electric consumption down as retail sales surge in 2012 and beyond? Join Ecova at booth 421 at this week’s PRSM 2012 conference in Anaheim, CA, to learn more about what leading companies are doing to manage their total energy and sustainability impacts. Sources: i http://www.epa.gov/cleanenergy/energy-resources/calculator.html ii The World Bank “Electric Power Consumption (kWh per capita).” http://www.epa.gov/cleanenergy/energy-resources/calculator.html . Viewed on 4/17/12. http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/april/reducing-energy-consumption-in-the-retail-sector.aspx http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/april/reducing-energy-consumption-in-the-retail-sector.aspx Wed, 18 April 2012 08:03:00 Jana Schmidt - Senior Vice President of Sales and Client Management at Ecova http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/april/update-on-our-acquisition-of-prenova.aspx Just over four months have passed since Ecova acquired Prenova and we wanted to share with you an update on the status of our integration efforts, what you can expect from our newly combined entity, and how we are working to bring greater value to our clients as we come together. As a reminder, we acquired Prenova in December of 2011 with a goal of solidifying our leadership position in the energy and sustainability market, and expanding our real-time building management and software-as-a-service (SaaS) capabilities. At the time of the Prenova acquisition, we immediately began working to identify best practices from both companies. Our goal is to focus on the best from across both companies – the products, processes, people, and operations for each service area. Our initial work is complete, and we are moving ahead with changes in each area that we believe will benefit our clients. The updates include: EMPLOYEE INTEGRATION Our new Ecova employees have completed their transition to becoming Ecova employees. We have made some changes in our client service organization and staffing to better accommodate the teams’ strengths. These changes are complete and the new teams are working together. EXPENSE AND DATA MANAGEMENT Expense and Data Management services are a foundation for many of our offerings. Insight into energy usage and expense data is critical to the ability to deliver actionable insight and value to our clients. Planned service enhancements include: We are integrating utility invoice data, from our clients’ bill pay provider, for Prenova clients into Ecova’s platforms. This will allow the advanced analytical tools we have developed to expediently deliver more value from rich data sets. We expect this will improve data quality and allow for future enhancements to reporting capabilities. We are consolidating our auditing systems and processes and this work will be complete by the end of the year. The new system will provide the most robust invoice auditing available in the market. ENERGY SUPPLY MANAGEMENT Our Energy Supply Management (ESM) and procurement services can provide significant savings opportunities for clients looking to save costs and lower risks. We are building a reporting platform which will improve hedge data management, workflow, budget support, market information, and user dashboards. We are also making improvements in the availability of supply market intelligence, online contract management, and reporting consistency. RESPONSE CENTER AND FACILITY OPTIMIZATION One of the key drivers for the acquisition was Prenova’s leadership in remote monitoring with services such as Responsive Monitoring. A properly designed and executed monitoring program can significantly reduce energy spend, prolong equipment asset life, increase visibility to future cost reduction programs and improve the allocation of a business’s resources. We will provide a new, online client value reporting tool. This new tool will deliver greater visibility for call center monitoring activities including alarm tracking, dispatch activity, remote operational support and metrics performance. We expect to have our first release this summer. In several areas we are already working with many of our clients to deliver additional capabilities in “beta” format. Later this year we expect to have full versions available for upgrades that will: Improve the work order management database to support enhanced issue tracking and reporting specific to the equipment asset level. Improve the collection of energy management system data and archiving. This work will improve analytics and reporting and provide better direct asset performance information. Better integrate systems to support enhanced fault detection and diagnostics of facility data including energy management system and meter-level data. As we continue our integration and development efforts and move forward with the projects listed above, we will provide you with updates on timing and on what these changes mean. Our goal is to continue to invest in the good work that Prenova started. This doesn’t happen overnight, but we are committed to making an impact for our clients’ business through our efforts. http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/april/update-on-our-acquisition-of-prenova.aspx http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/april/update-on-our-acquisition-of-prenova.aspx Thu, 12 April 2012 07:49:00 Wendy Carhart - Director of Corporate Communications at Ecova http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/april/ecova’s-portland-office-recognized-for-commuting-efforts.aspx Congratulations to our team in Portland for being ranked among the Portland metro area's 25 best employers for low-car commuters, according to local magazine Portland Afoot’s 2012 ranking of the region's best commuting benefits. The survey , conducted by Portland Afoot and the Bicycle Transportation Alliance, was distributed to more than 600 local employers. Respondents were ranked using 10 weighted metrics that measured their friendliness to workers who bike, walk, carpool, telecommute or ride public transit. Components included free TriMet passes, discounted vanpools and the ability to telecommute or work flexible hours. Employers were also rewarded for not subsidizing auto parking and for providing shared vehicles such as Zipcars rather than reimbursing employees for miles driven on the job. Employers received 10 points if they participated in the BTA’s Bike Commute Challenge and an extra 5 points if their bike commute rate was above 20%. In last year’s challenge, Ecova ranked 3rd in our category - with more than 5,800 miles logged during the month of September. Pretty impressive – and we even had employees outside the Portland office participate! Thanks, Ecova – for promoting healthy lifestyles among our employees through workplace policies that encourage biking! http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/april/ecova’s-portland-office-recognized-for-commuting-efforts.aspx http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/april/ecova’s-portland-office-recognized-for-commuting-efforts.aspx Wed, 11 April 2012 10:44:00 Mike Bailey - Director of Engineering Services at Ecova http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/april/efficiency-in-the-data-center-recent-conversations.aspx Last week in Dallas I attended and presented at the Green Data Center Conference . This was the most recent of several of these I have attended, and it was interesting to reflect back on how the data center community has progressed over the last few years. I have to admit my impression is a mix of both “half full and half empty”.  With the continued rise of cloud computing and data center growth, the role of efficient energy use through data center design, heating and cooling, and operations is an area of interest and need for many of our clients. It is great to see this conference series grow, be successful and continue to provide relevant and valuable advice to data center owners and managers. Just a few years ago it was an annual event hosted on the campus of UC San Diego. Today there are five events each year, including two international sessions, and there were over 120 people at the Dallas event. My favorite part of speaking is the response I receive from the attendees. My message of being able to reduce costs by saving energy AND improving the performance and reliability of their facilities gets people excited. Unfortunately, there is a “half empty” side to these gatherings as well. The opportunities for energy and cost savings are still large because many data centers are wasteful. While the opportunities for more efficient IT equipment (refresh, consolidation, energy management, and virtualization) are well proven – many sites still haven’t adopted these strategies. Similarly, HVAC efficiency problems and opportunities (hot-cold aisle isolation, increased air and chilled water supply temperatures, air flow management, wide humidity specifications, air and water economization, etc.) are well known and proven – but still not common. Many times I heard comments like “if only my boss could hear this” or “How do I, the facility guy, talk to the IT manager and Finance department about these issues? I wish I could get them to this!” A telling example is the well known but poorly understood issues around Data Center Power Usage Effectiveness – commonly referred to as “PUE”. Few realize PUE is NOT a measure of a data center’s “efficiency” – but rather is the ratio of input power (total facility power divided by IT equipment power). Few realized that the EPA’s ENERGY STAR ® benchmarking program for data centers is based almost entirely on PUE. Nor did they know that improving the efficiency of their IT equipment would make their PUE (and Energy Star score) WORSE (if HVAC and facility systems stayed the same). I was able to show how easy it is to “manipulate” a PUE to get different results based on where and when the input power data were measured. Conference attendees left with a new bag of tools to take back with them to tackle the many savings opportunities in their data centers. I hope they were inspired by the examples of success stories and the incredibly efficient and innovative approaches taken by the “big guys” in the industry. http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/april/efficiency-in-the-data-center-recent-conversations.aspx http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/april/efficiency-in-the-data-center-recent-conversations.aspx Mon, 09 April 2012 12:05:00 Leo Berz - Director of Professional Services - Telecom http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/march/usf-rates-at-historical-high-steps-for-managing-the-impact-to-your-telecom-budget.aspx For those of you who pay for telephone or communications lines, you’ve seen rising fees with USF rates climbing over the past several years. While these fees are still likely a small part of your overall telecom spend, they can add up, and it’s good to know what they are and why you are paying them. The Universal Service Fund (USF) was established in 1997 by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) as part of the Telecommunications Act of 1996. Under FCC guidelines the Universal Service Administrative Company or USAC was created to administer this fund for the following purposes: HIGH COST This support ensures that consumers in all regions of the nation have access to and pay rates for telecommunications services that are reasonably comparable to those in urban areas. The FCC revised this fund in November of 2011 under the new name Connect America Fund which will subsidize the expansion of Broadband and Wireless networks between 2012 and 2018. LOW INCOME This support, commonly known as Lifeline and Link Up, provides discounts that make basic, local telephone service affordable for more than 7 million low-income consumers. RURAL HEALTH CARE This support provides reduced rates to rural health care providers for telecommunications and Internet services so they pay no more than their urban counterparts for the same or similar telecommunications services. SCHOOLS & LIBRARIRES This support, commonly referred to as E-rate support, provides affordable telecommunications and Internet access services to connect schools and libraries to the Internet. This support goes to service providers that provide discounts on eligible services to schools, school districts, libraries, and consortia of these entities. USF rates currently apply to all voice and most data telecom services and are adjusted on quarterly basis as determined by the USAC to meet the anticipated fund expenses and overhead for that specific time period. As depicted in the table to the right, USF rates are currently at historically high levels and will likely remain high for the remainder of 2012. While taxes and regulatory fees are inevitable, you can take the following steps to manage the impact to your budget: These fees can vary by two or more percentage points quickly. It is important to identify rate changes as soon as possible and adjust your budget accordingly. When shopping for new services, have bidders identify current USF changes (along with other regulatory fees) on a line item basis. Not all providers collect this fee, and this could have a significant impact on the true cost of ownership. http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/march/usf-rates-at-historical-high-steps-for-managing-the-impact-to-your-telecom-budget.aspx http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/march/usf-rates-at-historical-high-steps-for-managing-the-impact-to-your-telecom-budget.aspx Thu, 29 March 2012 11:56:00 Dan Olson - Director of Product Management - Sustainability Solutions at Ecova http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/march/carbon-disclosure-corporate-reporting-requirement-or-marketing-“nice-to-have”.aspx With over 700 major North American clients, including 24% of the Fortune 500, and a product base that spans utility expense and data management to full sustainability management, Ecova works with a true cross section of the North American commercial and industrial base. As a product manager in charge of Ecova’s Sustainability market offerings, this client diversity creates a unique opportunity to gain first-hand insight into the real opportunities and challenges for total energy and sustainability management platforms. As an example, let us examine carbon reporting. To read popular media and green business journals, carbon accounting and sustainability metric reporting are the de facto “new normal” – business requirements for any company aware of a rapidly transforming “green” business landscape. In reality, daily collaboration with major North American corporations tells a much more fragmented story that more closely reflects US policy and popular media controversy over climate change and carbon accounting. Ecova interacts daily with clients that alternately demand, are exploring or are not yet working toward carbon reporting services. So how does Ecova, a business-to-business service provider, position its carbon accounting services to a highly fragmented client base? Simply, we meet clients wherever they are along the carbon reporting continuum. As a company we have closely followed the evolution of business risk and opportunity around climate change, as have Wall Street , the US military , major global religions , and, most importantly, the Simpsons . The market has evaluated the scientific and economic landscape of climate change and decided real business risk and opportunity are at play. Just as Ecova helps clients manage other expense and resource risks on topics as diverse as energy, telecom, water, and waste, Ecova is positioned as a partner to our clients to help manage the risk and opportunity of carbon emissions. I invite you to engage Ecova on the issue of carbon reporting – regardless of your starting point for the discussion - so that together we can continue crafting a diverse, rational, and calibrated response to the market identified challenge of carbon emissions. http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/march/carbon-disclosure-corporate-reporting-requirement-or-marketing-“nice-to-have”.aspx http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/march/carbon-disclosure-corporate-reporting-requirement-or-marketing-“nice-to-have”.aspx Mon, 26 March 2012 10:59:00 Wendy Carhart - Director of Corporate Communications at Ecova http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/march/tweet-your-support-for-power-management!.aspx Today marks the start of the Retweet for Power Management Earth Hour campaign , an awareness effort from our friends at the Climate Savers Computing Initiative (@CSCI_Tweets) . The effort culminates on Earth Hour, which falls on Saturday, March 31st this year. Founded in 2007, Earth Hour has grown to be an amazing display from hundreds of millions of people around the world who turn off their lights and participate in other ways to show support for protecting the planet. To extend the benefits of Earth Hour beyond just one hour and one day, last year CSCI started a campaign to focus on advancing the global use of power management. Power management controls the amount of energy your laptop or computer draws when it’s not in use. The controls for power management are already loaded on your computer and with just a few clicks can be implemented in minutes. Depending on the cost of energy in your area and the age of your computer, properly implementing power management can save you about $15 to $40 a year on your electricity bill. And while using power management at home and at work is one of the easiest ways to go green all year long, some studies show that many people and organizations are unaware of the environmental and financial benefits the use of power management can deliver. To help ensure more people know and use power management, today CSCI starts its annual Twitter campaign to raise awareness of the benefits of power management by asking the Twitter community to follow them and take the pledge to use power management. You can win prizes, too – so please support this effort on Twitter during the week of March 23rd. Power management is something that Ecova knows a lot about. In fact, we recently measured the energy use of computers and monitors in LEED-certified commercial buildings in California, and then implemented power management on those systems to determine how much energy could be saved - easily, at virtually no cost, in those systems. http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/march/tweet-your-support-for-power-management!.aspx http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/march/tweet-your-support-for-power-management!.aspx Fri, 23 March 2012 08:10:00 William Walker - Lighting Program Manager at Ecova http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/march/ecova-helps-duquesne-light-move-2-million-cfls.aspx Ecova’s Utility Solutions division has helped our clients reach many impressive milestones for moving compact florescent light bulbs (CFLs) through participating retailers. Duquesne Light, a utility company serving Allegheny and Beaver counties in Pennsylvania, recently announced it had sold its two millionth CFL. Through its “ Watt Choices ” program, Duquesne Light reached this milestone just one-and-a-half years after launching its ENERGY STAR ® residential lighting initiative. The Watt Choices program helps Duquesne Light customers conserve energy and lower their electricity costs. The program also helps Duquesne Light reduce demand for electricity which is an important goal of the utility. The Ecova staff, in collaboration with Duquesne Light, works hard developing fruitful relationships with area retailers and their suppliers – from small independent hardware stores in rural areas to major home improvement retailers – to implement year-round promotions that help customers instantly save on the cost of purchasing CFLs. Ecova also hosts events and community activities to provide interactions with Duquesne Light’s customers. This holistic approach to supporting retail partners and customers is the cause for our success in Southwestern Pennsylvania. The most notable facet of this achievement is the compact size of Duquesne Light’s service territory, which serves approximately 500,000 customers. Two million CFLs in less than two years is an impressive adoption rate, translating to an average of four CFLs per household. The CFLs account for 100,000 MWh of energy savings for the utility’s customers, which is equivalent to the amount of electricity needed to power more than 166,000 homes for a month. According to ENERGY STAR, CFLs can typically save an average of $40 in energy costs over their lifetime. For more information on this achievement, click to visit Duquesne Light’s news room. http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/march/ecova-helps-duquesne-light-move-2-million-cfls.aspx http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/march/ecova-helps-duquesne-light-move-2-million-cfls.aspx Tue, 20 March 2012 07:59:00 Dan Olson - Director of Product Management - Sustainability Solutions at Ecova http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/march/what-big-data-means-to-energy-managers.aspx Today Ecova released a new whitepaper titled, "A Big Data Look at Energy Trends: 2009-2011" . We believe big data is creating new opportunities for companies to rein in the rising and increasingly volatile cost of energy. We’ve seen this happen in other industries, and energy is next. With access to and the ability to analyze exponentially larger amounts of data, companies can make cost-effective, strategic decisions to reduce energy costs and maximize returns on their energy management investment. Our data set is unique, and our clients benefit from having access to it. We process and analyze energy expenses for more than 700 of the country’s largest enterprises, and we have detailed insight into over 25,000 MW of U.S. electricity demand. To the data from nearly a billion electronic transactions a day flowing across our system, Ecova adds external data such as sophisticated procurement, weather, client portfolio, and business productivity numbers to create a complete picture of energy consumption and costs for 5.5 percent of total industrial and commercial U.S. electric load; more than nearly any utility in the United States. Our Energy Data Warehouse infographic shows an interesting trend - a decrease in total electric consumption intensity (as measured by kWh per sq. ft.) of 8 percent during the 2009 - 2011 period, providing energy managers with timely benchmarks for their own trend analysis. In addition to benchmarking, this kind of data helps our clients in the following ways: Conduct detailed baseline and trend analysis, Forecasting, and Advanced analytic, measurement and verification processes. When combined with on-the-ground engineering expertise and, increasingly, remote continuous monitoring and controls, these tools allow companies to effectively manage energy at all levels of their organization. Contact us if you’d like to learn more about how the size of the Ecova Energy Data Warehouse, and the analytic tools we continue to enhance, are changing the way energy is managed to optimize consumption and reduce companies’ environmental footprint. http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/march/what-big-data-means-to-energy-managers.aspx http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/march/what-big-data-means-to-energy-managers.aspx Mon, 19 March 2012 04:58:00 Ian Bowman - Energy Supply Management Product Manager at Ecova http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/march/ecova-strengthens-energy-supply-management-offering.aspx Ecova has hired the employees and assumed several client contracts from the Enterprise Energy Management Division of E Source , an energy consulting company. This move elevates Ecova’s energy supply management offering and adds new clients to our growing roster of more than 700 multi-site commercial companies. I’m one of those employees who has joined Ecova from E Source, and I’m so excited to be here. The industry is changing and growing quickly, and Ecova is evolving into one of the clear industry leaders. In fact, Ecova was just named one of 10 companies to watch in this space by Groom Energy. In my short time at Ecova, I’ve come to notice 3 important things that I believe benefit our clients: Searching for “Best of the Best” practices to incorporate into core offerings. Ecova has completed several acquisitions recently, and the company is focused on incorporating the most valuable and unique elements of the services from each company. It doesn’t matter where it was invented, if it works well for customers, we want to leverage it. A vision for how integrated solutions can put customers in a unique position to “See More, Save More, Sustain More.” This includes both integrating key pieces within energy management ranging from supply to facility optimization, and a broader vision for consistency across other categories of utility spend and sustainability. Significant investment in Product Development and IT projects necessary to execute the vision. This is a biggie right now and a personal passion of mine. I think many companies can see the market is heading toward wanting vendors that offer a broad suite of integrated services, but far fewer have the combination of vision AND a willingness to invest that will be necessary in the coming years. Bringing the veteran team on board from E Source’s Enterprise Energy Management Division delivers great talent, intellectual property and an impressive national account client roster to Ecova. While we have offered energy supply management services for some time, this is a growing need for our commercial and industrial customers and having the added talent and tools at Ecova ensures we’re able to provide a comprehensive energy management solution that meets their evolving needs. I am looking forward to the years ahead as part of Team Ecova. http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/march/ecova-strengthens-energy-supply-management-offering.aspx http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/march/ecova-strengthens-energy-supply-management-offering.aspx Fri, 16 March 2012 08:20:00 Bob Valair - Director of Energy and Environmental Management at Staples http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/march/staples-guest-blogger-talks-energy-star®-and-more.aspx Staples, Inc. and Ecova have worked together for more than 12 years. This evening, Staples will be honored by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency as an ENERGY STAR Partner of the Year. In today’s guest blog, Bob Valair, Staples director of energy and environmental management, shares his insight on Staples work and how working with Ecova makes ENERGY STAR easy... In 2010, Staples developed and began to implement an overarching sustainability strategy, which focused on the ways we can have the greatest beneficial impact on the environment while also meeting the needs of our customers and our business. One of the five pillars that form the foundation of Staples’ sustainability program is to maximize energy efficiency and the use of renewable energy. We have been an ENERGY STAR partner since 1999 and working toward increasing energy efficiency, including decreasing our electricity use per square foot in the U.S. by 12 percent from 2007 to 2010, and have been recognized a leader in industry. Ecova played a role in this effort, ensuring that we had the accurate data available to monitor our progress, and tracking energy efficiency programs for our facilities. At the end of 2011, 286 of our buildings were ENERGY STAR certified. Our 2012 goal is to reach 500. Ecova helps submit data from over 2,000 facilities directly into the ENERGY STAR program each month, helping us efficiently participate in the ENERGY STAR program. Having ENERGY STAR certification not only helps Staples save money and increase energy efficiency – moving us closer toward our sustainability goals, but it creates a way for our customers to know that they are making important environmental choices when they buy from Staples. We also involve our employees and communities in our energy efficiency efforts. Two of my favorite programs are: The EEI/Staples Wake Up Kids school energy education program, staffed by Staples volunteers, helped educate more than 1,000 K-12 students last year about the necessity of energy efficiency. As a symbol of our commitment to superior energy and environmental management, we developed our own icon of energy efficiency: Wattson. A six-foot tall fluorescent light character, Wattson is designed to inspire ongoing exploration of new ways to save energy. In 2010, Wattson appeared regularly at a variety of events to help educate employees, customers and school children about the importance of energy conservation. At Staples we take sustainability seriously and value the contribution that experts such as Ecova can bring to our team. We look forward to meeting our next set of energy efficiency goals with Ecova as our partner. http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/march/staples-guest-blogger-talks-energy-star®-and-more.aspx http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/march/staples-guest-blogger-talks-energy-star®-and-more.aspx Thu, 15 March 2012 11:05:00 Blake Owen - Director of Energy Supply Management at Ecova http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/march/natural-gas-at-decade-lows-5-tips-for-developing-an-energy-procurement-strategy.aspx Near-record levels of natural gas production and unseasonably warm weather across much of the country this winter have led to high natural gas inventories. The high gas supply and weak heating demand have also pushed natural gas prices down to levels not seen since 2002 and have left many energy users asking “What should I do now?” Current market conditions have created an excellent opportunity for energy users to develop energy procurement and energy risk management strategies without the burden of rapidly rising prices. Here are five tips for an energy procurement strategy development in this low price environment: 1) Set the Goals of the Energy Procurement Strategy All organizations are unique, so it is important to tailor the strategy to fit the organization’s culture and goals. By clearly defining the goals of the energy procurement strategy first, later questions should be easier to answer. Throughout the rest of the strategy development process, continually ask “Does this help achieve the goals of the energy procurement strategy?” 2) Determine Energy Risk Tolerance Different energy users can take on varying degrees of price risk. It is very important for an organization to understand how much price fluctuation they can bear without adversely affecting their operations or profit. Energy users need to determine how much of the price of energy should be fixed and how much can float with the market. A series of simple questions like the ones below can begin to frame the risk tolerance for the organization: How much of the organization’s total costs are associated with energy purchases? Can the organization pass on increased costs? 3) Decide How and When to Purchase Energy After risk tolerance is established, it is important to determine how and when energy purchases will be made. Will all energy expenses be viewed as a single portfolio or will they be separated by region? Will the organization contract with many suppliers or limit the supplier base? Should all energy supply contracts have the same end dates or should they be staggered for diversification? How far into the future will the organization purchase energy requirements? How often will the organization fix prices? Tactics are as important as strategy when it comes to energy procurement and they should be well-planned prior to strategy implementation. 4) Document and Communicate the Energy Procurement Strategy A strategy is only effective if all parties involved are aware of it. After developing an energy procurement and energy risk management strategy, it should be memorialized in a document that clearly defines the strategy, tactics, and the reasoning behind both. During the documentation process, it is important to ensure that all stakeholders within the organization are in agreement with the strategy and know how they contribute. The energy procurement strategy document should be distributed across the organization for future reference. 5) Stick to the Plan The most important part of developing an energy procurement and energy risk management strategy is sticking to the plan. Times of rapidly rising or highly volatile energy prices can be very distressing as energy users watch costs increase or profits erode. Although no one can be certain as to when energy prices may begin to rise or become volatile again, by taking the opportunity to develop a strategy now during a time of low prices and low volatility, organizations can relax and make energy purchasing decisions free from emotion when that day comes. Want to learn more? Watch our recent educational webinar below titled, "Natural Gas Hits Decade Low, Now What?" where we share an overview of the current market conditions and the potential impact to your business. http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/march/natural-gas-at-decade-lows-5-tips-for-developing-an-energy-procurement-strategy.aspx http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/march/natural-gas-at-decade-lows-5-tips-for-developing-an-energy-procurement-strategy.aspx Mon, 12 March 2012 10:24:00 Erik Makinson - Senior Manager of Waste Solutions at Ecova http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/february/turn-your-waste-cost-center-into-a-profit-generator.aspx Changes in the waste industry have made it easier than ever for multi-site businesses to significantly impact bottom line savings, improve environmental performance and support corporate sustainability goals, through their waste management strategy. Request your complimentary white paper, “Waste Solutions, There’s Money in the Trash” and learn more about opportunities available through a multi-pronged approach to waste management. http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/february/turn-your-waste-cost-center-into-a-profit-generator.aspx http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/february/turn-your-waste-cost-center-into-a-profit-generator.aspx Fri, 24 February 2012 13:57:00 Wendy Carhart - Director of Corporate Communications at Ecova http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/february/thank-you-dell.aspx Today Ecova is sending great big thanks to Dell Computer for their work in helping to make their technology products more energy efficient. Dell announced yesterday that they are the first in their industry to achieve 80 PLUS ® Titanium-certification for a server power supply.  Power supplies are the devices that power computers and servers. They convert AC power from electric utilities into DC power used in most electronics. And, with today’s increasing reliance on these technologies they have a significant impact on our overall energy use as a society. We applaud companies who are taking the lead in creating products with more efficient power supplies and making it easy for consumers to choose wisely. We created the 80 PLUS program 8 years ago for this reason, and we’re glad to see it becoming the standard of choice. You can read more about our work with plug load solutions here .  The 80 PLUS certification enables manufacturers and customers to compare and contrast power supplies based on established criteria from ENERGY STAR ® and the Climate Savers Computing Initiative. Today, more than 250 companies manufacture 80 PLUS power supplies and there are over 3,600 models certified, with the number rising each year.  An 80 PLUS certified power supply is substantially more efficient than typical power supplies and creates a unique market differentiation opportunity for power supply and computer manufacturers. Our plug load solutions team has been busy lately . They recently worked with the California Energy Commission’s Public Interest Energy Research (PIER) program to conduct a field monitoring study to better understand the energy consumption of plug load devices in commercial offices.  Whether in homes or offices, ensuring your technology is energy efficient can have a significant impact on your energy usage and cost. Happy savings to you Dell! http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/february/thank-you-dell.aspx http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/february/thank-you-dell.aspx Thu, 23 February 2012 16:17:00 Laura Moorefield - Senior Manager Research and Policy at Ecova http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/february/led-reflector-lamp-evaluation-published.aspx You’ve probably started to notice more and more light bulbs on store shelves that use light emitting diodes (LEDs), and may have also heard that LEDs save a lot of energy, have very long lifetimes, and provide bright, pleasing light. You’ve probably also noticed that LED light bulbs cost a lot more to purchase than incandescent and even compact fluorescent light bulbs. So, are they really worth it? Which ones are the best? To help consumers and electric utilities answer these questions, the Edison Foundation’s Institute for Electric Efficiency (IEE) funded Ecova’s Research and Policy team to evaluate LED reflector light bulbs and highlight the best available today. The results of this research are now publically available on TopTen USA’s website . Ecova has long been a leading researcher and provider of lighting efficiency programs. LED light bulbs come in many shapes and sizes, including a shape called a reflector lamp. Reflector lamps, also known as down lights, flood lights and spot lights, are intended to shine light in one direction. Many people use reflector lamps in recessed ceiling fixtures to shine light down into a room, in track lighting to highlight art work or wall surfaces, and for outdoor applications to illuminate landscaping or specific areas around a building. The IEE chose to evaluate these types of LED light bulbs in this round of research for several reasons: Many people still prefer incandescent or halogen incandescent reflector lamps because they may appear brighter and are able to focus light in one direction. LED reflector lamps work very well and save energy because they are very effective at shining bright light in one direction. In addition, many are fully dimmable and cost much less to operate than common incandescent and halogen incandescent reflector lamps. ENERGY STAR® developed specifications for LED lamps in 2010—there are now more than 350 ENERGY STAR-qualified LED reflector lamps to choose from. In a recent report , the U.S. EPA recommends LED reflector lamps as an excellent new opportunity for efficiency programs. To identify the best of the best, researchers selected a group of ENERGY STAR LED reflector lamps for further testing in our lab. These bulbs underwent extensive evaluations, including tests for efficiency, color quality, dimmability, and total cost of ownership. In addition, a group of people simply rated how well they liked the light produced by these different lamps.  A detailed description of the testing can be found on IEE's website. By ranking all lamps based on these tests, we identified 10 LED reflector lamps that provide an excellent quality of light, and save money.     The U.S. DOE also evaluates LED light bulbs. Their advice—“See the LED lamps in application before you buy them”—is sound, but can be difficult to do. When shopping for LED light bulbs, remember that only ENERGY STAR light bulbs pass tests for efficiency, lifetime, and other performance criteria. And, if you want to purchase a best-in-class LED reflector lamp that has been seen, tested and recommended by our researchers, choose a TopTen bulb. http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/february/led-reflector-lamp-evaluation-published.aspx http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/february/led-reflector-lamp-evaluation-published.aspx Wed, 08 February 2012 08:04:00 DeeAnn Jurgens - Vice President of Business Process Management at Ecova http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/february/ecova-closes-acquisition-of-lpb-energy-management.aspx Today we officially completed our acquisition of leading enterprise energy management company LPB Energy Management. Since we announced our intent to acquire LPB Energy Management back in early January, I have been leading a team who has worked to make this day possible. We’ve been working closely with our new colleagues in Texas, Washington and New Jersey to ensure we are integrating the “best of the best” of our combined systems, products, processes and our teams to provide the greatest value to our clients. Today is a milestone accomplishment and I want to thank the team for their hard work to get to this point. We have been doing this work to make sure that our clients, both the ones who had been Ecova clients and our new clients from LPB Energy Management, have access to the best products and services. To make sure, if new clients are joining Ecova for the first time, they have a smooth and easy transition. The Ecova team now totals more than 1,200 employees in 31 states, and we are working to ensure that our clients have the right people serving their business. That our processes include the “best of the best” – we have looked across our company to find the best tools no matter if they originally came from Ecova, LPB Energy Management, Ecos or Prenova. Through our integration efforts we have gained additional insight into what our clients’ value. One immediate step we are taking is to combine the enhanced reporting and data analytics insights provided by LPB Energy Management and Prenova into our combined product offerings. The work over the past few months to integrate has been rewarding, and I’m looking forward to the benefits that we will gain in the future from our progress. The energy and sustainability worlds are dynamic; changing and growing constantly. Being part of Ecova today is all of these things and I’m excited about what the future holds for our clients and us. http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/february/ecova-closes-acquisition-of-lpb-energy-management.aspx http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/february/ecova-closes-acquisition-of-lpb-energy-management.aspx Wed, 01 February 2012 04:52:00 Catherine Mercier - Research and Policy Project Lead at Ecova http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/january/plug-load-study-results-find-energy-and-cost-savings-in-your-sockets.aspx Did you know that office plug loads, the energy consumed by any electric device that’s plugged into a socket, can account for 1/5 of an office energy bill? That’s right, all of those computers, copiers, coffeemakers, task lamps, vending machines, refrigerators, and projectors—many of which consume some electricity even in standby mode or when switched off, are having a big impact on energy use and cost for commercial companies and property owners. Because office plug loads account for roughly as much as heating, lighting, or air conditioning—there are significant opportunities for energy managers to reduce energy consumption, boost the bottom line, and lower corporate greenhouse gas emissions through wise equipment procurement and effective practices. As part as part of a study on high performance buildings led by New Buildings Institute (NBI), Ecova’s Research and Policy team recently worked with the California Energy Commission’s Public Interest Energy Research (PIER) program to conduct a field monitoring study to better understand the energy consumption of plug load devices in commercial offices . Specifically, we were looking at ways for plug load energy savings. The results of this study are being discussed in an Esource Web conference on January 26 th . The plug load research team, led by Ecova with NBI and PECI support, inventoried the plug loads in two Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED)-certified buildings in California and recorded detailed meter files on a subset of inventoried devices (mainly office equipment). Low- and no-cost energy-reduction strategies were implemented and then the energy consumption was re-metered. The comparison of this use to the baseline allowed for estimation of the savings potential from these strategies. In conjunction, the New Buildings Institute conducted direct panel-level metering and determined the energy breakout between building systems. The Web conference will discuss some of the actions building owners, utilities, and policy-makers can take to obtain energy savings in commercial buildings. We will review: Which devices were the largest plug load electricity users from the study What opportunities exist to reduce electricity use for office equipment plug loads How power-management settings and other software controlled by an IT department can affect potential energy savings How occupant behavior plays a role in plug-load electricity use and savings opportunities How the study and assessment of plug loads in commercial buildings could factor into utility programs and government policies for plug loads. Please join us to hear more about how you can find energy and cost savings in your sockets! http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/january/plug-load-study-results-find-energy-and-cost-savings-in-your-sockets.aspx http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/january/plug-load-study-results-find-energy-and-cost-savings-in-your-sockets.aspx Wed, 25 January 2012 11:53:00 Leo Berz - Director of Professional Services - Telecom http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/january/3-proactive-steps-to-minimize-your-risk-of-pay-phone-fraud.aspx Any company looking to control expenses should review their telecom costs and be sure to be on the lookout for possible telephone fraud. Telephone fraud has been around longer than most of us can remember and over the years we have seen many kinds of telephone fraud scams come and go. During the past six months we have identified a significant increase in pay phone fraud across our client base. Just last week a D.C. man was convicted for stealing over $4 Million from 10 large corporations and government agencies over a six-year period. Pay phone fraud was made possible by the Telecom Reform Act of 1996 which mandates a surcharge on every toll-free call placed from a pay phone. A growing number of pay phone operators have found that they can make money fraudulently by using auto-dialers to place toll-free calls which cost the recipient $.55 for each call. This can add up to charges of over $50,000 per month per pay phone.  The proliferation of cell phones has all but eliminated the need to use pay phones, and operators have hundreds of phones that get little or no use. Additionally, many states such as Florida have loosened their regulations and in some cases will allow you to install a pay phone in your home. This makes scams like this easier to accomplish.   You can greatly minimize your risk of this kind of pay phone fraud by taking a few proactive steps.  Cancel any unused toll-free numbers to reduce your overall exposure. Consider putting pay phone access restrictions on your numbers; unless you are a “Business to Consumer” business.  Monitor pay phone surcharges on your long distance bill each month and immediately report any suspicious increase to your provider’s toll fraud security center. By taking these simple steps you can avoid becoming the next victim of this growing scam. http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/january/3-proactive-steps-to-minimize-your-risk-of-pay-phone-fraud.aspx http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/january/3-proactive-steps-to-minimize-your-risk-of-pay-phone-fraud.aspx Tue, 17 January 2012 12:59:00 Suzanne Foster Porter - Sr. Manager - Research and Policy at Ecova http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/january/new-battery-charger-standards-mean-energy,-cost-savings-in-california.aspx Yesterday, the California Energy Commission adopted new standards for battery charger systems that are expected to save Californians millions of dollars in annual electricity costs and enough power to keep the lights on in 350,000 homes. This is an important step in the right direction to ensure the growing number of mobile devices and cordless appliances are energy efficient. Ecova provided California’s investor-owned utilities with the technical research that enabled the standard’s development. On behalf of the IOUs, Ecova completed the test procedure, wrote the Codes & Standards Enhancement (CASE) report, and advocated for the IOU position through years of interactions with the CEC and other stakeholders. We are proud of this work, and applaud California for their continued leadership in energy efficiency. While the benefit to Californians is great in cost savings, we hope this will also serve as a blueprint for other states and nations. You can read more about this news in Forbes and The San Jose Mercury News . http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/january/new-battery-charger-standards-mean-energy,-cost-savings-in-california.aspx http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/january/new-battery-charger-standards-mean-energy,-cost-savings-in-california.aspx Fri, 13 January 2012 14:18:00 Erik Makinson - Waste Consulting Services Manager at Ecova http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/january/reduce-waste-expenses-by-right-sizing-your-businesses-waste-and-recycling-services.aspx For most businesses, waste expenses are often viewed as a low priority, simply because the waste expense category is typically the smallest when compared to other utility or property-related expenses.  With greater pressure to reduce costs in today’s economy, businesses looking to drive additional savings should not overlook this critical category. While waste expenses do not typically account for a substantial percentage of operational expenses, the potential for waste savings opportunities as a percentage of spend can be very significant. And, for companies looking to improve their environmental performance, waste is an important element of any serious sustainability program. One of the ways organizations can reduce waste expenses is by making sure the containers for waste and recycling are the right size for the amount of waste produced.  For many, the size of the waste or cardboard containers has never been considered – they are what you’ve been provided by your waste vendor and what you have always used.  When setting up waste services, many businesses select the bin size based on an industry or chain-average, rather than site-specific factors such as sales or transaction count. This can be a big source of inefficiency.  As time goes by these inefficiencies often grow, as few managers notice when a dumpster leaves their site half-empty, but are very likely to notice when it is overflowing, at which point a request for additional pick-up is added. Over time, these service levels grow to be in great excess of actual need. Consider this example of one retailer who reduced their total waste cost by 15% by right sizing their waste and recycling services.  Starting with an evaluation of current waste data, (size of current waste containers - by site, week, and price) a capacity baseline was created. Through this effort, “we very quickly learned we had a lot of unused container capacity, which translated into quick, painless waste expense savings,” remarked the retailer. Capacity levels were then adjusted by changing the waste container size, the frequency of pick-ups or a combination of the two.  “It was one of the few property expense areas where we could achieve savings without requiring capital investments or imposing a lower service standard, which could adversely affect the “look and feel” of our stores.” Organizations looking to go through the waste right-sizing process should first consider what contributes most significantly to their waste volume. For example, in the retail industry, this metric is often sales. By creating a baseline service level (i.e. “x” cubic yards of trash service and “y” cubic yard of recycling per $1,000 in weekly sales), a target waste service volume for each site can be determined.  All sites above this level then become targets for waste right-sizing. Finally, it is important to keep in mind that this is not a one-time effort. Instead, this should be a regular exercise that is evaluated on an ongoing basis. External factors that affect each site’s actual waste volume can change at any time.  Whether it be a neighboring business using your container as an overflow, cardboard boxes that haven’t been broken down, or other external factors, such as: Seasonality of your business, Special promotions, Opening and closing of sites, or Major changes in inventory. Each of these factors has a role in the amount of waste and recycling generated in a given period.  For example, the holiday season can represent anywhere between 25-40% of annual sales for some retailers.  This being the case, one could assume that they also generate corresponding amounts of waste during this period, indicative of a serious spike in trash over this timeframe.  Organizations must apply due diligence to vet the apparent right sizing opportunities before service adjustments are actually made. Once confirmed, these opportunities typically bring significant waste savings ranging from 10 percent to upwards of 20 percent. Finally, when looking for ways to cut waste costs, remember that the savings found through right sizing can be significant, but are only one way you can evaluate your waste for cost savings http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/january/reduce-waste-expenses-by-right-sizing-your-businesses-waste-and-recycling-services.aspx http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2012/january/reduce-waste-expenses-by-right-sizing-your-businesses-waste-and-recycling-services.aspx Wed, 11 January 2012 14:20:00 Craig Billingsley - Laboratory Lead at Ecova http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2011/december/ecova-research-laboratory-gains-accreditation-epa-recognition.aspx Looking to measure the energy efficiency of products and make them more environmentally responsible? We have good news – the Ecova Research Laboratory is now recognized by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to perform third-party energy efficiency testing on computers, displays, televisions, and battery charging systems for the ENERGY STAR ® program. Ecova has long offered laboratory testing, tear-down, and prototyping capabilities for a variety of electronic and lighting products in its Durango, Colorado-based research office. Earlier this year we embarked on a formal certification process to increase the breadth, precision and rigor of our lab’s capabilities. We are proud to announce that our laboratory has completed that process and now meets the requirements of ISO/IEC 17025:2005 -- General Requirements for the Competence of Testing and Calibration Laboratories, according to the Laboratory Accreditation Bureau (L-A-B) . ISO/IEC 17025:2005 is one of the most rigorous standards in the industry and is considered best practice in the field of calibration/analytical laboratories. Having our own ISO/IEC 17025 Accredited laboratory enables Ecova to continue to provide high quality, innovative testing and analysis services, while assuring our clients receive the most accurate and useful test results. The Ecova Research Laboratory maintains the highest quality management system, laboratory grade NIST traceable testing equipment, and a fully trained technical team of lab technicians, engineers, data analysts, and report authors. Our ability to measure the energy efficiency of existing products and suggest design changes to improve them has been demonstrated repeatedly on behalf of government, utility, non-profit, and industry clients in the United States and internationally. To learn more about our laboratory’s product testing and research capabilities, please visit our website or contact us at LabInfo@ecova.com. http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2011/december/ecova-research-laboratory-gains-accreditation-epa-recognition.aspx http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2011/december/ecova-research-laboratory-gains-accreditation-epa-recognition.aspx Thu, 29 December 2011 09:20:00 Jeff Heggedahl - President and CEO at Ecova http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2011/december/3-energy-management-trends-to-watch-in-2012.aspx As a company that works closely with both utilities and commercial property owners working to see more, save more and sustain more, Ecova is unique in our ability to bridge both sides of the meter. In the year ahead, we anticipate several trends that can help large organizations better understand and manage their energy consumption. 1.  2012 will be the year real-time monitoring “grows up” and brings tremendous savings and ROI. Gone are the days when companies’ upgrades would bring only modest two-to-three percent energy reductions. The technology and business barriers for successful real-time energy management have been removed – it’s ready to really deliver value and ROI for building managers.   During the next 12 months, companies will benefit from an exponentially greater understanding of their energy consumption, creating opportunities for significant energy reductions ranging from10-to-30 percent. The potential for companies to improve the bottom line without workforce reductions will help drive energy management demand. To achieve maximum savings, many companies will bring in consulting firms with access to deep knowledge and existing data. Ecova—with its experience managing more than $18 billion in energy spending each year—can bring a vast array of best practices and knowledge to help clients make informed, cost-effective decisions. 2.  Energy efficiency will be a bright spot in our economy. Known as the “fifth fuel”, energy efficiency plays an even more important role given the challenging economic environment. The energy management sector will experience growth as more companies look to improve environmental and economic performance. The return on investment for smart efficiency upgrades will be hard for CFOs to ignore, with leading energy management firms placing a premium on top talent in the field. New smart meter technology, lighting innovations and other technological advances will mean that even companies like FedEx Office—that have long prioritized energy management and sustainable practices—can further benefit from increased savings. With data-driven insights and the right partner, companies can make informed, strategic decisions about their energy and carbon footprints. 3.  In energy management, one size does not fit all. For large companies with multi-site operations, energy management will increasingly focus on flexible solutions that can be prioritized to achieve the biggest return on investment across diverse geographies. Ecova’s customizable dashboard reporting tool helps energy managers determine what energy efficiency measures make the most economic sense for each region and location, ensuring they select those projects with the greatest ROI. Ecova’s recent work with GameStop shows how rate monitoring and optimization can ensure that our clients are paying the lowest possible costs–across hundreds of utility territories. Using site energy consumption data and proprietary utility tariff models, experts at Ecova have made energy recommendations that have saved the company nearly $2.6 million since beginning the partnership in 2008. This kind of localized data is needed to help companies truly understand and maximize their energy consumption, rates, and efficiency programs. http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2011/december/3-energy-management-trends-to-watch-in-2012.aspx http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2011/december/3-energy-management-trends-to-watch-in-2012.aspx Thu, 22 December 2011 12:45:00 Kylene Fickenscher - Associate of Carbon Accounting and Advisory Services at Ecova http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2011/december/corporate-leaders-are-now-including-supply-chain-in-their-carbon-management-strategy.aspx Being “climate-responsible” is becoming a part of the corporate lexicon with firms measuring, reporting, and reducing their carbon emissions – and being recognized for their carbon management efforts . Recently there has been growing pressure to look beyond the company’s immediate walls and measure scope 3 emissions – indirect emissions that result from the company’s operations but occur at sources owned or controlled by others.  To do so, the business identifies sources upstream and downstream from its operations in an attempt to calculate emissions throughout the entire value chain. To aid in this complex effort, the GHG Protocol recently released a set of standards on quantifying scope 3 and product-level emissions. Although the standards were just published a few months ago, there are a number of companies – Kraft Foods, Baxter, UPS, and Google – that are already using the guidelines to track and set carbon reduction goals.  Companies that take a lead by becoming involved in screening assessments, case studies, or pilot programs will move ahead of their competition by understanding the numbers that generate their impact.  Companies that are resistant to measuring their impact may be left behind. As reported in a recent blog post by Hugh Jones , the Carbon Trust Advisory found that “50% of multinationals expect to select their suppliers based upon carbon performance in the future and 29% of suppliers could lose their places on ‘green supply chain’ if they do not have adequate performance records on carbon”. Organizations that take a comprehensive view of their products and their value chain will understand the sources of their emissions and where corporate risks and opportunities lie related to carbon management. Through corrective actions the company can reduce inefficiencies while saving on costs and resources and through transparent disclosure the company can educate and engage a conscious consumer base. A case study published on the Ecova website features a recently completed carbon footprint assessment of Burgerville restaurant’s beef product. The analysis looked at over 80 processes from ranch to processing center to final disposal of the burger wrapper revealing operational strengths as well as opportunities for improvement within the beef value chain.  While Burgerville has a remarkably transparent supply chain and well-established stakeholder relationships, the retailer recognizes opportunities for reduced resource consumption and improved data management strategies. Much like the many companies getting a head start on understanding the impact of their value chain, this analysis lead to a deeper understanding of the organization’s impact and set out a path for moving forward. When as much as 50% of the average organization’s emissions are scope 3 , doesn’t it make sense to extend your metrics to your supply chain as well? http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2011/december/corporate-leaders-are-now-including-supply-chain-in-their-carbon-management-strategy.aspx http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2011/december/corporate-leaders-are-now-including-supply-chain-in-their-carbon-management-strategy.aspx Wed, 21 December 2011 09:55:00 Shannon Scheiwiller - Director of Marketing Operations at Ecova http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2011/december/5-keystones-of-a-successful-corporate-sustainability-strategy.aspx Environmental sustainability issues are complex and can be overwhelming, particularly during the early stages of crafting a sustainability strategy. What do successful programs have in common? In a recent interview with Indigo Teiwes, Strategic Planning Services Manager at Ecova, she was asked this question in relation to the Ecova client portfolio. Indigo answered, “Based on our strategic planning work with approximately 100 clients since 2007, we’ve found that there are 5 important triggers, or “keystones” that have a clear link to driving real benefits and achieving desired efficiencies.” Keystone #1: Data Simply put, you can’t manage what you don’t measure. Functioning data tracking and reporting systems, even simple ones, are the foundation upon which all improvements and progress can be made. Keystone #2: People People across the company who impact sustainability activities and decisions must be engaged and trained. We have also found that visible executive engagement and leadership sets the pace and ensures environmental sustainability change agents have the backing they need to facilitate organizational change. Keystone #3: Infrastructure Physical and operational elements comprise the 3 rd Keystone. We’ve found that the most effective sustainability plans result from organizations with broad sustainability scope including energy, water, waste, carbon, supply chain, and transportation efforts. Initial infrastructure strategy starts with comprehensive audits, gap analysis and project identification. Projects are then prioritized based on such factors as capital investment, Return on Investment, outreach potential and other parameters. For some organizations, this could be a daunting task that may yield benefits from third party expertise. Keystone #4: Marketing and Reporting Communicating in a transparent way to stakeholders is essential to build credibility for the organization’s efforts. Clear and accurate reporting about the organization’s goals, practices and performance influence brand perceptions and supports risk mitigation. Examples of two companies that have communicated their corporate sustainability message well include Patagonia and Interface Global . Both organizations demonstrate transparent messaging, clear plans and goals, and communicate progress toward those goals to all internal and external stakeholders. Keystone #5: Organizational Intelligence The 5 th Keystone guides and supports centralized monitoring of progress toward goals and effective execution. We’ve often seen how initiatives bubble up across the organization when a sustainability strategy rolls out. By centralizing efforts and intelligence, synergies are easily identified, efficiencies captured, and learning shared. Centralization helps prioritize the myriad of opportunities an organization faces, narrowing the focus onto the programs with the greatest benefits. Regardless of your organization’s size or industry, developing a corporate sustainability strategy that’s designed for success requires incorporating the 5 keystones. We’ve seen consistently that companies who do this improved their organization’s likelihood of delivering on sustainability goals. An example of a company that effectively incorporated the 5 Keystones into their corporate sustainability strategy and has steadily delivered on its goals is Burgerville Restaurants, an Ecova client and a regional chain in the Pacific Northwest. Burgerville maintains strong market share and customer loyalty primarily through their long history of community and sustainability engagement. Their holistic approach to sustainability planning will keep them well positioned to be a sustainability leader. Review the Burgerville case study and learn how they developed and executed their corporate sustainability strategy. Also learn about other organizations’ sustainability strategies that we’ve helped support: Yellowstone National Parks , Jack In The Box and Dell Computers . http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2011/december/5-keystones-of-a-successful-corporate-sustainability-strategy.aspx http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2011/december/5-keystones-of-a-successful-corporate-sustainability-strategy.aspx Tue, 06 December 2011 23:59:00 Ed Schlect - Executive Vice President of Corporate Development at Ecova http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2011/december/prenova-transaction-closes,-expanding-energy-efficiency-solutions-for-our-clients.aspx Last week we announced our intent to acquire Prenova and today that transaction has officially closed. Employees from both companies met in Atlanta to celebrate the occasion and meet their new colleagues. I am so excited to bring these two strong organizations together for a common goal – to be the total energy and sustainability management company. The acquisition significantly enhances Ecova’s unique combination of historical data from utility expense management services and real-time building intelligence and management solutions. How will this help clients SEE MORE? Companies in every commercial and industrial sector are trying to reduce energy consumption to control expenses, manage carbon emissions and enhance brand image. This need, coupled with significant advances in cost effective real-time energy collection devices is creating unprecedented demand for integrated energy efficiency solutions. The ‘mash up’ of data from multiple sources provides an opportunity for greater emphasis on energy management reporting and actionable insight. With the acquisition of Prenova, Ecova will be combining Prenova’s real time data collection and management tools with Ecova’s strengths in data management and reporting to drive energy efficiency results from the explosion of data coming into our business. How will this help clients SAVE MORE? Collecting energy data from on-site devices and interacting with these devices to influence behavior and lower consumption will become a major business focus as Ecova moves ahead. The acquisition of Building Knowledge Networks in early 2011 was our first critical step in this direction, and Prenova advances our capability even further. Our role as a virtual resource manager meets an expressed market need. Prenova’s real-time energy platforms including Energy Point, Meter Point and Decision Point coupled with both companies’ energy efficiency expertise allows our combined customer base the ability to take action on energy efficiency opportunities, saving more, whether using internal teams or leveraging the services of a trusted advisor. This Prenova case study, Controlling Energy Consumption in the Home Furnishings Industry , is a great example of how real-time energy monitoring provides powerful intelligence and impressive results. We look forward to continuing to work with our clients to develop and deliver a growing suite of technology-optimized solutions to help them see more opportunities, save more money and sustain more natural resources. http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2011/december/prenova-transaction-closes,-expanding-energy-efficiency-solutions-for-our-clients.aspx http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2011/december/prenova-transaction-closes,-expanding-energy-efficiency-solutions-for-our-clients.aspx Thu, 01 December 2011 05:38:00 Laura Moorefield - Senior Manager of Research and Policy at Ecova http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2011/november/next-generation-lighting-programs-what’s-all-the-(lighting)-fuss-about.aspx We turn them on and off many times each day, but most people really don’t think about the energy use, type of bulb, or wattage associated with each light switch they hit. For the first time, new research shows that this is changing. The majority of Americans now know that federal legislation known as the Energy Independence and Security Act, or EISA, will phase out  “most traditional incandescent lighting by 2014,” according to a new survey conducted by the lighting manufacturer Osram Sylvania. But, according to the New York Times, when it comes down to details, people are less clear about what is going to happen beginning on January 1, 2012. And, if the many choices facing consumers are confusing, imagine what that means for efficiency programs that are working to help consumers switch to energy efficient lighting. Here at Ecova we think about lighting every day. In fact, we have a lighting lab that tests performance of off-the-shelf and prototype light bulbs, and our researchers help shape efficiency policy in the U.S. and abroad. Recently, we worked closely with two clients to help consumers and efficiency programs navigate the upcoming changes. For the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), we designed an easy-to-follow brochure called Your Guide to More Efficient and Money-Saving Light Bulbs . This 2-page brief walks consumers through the new light bulb choices based on what bulbs they used to buy. The guide also explains how to read the new labels that will appear on light bulb packages and includes information on each bulb’s light output, color, and cost to operate. We also supported the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to develop the comprehensive, newly released 2011 EPA Report: Next Generation Lighting Programs: Opportunities to Advance Efficient Lighting for a Cleaner Environment . This report provides efficiency program implementers guidance on how to re-design residential lighting programs after the federal light bulb efficiency standards take effect. The report presents an overview of today’s residential lighting efficiency and describes features, pricing, and availability of new lighting technologies – from halogen incandescents to LEDs – that meet or exceed the new standards. In addition, authors discuss the near term savings opportunities from continued promotion of CFLs. The key conclusion is that there is a large opportunity for continued lighting energy savings even after standards take effect. Programs can maximize these savings through a portfolio approach whereby traditional CFL programs are expanded to include a mix of efficient lighting technologies (CFLs, LEDs, and 2x incandescents), and to increase education and outreach efforts to help consumers navigate the changing lighting landscape effectively. Ecova understands the types of research, marketing programs and incentives needed to make these new lighting choices work. Look for more on this topic in an upcoming blog post. http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2011/november/next-generation-lighting-programs-what’s-all-the-(lighting)-fuss-about.aspx http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2011/november/next-generation-lighting-programs-what’s-all-the-(lighting)-fuss-about.aspx Mon, 28 November 2011 16:18:00 Seth Nesbitt - VP and Chief Marketing Officer at Ecova http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2011/november/what's-in-a-name.aspx Changing the name of a company isn’t a light undertaking. Customers are likely used to your name and changing it takes time, effort and resources. So some of you might be wondering “Why did Advantage IQ decide to change its name to Ecova”? Well, companies change their name for many reasons. They may have grown and changed so that their name doesn’t fit them anymore. They may have acquired a number of companies and feel the need to unite the companies under one name. In our case, these factors were both present. We also believe that a new name will help us tell our story about our work helping our customers grow results on their efforts to save resources in the energy and sustainability space. In any event – we have gone and changed it – and we hope you like the new name. If not, please give it some time. Remember what you thought about some of the biggest brands in America today when you first heard their new names – Verizon, Accenture – even Apple. They probably all took a while to get used to. We like Ecova as a name for many reasons. There are elements of both “economics and ecology” in the name – supporting that we deliver value for our customers in a number of ways. For people who don’t know us we also think it is simple, concise and hints at the kind of company we are and the value we can deliver. For those that do know us, you can find elements of our past in our name – and we are glad there is a link to our history, but it is also undeniably a new name pointing towards the future. But, in all the fanfare over the announcement and the new name, we haven’t forgotten that a name is, after all, just a name. Our brand is, and will be, to a large extent defined by the perceptions about us in the marketplace. And so the important thing for us at Ecova is to focus on what we have always done – providing value for our clients every day. http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2011/november/what's-in-a-name.aspx http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2011/november/what's-in-a-name.aspx Fri, 04 November 2011 12:57:00 Jeff Heggedahl - President and CEO of Ecova http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2011/october/welcome-to-ecova.aspx Welcome to Ecova! Please come on in, look around, and let us know what you think. I’m so excited to tell you that the combined entities of the Advantage IQ companies and Ecos have joined capabilities to become Ecova. This combination creates a richer solution for our clients, bringing together the benefits of our experience in the commercial, industrial and utility sectors.  As one, we have a unique perspective that will save clients money and improve their environmental performance. You’re here on our new blog, Ecova Insider, so you probably know some of our history serving hundreds of the largest companies and utilities in the country. What you may not know: During the past two years, we’ve saved clients more than $206 million, helping them improve their bottom line and meet their sustainability goals. Our superior customer service—provided by the more than 900 talented members of our team—contributed to a 95 percent client retention rate. You also may not know that we offer total energy and sustainability solutions to help our clients see more, save more and sustain more. Ecova leverages insights based on consumption, cost and carbon footprint data spanning thousands of utilities, more than 450,000 business sites and millions of households. It’s this data—providing insights others can’t match—that’s helping clients realize substantial savings. The data, combined with our expertise in the sector and our employees, sets us apart. We hope you like our new look and name. We believe they build on our strong history helping clients manage their expenses and better reflect where we’re headed, and the impact we can make for our clients business and the environment. This blog will be a way for us to share our insights in the energy efficiency, utility, energy management and sustainability areas. Many of the talented individuals from Ecova will post here, sharing their unique and experienced views. We hope you’ll come back to hear more. http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2011/october/welcome-to-ecova.aspx http://www.ecova.com/ecova/2011/october/welcome-to-ecova.aspx Mon, 17 October 2011 13:32:00