Over my nearly two decades in the energy management software industry, I have spoken with many energy and facilities managers, and a common topic of conversation is the value of monthly utility bill data versus meter interval data for analysis. In most cases, my response is, “Do both.” Start with an analysis of billing data and refine your research and management with interval data.

At EnergyCAP, we are always delighted when our clients receive accolades for their creative use of our products. In today’s blog, we recognize Miami-Dade County in honor of their recent NACo awards. Read on for a detailed description of what they’ve been doing. You might get some great ideas for your next energy efficiency initiative.

George Mason University had begun its journey into computerized utility bill tracking in the 1990s, but its software solution, Faser Energy Accounting®, had been acquired by Enron®. After the Enron bankruptcy scandal, the university needed to reboot its energy management program.

In today’s blog we share highlights from a new case study by EnergyCAP.

Municipal and regional government readers will take particular interest in this implementation-focused story about a major city that jump-started its energy program with utility bill management software.

Loudoun County Public Schools (LCPS) is a pretty special place from an energy management perspective. The district earned “ENERGY STAR Partner of the Year” in 2010 and 2011, and the Partner of the Year–Sustained Excellence Award for the last four years. 

In recent blogs, we’ve been looking at ways your utility bill data can save you money.

Today we will focus on the unique opportunities available to large organizations—opportunities that actually grow in size/potential with the size of the organization.

In recent blogs, we’ve been looking at ways your utility bill data can save you money.

Today we’ll see how the State of Maryland responded to a legislative energy mandate that had a very specific savings goal of 15 percent. How did they pursue that vision? We'll discover that data transparency and availability can translate into savings.

We're continuing our blog series on how utility bill data can save you money. Today we'll look at the City of San Bernardino, CA, and UniFirst Corporation.

There’s been a lot of buzz in the energy industry in recent years over the power of demand management for generating big savings, and this has led to an understandable focus on installing smart metering, automating building controls, and obtaining 15-minute interval data.

We love blogging about our successful clients!

As one of the largest uniform services provider in the U.S., UniFirst Corporation has a unique energy profile based on its laundering operations.

These activities require custom report metrics. But with facilities widely scattered all over the U.S. and other countries, UniFirst had difficulties with utility bill management and data collection. EnergyCAP provided a scalable tracking and reporting solution. This infographic helps tell their story...

UniFirst Corporation has a unique energy profile based on its laundering operations. But with facilities widely scattered all over the U.S. and other countries, UniFirst had difficulties with utility bill management and data collection—until they started using EnergyCAP.

The Kroger Company is the largest grocery retailer and the 23rd largest company in the United States. With $100 billion/year in revenue, Kroger has been serving shoppers for 131 years. But Kroger doesn't just serve up tomatoes and squash.

Loudoun County Public Schools is one of the fastest growing school districts in the nation. Located near Washington, DC, they serve 70,000 students. But energy use and cost have not been keeping pace with enrollment.

As a result of their 20-year energy management program, energy managers at Loudoun County Public Schools have documented $58 million in avoided energy costs. How have they done this? Watch this short video from this year's Catalyst Training Conference and find out.

The most interesting castle in Ireland has something in common with our newest EnergyCAP clients. See if you can guess what it is.

If you visit the Castle Ward House in northern Ireland, you'll find an intriguing building.

EnergyCAP Senior Project Manager SJ Bergman visited Phoenix, Arizona, earlier this month as part of the City’s EnergyCAP software implementation process. Today’s guest blog will focus on energy management plans, practice, and opportunities at the Sky Harbor International Airport.

In my experience in performing ASHRAE Level 2 energy audits, I've seen that airports can potentially provide rich opportunities for energy efficiency. So when Paul Sylvia, Acting Energy Management Engineer for Aviation Facilities, offered to show me some of Sky Harbor International Airport's energy saving and sustainability initiatives, I was happy to take him up on his offer. After all, Sky Harbor is "America's Friendliest Airport"!

By overcoming three major challenges, Miami-Dade County revived an energy management program burdened by outdated and inefficient processes. In this post, we discuss one of the challenges the County overcame—its troubled utility bill review and payment process.

The Regional Transportation Authority (RTA) is the transit agency charged with regional financial oversight, funding, and transit planning for the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA), Metra and Pace bus and paratransit. Riders take more than two million trips each weekday on the RTA region’s transit system in six counties with 7,200 transit route miles throughout Northeastern Illinois.

The RTA recently released a Request for Proposal for new energy management software. So why did they ditch their spreadsheets?

Streamline Processes & Reduce Data Entry Costs

Note: This post was originally published last year, but many of our current readers missed it. Since then, Riverside County has saved $113,000.

Energy Manager Janet Purchase emailed us with good news. Just seven months after implementing EnergyCAP energy managment software, Riverside County, CA, had already saved $96,000. This was most of the County's initial investment in buying EnergyCAP.

Janet Purchase had made a good purchase! But how did she save that sum for the County? 

Duke Drinkard, Energy Consultant for Southeastern Freight Lines (SEFL), reported that the company was able to identify a water leak from a toilet in a bathroom that no one knew existed, just by using utility bills.

SEFL’s utility tracking software revealed a spike in water use at a facility. Investigation revealed an unused restroom that had been walled off in a previous renovation. A water line to the toilet had started to leak, but there was no visible sign of damage since the water was running into an adjacent floor drain.

Obstacles can either break you or make you better. Take Miami-Dade County, for instance.

Home to 2.5 million residents, the County’s building portfolio—more than 1,500 facilities—is complex and constantly changing. It includes the County’s top two sources of revenue, the Miami International Airport and PortMiami. Other public service facilities under active energy management include 70 fire stations, 100 parks, 43 libraries, and many others.

The County was facing five large obstacles in their energy management program. Maybe you can relate to some of them.