When choosing the best energy management services, it is crucial to ensure your energy provider provides you with the right software. Energy management is not a peripheral concern. No longer just the concern of facilities managers and energy managers. It has come to the top of the page as a regular feature of the priority lists of executives.
Faced with the high energy prices, and the demands of shareholders and regulators’ growing curiosity over sustainability, transformational and strategic programs and execs know that business-wide is the holy grail of energy monitoring and management.
Enterprise-class energy management software is the solution that gives businesses the ability to analyze, monitor and reduce energy consumption. A few years ago, managers contracted small-scare software service providers to deal with energy management problems on a tactical basis but the market has come a long way.
As sustainability and energy risks have increased, software programs have kept up with the pace of change with the introduction of enterprise-scale solutions that can scale up to a global deployment. There are a lot of suppliers offering energy management software programs in the market. Given the choices available, firms need to be sure that they are choosing the best solution for the functional requirements of their business.
Energy domain expertise is necessary
Even the largest software providers specialize within a few energy domains such as grocery retail, data centres or commercial buildings. It is, therefore, important to choose energy management services providers with expertise in the domains directly related to your industry. Research indicates that buyers with big IT portfolios should do well working with various suppliers with considerable real estate experience.
Confront the challenge of software integration
The diversity of equipment that uses energy – from security systems and lights to boilers and HVAC systems to routers and servers – means that no application can automatically collect all the necessary data. It is therefore crucial for buyers to plan for a big integration project and push their suppliers to demonstrate previous integration success with the relevant equipment and hardware – whether it is for data centres or meters.
Stay updated with the market dynamics
2009 and 2008 witnessed the launch of forty new software programs from 33 suppliers. However, the bubble is beginning to burst. In 2011, bigger suppliers swallowed up their smaller competitors and the market was fully consolidated in 2016. Right now, buyers need to consider the potential suppliers to be able to meet their needs.
Evidence for cost savings
Today, the market has applications that directly reduce energy consumption. However, if you want an energy reduction program – in partnership with energy service providers, you should look for a solution that will enable you to identify opportunities for cost reduction. You should get proof from the supplier or service provider that their application can meet your needs. There are a lot of companies that provide these services but you should go for the best energy management services for your business.
Written by Business Contributor Mark Potter
