Smart Grids Meet Intelligent Buildings for Energy Management
Smart Grids are coming and we need intelligent buildings to get the benefits on both sides of the meters. Both the utilities and the customers can use the information technologies to more wisely manage energy and reduce their environmental impacts. You can’t manage what you don’t measure. Your energy bills, provided many days after usage, are not very useful for real time energy management and the ability to reduce unnecessary loads and their greenhouse gases.
Payback is Not Linear: What Not to Miss in Life Cycle Assessments
Making informed decisions about retrofit projects for energy reduction or efficiency improvements doesn’t stop at simple payback. To provide a truer outlook of a retrofit project, LCA or Life Cycle Assessments, present a 7-10 year window and provide the best steps for clarifying real payback in the fullest of terms. In some instances, such as renewable energy projects, LCA could stretch to 20 years or more!
