The Internet of Things, Christopher Columbus and the Native

Americans

By: Benjamin Daly April 27, 2014

For those who have seen the movie "What the Bleep Do We Know" it is stated that when Christopher Columbus first reached land, the natives could not see his ships because the “concept” of the large ships did not exist to them. Only after several days did a medicine man first see the ships and then showed each of the other natives that they did in fact exist. The concept put forth of course is that we can only see what fits in our world view. In many ways this same “concept” applies to the very audience that the emerging IoT software solutions providers are selling to in the Energy Management market. Since moving to the Bay Area I have learned the following things:

That there are a lot of Energy Management software and hardware startup companies with

some really weak and incomplete offerings that have successfully received Seed or VC funding

that I am not sure how they will survive.

It gets cold at 4pm.

The rent is insane.

The plastic bag law does not help with the cleansliness of the city.

Everyone that owns a dog seems to own some form of a Chihuahua or weird Chihuahua mix like a Chipughua or a Chipoodel.

Everyone’s iPhone or Android screen looks like these-

It does not need to be Halloween and is a “common” occurrence to see people dressed like this

(this picture taken out front of my building) walking around in the city-

And that there are a lot of Energy Management software and hardware companies that have

only nailed a piece of the Energy Management equation, have the technical capability in house

to solve the equation in its entirety but unfortunately haven’t realized this.

When it comes to the IoT solutions as applied to the Energy Management market, many of these

solutions only solve a piece of the problem and none of them provide the holistic solution that the

market really needs.

To further complicate things the term “Energy Management” has become so ubiquitous that it is almost meaningless. Anything from the procurement of electricity, to utility bill analysis, or the implementation of a building management system is put into the category. For instance, many energy tracking solutions provide companies with energy visibility but no control of

energy consuming assets such as lights or heating systems. Other systems for building automation or

the software extensions of those systems provide extensive control, but don’t always provide

integration into procurement or demand response programs. There is no “one size fits all model” in this

market and building managers should be empowered to make decisions determined by their corporate

priorities and vertical industry expertise not by the offerings of the suppliers.

Adding to the confusion the terms EMS (Energy Management Systems) and BMS (Building Management

System) are frequently used interchangeably. BMS systems are generally hardware-based control

systems responsible for controlling HVAC and perhaps lighting loads in commercial and industrial

facilities. Not too long ago BMS systems were the ONLY form of EMS systems out there. But in recent

years there have been a wide range of new products and services entrants to the market that are also

generally and I stress the word generally referred to as EMS.

These solutions could be as disparate as:

Analytics-based software systems that connect to the BMS and mine the data to identify

equipment problems and savings opportunities.

Energy Algorithm software that is nothing other than a fancy scheduling, rules or alerts engine.

Rules engines that are not really that and just elaborate device scheduling and alerts systems

incapable of conditional logic.

Software systems that capture utility billing data across all facilities in a portfolio and offer

analysis aimed at finding billing problems as well as facility benchmarks.

Combined hardware and software systems that remotely control HVAC over the Internet.

Systems that monitor electricity usage on main circuits and provide analytics around equipment

performance and energy efficiency.

Software that leverages interval data and modeling to provide a virtual energy audit and suggest

efficiency measures.

Even some Demand-Response systems are sometimes referred to as energy management systems, and

there are more and more new entrants to the market every day adding to the confusion.

Clearly there has been a huge evolution and broadening of the EMS market. Internet connectivity and Cloud-based solutions have dramatically changed what is expected of a controls-focused EMS. Low cost sensors, devices and wireless communications have dramatically decreased deployment costs. Analytics have created a range of new cost savings opportunities by aggregating data to the enterprise level providing visibility that did not exist before.

The disruptive technology emerging in the IoT is causing a convergence of functionality coming from a variety of different directions, such as a provider of traditional BMS systems that has added Internet connectivity and web-based software or a provider of smart thermostats that has added additional monitoring and analytics capability. So what are the components of the ideal solution?

My definition is characterized by the following:

Cost-effective – incorporating state-of-the-art components and approaches that provide implementation paybacks in both high and low load factor environments well under a year without rebates or incentives.

Connected –must support multiple wireless protocols and offer device connectivity and control both locally and remotely over the internet on web browsers and mobile devices.

Intelligent – must incorporate third party Cloud feeds like Utility Pricing and Demand signals, Main Meter, Sub-Meter and Renewable Energy generation data into a robust rules and alerts engine which is capable of automating load control based on schedules, triggers and monitored data thresholds.

Technology Agnostic – must support and present in a single interface a combination of controls, analytics, dashboards, multiple sets of data and a range of manufacturer’s devices and systems.

Of course, what may be needed for a portfolio of large commercial buildings is not the same as what is needed in industrial facilities, and is different from the most effective system for small box retailer

Therefore, there can never be a one-size fits all solution or can there? I believe this is possible today with the current technology available but I also believe this:

Referring back to Christopher Columbus in the beginning-

“Any new technology in the Energy Management space no matter how revolutionary it is will always be limited by the existing infrastructure and technological aptitude of the market it is aimed at.

I welcome any feedback and input-

Benjamin Daly April 27, 2014