Nov 29 2013
Ontarians will get access to new apps to help manage their energy consumption data, thanks to a pilot program led by MaRS Discovery District, in partnership with Hydro One and London Hydro and supported by the Ministry of Energy.
Apps from Energent, BuiltSpace, Eyedro and Zerofootprint will be made available to consumers in London Hydro and Hydro One's service territories throughout the duration of the year-long pilot program.
MaRS Data Catalyst, which brings together data and analysis to help grow Ontario's innovation economy, and Ontario's Ministry of Energy are working with industry partners to enable electricity consumption data access through the adoption of the Green Button Standard, already popular in the US.
Green Button aims to give Ontarians direct, timely access to their own energy data through a secure download from their utility's website. The 4.7 million smart meters installed in homes and small businesses across the province enable consumers to access their own consumption data via the use of third-party apps.
As part of the Green Button initiative, MaRS Data Catalyst is piloting the first adoption of the Connect My Data program. Connect My Data is a voluntary initiative that will enable participating consumers to securely share their electricity consumption information with Green Button-enabled apps of their choice, which will offer consumer education and create opportunities for conservation through behaviour change, energy efficiency upgrades, energy management system automation and other potential uses.
The apps participating in the Green Button pilot program are:
Energent, a leading North American provider of model-based energy informatics and optimization for commercial, industrial and institutional applications.
BuiltSpace, a simple, secure, practical, collaborative and integrated software-as-a-service (SaaS) app for operating, maintaining and improving building portfolios.
Zerofootprint, which allows consumers to: compare their electricity consumption with that of their neighbours; understand how to reduce it; and distributes ZerofootprintRewards to those who make measurable reductions.
Eyedro Green Solutions Inc., manufacturer of the Eyedro real-time electricity monitor and myFreeMonitor.com cloud service, which helps users visualize electricity usage, identify waste and cut electricity costs.
Source: http://www.marsdd.com/