Demand Response News

If you’ve lived through the past decade, you are well aware of the growing concern surrounding protecting the environment, and companies restructuring their missions to include green initiatives. Whether you believe in global warming or not, there is no denying that we are in need of clean and renewable energy resources. Greenhouse gas emissions are rapidly on the rise, and as a result, the world is heating up fast—perhaps the reason for frequently occurring natural disasters, such as floods, tornadoes, and hurricanes. While non-renewable energy resources like natural gas are affordable, they are limited by nature and pollute the environment. The development and implementation of renewable resources like solar and wind power is crucial for future energy use. However, natural gas still remains one of the main sources of energy. Is there a way for natural gas and renewable energy to work together?

According to a recent Brattle Group report for the Texas Clean Energy Coalition, the answer is yes. Coalition chairman, and state Senator Kip Averitt, explains that very soon Texas is going to require a considerable amount of new electricity generation, and that the two sources of natural gas and renewable energy could work together on the Texas grid, rather than compete. Texas leads the nation in wind generation, but the state is also the largest producer of natural gas, making the Lone Star State a prime test market for the integration of these two sources of electricity generation.

It takes a surprising amount of energy to keep large buildings operating. Large commercial and residential buildings can consume a huge amount of energy. According to the EPA, US buildings consume about 36% of all energy used and account for 65% of electricity consumption. This translates into a 30% contribution to greenhouse gas emissions, 30% of waste generated, and 30% use of raw materials.

The good news is that there is a lot of opportunity for reduction in energy demand for all types of large buildings with high energy bills. High energy consuming equipment in most commercial buildings include lighting, office equipment, HVAC, along with any other electronic devices that vary by building activity.

Monitor Energy Use

Building management systems (BMS) provide facility managers with a centralized control system that can monitor and adjust energy use within the building. Implementing building automation and control in buildings can drastically reduce energy costs by making it simple to cut use where it is not needed. Monitoring energy use also makes it simple to tailor your operations to correspond with times of lower demand on the electric grid. BMS can make efficiency measures like participating in demand response programs easy. Companies like Energy Curtailment Specialists (ECS) will pay significant money for energy reduction during times of stress on the power grid. This revenue adds extra value to your building’s energy efficiency measures. Read more about DR programs here.

After a long winter, summer is finally here! While most of us are excited to enjoy the warm weather and outdoors, it’s the season of high energy use. As temperatures rise, air conditioners and cooling systems are used more frequently, putting a major demand on utility grids. This can lead to blackouts, brownouts and grid surges.

Energy Curtailment Specialists (ECS) is a local company specializing in demand response programs to avoid energy crisis during peak demand. Its clients are large energy consumers such as manufacturers and storage facilities and they work together to lower energy use during high demand times. While ECS and its clients are able to help stabilize energy demand, there are ways home consumers can reduce their energy use as well.

Here are some inexpensive ways for home owners to reduce energy use during high demand times:

The summer is now in full swing! If you live up near our headquarters in Buffalo, NY, it means we finally get to change our snow tires and joyfully send the snow scraper back to the trunk where it belongs. For everybody else, kicking back and enjoying the sunshine is pretty rewarding, too.

For Energy Curtailment Specialists Inc., the summer also represents the time of year when the potential for strain on the electric grid is a constant concern. Brownouts, blackouts and voltage fluctuations can cost manufacturers thousands of dollars in damages and/or production time. Fortunately, if your company participates in our program, you receive advanced notice for these concerns and your company actually has a great opportunity to make money!

Before participating in a demand response (DR) emergency event, double-check important equipment and resources. This is the best way to ensure a DR event goes smoothly and lucratively for everybody involved. But don’t worry - you won’t have to go at it alone!

ECS is available toll-free at 877-711-5453 or by email at customer(at)ecsgrid(dot)com, and we have you covered with five valuable tips for participating in a demand response event.

Energy efficiency reminders seem to be ubiquitous. For just a little hike in price, we can buy energy efficient light bulbs, appliances, cars, and even homes. The constant message of energy efficient living is that we are being kind to the environment and helping to stop global warming. But what’s in it for us?

Well, it turns out, that there is a lot of money to be saved by being energy efficient. Aside from environmental benefits (which are plentiful) there is significant potential to save money with energy efficiency programs, and commercial and industrial facilities have the most to gain.

Adopting energy efficiency is widely regarded as one of our best, and most inexpensive, renewable resources. Reports have been flooding the news with different efficiency projects, generating thousands of dollars in savings that benefit consumers as well as businesses. For example, Automation World recently reported on energy efficiency operations of 39 different manufacturers given free energy audits by the Delta Institute. Delta used grant money to audit manufacturers in the Chicago area, and help them improve energy efficiency. The result was a wealth of data that gives us insight into the true value of saving energy.