Ever wonder how the Smart Grid will benefit you? With $4.5 billion allocated towards Smart Grid improvements and President Obama calling for the installation of 40 million smart meters, you may find yourself pondering this question. Smart Meters offer consumers a unique way to respond to price signals, reduce usage, and reach new levels of energy savings.

Smart Meters are digital devices capable of communicating energy use information between utilities and consumers. This two way communication allows utilities and energy users to access energy use information in real time. Understanding how energy is used can help utilities and consumers save energy and money. For instance, in areas with higher peak-period pricing (higher electricity rates during the greatest consumption periods, typically summer afternoons) the higher rates can be communicated to the consumer through energy monitoring devices or secure websites. The consumer then has the option to lower the air conditioning or turn off appliances or equipment during periods with higher energy rates.

To recap, the following three things need to happen in order to generate big market growth for smart meters:

• Peak-period pricing: for some years, utilities have been introducing peak pricing to commercial and industrial customers across the country. They are just now beginning to offer residential customers peak pricing, which better reflects real-time electricity rates. Check with your utility to see if peak pricing is available in your service area.
• Smart Meter: At this point less than 6 percent of the U.S. population has one. Again, you’ll want to check with your utility to see if they are rolling out a smart meter program in your area.
• Energy monitoring device and / or website: A number of companies are launching energy monitoring devices, software, and websites this year. For instance, Google PowerMeter is an online energy information tool that will show consumers their electricity consumption through secure, personal iGoogle homepages or Google Gadgets.

Sources:
FAQ: Smart Grid - http://earth2tech.com/2009/01/26/faq-smart-grid/
10 Monitoring Tools Bringing Smart Energy Home - http://earth2tech.com/2009/04/14/10-energy-dashboards-for-your-home/
Google PowerMeter: http://www.google.org/powermeter/index.html

Many organizations establish a green team or taskforce to oversee sustainability planning efforts. Executive support and proper training for these teams is crucial for their success.

Senior management and / or corporate executive support for the green team are first and foremost. One-third of the firms surveyed for an Economist Intelligence Unit study place responsibility for sustainability performance directly with the CEO; another 26% place it with the board, representing 60 percent of the total respondents. This support can sometimes come in the form of a new corporate position, such as Chief Sustainability Officer (CSO). A Corporate Responsibility Officer Magazine survey indicated that, as of January 2008, fully 25 percent of Fortune 500 companies expected to appoint a CSO. (Of course, the Great Recession may have postponed some of these hires.)

Training and education are important parts to any new initiative, so green teams in the electrical distribution industry should consider seeking green building or renewable energy certifications. The Green Building Certification Institute recently launched a new designation for professionals that want to demonstrate general, green building knowledge – the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Associate. Solar Energy International offers a number of workshops, both online and in person, on green building technologies and renewable energy.

Sources:
Kielstra, Paul. Doing Good: Business and the Sustainability Challenge. The Economist Intelligence Unit, February 2008: http://www.eiu.com/site_info.asp?info_name=corporate_sustainability&rf=0