The 2019 State of Energy Management

Smart Energy Decisions conducted the 2019 State of Energy Management survey, sponsored by Urjanet and BuildingOS, in
order to understand:
 
• The key drivers for energy management programs
• The major barriers to successful energy management
• Tools, processes, and best practices utilized by the industry
• Opportunities to continue to modernize energy management
 
        The survey was fielded in September and October. Responses from a total of 209 unique organizations were included in this report.
        These results demonstrated that while the most advanced energy management programs are taking advantage of automation and tools like Energy Management  Information Systems to centralize, analyze, and report on program success, the majority of the industry is still stuck in the old ways of manual building data collection.
 
        In this study, we uncovered that the biggest barrier to energy management success is the ability to make a business case for energy management tools and technologies. The issue is exacerbated by the fact that many energy managers lack the staff time or infrastructure to prove the ROI of their projects, which could assist in gaining buy-in for further investment from the corporate level. Still, a significant portion of more advanced energy managers can serve as an example of the
strategies and tools that lead to success.
 
        It is important to note that the results of this survey are a snapshot in time. While these trends may be true for now, data from the Department of Energy’s Smart Energy Analytics Campaign proves that Energy Information Systems’ median payback timeline is 1.5 years postimplementation.

       As more proof points and ROI stories are shared among peers, we project that by this time next year, the industry will move even further toward modernizing its tools and automating its processes.
 
About this report – who did we survey?
 
      Results of this study include 209 energy, sustainability, and facilities professionals across multiple industries in varied stages in their energy management journey. In this report, we will break down the demographics of our survey by the following: industry, number of sites managed, and current stage in energy management journey.
 
Which of the following energy and sustainability goals is your organization committed to?
 
How does your organization currently collect building data ?
 
Which of the following methods does your organization currently use as part of your energy management and/or sustainability programs?
 
What factors are important to the success of your energy management program ?
 
What factors are important to the success of your energy management program ?
 
The rest of the report can be read/downloaded here: PDF