Smart energy-monitoring solutions save resources and improve comfort
A recent European Union survey showed that electricity and temperature control in buildings accounts for 40 percent of power consumption across the EU. This offers an excellent opportunity for municipalities and businesses to not only save costs but also to contribute to more sustainable cities through smarter energy monitoring.
At Opinum, we provide that smarter monitoring with Opisense, a highly secure online portal based on the Microsoft Azure cloud platform. Opisense gathers data from smart meters and building management systems and presents the results in customizable Microsoft Excel spreadsheets and dashboards. We use Microsoft Power BI to help customers visualize and analyze their data to find ways to streamline their energy usage.
In the Belgian municipality of Ottignies-Louvain-la-Neuve, the local government cut energy use in five municipal buildings by 25 to 31 percent with Opisense and reduced its energy accounting time—the time needed to gather, collate, and analyze data—by 80 percent. The municipality also has tools now to better visualize and present that data in ways that make sense to different stakeholders.
While conservation is an important goal for Opinum, we are also concerned with helping companies optimize the comfort of employees and guests. Microsoft Belgium currently uses Opisense in its Executive Business Center (EBC). In addition to power consumption, Opisense can connect to smart meters that measure things like temperature, humidity, and air quality. Microsoft found that during events with lots of attendees, the air quality in the EBC fell to suboptimal levels. Working with Opisense data, Microsoft coordinated with its HVAC vendor to adjust ventilation and maximize the comfort and quality of the building’s environment.
Energy savings can sometimes be found in unexpected places. One client, a grocery chain, deployed Opisense and discovered that it was using more energy on Sundays than on other days, even though its stores were closed. It turned out that the heating system was still running on those days, and without the natural radiant heat from bodies in the shops, the heating system had to work harder. We were able to help the company reduce energy consumption by 15 percent simply by monitoring usage more efficiently.
Opisense is a solution that can work with a wide variety of existing hardware in buildings, which minimizes the need for expensive improvements. We take the sensors and data that cities already have and make it easier for them to gain valuable, actionable information. We do this by relying on the principles of the Internet of Things: connecting devices to the cloud and then using powerful analytical algorithms to extract and present the data our users need.
We value our partnership with Microsoft and appreciate that Azure provides an efficient and scalable cloud platform that will grow with us as we expand deployment to other cities and companies. Being part of the Microsoft Partner ecosystem puts us in touch with other companies whose solutions can mesh with our own, so we can continue to meet customer needs even better.
For more information on how Ottignies-Louvain-la-Neuve is using Opisense to reduce energy consumption, please read the full case study here.
