Bringing together Boston's CleanTech news and events

Last night at the MIT Enterprise Forum of Cambridge's Energy SIG event, there was an array of panelists with a variety of thoughts as they related to Energy Efficiency (EE).

Psai Miettinen (President and CEO, Sagewell):

• Energy Efficiency is all about data (80% of which is not useful in most analysis)
• Many things in the EE world have been talked about for the last 15 years, but not much disruptive innovation has taken place during that time frame.
• Huge need for EE work in small to medium sized businesses, as well as residential, but the most important question is which buildings should go first and have the ability to make an impact.
• The ability of the building owner to actually do something needs to be part of the equation when looking for customers.  Companies need to ask "where can you affect change, and where will stuff get done?"
• There is only the capacity in the market currently to address 5-10% of the building stock/year. This must lead to more stringent project selection criteria.
• When the government subsidies and spending returns to a normal level, more decisions will be made based purely on ROI.

David Kopans (Co-founder and CFO, EnergyClimate Solutions):

• "Think Different" needs to take place in the EE world -- many people are asking the wrong questions.
• As compared to business as usual from the energy crisis in the 70's, the US is currently saving $700 Billion/year.  2/3 of this comes from various forms of energy efficiency.
• There is currently too much focus on economic ROI when evaluating solutions. Other value propositions need to be introduced to appeal to a broader array of people. The focus needs to shift away from spreadsheets and put more value in non-monetary components.
• The biggest challenge in scaling to the market is policy and regulation.  Codes vary from state to state and even between municipalities.

Kenneth Fisher (Senior Project Architect, Gensler):

• Architecture needs to be about creating environments AND efficiency, not one or the other.
• Architects as a whole are behind the curve - too many do not have the ability or knowledge to look at EE issues in buildings.
• LEED certifications have moved the market and moved the conversations, but it is a standard that was created by groups other than architects.
• The important question that architects need to ask is "Why does your company/building want LEED certification?" Understanding this can influence many aspects of the client relationship.
• The conversation shouldn't be about LEED design, it should be anout GOOD design.

Ken Czech (VP Strategic Product Development and Innovation, Lightolier):

• Many consumers assume LEDs are more energy efficient, but it is not necessarily the case. There is a need to ensure you are comparing light sources based on equal light output.
• Lighting is not just about cost efficiency, it is also about the quality of light.  There are many intangibles that factor into whether a new technology will be a success.
• CFLs are generally regarded as a "failure" because of issues including failure to deliver on promised efficiency, quality of light, and long warm up periods.
• It is a hurdle for companies to sell in new products when it is know that there are even more efficient products just on the horizon. 
• Careful analysis must be done to determine the correct upgrade path for lighting efficiency on a customer by customer basis.  What is right for Nordstom isn't necessarily right for Panera Bread.