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White Paper Explores Online Move Centers
A new energy utility industry white paper explores the
service value and call center savings potential that an energy
utility can achieve by offering a more enhanced telephone and
web-centric customer connection offerings. Leading utilities
are implementing a range of web-based options, including online
"move centers" and "home services widgets" as well as call center
integration.
The paper titled "As More Consumers Go Online to Connect New
Utility Service, Leading Utilities Seize Opportunity to Enhance
Service While Lowering Costs" is co-authored by Ed Thomas and
Katherine Johnson, Market Development Group
The paper suggests that when offering enhanced service
connections, a utility should provide customers with a variety of
home service options that are seamlessly integrated while also
maintaining a high level of service quality. To achieve
this, many utilities are partnering with third-party home services
companies like WhiteFence, a leading one-stop online
comparison-shopping marketplace that allows customers to compare
and order home services.
White Paper |
Xcel Energy Featured in PLMA Web Workshop on Aug. 5
"Staying Power: 18 Years of Performance From Residential &
Commercial Customers in 5 States" is the topic for the next Peak
Load Management Alliance (PLMA) Web Workshop on August 5 at 2 pm
(Eastern).
Discover why Xcel Energy was winner of the "Innovative Application
of Residential Technology Award" for the 2007 Demand Response
Awards presented by the Peak Load Management Alliance (PLMA).
Xcel Energy received an award for its innovation in the use of
technology to enhance the effectiveness of its residential Saver's
Switch® demand response program. In operation for over 18
years, the program is serving nearly 435,000 residential and
commercial customers providing more than 400 MW of peak load
reduction on hot summer days from air conditioning and water
heating equipment controls.
Presenters will include Patrik Ronnings, Product Portfolio
Manager, Xcel Energy, and Ann Perreault, Demand Response
Consultant, Cooper/Cannon Technologies. The Moderator is
Ed Thomas, Partner, Market Development Group.
Web Workshop details |
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3 Papers at ACEEE
Katherine Johnson and Ed Thomas, along with several co-authors,
will present three papers in poster sessions on August 17 - 22,
2008 at 2008 ACEEE Summer Study on Energy Efficiency in Buildings,
Pacific Grove, California. The papers and posters are:
1. "Breaking Down the Barriers to Efficiency Improvements in
the Rental Housing Market: One Utility's Approach" --
Michael Volker, Midwest Energy, and Katherine Johnson.
How$martSM is an energy efficiency program designed to overcome
market barriers to efficient investment in energy conservation,
particularly for landlords and renters.
2. "Best Practices and Lessons Learned from EPA/DOE's
Home Performance with ENERGY STAR Program"- Chandler Von Schrader,
EPA Energy Star, Dale Hoffmeyer, EPA Energy Star, Patricia
Plympton, Navigant Consulting supporting U.S. DOE, Ed Thomas and
Katherine Johnson.
3. "Teaching Customers to Value Energy Efficiency: A
Comparison of CFL Fundraisers"- Katherine Johnson and Ed Thomas.
This paper compares the evaluation results for CFL Fund Raisers
conducted in Colorado and Florida, targeting both rural electric
and municipal utilities. This paper summarizes how
successful program sponsors from nearly 20 states have developed,
implemented, and evaluated the effectiveness of these programs.
These lessons learned are based on interviews and analyses drawn
from the experiences of a variety of program sponsors..
ACEEE Summer Study
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 DSM
Lighting Workshop in Neb. on Oct. 9
Western Area Power Administration (Western) customers and their
key accounts will learn about energy-saving technologies at the
Commercial and Industrial Lighting Workshop in Grand Island,
Nebraska on October 9 hosted by Western and Nebraska Municipal
Power Pool, and presented by Market Development Group.
Member services managers, energy services managers, key account
representatives and their customers should register today for this
one-day event that will focus on successful lighting upgrades.
This is the second in a series of workshops planned for Western's
Upper Great Plains region. |
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Greetings!
We remember when the "dog days of summer" were a slow time in
the energy efficiency consulting business. Not any more.
Thanks for keeping us in mind as you design, evaluate, and
implement programs and activities to properly position your
organization as part of the energy crisis solution when this
winter's energy bills hit mailboxes.
Please call or email when we can help you. We promise to
follow-up from where ever we are on the road.
Sincerely,
Katherine Johnson
(301) 461-4865,
kjohnson@marketdevelop.com
Ed Thomas
(970) 209-8347,
ethomas@marketdevelop.com |
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Two "Four
Corners" Workshops on Aug. 14-16 Target Utility Staff as well as
Homeowners
Durango, Colorado will play host to two innovative utility and
consumer-oriented workshops in August.
The Four Corners Utility Efficiency Exchange will be immediately
followed by a "Home Energy Makeover Workshop & Expo" from August
14-16, 2008 at Fort Lewis College in Durango, CO. Both
events are co-hosted by the La Plata Electric, Empire Electric,
Tri-State Generation & Transmission, and Colorado Rural Electric
Associations, with Colorado Association of Municipal Utilities.
The Four Corners Utility Efficiency Exchange event goal
is to facilitate a networking and professional development
conference for staff representatives of energy and water
utilities serving Southwest Colorado and neighboring states who
are responsible for developing and implementing customer
programs related to energy/water efficiency, smart meters,
demand response and renewable energy. The agenda
focuses on best practices from regional utilities. Event
details are at
www.utilityexchange.org/fourcorners.
The Home Energy Makeover Workshop & Expo event goal is to
provide program education with a product exposition for
consumers interested in energy/water efficiency, demand response
and renewable energy. This event is expected to attract
about 250 from the Durango-Cortez area. Lunch and door
prizes will be provided to those who purchase $10 admission
tickets in advance from community groups or $15 tickets at the
door. Event details are at
www.homeenergymakeover.org/fourcorners.
La Plata Electric, Empire Electric, and Tri-State Generation &
Transmission Associations serve as co-hosts to help underwrite
event costs and lead the agenda planning efforts. Market
Development Group serves as consultant to the Agenda Advisory
Committee and handles event logistics.
Four Corners Event Details |
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 Southeast
Regional Home Performance Workshop set for Sept. 16-17 in
Orlando
Planning is now underway for another "Beyond Home Energy Audits
with Home Performance with ENERGY STAR Workshop on Sept. 16-17.
This workshop co-sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy and
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency will focus on the Southeast
U.S. region, and will be co-hosted by Orlando Utilities
Commission with the Florida Municipal Electric Association and
the Florida Electric Cooperatives Association. Co-sponsors
will include: Conservation Services Group, Building Performance
Institute, Apogee Interactive, Electric & Gas Industries
Association, Energy Finance Solutions and Market Development
Group, with lunches provided by Progress Energy Florida.
DOE, EPA and the host organizations seek to enhance support to
achieve transformation of the existing home improvement
marketplace in the Southeastern U.S. The workshop will
provide a forum for utilities, state energy offices and other
energy-related organizations to network and learn in a
collaborative environment about the key program design aspects
necessary to establish a successful Home Performance with ENERGY
STAR® program.
Market Development Group will be the event producer in a manner
consistent with similar events presented in California and New
York. DOE and EPA are the primary event underwriters with
additional sponsor opportunities for others in the home
performance industry. An ad hoc Agenda Advisory Committee
will be formed consisting of representatives from leading
Southwestern utilities and energy organizations.
Home Performance Workshop and Compendium |
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 Aspen
Colo. Utility Exchange "Call For Presenters" Deadline is July 31
City
of Aspen Utilities will again host the 2nd Annual Colorado
Utility Efficiency (CUE) on October 15-17, 2008 at the Aspen
Meadows Resort in Aspen, Colorado. This event's primary
goal is to provide a networking and professional development
forum for mid-level staff of energy and water utilities serving
Colorado and neighboring states that are responsible for
developing and implementing customer programs related to energy
efficiency, water efficiency, demand response and renewable
energy.
This event is expected to attract about 100 utility staff and
trade allies that provide products and services to support
utility program development and implementation. The event
begins with lunch on Wednesday, October 15 and concludes at noon
on Friday, October 17. Each general session will begin
with a "Utility Snapshot" panel discussion followed by 30-minute
presentations. Jeff Rice of City of Aspen Utilities will
lead the Agenda Advisory Committee efforts and Market
Development Group will handle all event logistics. The
sponsors include: Xcel Energy, SourceGas, Western Area Power
Administration, Colorado Governor's Energy Office, Apogee
Interactive, Marathon Water Heaters, Convectair, and Electric &
Gas Industries Association.
A "Call for Presenters" with sponsor and attendee registration
details are available at the link below where you can now see
the presentations and agenda from last year.
2nd Colorado Utility Efficiency Exchange details |
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 Program
Evaluation from Coast to Coast
Market
Development Group provides process and impact evaluation support
to clients throughout North America. Katherine Johnson
just finished helping Summit Blue Canada with its process and
impact evaluation for
BC Hydro's Double Return Program.
This innovative program patterned after California's
C&I program targets the largest customers and rewards them for
achieving lasting savings through a combination of energy
efficiency and behavior changes. Katherine assisted Gay Cook,
the Summit Blue project manager, in completing the process
evaluation and conducted the free ridership analysis.
Katherine also just completed another assignment for BC Hydro.
As part of the Summit Blue Canada team, she conducted a series
of interviews with key utility staff regarding the regulatory
process requirements, including several interviews en francais
with Hydro Quebec staff.
Katherine continues to provide support to 12 Northern California
Power Authority (NCPA) members in developing
evaluation, measurement, and verification plans. She completed
the first round of plans, working with Gary Cullen of Summit
Blue. Now, she and the Summit Blue team are involved in the
second round to implementing these plans for these
municipalites. She is currently working with the City of Palo
Alto, Silicon Valley Power, and Lodi Electric Utility.
Katherine just returned from a kick-off meeting for a process
evaluation of Hawaiian Electric's (HECO) SolarSavers Program.
This innovative solar water heater program is based on the
Pay-As-You-Save program model in which the cost of the equipment
is financed on the electric bill through the energy savings.
HECO is the first U.S. utility to have this type of program
mandated through the State Legislature. While in Honolulu, she
conducted interviews with staff, stakeholders, and solar
contractors regarding program effectiveness. The process
evaluation will be completed in September and will require (no
doubt) another trip back to the Islands. Aloha!!
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 Wyoming
Forms Home Performance Alliance
Wyoming
Home Performance with ENERGY STAR (WHP) has formed the Wyoming
Home Performance Alliance. Founding Partners include:
Black Hills Corporation subsidiaries Black Hills Power and
Cheyenne Light, Fuel, & Power; SourceGas; and Wyoming Rural
Electric Association (WREA).
This voluntary initiative allows Wyoming-based energy utilities
and developers, government, education, and private-sector
organizations to publicly demonstrate their commitment to
encouraging Wyoming residents to take control of rising
residential utility costs by using a comprehensive "whole-house"
approach to make energy-related improvements. The WHP Alliance
provides a forum for energy utilities and other organizations to
enhance and expand WHP program offerings statewide as attention
focuses on the most expensive-ever home heating season starting
this fall.
In a prime example of "coop‑etition", these organizations are
teaming-up in this voluntary initiative to provide resources to
help consumers prepare for the severe rise in energy prices
anticipated this winter. Planned activities include:
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Home Energy Makeover Workshop
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Wyoming GEOSmart Loan program in partnership with Electric &
Gas Industries Association
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Expanded Training and Analysis
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Expanded Web Site
Market Development Group serves as a program design consultant
to the Wyoming effort.
Wyoming Home Performance website
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 Timshel
Theatre Company Debuts with "Three Viewings"
Ed Thomas performed in "Three Viewings" by Jeffrey Hatcher
in mid-July in downtown Montrose, Colorado. The production
at the Kagan and Baron Gallery of Fine Art marked the debut of
the Timshel Theatre Company in which Ed is a partner. The
play consists of three comic/dramatic monologues set in a
funeral parlor portray the deceased,
the bereaved, and the lengths to which survivors go to hold
on to memories. In the play, Ed portrayed Emil, a meek and
lonely undertaker whose heart-warming but one-sided relationship
with a local real-estate woman brings him to the brink of
emotional ruin.
Timshel Theatre homepage | | |