Accruent
Observe
Energy
Management
A look at the concept creation and ideation of a new product aimed at creating easily digestible reports on facilities energy consumption
The problem
Customers face significant challenges in managing energy usage efficiently, with goals to achieve permanent energy savings and meet their net carbon target by 2035.
They aimed to avoid costs associated with peak pricing and sought more control over their energy data to optimise operations and increase savings.
Defining the Requirements
Looking outside of the box for inspiration
It was essential to understand the causes and possible solutions in addressing these heavy challenges that our customers were facing in managing energy usage. We, therefore, undertook an extensive research initiative to have our strategies data-driven and aligned with user needs.
The research aimed to seek actionable insights, optimise practice in energy management, and improve overall user experience.
Data analytics
This involved revisiting historical energy usage data to identify patterns and anomalies that could guide intervention.
Industry benchmarks
While comparing our energy management practices with the industry standard and those of competitors, it provided context and highlighted best practices.
User 'feedback'
Gathering insights directly from staff allowed us to understand their pain points and areas for improvement, ensuring that our solutions were user-centric.
Existing likeminded solutions
Evaluating existing platforms and technologies helped us determine their effectiveness in providing live data and integrating multiple data sources, guiding us in selecting the best tools for our needs.
Key areas included weather tracking, astronomical telemetry and time tracking apps.
User experience challenges
Observations
To understand the depth of the problem - User observations and interviews were conducted. Group 'whiteboard' sessions broke down the requirements and lead to our base questions to answer.
"The current platform only gives us data with a one-day delay, which really slows down our ability to take action"
"So many of our processes are manual, which is really inefficient. We also need ongoing efforts to educate and engage our staff in energy-saving behaviours"
Inaccurate (and slow) data
From customer feedback sessions, it was indicated that current solutions from, Enacto via Honeywell, provided data that was not live, being day +1, leading to delays in actionable insights.
Behavioural challenges
Encouraging staff to adopt energy-saving behaviours required ongoing education and engagement.
Data visibility
Customers needed in-depth data and analysis on their energy usage.
Energy surges and unpredictable costs
Rising energy costs and sharp surges during peak demand periods required effective strategies to reduce consumption and optimise savings.
Manual processess
Many processes were manual, such as creating baselines and analysing data, leading to inefficiencies.
High costs
The platform incurred high costs with minimal perceived benefits.
Concept Exploration
Exploring concepts for the key requirements
After identifying the problems and needs, we set about solving them one by one
Problem 1.
Meet the need for customers to see in-depth data and analysis about their energy usage.
Data visualisation
User friendly dashboards
Design a series of dashboards to provide real-time information about energy sources and consumption patterns.
Visualisations
Include graphs and charts that show energy consumption over time and by different sources.
Personalisation
Allow users to customise their dashboards, set their own energy usage goals, and select which energy sources to track.
Accessibility
Ensure the dashboard was accessible to all users, incorporating features like screen reader compatibility and high-contrast design.
Interactivity
Enable users to interact with the data, such as clicking on data points for detailed information or toggling between different data views.
Holistic dashboards
Consolidate all energy information, including data gathered via CSV and APIs, into one easy-to-understand, actionable dashboard. Provided at-a-glance insights and dashboard alerts for immediate action on consumption issues.
Smart alerts
Implement alarm filtering and customisable alerts to cut out noise and simplify proactive decision-making.
Configurable rules engine
Utilise a configurable rules engine to define thresholds, create automatic work orders, and automate compliance data logging for ongoing compliance.
Problem 2.
Meet the need for customers to see in-depth data and analysis about their energy usage.
Monitor and target activities and facilities consumption and outputs
Flexible monitoring
Develop baselines including rolling 7-day averages, past consumption, and site-specific baselines.
Project tracking
Enable tracking of multiple project baselines within a single site for more accurate monitoring and targeting activities.
Comprehensive Automations
Integrate bills, energy meters, and high-energy-consuming assets using data sources like maintenance history and weather data.
Weather normalisation
Automatically normalise baselines with local weather data, removing the effect of ambient weather conditions to ensure clean, consistent points of comparison across different periods or locations.
Voice of Customer
Key user feedback
To ensure our approach was user-centric, we actively sought feedback from our customers who interact with energy management systems daily.
Real time data
Initial impression
Usability
Fitting requirements
"Having access to live energy data is crucial. It allows us to quickly respond to any changes and optimise our operations in real-time. Without it, we're always a step behind."
Need
Customers require real-time energy data to make quick decisions and implement immediate action, enhancing operational efficiency and responsiveness.
User friendly interfaces
Initial impression
Usability
Fitting requirements
"The current dashboards are too complicated. We need something that's easy to understand and use, so we can quickly get the information we need without sifting through layers of data."
Need
There is a strong demand for intuitive dashboards and visualisations that present complex data in a simple, easy-to-digest format. We need to show the most important energy data right at the front.
Automation
Initial impression
Usability
Fitting requirements
"Manual inputs and reporting are time-consuming and prone to errors. Automating these processes would save us a lot of time and improve accuracy."
Need
Customers emphasize the importance of automation in reducing manual workloads, improving data accuracy, and freeing up time for more strategic tasks. Automated reports and data logging are particularly valued for their efficiency and reliability.
Behavioural insights
Initial impression
Usability
Fitting requirements
"We need tools that not only track our energy usage but also help us understand and encourage better energy-saving behaviours among our staff. It's not just about the data; it's about driving change."
Need
Tools that provide behavioral insights are essential for fostering a culture of energy conservation. Customers want features that track and encourage energy-saving behaviours, helping to amplify savings through sustained, organization-wide efforts.
Components
What are our ingredients?
Location navigation
Narrow down what you are seeing on the dashboard and save it for future use. See just one location, multiple or the entire site.
The budget
Configure how your current usage stacks up to previous date ranges. Are we hitting our targets? Here we see the key figures at a glance
Energy source
Where is the energy coming from? What is the current cost? What are averages we'd like to see? How is it trending over time.
Here we can 'View Meters' which helps us drill down into this specific energy source
Snapshot links
We have areas for configurable cards with snapshots from the table pages within the AOEM. Namely the table breakdowns of energy In / Out, and what the total balance of the year to date is
Meter breakdown
Our key problem was displaying how different meters are displayed. Allowing you to take action when it's noted that there are anomalies popping up.
In a configureable node of the main energy source we can rank the associated meters, where they are located and how they are performing comparative to previous date ranges
Comparative breakdowns
Over larger date ranges, and bigger facilities we can see the usage over a wider set of variables. This space allows us to create a usage graph showing how we are taking (an using) different energy sources for the selected meter/s
Meters over time
An important breakdown to visualise is how each meter reads at each time of the day, week, month or year. With our input methods of billing comparing to live input we can track this in close to real time
Meters
How are they comparing to the previous year? Here we can have set data pulled in from the energy provider to give realtime comparisons over date ranges
Solution
Combining the ingredients
The last task in the design process is combining what goes where and how it interacts with the other key ingredients. We have been considering this wholeheartedly the entire time - but only during the refinement and develop stage is where the rubber hits the road and the unforeseen or unimaginable use cases arise.
Due to our standard of due diligence and constant reviews during the concept development and testing phases, this lead us to a natural conclusion of the 'final' product for first launch.
"It is exactly what we need"
Customer on viewing the capabilities of Accruent Observe Energy Management
Homepage and Dashboard
The bread and butter of the application, the space where you come and look at where the energy is coming from, and where it's going. Here we can select the site, building and date range to give complete control over what we need to see.
The cards in the lower half display the secondary pages. Namely where the specific billing information is kept and reviewed. Not displayed here is the breakdowns of the date/ consumption ratio when the user hovers, or clicks and compares the interactive graph.
Drill down & meter reading
In the guts of the product - we can drill down and see what is happening where and when. By identifying the specific meters that are giving us the energy data, we can see who is using what energy and when, and most importantly, seeing what that is costing.
When identifying spikes in energy, the system will create a notification that alerts the customer to potential overspend, and calculating by what meter uses what energy and when, will be able to tell you what predicted usage will be.
Credits
Product team
Adrian Turner, Eleni Taousakis
Lead designer
Matt Beauchamp Buck
Associate designers
Scott Mericle, Torrey Ramirez