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An energy management system that collects data from your main utility meter(s) and facility sub-metering should also have the ability to generate a variety of cost related reports. For example, the cost of electricity for a hour, day, week or month should be readily available for each metering point. It is also beneficial to be able to compare costs on the same meter so that inefficiencies, weather related variations, equipment retrofit and the effects of energy efficient initiative can be easy identified and quantified.
It is also beneficial to be able to generate a report which matches the utility bill line by line. This allows you to verify your electricity bills rather than just assuming that the utility information is correct. With so many billing items based on transmission, distribution, variable hourly electricity prices, power factor penalties etc... an independent system that will re-created the bill is really the only way to make sure your paying what you should really be paying.
Allocating costs to various departments or manufacturing areas seems like a simple task on the surface, however there is an element of the bill known as "peak demand" which is the highest electrical demand level the facility reached during the month. The peak happens at a specific time and has costs associated with it. In order to know what portion of the demand charge applies to a particular department or metering point, you will need to know what that meter reading was at the time of the facility peak and then work the numbers through the peak demand calculations according to those meter readings. A good Energy Management Software package will do this automatically ensuring that you can internally allocated costs for energy and peak by department, group of meters or any other subset of metering that you desire.
Some Companies also participate in Demand Response or Interruptible Demand programs offered by their Utility or Electricity Market Operator. These programs offer money for reducing your facility demand when asked to do so. Each program in Canada and the USA has different requirements and economic benefits. From a customer point of view, the important thing is to quickly and easily be able to quantify the amount of money you will receive from each incident of demand reduction. Again a good software package should offer this add-on for customers that are participating in such initiatives.
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