REGEN's Swarm Energy Mgmt Proven Effective in SMUD Pilot Study

In September, I co-presented the findings of a 2-year study conducted by the Sacramento Municipal Utility District, together with Vikki Wood (a Principal Demand-Side Specialist in SMUD's Energy R&D team) at the Autovation Conference in Long Beach, California.

REGEN's controllers were installed at a number of Sacramento sites and were put through its paces under the watchful eye of a third-party energy auditor (ADM & Assoc.). The results were particularly impressive, considering the smaller-than-typical buildings that participated in the study:

• The 15-minute peak, especially critical in Sacramento since the annual peak sets a portion of a customer's demand charges for the entire year, was reduced while maintaining occupant comfort.
• The load reduction during Demand Response events resulted in no difference in occupant comfort than under baseline or demand management modes of operation.
• The technology was able to reduce consumption outside of core hours, leading to further savings with no impact on occupant comfort.
• The power readings from our controllers were conservative and therefore REGEN's could be trusted as sufficiently accurate for the purposes of energy analysis.

See the press release, together with citations from the general manager of an Ace Hardware store who was thrilled to participate as a pilot customer.

The full report is available from the Resources section of our web site.