John Altenburg
Member
I'm a contractor that's been hit by this poor economy. It's forced me to do something constructive with my time. So I started looking into energy conservation and how to make some cash through it all. This is what I've come up with so far.
Energy Savings Companies. (ESCos) Finance projects for mainly Federal and State buildings to repair, replace and maintain equipment for better efficiency and bill according to the over all energy savings. (Usually over 20 yrs.) I can't afford the capital.
Energy Management Companies or Power Management Companies. This one seems promising for all of us. Contractors and Electricians alike. It assumes the position of all the above and probably more.
Centralized control systems. (Computerized controls for lighting etc.)
Monitoring and Management of these systems. (Knowing the software)
Energy Auditing for upgrade recommendations.
And Power Factor Correction! (A controversial issue but valid idea)
With all that said, I love the Sales aspect of all this. I just finished with educating myself with lighting control but found the doors of opportunity are endless. So what did I do? I took the advise of great business men and am in the process of creating a mess with the idea I can clean it up later. I am making appointments with building owners/managers to talk about what they can do to conserve their energy cost. The first appointment I have is with a mill works company that has a monthly bill of 5k to 7k. I think I can correct the power factor and get them on a lower rate with the utility company. I have yet to get into the details and have no idea what I can do via broker the deal and manage the installation of the most appropriate capacitor(s). I don't have to engineer any of this. My supplier is working hand in hand with me to advise what would work best for the equipment involved.
I've search this forum and don't see much on the idea. Does anyone have experience with this type of work? What else can I do?
There is an excitement I haven't seen in a long time from those I solicited. As a matter of fact, most are expecting to pay for an audit and seem willing. But for now I offer the audit free. (Mainly because I have no idea what I'm doing!) No one is doing this in my area. The only ones who have this knowledge usually work on staff for large manufacturing company's. To the advantage of us little guys this technology has just broken through the proprietary threshold and now is available on Windows platform in 2006. This means it now affordable to smaller industries. Wow, it's all so new....
Energy Savings Companies. (ESCos) Finance projects for mainly Federal and State buildings to repair, replace and maintain equipment for better efficiency and bill according to the over all energy savings. (Usually over 20 yrs.) I can't afford the capital.
Energy Management Companies or Power Management Companies. This one seems promising for all of us. Contractors and Electricians alike. It assumes the position of all the above and probably more.
Centralized control systems. (Computerized controls for lighting etc.)
Monitoring and Management of these systems. (Knowing the software)
Energy Auditing for upgrade recommendations.
And Power Factor Correction! (A controversial issue but valid idea)
With all that said, I love the Sales aspect of all this. I just finished with educating myself with lighting control but found the doors of opportunity are endless. So what did I do? I took the advise of great business men and am in the process of creating a mess with the idea I can clean it up later. I am making appointments with building owners/managers to talk about what they can do to conserve their energy cost. The first appointment I have is with a mill works company that has a monthly bill of 5k to 7k. I think I can correct the power factor and get them on a lower rate with the utility company. I have yet to get into the details and have no idea what I can do via broker the deal and manage the installation of the most appropriate capacitor(s). I don't have to engineer any of this. My supplier is working hand in hand with me to advise what would work best for the equipment involved.
I've search this forum and don't see much on the idea. Does anyone have experience with this type of work? What else can I do?
There is an excitement I haven't seen in a long time from those I solicited. As a matter of fact, most are expecting to pay for an audit and seem willing. But for now I offer the audit free. (Mainly because I have no idea what I'm doing!) No one is doing this in my area. The only ones who have this knowledge usually work on staff for large manufacturing company's. To the advantage of us little guys this technology has just broken through the proprietary threshold and now is available on Windows platform in 2006. This means it now affordable to smaller industries. Wow, it's all so new....
