Integrating Smart Home and Distributed Energy Resources into the Grid

Parks Associates hosted its 14th annual Smart Energy Summit last week in Austin, bringing the best of the best in the energy and smart home industries together.?

We had an amazing line up of speakers and leaders in the audience. I wanted to share some of the key insights we captured from the sessions. Thank you to our speakers, supporters, sponsors, and attendees for making the event so insightful.

Enjoy these insights and shout out to?Angela Boeke ,?Parks Associates ?capturing the moments throughout the sessions we hosted!

Smart Energy Summit ?is sponsored by CSA -?Connectivity Standards Alliance ,?Rapid Response Monitoring ,?Calix ,?Google ,?Schneider Electric ,?Austin Energy ,?Questline Digital ,?Resideo , and?Copper Labs .

A glimpse into the?#SmartEnergy23 ?panel discussion last week, IoT Solutions: Demand Response Flexibility, highlighted by?Rapid Response Monitoring !

?? #Utilities ?can leverage the growing number of #DistributedEnergy ?and?#SmartHome ?products and services to help manage the?#grid . As the adoption of distributed generation expands and daily load profiles resemble the duck curve, aligning consumption with local supply will become critical to grid operation. ??

??The question for utilities and?#energy ?providers is how to integrate smart home and distributed energy resources into the grid. This session examines the incentives are needed for consumers to engage in utility programs and operate their home in a way that is aligned with the needs of the grid operator. ???

???? INDUSTRY INSIGHTS ????

??“We initially did a BYOT (Bring Your Own Thermostat) approach. Recently, we've offered the marketplace a free smart thermostat and we've seen a large scale. However, putting them out in the market doesn't automatically mean we can use them as an asset. It will take more hand-holding to see a bigger scale.”?Bruce Brazis , Account Executive, Customer to Grid Solutions,?Arizona Public Service - APS ??

“Year over year we have not seen a loss with using?#SmartThermostats . Customers are still out there and are still interested. Our Demand Response program has helped bring value to the utility as well as our customers.”?Justin Chamberlain , Manager of Energy Efficiency and Demand Response,?CPS Energy

“We need to move away from the event mentality in demand response. Continuous demand response is the best way to scale and make a real impact.”?Robert Cruickshank, PhD, Broadband Grid Pioneer, Fellow?? , Managing Member,?GRIDIoT Power Networks

“We provide critical monitoring during unsafe weather conditions for our customers. If there’s a blackout, someone who depends on medical and health devices need the power to survive.”?Morgan Hertel , Vice President of Technology & Innovation,?Rapid Response Monitoring

“Thermostats have somewhat leveled out in North America, with a slight uptick in the European market. Maybe there’s potential to incentivize demand response beyond thermostats with other products that work with Tuya like smart lightbulbs, which work straight out of the box.”?Andy Spielman , Director of Business Development,?Tuya Smart

This was a great conversation at the session: Home Energy Management: Driving Energy Efficiency panel at?#SmartEnergy23 ?this morning, highlighted by?Connectivity Standards Alliance ! ??????

#EnergyManagement ?includes many value propositions that can be delivered as part of a broader smart home solution. The market for energy management solutions has just started to take off, but energy companies are highly motivated to invest in solutions and offerings that provide more?#energy ?efficiency and automation in homes.??

This session examines the emerging energy management capabilities and the opportunity for different channels to provide energy management services and to tie?#efficiency ?solutions to a variety of products, including smart lights, pool pumps, smart blinds, and smart fans.

???? INDUSTRY INSIGHTS ????

"We do have behavioral components with how we recruit customers into?#DemandResponse ?programs. We have to consider what language we use to dramatically simplify the message to consumers. It's a mix of behavioral change and automation."?Aaron Berndt , Head of Energy Industry Partnerships / Americas,?Google

"We've learned that we have to do more for our consumers, for example setting goals and providing periodic insights. We're trying to learn how to meet people where they are, and different customers want different things."?Dan Forman , CEO,?Copper Labs

"We are currently looking at over ten device types to help manage different flexible loads. We are working to get to a future where consumers will be able to put in their flexibility and preferences for the home using a Matter app."?Christopher LaPré , Head of Technology,?Connectivity Standards Alliance

"There has to be an industry shift towards using the whole home and away from multiple different programs. There's a lot of work to be done with how the economics trickle down from utilities to smart devices."?David Oberholzer , General Manager, Energy Management,?Resideo

??"The?#InflationReductionAct ?has been a huge game changer for us. There aren't a lot of people offering a low-cost package combining different services, and we're starting to work on that."?Bob Swilik , VP of Product Strategy,?Aeroseal

#google ?#technology ?#conference ?#austin ?#atx

We had a great event in Austin! If you are interested in our research in the smart home, energy management area or more information on our executive conferences, please contact me or?Ashton Gambrell ?for more information.