The VEET Act and Regulations allow for accredited entities to create VEECs when they help consumers make selected energy efficiency improvements to their home or business. In-home displays that fulfil the requirements of the regulations are eligible for a deemed quantity of VEECs when installed by a VEET accredited business.

“In-home display providers can now register with the Essential Services Commission – which administers VEET – so that installation of their product can attract VEECs,” a spokesperson for the Victorian Department of Primary Industries says.

“When electricians involve themselves in the scheme, either directly or through a third party, the revenue created through the sale of certifi cates means they can offer discounts to their customers, thereby making themselves more competitive.”

VEET is a market-based scheme, meaning the value of individual certificates is determined by supply and demand – with electricity retailers required to purchase or generate enough certificates to reach defined targets each year. It is expected that the inclusion of in-home displays in the scheme will generate significant energy savings (as well as discounts) for consumers.

“In-home displays are powerful tools that can help consumers understand and better manage their energy use to achieve savings on electricity bills and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

“It is estimated that having an in home display leads to average lifetime greenhouse gas abatement of 1.87 tonnes for consumers with reticulated gas and 2.47 tonnes for those without.”

Importantly, the device’s presence at a home may be of some help to an electrician in diagnosing a fault. For instance, if a thermostat on a water heater is broken, an in-home display may show significantly higher general usage. “

Over time, in-home displays may also provide useful information to help inform tradespeople undertaking energy audits or called in for energy efficiency advice.”

The new regulations have just come into effect and suppliers should begin offering products under the scheme over the coming months. Information about suppliers will be available through the VEET website.

Adelaide Solar City

One of Australia’s largest energy retailers, Origin, has kicked off the rollout through several residential trials which provide an opportunity to measure the benefits of combining new technologies such as smart metering, in-home displays and time-based electricity products. Origin also leads the Adelaide Solar Cities consortium.

The Solar Cities program is a $94 million Australian Government initiative aimed at implementing products and technologies that encourage consumers to better manage their long-term energy use. Based in seven key locations, the Solar Cities program is creating new partnerships to showcase the economic and environmental benefits of wiser energy choices.

Adelaide is one of Australia’s longest running Solar Cities. Launched in 2007, it offers a mix of product packages and new technologies for trial in approximately 130,000 households with a diverse range of sociodemographic profiles.

The program’s success is continuously evaluated via a data monitoring and measurement program. This also creates a powerful array of information specifically targeted to inform relevant policy issues while minimising the intervention and impact on participants.

“A market trial of the in-home displays is being undertaken with up to 500 participants of the demand management trial (a program which aims to reduce peak energy demand by encouraging households to shift non-essential electricity use to off-peak periods) and up to 40 solar power trial participants,” Origin Solar Cities program manager Dario De Bortoli says.

“The Adelaide Solar City in-home display is an easy-to-use touch screen device which provides households with real-time visibility of their energy usage. Households are able to view their energy use and greenhouse gas emissions in 30 minute intervals which enable them to make informed decisions about their energy use.

“Other information available on the in-home display includes electricity account information, weather forecasts and notifications of peak events, which signal periods when peak electricity costs apply.”

Based on customer feedback, Origin recently developed a solar version of the in-home display. This model will be trialled with about 40 customers from May 2012. “

The solar in-home display uses leading edge technology to provide near real time information on how much electricity the household is using, how much electricity the solar system is generating, how much electricity is being imported or exported to the grid, the household’s greenhouse gas emissions from electricity use and weather forecasts,” he says.

In December 2010, Origin also conducted research with a small number of customers who had been provided with an in-home display. According to Dario, 75% of the interviewed customers believed they saved energy and liked having a physical in-home display that provided direct visibility. All would have recommended an in-home display to others and about half were prepared to pay a small amount for the product. “

Market research has also indicated that the in-home display is seen by the consumer to address a pre-existing need in enabling them to monitor their energy consumption and as a means of managing the household’s budget.”

Greensense View

There are many different in-home display products currently available on the market. Greensense View, for instance, is a web-based engagement platform designed to educate, engage and motivate building occupants to conserve resources.

“For the vast majority of us, energy remains a very abstract concept. Our product makes energy and water consumption easy to access and even easier to understand,” Greensense director Pete Tickler says.

“For residential projects, we typically achieve this by hooking into the data output from the existing water and electricity utility meters. For larger projects, where greater granularity is required, we either leverage an existing sub-metering network or design one for the client, which their electrical contractor will install.”

In either case, data from the meters is then sent back to the Greensense servers using the 3G network (this removes the dependency on the home owner’s internet connection). The consumer can then access their Greensense View dashboard via any web-enabled device, and alerts can also be sent via email or SMS.

“We display a range of information related to energy and water consumption, as well as additional feeds that add context to the data. This includes local weather forecasts or leader boards showing how a home is performing relative to other homes in the street,” he explains.

“At a minimum we present data in terms of consumption, such as kWh or litres, as well as in terms of cost, based on the home owner’s energy tariff and greenhouse gas emissions.”

In regards to the installation process, Pete says that Greensense View is a software platform with broad connectivity to all the major metering hardware providers on the market. In simple residential scenarios, the two main considerations for an electrician are gaining access to the data feed from the utility meters and providing power to the logging hardware.

“While we do provide a batterypowered solution, we recommend the logging hardware to be powered from the mains to increase reliability.”

According to Pete, with the current state of the residential energy market around the country, the drivers for the adoption of engagement platforms such as Greensense View are twofold.

“The utility companies operate in a competitive environment where the rollout of new technology, such as Greensense View, can add value to their products and improve customer uptake and retention. At the same time, we know that engagement and education of home owners can help ease the issues around peak demand,” he says.

“For the home owners, the appetite to better understand and manage their resource use is increasing all the time. As we move closer to a true smart grid, then the rollout of in-home displays and feedback into the home goes to another level entirely.”

This, he says, also impacts the work of an electrician.

“In our view, the role of the electrician needs to evolve. In fact, this is something we’re already seeing. Electricians of the future will need to have a better understanding of energy effi ciency, what it takes to achieve it and how the work they do can impact the energy performance of a home,” he says.