Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority
At a Glance
Industry
Government/Public Administration
Project Types
Clean and Renewable Energy, Data Analysis, Sustainability and Energy Management Strategy
Year
2015
Location
Boston, MA
Annual kWh Savings:
6,500,000 kWh
Annual CO2 Reductions:
3,200 metric tons
Summary
Courtney Guard began the process of securing an Enterprise Energy Management Software solution for the MBTA.
Goals
The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) enlisted Courtney Guard to support the procurement of an Enterprise Energy Management Software (EEMS) solution. The MBTA has a complex and extensive electricity infrastructure, with its own power distribution network. It buys electricity in the wholesale, retail and spot markets, through multiple vendors, and for over 350 accounts spanning 10 different load zones and 70 cities. Because of gaps in electricity data from the many vendors, an EEMS is critical to understanding and analyzing energy data and would provide the foundation for long-term strategic energy management at the MBTA.
Solutions
After performing market research on EEMS vendors and software functionalities, Guard developed the EEMS Request for Proposals, specifying key features tailored to the MBTA’s complex and unique energy infrastructure. This included an analysis of how an EEMS could improve existing energy-management processes, proposed data organization and data flows and development of evaluation factors. A key challenge was mapping out all of the data sources and figuring out how the multiplicity of data sets would come together to produce the desired end result. Guard analyzed data from utility bills, utility applications and ISO-NE for over 350 electricity accounts to determine what types of data fulfilled each need for the EEMS. During this process, Guard uncovered aggregate interval data, which she used to perform demand analysis, create load profiles for the MBTA and benchmark hourly electricity use against two other similar-sized transit organizations. The benchmark revealed a potential savings opportunity of 6.5 million kilowatt hours, 3,200 metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions and over $600,000 annually through overnight operational changes. Guard effectively managed all facets of specification development to reduce the procurement schedule from 180 to 90 days and completed the RFP by the end of the summer.
Potential Impact
The successful implementation of Enterprise Energy Management Software should provide unprecedented visibility to energy consumption, improved energy-efficiency project management and streamlined environmental reporting. Furthermore, the dashboards and metrics provided by the EEMS could facilitate the integration of energy efficiency into management processes, including reporting energy-related key performance indicators to the new MBTA Fiscal Management and Control Board. The EEMS could be the key, enabling step for proactive energy management at the MBTA. With visibility and robust energy analytics, the MBTA should be able to pursue and make the business case for more aggressive and complex energy-efficiency projects.