CUTTING EDGE: HORIZON
UTILITIES USES ENERGY
MAPPING TO IMPROVE ENERGY
CONSERVATION MARKETING
The basic principle of marketing is to find out what consumers really need or want, and then provide it to them. But that sounds a whole
lot easier than it really is. Take programs intended to help consumers conserve electricity and reduce their energy bills: you’d think they
would be an easy sell, because it’s both good for the environment and everybody likes to save money, right? Not exactly, as it turns out.
The Ontario Power Authority, working with local electric utilities, offers a range of programs and incentives intended to help consumers
save both energy and money. In some areas of the province, it has become clear that classic marketing strategies like direct mail do not
work as well as they should – which is why Horizon Utilities Corporation, which provides electricity to the Cities of St. Catharines and
Hamilton, decided it needed to try something new and innovative.
LOOKING TO TECHNOLOGY
FOR NEW IDEAS
In 2011, Horizon Utilities applied to the Ontario Power Authority’s
Conservation Fund for support to develop an energy-density
mapping tool that would use geographic information system (GIS)
technology to map consumer electricity density: in essence, to
locate where people are using the most electricity, and then – by
tying the GIS data into other metrics – to figure out why they are
using so much.
WHAT IS GIS?
GIS is a system for storing and manipulating geographical
information on a computer.
It allows users to visualize data in ways that reveal
relationships, patterns and trends and has been used by
many organizations in many ways – for example, by:
• police departments to map crime incident patterns, and
• medical professionals to link an outbreak of disease to its
sources.
The company would then use that information to more carefully
target their marketing efforts to specific groups of consumers
and in essence significantly boost participation in energy
conservation programs.
THE GENESIS
Horizon Utilities came up with the idea after participating in a
2010 pilot project that used GIS to measure energy density in the
City of Hamilton by land area. However, “we quickly recognized
that there would be a strategic advantage to go further with this,”
says Brian Smith, Horizon Utilities’ Chief Conservation Officer,
“and to use GIS in a more succinct and strategic manner to help
us meet our conservation and demand management targets.”
Specifically, Horizon Utilities realized that other sources of
information – including the energy density per building floor area
plus such factors as neighbourhood demographics and the
purpose of the electricity used (for air conditioning, for example)
– could give them extremely valuable information. But they were
going to need help.
BUILDING THE LAYERS
For over a year, from November 2011 to March 2013, Horizon
Utilities worked with the GIS provider – the Canadian Urban
Institute – and a variety of partners to build layers of useful data.
“We have our own customer consumption information,” says
Cory Slinger, Horizon Utilities’ Manager of Market Development,
“so we know how much electricity each customer uses. Over
that, we wanted to layer other information from a variety of
sources and so we started looking for partners, beginning with
MPAC” – the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation –
“who provided us with the square footage and the age of each
building. People who own older buildings may be interested in
upgrade or retrofit programs, where owners of new buildings
wouldn’t be, so why send them both the same information?”
Other partners include:
• Teranet, Ontario’s online land registry system, to link MPAC
data to the GIS maps
• Natural Resource Canada’s CanmetENERGY for standard
metrics for different building types, and
• Environics Analytics, which uses a variety of sources –
including Statistics Canada – to provide demographic
information about specific neighbourhoods.
These partners together have contributed nearly $300,000 of inkind services to the energy-mapping project.
THE RESULT
Now, multiple layers of information are providing Horizon Utilities
with invaluable information that will help shape its future energyconservation campaigns.
The targeted approach should, Cory Slinger expects, result in a
much higher sign-up rate for the incentive. “We can do wonderful
things with this technology,” he says, “to help more people get
involved in conservation.”
MORE ABOUT peaksaver PLUS®
The peaksaver PLUS program helps manage increased
electricity demand by adjusting the amount of energy used to
run appliances like central air conditioners and electric water
heaters, during peak demand hours.
The adjustments are minor, but the energy savings across the
province becomes significant.
It uses the data from a smart meter to calculate electricity
consumption in kilowatt hours and dollars, so owners can see
their electricity consumption in near real-time.
AWARD-WINNING ROLE MODEL
The innovative technology has also quickly garnered industry
attention: in March 2013, Horizon Utilities’ energy-density
mapping tool won the provincial Electricity Distributors
Association’s Environmental Excellence Award. Says Brian Smith,
“We are the first in Canada to use technology for marketing
energy conservation programs to our customers, and it’s great to
be recognized for it.”
The technology will ultimately provide a model for others, too. As
part of the project, Horizon Utilities is committed to developing
and publishing a manual on best energy-density mapping
practices, due in 2014, and to delivering training sessions on
what they have learned to other Ontario utilities.
Take the peaksaver PLUS® program, which is intended for
residential and smaller commercial customers with central air
conditioners and electric water heaters, as an example.
In the past, Horizon Utilities would have sent out a mass mailing
to approximately 90,000 customers, estimated to have central air
conditioning based on an assessment of their electricity profile,
telling them about peaksaver PLUS®. Today, however, using the
energy mapping information now at their fingertips, the utility can
send out only 30,000 or so brochures to those they know have
these systems and would most likely be interested in the energyand money-saving opportunity, but have not yet taken advantage
of the incentive.
Official Marks of the Ontario Power Authority.
peaksaver PLUS is a trade-mark of Toronto Hydro Corporation.
OM
®
Do you have an idea for an
innovative pilot project?
The Conservation Fund provides financial support to develop and pilot
projects aimed at creating a culture of conservation by enabling Ontario
residents, businesses, and institutions to cost-effectively reduce their
demand for electricity. For more information:
visit www.powerauthority.on.ca/cfund
email cfundinquiries@powerauthority.on.ca or
call (toll free) 1-855-843-8535