Although there has been a focus on energy efficiency in commercial buildings for some years, the BEMS market can still be considered nascent. The landscape of new entrants, new technologies, and new methodologies is expanding rapidly, and even well-established market leaders are finding new ways to present and market their businesses. Read more »
If approved, the future of A123 System’s lithium ion battery tech will fittingly be owned by Chinese auto giant Wanxiang. China is increasingly becoming one of the most important markets for electric vehicles in the world. Read more »
Cleantech companies with effective business models still have excellent prospects, while those who don’t have a viable product to sell in the marketplace won’t be rising from anywhere. Read more »
Battery maker A123 Systems, which was awarded a sizable federal grant, has finally filed for bankruptcy protection, after bleeding cash for months. Johnson Controls will buy up some of the assets. Read more »
Nine more utilities, and three large energy vendors, announced support on Thursday for the Green Button project, which enables utility customers to download their energy consumption data with a click of a button and also use that data for energy-saving apps. Read more »
For the occasion of Siemens’ swallowing eMeter, we have pulled together our recurring smart grid acquisitions list, including the new ones we have seen in recent months. Read more »
Remaking office buildings with energy-efficient equipment can cut utility bills and give some green cred. But often, building owners don’t want to pay the large upfront cost. To help fix this problem, Serious Energy is launching a no-money-down program called SeriousCapital. Read more »
The market for electric vehicles is moving more slowly than expected. That’s why companies like Johnson Controls are focusing more heavily on “start-stop” vehicle technology, which is a system that automatically cuts off the engine of a gas-powered vehicle while it’s idling. Read more »
The automotive battery joint venture between Johnson Controls and Saft has gone sour and according to analysts with Needham & Company Johnson Controls is unhappy because the Saft deal is holding it back from the power grid battery market (and Hitachi might be a better partner). Read more »
Along with our latest gadgets, cell phones, electrical meters and cars, light bulbs and lighting systems, are increasingly getting embedded with chips, connected to wireless networks and moving into the Internet age. Here are some examples from the annual lighting convention Lightfair this week. Read more »
The smart grid industry’s focus is now shifting to the true purpose of the smart grid movement: applications that will improve the efficiency, reliability and versatility of the electric grid. This report analyzes six key smart grid application trends that will help shape the industry landscape in the years to come: distribution automation, data analytics, demand response, carbon management, home energy management and electric vehicles. The applications that prevail in this new arena will define the smart grid experience for industrial, commercial and residential customers. Along the way, new business opportunities that arise from these applications will become available for the providers of software, systems, devices and services, and enhance customer awareness and control of energy consumption. Companies mentioned in this report include Echelon, Google, EnerNOC, ZigBee and Microsoft. For a full list of companies, and to read the full report, sign up for a free trial. Read more at GigaOM Pro »
Greentech investment trends in the first quarter of 2011 either signal a record-setting expansion for the industry in 2011, or retrenchment in the face of economic and political headwinds — depending on how you look at the numbers. Read more »
Is the greentech industry headed for a breakout year or is it retrenching for hard times to come? The first three months of 2011 provided evidence that could support both assertions, with a big rise in venture capital investment and a big drop-off in global energy financing. Solar power remained the largest green technology sector in terms of venture capital investment, while in the world of electric vehicles, GM’s Chevy Volt hybrid and Nissan’s all-electric Leaf — the first two mainstream plug-in vehicles — hit the showroom floors in significant numbers. Meanwhile the smart grid sector’s relative dearth of VC investment was more than made up for by the massive round of acquisitions. Companies mentioned in this report include NRG Energy, Microsoft, Silver Spring Networks, Tesla and BrightSource Energy. For a full list of companies, and to read the full report, sign up for a free trial. Read more at GigaOM Pro »
It’s a cliché you inevitably hear in any discussion about building energy efficiency retrofits: It’s the “low-hanging fruit” of cleantech. But the market hasn’t taken off quickly, and good money to be made will come from the commercial, rather than the residential, market. Read more »
What’s the purpose of the billion-dollar plus smart grid acquisition surge? According to Schneider Electric, it’s around developing the capacity to be a “true smart grid provider,” which includes procuring energy as well as using IT to manage the grid. Read more »
Johnson Controls is buying up Campbell, Calif.-based EnergyConnect, one of the more interesting behind-the-scenes players in demand response software for the customer as well as the utility. Read more »
PowerIt Solutions, a behind-the-scenes player in building energy control and demand response technology player, has raised $5 million and landed a new CEO. New partners and new markets are on its menu. Read more »
Greentech marked its best year ever in 2010, and part of that is thanks to the wealth of activity across sectors during the fourth quarter. Global investment in clean energy surged, and while wind power remained the biggest greentech area, solar power saw the fastest growth. The energy efficiency sector appears to have more room for smaller players to make their mark amidst a rapidly maturing market. Meanwhile, China’s stance as a growing greentech giant continued to complicate its relationship with the United States. Companies mentioned in this report include General Electric, Intel, ZigBee, iControl, People Power and EnerNOC. For a full list of companies, and to read the full report, sign up for a free trial. Read more at GigaOM Pro »
The buying spree in the smart grid-smart building nexus keeps going, this time in France, where Schneider Electric has bought building energy management software providers Vizelia and D5X. Chalk it up to what’s set to be the biggest greentech acquisition trend of 2011. Read more »
In the building energy management sector, mid-size commercial properties like restaurants and stores are relegated to the industry’s untouched middle territory. But the right combination of low-cost and enhanced customer service could crack open this untapped ... Read more at GigaOM Pro »
Big buildings already have plenty of energy management technology, and household energy efficiency is the focus of dozens of VC-backed startups and IT giants alike. But who’s tackling the small and mid-size commercial building market, or the “mushy middle?” Read more »
IBM has been talking for a long time about linking smart building technology and enterprise-wide sustainability. Late Thursday, it unleashed a slew of new products, services and partnerships aimed at cementing that role. Read more »
New smart grid technologies promise to widen the reach of demand response, but what if that process works in reverse? Big demand response players are leveraging their middleman role between utilities and customers to bring their technology in as a “back-door” smart grid conduit between the ... Read more at GigaOM Pro »
Mike Zimmerman, the CEO of building automation software startup BuildingIQ, says his company has for the first time met a utility’s demand to turn down power to manage peak load, automatically with a building control system in Perth, Australia. Read more »
Stealthy startup Daintree Networks wants to take a slightly different tack than its competitors — deliver ZigBee-based, interoperable lighting controls to market by partnering directly with the incumbents. Will the big boys be interested? Read more »
The lighting control sector is a growing one, and has significant potential to become a key driver to the building automation market segment if it lives up to its claims of lower total cost, ease of installation, scalability and architecture for the future. The prospects, market watchers and others we engaged with for this research were very interested in seeing these technologies operate in a real client operational environment — a reaction we believe will be indicative of similar interest from the broader market. Read more at GigaOM Pro »
Phones with video chat capability have been out in Europe for years, but getting the ability on two of the biggest smartphone platforms will expose the feature to millions who have no idea such video calls are possible. A new comprehensive report details this upcoming boom. Read more »
Echelon makes smart meter networks and building automation systems. Could it bring the two businesses together? On Wednesday, Echelon shipped its 2 millionth smart meter, adding recent contracts with a host of Danish utilities and partners to its big list of European clients — and, on […] Read more »
Two of the biggest players in the emerging smart building industry have joined forces. IBM and Johnson Controls announced Monday the launch of a joint initiative called Smart Building Solution — combining the business analytics and enterprise software of Big Blue with the building technology and […] Read more »
IBM’s “smarter planet initiative” seeks to connect everything from railways to the power grid to buildings with sensors, software and communications gear. And to accomplish such a feat (to basically act as a platform to connect various infrastructure), the computing company needs friends — a whole […] Read more »
