What it means. Energy management is connected to another one of our Buzzwords, demand-response pricing, in which power companies charge different electricity rates depending on the time of day. This pricing model is supposed to help you lower your utility bills through smart energy management, for example programming a dishwasher or a pool heater to run during off-peak hours, a move that also puts less strain on the grid. Read about Idaho Power's energy-management program.
Why the buzz? At last month's International Builders' Show in Las Vegas, GE and Whirlpool both unveiled prototypes of their energy-management systems. GE's home-energy manager, or HEM, talks with utilities companies via a smart meter. Whirlpool's version allows you to manage your energy use through the Internet. Perhaps we're seeing the energy-management version of Blu-ray vs. HD DVD, in which one approach trumps the other. Or maybe multiple versions of the necessary two-way communication will coexist. In the end, what you as a consumer want is effective, easy-to-use technology that will save you money.
In the not too distant future, your home could be equipped with some type of dashboard indicating the fluctuating price of electricity throughout the day, how much power your individual appliances are using at any given moment, and more key data. You'll simply use the snazzy graphic user interface, like GE's 7-inch LCD (shown below) to manage everything. (Check out our Builders' Show video of GE's smart appliances.)
GE says its HEM will be available in the third quarter of 2010 for less than $500. Even if your home doesn't have a smart meter yet, you can install the device on your home's main power line and begin monitoring your energy consumption, claims GE. If and when the smart grid arrives, you'll then be able to take advantage of demand pricing.
Whirlpool's launch isn't set yet, but Warwick Stirling, the company's global director of energy and sustainability, predicts that in the next few years home-energy managers will be as ubiquitous as smart phones are today.
—Daniel DiClerico
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