Sustainability and Energy Management System Cost – What to Know

If you’re reading this article, you’re probably in the market for, or at least curious about, an energy and sustainability management system for your organization, facility, or company. If that’s the case, you might also be wondering “how much does a sustainability and energy management system cost?”

That’s a great question. There are 6 different factors that affect sustainability and energy management system cost. They are software type, platform subscription fee(s), continuous data acquisition, historical data acquisition, training, and implementation. We will discuss each of these factors in-depth below, so you know what to expect when searching for an energy and sustainability management system for your organization.

1. Software Type

The first factor that affects your sustainability and energy management system cost is the type of software. Will it be subscription-based software that operates on the cloud, or will it be an installed on-premises software? The latter requires you to buy your own hardware and server, while the former is all in the cloud – no hardware or server required on your end. Some energy and sustainability management software providers still use the installed software type, while more are switching to cloud-based software. Make sure to ascertain the software type of the platforms you are considering, as this will have an impact on total cost and implementation.

2. Platform Subscription Fee(s)

The platform subscription fee is the price of subscribing to the energy and sustainability management platform. The amount of this fee depends on how many accounts/meters are being managed by the platform. Typically, the more accounts and meters, the more data, and subsequently, the more your subscription fee.

3. Data Acquisition

The next cost factor is data acquisition. A sustainability and energy management system will be a single source of truth for your energy data, but where is that data going to come from? Will you upload it manually from your utility bills? Or will it be automated and come directly from your utility or bill pay provider via API? Each of these options has a different cost, which you will want to discuss with a representative from each of the platforms you are considering.

4. Historical Data Acquisition

This is like data acquisition except it concerns where you will get old data from past years to put into the platform (this allows you to benchmark your energy and sustainability performance over time). Do you have an existing database the data can be harvested from? Or do you need to get the data from your utility? Again, each of these options has different costs to consider.

5. Training

The fifth cost factor, which is sometimes included with your overall fee, is the training needed for you and others at your organization to use and understand the software you choose. Energy and sustainability management software, even the easier-to-use types, still requires training so that your employees can get the most insights possible from it. Trainings may be via Zoom with an implementation specialist or take the form of ready-made videos.

6. Implementation

Last but not least: The cost of implementation. This can include processing and integration fees, e.g., the cost of integrating DER or submeter data or other data from third-party applications. Another factor to consider is whether you will be setting up the platform yourself or want assistance from an implementation specialist at your chosen company.

Ready to Get a Quote?

WatchWire provides energy and sustainability management software which can:

• Gather, organize, and analyze your energy data
• Measure and verify your efficiency projects and optimizations.
• Measure your Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions
• Integrate directly with your sustainability reporting frameworks

…and more! For more about WatchWire’s capabilities, download the WatchWire Fact Sheet.

Our sustainability and energy management system cost is specific to the size of your portfolio and the services you intend to contract with us. We would be happy to prepare a customized pricing breakdown for you. Click here to get a quote.

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