Veritatis Advisors | Energy Management

2 May 2018

Veritatis Insights – Utility Networks get ISO 50001, perhaps just in time

US Department of Energy (DOE) hits its stride by launching the several year old private sector energy management platform for continual improvement into the gasping utility sector, perhaps just in time to save it. Release: US DOE March saw the launch of the 50001 Ready Utility Network Series, the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) first facilitated forum for utilities, public benefit administrators (PBA), third party implementers, consultants, and regulators who share an interest in energy

12 Feb 2018

Green Bonds free-up capital and enable treasury side climate leverage

By Don Macdonald

A Bank of America analysis found that more investors were interested in the green bond tranche. Fortune 100 company is able to pay a reduced rate and not have to worry about the capital costs really frees them up on the corporate sustainability side and the treasury side in innovative ways, according to BoA and Citi. Internal carbon taxes and self-directed controls that pay for many efficiency and renewable energy projects is the key. Not

9 Aug 2017

Simplicity Matters – Utilities and Work Force Development

By Don Macdonald

Steve Jobs through sheer tenacity and resilience, focused on simplicity. Fired from Apple, created NEXT, rehired by Apple because he knew above all else simplicity matters. Eric Burke The Utility industry work force is passing this ephemeral moment in technology development. Jobs' vision while transformative was painful, knowing beforehand 'NEXT' was never to be successful. He was not creating gadgets, but rather an ecosystem and few saw it for what it was. Utilities like the

16 Jan 2017

Veritatis Insights – Efficiency begets Consumption, the Jevons Paradox of Sustainability

By Don Macdonald

Veritatis Insights considers the economic rebound principal known as 'Jevons Paradox' as it applies to a widely known product, Scottish Whiskey. Scotlands fine whiskey industry is an example of the consumption and manufacturing cycle described herein. We can consider the implications to energy and resource efficiency, waste production and by-products as a CEO or Board of Directors. Legend credits Irish monks with whiskey’s invention. Traveling in the Middle East during the Crusades, they realized the copper

6 Sep 2016

Utilities begin to realize Efficiency as an Energy Resource

By Don Macdonald

Utility adoption of energy efficiency programs is an outsourced model of engagement perhaps until now. According to AEEE, utilities a bit counter-intuitive in their market adoption thinking, are now seeing energy efficiency as a resource. With the confluence of proper GHG's and energy benchmarking, baselines Wall Streets acceptance of metrics for investment profiling have become standardized and with that AEEE found that it is third in the electric generation segment. And it may top the list

14 Jul 2016

Schneider Electric reports stunning success in deployment of its energy management strategy

By Don Macdonald

Veritatis Advisors global client Schneider Electric reports stunning success in deployment of its energy management strategy devised by VA's Don Macdonald. It is always welcomed to see other reporting on your good work, at scale, of energy efficiency and uses of Standards to peel back layers of operational performance and change culture while meeting financial objectives and Wall Street expectations. Schneider North American CEO at the time, Jeff Drees and his team envisioned vertical integration of

17 May 2016

Embedding Sustainability in Every Day Life

By Don Macdonald

Veritatis InSights Sustainability has yet to Become Embedded in Our Every Day Lives If you look closely at the Google search word trend graph for the word "Sustainability" over time, a telltale pattern emerges which belays a lack of behavioral engagement to the level of everyday life similar to the word "Green," especially in retail segments. So how do we Embed Sustainability in Every Day Life? The hills and valleys repeat and you will note

Risk Management borne of Experience

By Don Macdonald

Managing Risk and the sport of Open Water Marathon Swimming ... You would be surprised to learn of the correlation between managing risk and the sport of Open Water Marathon Swimming. This exploding sport, fueled by triathletes, but started by a hardy core of tougher swimmers that embrace speedo only rules in cold water to build character and resilience not often found today. Many of these OW swimmers are surprisingly corporate leaders, business savvy

16 Apr 2016

49 percent of North American supply-chain executives don’t view sustainability as a strategic priority

By Don Macdonald

In an exert taken from Supply Chain Brain, Veritatis Advisors Partner West Monroe Partners, David South Head of Sustainability, highlights some of the out-takes from COP21 and study implications coming into focus. West Monroe Partners found that 49 percent of North American supply chain executives don't view sustainability as a strategic priority. And 64 percent have no plans to adopt sustainability initiatives in the coming years. Like it or not, though, they're going to have to take steps

17 Feb 2016

ENERGY MANAGEMENT BEHAVIORAL DECISION MAKING

By Don Macdonald

ENERGY MANAGEMENT BEHAVIORAL DECISION MAKING By Don Macdonald, LEED AP, CEM Not often talked about is an obscure behavioral and computer science religion called Decision Support, a basic form of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and part of understanding ENERGY MANAGEMENT BEHAVIORAL DECISION MAKING. Will artificial intelligence evolve and make conscious efficiency choices (or lack thereof) for us? Is much of the human "choice" from efficiency already being eliminated, controlled by the 'man" and dictated by