Efficiency Zone
The Efficiency Zone module is designed to motivate customers to save energy based on how they see themselves in relation to similar homes. It reframes the Efficient Homes concept from the Neighbor Comparison to improve customer satisfaction without heavily compromising energy efficiency. The module is comprised of a bar graph that compares customer and similar homes usage against an Efficiency Zone, and insights that place the customer's usage in context. Usage below or up to the threshold is considered in the "efficiency zone." The Efficiency Zone threshold is the average use of the most efficient 20% of similar homes during that bill period and might change with each report.
The normative comparison in Digital Self Service - Energy Management mirrors the customer's report experience. For example, a customer that receives the Efficiency Zone in their report will also see an Efficiency Zone in Digital Self Service - Energy Management. For more information about the web version of the Efficiency Zone, see Digital Self Service Energy Management Efficiency Zone.
Appears in: Progress Report, Welcome and Announcement Report, Limited Income Report, Time of Use Report
Note: Utilities have the option of including either the Efficiency Zone or Three-Bar Neighbor Comparison module in most report types.
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Requirements
Utility Requirements
|
Category |
Description |
|---|---|
|
Required Cloud Service |
Energy Efficiency Cloud Service |
|
Scale |
Less than 100,000 per week |
Customer Requirements
|
Category |
Description |
|---|---|
|
Billing Frequency |
Monthly, bi-monthly, or quarterly |
|
Data Delivery Frequency |
Monthly, bi-monthly, or quarterly |
|
Data Requirements |
Billing data and third-party data (GSI and parcel data) |
|
Data History |
A minimum of one historical bill |
|
Data Coverage |
Not applicable. See Data Requirements. |
|
Supported Fuels |
Monthly, bi-monthly, or quarterly |
Limitations
- Home Energy Reports vs. Web: HER v3 customers receive an Efficiency Zone user variation in the web product which differs slightly from the Efficiency Zone in the reports. See the Neighbor Comparison section of the Oracle Utilities Opower Digital Self Service - Energy Management Cloud Service Product Overview for more information.
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Third-Party Data: Third-party data (GIS and parcel data) is needed to identify neighbors for the neighbor selection process.
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Neighbor Selection: A minimum number of neighbors (the default target is 100) must be selected for the customer. See Neighbor Selection - Detailed for more information.
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Solar Report: The Efficiency Zone cannot be included in the Solar Report. Solar customers receive a solar variation of the three-bar neighbor comparison. See Three-bar Neighbor Comparison for more information.
User Experience
Efficiency Zone
This section describes the standard user experience for the Efficiency Zone as seen in several report types.
Appears in: Progress Report, Welcome and Announcement Report, Limited Income Report, Time of Use Report,
This image is an example of the Efficiency Zone.
Heading: The title reads, "How you compare to others." It invites the customer to explore their normative comparison and learn about their energy use in more detail.
Threshold: The label above the graph introduces the maximum Efficiency Zone threshold (for example, Up to 500 kWh). The threshold is the average use of the 20th percentile of similar homes during that bill period. A green tinted rectangle and darker vertical line indicate the range and upper boundary of the Efficiency Zone, enabling customers to quickly see whether they are in the zone. The threshold is recalculated and changes with each report.
Graph: The bar chart displays how much energy the customer (You) used in comparison with Similar Homes. The Similar Homes bar indicates the average use of the customer's neighbors.
Hero Insight: The hero insight is the large colorful numeric percentage to the right in the gray column which displays the customer's status relative to the Efficiency Zone or to Similar Homes. The color of the large number and percent sign varies, depending on their state. If the customer is within the Efficiency Zone, the large number is green. If the customer is not within the Efficiency Zone, the large number is orange.
The hero insight has three primary states:
- Great: In the Efficiency Zone
- Good or Fair: Outside the Efficiency Zone
- Fair: Higher than Similar Homes
Explainer Text: The explainer text defines the efficiency zone for the customer.
Secondary Insight: The secondary insight the smaller green check mark or orange X – (not pictured) located under the Hero Metric that presents the customer with their status relative to the other comparison group. Depending on how the customer is performing, the color of the secondary insight is either green (Great or Good) or orange (Fair). There are several possible states:
- Great: In the Efficiency Zone
- Great: Near the Efficiency Zone
- Good: Lower than Similar Homes
- Good: About the same as Similar Homes
- Fair: Not in the Efficiency Zone
User Experience Variations
Fuel Type
Gas-only and dual fuel customers see a variation in the units of energy displayed in the Efficiency Zone module. The electricity unit “kWh” is replaced by “therms” for gas-only customers and “units” for dual fuel customers. Moreover, there is a variation in the wording of the insight statement. The word "electricity" is replaced by "natural gas" for gas-only customers, and "energy" for dual fuel customers.
Substituting the Neighbor Comparison for the Efficiency Zone
Utilities have the option of including either the Efficiency Zone or Three-Bar Neighbor Comparison module in their reports. It is recommended that utilities with a savings-focus include a Three-bar Neighbor Comparison in their report experience instead of the Efficiency Zone. Contact your Delivery Teamfor more information.