how many buildings are added to EnerNOC’s network, Healy says. “If we stick just with the Police Department, the Public Library, and City Hall and we don’t get much further than that, it is going to be a smaller amount than if we go to more police stations and museums and other city buildings,” he says. “Our aim is to deliver on our commitment to the city with these first three buildings and then use that as a catalyst to go in and unlock more value, facility by facility.”
Healy says he also hopes the city will also engage EnerNOC for other service such as energy procurement. (A whole section of the company is devoted to consulting with clients on their energy needs, finding the cheapest energy sources, and in some cases negotiating actual contracts.) He says the company could also help Boston show the world how it’s tackling efficiency challenges and pushing forward with a green agenda.
“We’ve already started discussions with them about putting more data visualization into the city’s buildings and facilties, so that the city can start to show off some of the very initatives it’s taking,” Healy says. “If the city is engaging in demand response, people shouldn’t know about that just because of a press release—we should make it visible.” There should be “energy-management kiosks” around the city, Healy says, where people could see exactly how much energy and money the city is saving. “By working with hometown cleantech leaders, we think the City of Boston can be more aggressive and more successful with its green initiatives than any other city in the nation.”
Next up: the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Healy says EnerNOC is a party to several requests for proposals from the state government, and that consequently, he can’t say much about whether the services the company is providing to the City of Boston might eventually be extended across the state. “But I am encouraged there as well,” he says.
“There has been an awful lot of great dialogue and rhetoric, but lately I’ve been encouraged to see some task-force type activity around the implementation of the Green Jobs Act, with a particular emphasis on recognizing the value of building these clean and green businesses here,” Healy says. “I bet, a year from now, you’ll see a number of initiatives where Massachusetts put their money where their mouth is, in terms of picking local companies and creating green jobs here at home, and I think EnerNOC is as well-positioned as anyone.”
