SPP Information Display Pilot Update

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SPP Information Display Pilot Update

• Working Group 3
• September 24, 2004

Mark S. Martinez Manager, Program Development
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Early SPP Research Questions (2003)

• Does more timely feedback on household energy use
  increase the average level of peak energy
  savings?
• Dynamic rates may be difficult to understand, and
  the price signals may not generate an adequate
  response to the consequences of inaction are
  there better treatments?
• Awareness, understanding, and behavior
  modification for the SPP are based on the
  enrollment materials provided early, and the
  feedback is limited to billing can we inform in
  a more timely manner?

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Project Overview

• Information Display Pilot (IDP) was authorized in
  2004 SPP budget decision, D.04-01-012, January 8,
  2004
• Contingent on Advice Letter to the Energy
  Division prior to commencement
• Advice Letter 1790-E filed April 5, 2004 with
  detailed plan included
• IDP Approved April 23, 2004
• RFP issued to five service providers on May 14,
  2004
• Responses were returned on May 25, 2004
• Contract awarded to Nexus in June, 2004
• IDP treatments began for customers July 2004

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IDP Project Mission

• Evaluate the effectiveness of and customer
  perceptions of specific Statewide Pricing Pilot
  features and materials, including enrollment and
  educational material, bill formats, web
  information, and tariff features to test the
  usefulness of providing customers with various
  types of energy information (or feedback) not
  currently provided by the utilities

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Specific Treatment Investigations

• both in-home pricing/usage displays that will
  either replace or accommodate an enhanced web
  based information treatment,
• possible diagnostic tools to identify the most
  effective behavior changes for a particular
  customer,
• customer reactions to different types of
  information or feedback choices, and
• an assessment of the likelihood that residential
  customers will choose to use and pay for these
  additional feedback mechanisms to help manage
  their energy usage.

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IDP Scope of Work

• Develop research plan to produce deliverables
• Perform Technology Assessment to determine
  effective and useful treatments for deployment in
  the IDP
• Develop survey instruments to conduct customer
  information about what forms of information
  treatment customers want/will/use/pay for
• Deploy the information treatments and install the
  technologies on existing SPP participant
  homes/meters
• Review load data collected from participants and
  estimate significant load impact changes
• Document project info and collect database
  information
• Prepare draft and final study reports
• Present results to WG3 as scheduled

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Recent Activities

• SPP billing data received from all participants
• Information treatments designed and delivered to
  the customers via email and newsletter
• Customer focus groups completed at the end of
  August for technology all three IOUs
• In-home/business technologies (orbs) all
  programmed and installed with CPP-V schedule
• Enhanced treatments coincident with all August
  and September SPP events (CPP-V)
• Load data in the process of being requested for
  impact analysis
• Telephone surveys being prepared for gen pop

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SPP Events for 2004 all used up
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Information Treatments In Time

• Nexus developed interactive tool for customer
  information to asses SPP performance
• Push technology includes e-mail and on-line
  analysis of SPP usage with recommendations
• Bill analysis tool complete, with interactive
  recommendations specific for each customer
• Enhanced information (humanizing the bill)
  approach with subscriber approach
• Post-event reporting with specific billing
  analysis was delivered to IDP participants during
  summer
• Load data still being collected to assess impacts

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IDP use of Integrated Electronic Newsletters for
Critical Peak

• In the Information Display Pilot, e-mails
  provide homes and small business customers with
  the following
• Estimated cost of super peak by appliance for the
  last month, based on survey.
• Benchmarks on last months bill in relation to
  norms associated with comparison analysis
• Strategies for controlling the next months bill
  in the context of the SPP rates
• Interactive tools for determining best end-use
  strategies for effective cost management

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Integrated Website provides drill-down support
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Audit tools incorporated into CPP rate analysis
that encourage behavioral and hardware measures
that reduce peak and costs
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Technology Assessment nearly complete

• Primen is reviewing technology treatments in
  preparation of customer assessment of technology
  and overall white paper
• To date, no significant compatible systems
  available for IDP deployment
• Expanded quantitative assessment will focus on
  customer preferences for technology
• Several devices were examined by focus groups
• Simple technology seemed the most engaging, but
  also some sort of system that displayed costs
  inside also very useful

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Examples of Direct Feedback Meters
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In-Home Cost Display Assessment

• Focus group participants like the idea of a
  device that displays energy use, especially one
  with a monthly read that can be used to compare
  utility billlike bringing your meter inside.
• Participants want to see information displayed in
  both kWh and dollars, but preferred .
• Some participants mentioned that they liked that
  these tools allowed you to be your own
  consultant.
• Participants like the simple, bigger display, and
  generally favored something wall-mounted.
• Participants like the idea of an audible beep if
  can be shut off
• In one group, participants suggested that the
  device could show savings (compared to last year
  during same month).

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Orb Placement with SPP IDP Customers
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TOU Active Price Signaling Device

• Using orb from Ambient Devices is comm.
  available
• Provides an alternative and non-intrusive
  information display system for time of use price
• Displays all prices for CPP-V schedule
• Off peak (blue)
• On-peak (green)
• Warning for super peak (flashing red) four hours
  ahead
• Super peak (solid red)

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Synchronized with CPP-V rate schedule
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Focus Group Transcripts available

• REACTIONS TO THE ORB
• Q Okay, Ive got some show and tell here.
  Pretty neat? Anybody want to name what this is?
  Because I cant.
• F A mood
• M An orb. Its an orb.
• F It changes colors.
• M Its going to hypnotize us pretty soon.
• Q Anybody else want to give me a name?
• M What in the hell is it supposed to do?
• Q Alright, let me tell you what its supposed to
  do.
• M Its a mood ring.
• Q Its a gizmo.
• M Im feeling sleepy.

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Customers Are Engaged with Fun Tech

• REACTIONS TO GLOBE DEVICE
• Q A light thats 10 times the size, right?
• M Its a mood light.
• Q This is a potential option for notifying you
  of the price. It would change colors. Right now
  what its doing, its not getting a signal right
  now and its cycling through all of the colors.
  But what it could do is be green when youre in
  off-peak and be yellow or whatever on on-peak and
  then maybe before super peak it blinks and then
  on super pink it turns red.
• M And like when you go to blue its going to
  explode?
• Q Maybe. First of all, Ken, what would you call
  this, for someone who cant see it?
• M Mood light.
• Q Anybody else? Phyllis?
• F I was thinking about he mood rings, but he got
  it.
• M Designer light bulb.
• Q Anybody else? Name?
• M It looks like it would predict the future.
• M Fortune lamp.

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IDP Project Task Tracking

• Conduct Project Initiation Meeting -100
• Develop Research Plan to Produce Deliverables
  100
• Perform Technology Assessment 90
• Develop survey design approach about what forms
  of info treatment customers want/ will use/ will
  pay for 100
• Deploy the information treatments and install the
  technologies on existing SPP participant homes/
  meters 85
• Review data collected from consumption of
  participants and estimate load impact changes in
  any versus a control group after 3 to 4 months
  10
• Prepare Draft and Final Study Reports 0
• Project Documentation and Databases 0
• Project Management 60
• Deliver presentation(s) to SPP stakeholder
  meetings 0

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Vision How Enhanced Information can support
Critical Peak Rate Implementation

• Using estimated appliance load estimates can help
  the utility decide who to offer.
• Value-add communications via web, e-mail and
  contact center describe benefits, encourage
  enrollments.
• Support tools explain past, suggest future
  strategies that may include technology
• Support tools help set up appliance controls as
  technology becomes enabled.
• Customer-controlled software read rates on
  internet, control loads.

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Please control my thermostat for me differently
on critical peak days and based on outside
temperature
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Pre-Attentive Processing the Internet - the
Future of Demand Response?