Photo: Daniel Schwen
King County in Washington State, US, is launching a two-year pilot project of the Smart Building Energy Tracking System, a new software that helps reduce energy consumption and carbon emissions.
Using software developed by Microsoft partner Iconics and MacDonald Miller Facility Solutions, the Smart Building Energy Tracking System is based on Microsoft’s cloud and business intelligence platforms.
The pilot project will provide King County with real-time energy analytics at five locations. This will help staff operate buildings in a more efficient manner, and identify heating, ventilation and air conditioning problems more quickly and accurately.
King County is home to around two million people, making it the most populous in Washington State. The city of Seattle lies in King County, and the county is the thirteenth most populous in the US.
“I spend a lot of time talking with government officials and our partners across the world about the mounting pressures of population growth and resource depletion,” said Rob Bernard, chief environmental and cities strategist for Microsoft. “It will be critical for all cities and governments to manage their natural resources more efficiently and bridge the disparate systems to optimise performance and value creation. Civic leaders want to grow the economy, but with urbanisation and less resources, they recognise the need to increase efficiency. King County’s pilot project is a great example of this.”
For some time, Microsoft has been using the Smart Building Energy Tracking System, and representatives from the company have co-hosted a tour for mayors, council members and energy and education representatives in the Puget Sound region of Washington State to demonstrate the benefits of the project more widely.
Bernard added: “We hope the results of this project inspire more governments to start thinking about how they can use technology to help tackle the serious environmental challenges that we face today and tomorrow.”
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