A recent article on TechCrunch recently heralded the announcement that kWhOURS has been chosen to be among a select few participants in an intensive “boot camp” conducted by Greenstart, a San Francisco-based startup accelerator. (http://techcrunch.com/2012/02/15/greenstart-tightens-focus-goes-after-sexy-cleantech-startups/).  This three-month program features intensive coaching sessions provided by a veritable “who’s who” of prominent cleantech CEO/entrepreneurs and venture capitalists on topics ranging from managing customer growth to product design.   kWhOURS is in very exclusive company indeed – only five clean technology companies were selected from a nationwide pool of 152 applicants.   The selection committee cited an ability to make a large impact and a crucial need in the marketplace as the primary reasons why kWhOURS was honored accordingly (not to mention our stunning good looks).

Our selection points not only to the recognition of energy auditing software as a winning cleantech category, but to the ascension of start-ups focusing on the intersection of energy efficiency and IT.   As energy generators grapple with the implications of the drop in natural gas prices – and  hardware providers focusing on energy efficiency struggle to combat competitors receiving government subsidization overseas,   the investment community has ratcheted up its support of energy management software and SaaS providers to capitalize on the intensifying market traction and potential returns associated with this space.

Much to the delight of all of us at kWhOURS, Greenstart purports to make cleantech “sexy enough to attract investors”.   Whether any of this karma rubs off on our executive team is a subject of open debate. But we are indeed confident that our leaders will undoubtedly enjoy the weekly “red-eye” back to Boston for the next few months.  Fortified by Jet Blue snacks and the sound sleep afforded by those comfy reclining economy seats,  the team looks forward to accelerating the realization of its mission to make energy audits faster, more accurate, and more cost efficient through tablet-based technology and software-enabled improvements to audit processes.

Our version 2.0 is finally out and available to the general public.  We have added a whole new set of new features including the ability to draw over your photos and floorplans to being able to collaborate with other users in the field.  We put in a lot of work and gotten 99% of the bugs out (I mean can software ever be bug free?).

Feel free to sign-up for a demo and we are more than happy to walk through it.  We have some amazing things worked up for a summer release so if you are debating to get it now or wait…it may be smart to lock it in now and let the updates roll down!

Our kW-Field software tool is designed for the commercial/industrial energy field professional.  Our database of questions appeals not only to the experienced professional but can also guide a junior engineer in the field.  If you would like to learn more about our summer release, feel free to give us a ring.  Commercial energy auditing software is what we know best.  Find out more at www.kwhours.com.  We really are changing the energy efficiency industry.  Don’t you want to find out how?

Well we came on the map this past summer with our Version 1.0 and we were able to get kW-Field in the hands of a good number of customers.  As we started to receive feedback and general comments, we realize the limitations of the software and have created a Version 2.0.  We will be posting this to our website in a couple of days, so please stay tuned…

In the meantime, we were able to draw some major insights from our customers as to some of the major pains that they face.  I thought it may be helpful to share those pains with you all.  Perhaps you agree?

• Building audits and assessments are usually done in teams (many times you have multiple people looking at lighting and mechanicals…depending on how detailed you want to get, you could throw in there building envelope also)…it is important to be able to share information on-site, so SaaS models are tough if not thought through well
• Many people are used to working with templates that they have been using for YEARS!  (Don’t worry, we are already addressing this and will be included in our Version 3.0 later this summer)
• We have seen a range of our customers get floorplans/mechanical or electrical diagrams ahead of time (never to 75% of the time)…still haven’t found one person who always gets them
• Our larger customers face problems of collecting consistent information across various sub-contractors.  Think about it.  If I am trying to compare two projects based off of a different data set and methodology in that data, how comparable can it be?
• Every auditor conducts an assessment their own way (and it is right!).  Being flexible is the secret sauce…
• There is an unbelievable need for auditors, but there is a massive shortage.  Training is a valuable piece of this industry and we are looking for ways that we can help our customers.
• Most of our customers are our customers because they see our software as a way for them to spend the majority of their time on the parts of the assessment that matters: the analysis.

While we certainly appreciate that our great customer have a tremendous amount of experience, but so do we.  As a matter of fact, we have amazing engineering AND software talent.  Our commercial energy auditing software is truly one-of-a-kind.  kW-Field is the gateway to data consistency, training, flexibility and overall efficiency within your organization.  Stay tuned for kW-Connect…we will be unveiling it soon…