Building Performance Compass

Utility / Agency

As a Utility or Agency, you are responsible for portfolios of programs that benefit the rate payer and meet regulatory requirements. Compass  supports the various program types in your portfolio. Your programs are innovative and efficient, allowing you to meet your savings goals. Your programs are supported either through direct program implementation or program implementers.

Municipality

As a Municipality, you are responsible for compliance programs in support of local mandates. Your programs range from benchmark and audit to install. You use Compass  to perform compliance management, quality assurance, public reporting, and outreach to building owners. You track compliance of buildings in programs over the lifecycle of the building. Your benchmark programs leverage Compass’s integration with ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager™.

Trade Ally

As a Trade Ally, you participate in programs to deliver energy savings and incentives to Utility Customers. You use Compass to enter data and submit energy projects to receive incentives. Compass saves you time and improves the quality of your submission.

Utility Customer

As a Utility Customer, you participate in programs and save energy, improve comfort, and receive incentives. You use customer facing websites to learn about programs, verify eligibility, share data, submit Rebates, and check status.

Quality Assurance

As a Quality Assurance auditor, you ensure the quality control of programs. You are scheduled to conduct QA activities to meet program targets. The programs you support receive positive program evaluations and achieve savings goals.

Commercial Programs

Targeting and Outreach

Building Targeting Analytics

Compass’s analytics identify buildings with high savings potential which are targeted for specific programs. Analytics range from analysis of benchmark data, monthly metered data, and interval metered data. Reports identify targeted buildings by service area and are provided to Program Implementers, Trade Allies, and Municipalities.

Outreach with Salesforce.com

Compass’s integration with Salesforce.com is used by Program Implementers to conduct program marketing campaigns. Salesforce.com provides automated emails for cost effective outreach to Utility Customers and tracks interactions with interested parties.

Customer Engagement

Rebate Portal

Compass’s rebate portals engage customers with automated downstream rebate applications.  Standard features include automated account validation, product eligibility finder, equipment and job submission validation, job status tracker, and participating contractor lists. These features are fully integrated with Compass. Product validation leverages integrations with utility and customer data in addition to ENERGY STAR and AHRI product lists.

Portal Samples

Data Collection

Compass has multiple solutions that streamline the submission of Job data. Which ones are used is based on the program model.

Compass Web Portal

Compass supports manual and bulk data entry directly in Compass. The Compass user interface includes forms, custom fields, and buttons that can be customized for the Program. The ability to bulk upload data is commonly used by midstream and upstream rebate programs and for managing building portfolios efficiently. Compass Web Portal users are Trade Allies, Program Implementers, and Quality Assurance.

Scout for Compass

Scout for Compass is used during on-site visits for data and photo collection. The Mobile Tool is an Android and iOS optimized tablet application. It can be operated offline and is synced to Compass when internet access is available. It supports four primary job types: lite audit, deep audit, install, and quality assurance. Scout users are collecting data on site and include Trade Allies, Quality Assurance, and Program Implementers, depending on the program design.

Energy & Resource Savings

Compass supports multiple energy and demand savings methods. The method is selected based on program type.

Deemed Savings

Compass can be configured to assign deemed savings to measures. Deemed savings are either simple fixed values or calculated values based on various parameters of the job. Spreadsheet uploads enable Program Implementers to update deemed savings values and variables. Version tracking provides transparency for Program Implementers and Evaluators.

Engineering/TRM Calculation Savings

Compass can be customized to calculate based on equations from a Technical Resource Manual. In addition, users can upload Excel workbooks which include custom calculations. Version tracking provides transparency for Program Implementers and Evaluators.

Modeled Savings

Compass integrates with modeling tools to provide modeled savings and results using either APIs or file uploads. Integrations support both residential and commercial buildings. Integrated residential modeling tools include: Ekotrope for New Homes, REM/Rate for New Homes, Surveyor for Existing Single Family, TREAT for Existing Multifamily, and OpenStudio Calculators. Commercial modeling tools include OpenStudio and OpenStudio Calculators.

Performance Savings

Compass’s Scenario Management features enable performance savings using calculations of Avoided Energy Use. Meter records in Compass store measured meter readings. The meter readings can be populated via spreadsheet upload, GreenButtonConnect, utility master file, or ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager™ integration. The Scenario feature is used to assign the Baseline Period, assign the Reporting Period, and upload a Prediction Model. Weather normalization regressions are generated, and Avoided Energy Use is calculated.  A savings report can be automatically emailed to the Utility Customer or Trade Ally to enable fast feedback.  Fast feedback allows for early identification and potential correction of any issues.

Job Pipeline

Compass manages the flow of Job status through the program pipeline.  Customizable rules enforce consistent processes and compliance with program standards.

Job Workflows

Compass offers customizable workflows for over 20 different program types. Workflows define the Job status process and trigger logic for status changes. Customizable buttons are provided for users to trigger status changes. Customizable workflow automation and data quality checks are available.

Job Tracking & Reporting

Compass includes a Dashboard feature. It has a table of number of Jobs per status that are in the user’s queue. It includes a drill down of the Jobs. The Dashboard is fully configurable and can include a graphical presentation of key performance indicators (KPI) of Jobs in the pipeline.

Compass includes standard and custom reports that output raw data, analytics results, and template reports. Customer-facing reports are generated by Trade Allies and provided to Utility Customers. Tracking reports are used by Program Implementers to manage programs. Such reports can also be exported for use in external tools like Power BI or Tableau.

Compass integration with Salesforce.com enables dynamic program reporting and dashboards for Program Implementers.

Compass supports regulatory reporting by keeping all documentation together with job data and savings.

Incentive Payments

Incentive Calculations

Compass dynamically calculates incentives based on program rules such as measures installed, savings achieved, and Job fees.

Incentive & Rebate Processing

Compass’s Payment Processor feature is used by Program Implementers to review and approve payments. Payment approval triggers a payment to Utility Customers or Trade Allies. Payments can be made in the form of a check or a gift card.

Quality Assurance

Automated Data Quality

Compass provides a framework for automated data quality checks. Trade Allies and Program Implementers save time with immediate feedback and automated workflow triggered by data quality issues. They reduce re-work and the program cost of reviewing and processing jobs.

Quality Assurance Management

Compass’s Quality Assurance feature improves program quality. Program Implementers assign Quality Assurance trackable targets to Trade Allies. QA Activities are assigned to Jobs automatically based on targets or manually by a program implementer.

User Management

Permissions Management

Compass’s Permission Management feature configures permissions by user role.  Compass has user roles for Program Implementers, Trade Allies, and Quality Assurance.

Trade Ally Management

Compass has a Trade Ally Management feature. Program Implementers grant access by program to approved participating Trade Allies. The feature includes tracking of Trade Allies’ accreditations to participate. Trade Allies can only access records for Buildings and Jobs that they are conducting work on.