Cloud Computing to Manage Building Energy Usage? Not Just Yet, Says Report

Tuesday 22 January 2013, Amsterdam

Cloud-based Building Energy Management Systems (BEMS) can minimize energy costs, help decrease carbon emissions and allows for the monitoring of consumption patterns of multiple buildings – but don’t expect to see this highly promising industry to hit its stride soon, says the latest report from business intelligence outfit.

The company’s new BEMS market analysis states that cloud-based variants have significant prospects for the future, primarily in the commercial and industrial sectors, but the industry is currently in the nascent stage, with few countries adopting the technology.

The global cloud BEMS market recorded modest revenues of US$142m last year, with the US accounting for 60% (US$85m) of the total.

According to the new report, market revenue is expected to climb at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 5-6% between 2012 and 2015, when revenue is expected to hit  US$176m. However, due to an increasing level of acceptance of cloud BEMS technology, this CAGR is predicted to be as high as 10% during 2016-2020, with global revenue reaching US$283m by the end of the decade.

The cloud BEMS market may prove helpful for commercial establishments that need to monitor the energy consumption of multiple outlets and compare their performance.

However, cloud services are not as effective for single buildings where employing a standard BEMS would be more suitable. In the case of single buildings, analytics software is typically integrated within the BEMS software required to control building functions.