September 15th, 2010

Sell! 7 Awesome Renewable Energy Pitches

BOSTON -

Renewable energy needs sales. Sales, sales, sales, sales, and more sales. Sure, we could use some better technology. But lets have the researchers do their job, and have the rest of us focus on increasing the adoption of our current technologies. As far I see it, the more panels on roofs and turbines in the ground the better and it’s our job to get it done. I want to share with you a couple pitches I’ve found that have been very successful at getting property owners and contractors interested in investing in renewable energy.

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Tagged brian hayden, Nexamp, sales |

September 3rd, 2010

6 Characteristics of a Perfect B2C Energy Efficiency Company

BOSTON -

4 weeks ago, Green Light Distrikt Boston had an event, ‘Energy Efficiency: Why is the Low Hanging Fruit so High?” The speakers discussed what they’re working on and why, if energy efficiency (EE) has such high returns, the adoption of these behaviors and technologies seems to be happening at a snails pace.

Based on the presentations there were 6 things that I learned why EE adoption is not happening quickly enough. If you need a refresher on the those 6 items see the previous link.

Using these 6 points, I’ll outline the 6 characteristics of what a BLOCKBUSTER company addressing homeowner and small business energy efficiency would and/should look like. If you’re a VC and reading this, your welcome, you can pay me later.

Here’s the 6 characteristics of the perfect EE company I would invest in, start, or work with.

1) The technology is simple, works, and is cheap. You need the technology to be ‘in the game’ but the technology itself won’t solve the problem. The winning combination will be a mix of technology + service. This is why, as Rob Day points out, angels will be the heros of EE technology space because the technology is so cheap to build. It is the selling, servicing, monitoring, and changing of behaviors that will make or break a great EE company.

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Tagged 1 block off the grid, cleantech kingpins, energy circle, Energy Efficiency, energy savvy, EnerNOC, green build boston, new generation energy, Nexamp, next step living, rob day, wattzy |

March 29th, 2010

Calling all Young Cleantech Professionals in Boston

BOSTON -

I started The Green Light Distrikt about 5 months ago as a personal project and it has evolved into something much larger than myself and the vision is becoming mighty clear. To those of you that pushed me to start the blog, you know who you are, I thank you very much. I can honestly say it has had a huge beneficial impact on my life.

A couple weeks ago I was at a Boston Green Drinks event (I help organize them and you should come!) talking with Walter Frick from the New England Clean Energy Council (NECEC). He told me about how their organization works with a lot with clean tech executives and provide forums for them to learn and connect with each other but the same venue does not exist for young professionals in the industry.

Boom! It hit me. The Green Light Distrikt will unite the Boston’s young clean tech professionals that are the future leaders of the industry.

We’ll accomplish this goal in 3 simple ways.

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Tagged clean tech, cleantech kingpins, green drinks, harvest power, new england clean energy council, new generation energy, Nexamp, wakonda, young |

February 9th, 2010

PICTURES: Step by Step Guide How to Install a Solar Panels

BOSTON -

Two weeks ago, I started my job in the field installing solar thermal and pv systems. If you’re curious about how I did it, I wrote a post about the 6 Steps on How I landed my Dream Job in Renewable Energy.

For the next 6 to 12 months my job will be to install solar hot water, solar PV, and geothermal systems before learning about the business development (selling, financing, etc) side of the business. I really wanted to utilize my construction experience to get a really good understand of how the technologies are installed.

For the last two weeks I’ve been installing solar hot water systems and I want to share with you how it’s done.

Here is the step by step guide of how solar hot water panels are installed.

Step 1: Put up the ladder. Duh! You have to get on the roof.

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Tagged Nexamp, solar, solar hot water |

January 21st, 2010

6 Steps to How I Landed My Dream Job in Renewable Energy

BOSTON -

Do you see the guy on the right? This is what I’ll be doing in a couple weeks! 3 months ago I wrote about the 7 things I learned from losing my dream job in renewable energy, and the 7 values that were driving my job search. I guess I like the number 7.

Losing the job wasn’t really that bad, it was a great experience and showed me how to manage a transition so it will be easier in the future. I started the blog to explore what was happening in the industry in Boston and as of last week I will be working with Boston area renewable energy company. I’m really stoked, I think they have one of the best business models in the clean energy industry hands down. I wanted to walk through the 6 steps that I took to get the job:

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Tagged BPI, IGSHPA, IREC, ISPQ, job search, LEED, Nexamp, Renewable Energy |

December 13th, 2009

Three Things Needed to SUPERCHARGE the U.S. Solar PV Industry

Renewable Energy -

Last month, I finished attending an IREC ISPQ accredited Solar Installer Boot Camp run by HeatSpring Learning Institute. If you’re going to take a solar PV training, it’s best you take one that is accredited. Here is the full list of IREC ISPQ Accredited Solar Trainings. There are only 20 accredited organizations in the U.S.

It was a great three day event. I learned a ton about designing, installing and selling solar PV systems and connected with new industry professionals who were at the training. It was a motley crew of electrical contractors, roofers, general contractors, professional salesman, developers, and financiers. A nice snapshot of the industry. The students represented a wide range of industries and companies from one man shops to 100 million dollar companies.

I came away with four clear conclusions about the solar industry after the training.

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Tagged Feed-in-tariffs, GroSolar, IREC, ISPQ, Nexamp, Solar City, Solar PV, Solar Training, Sun Edison, Sun Run |

November 24th, 2009

Interview with Jon Abe VP of Business Development at Nexamp – A Leading Clean Energy Innovator

Interviews -

It seems like there are renewable energy companies getting started everyday. Barriers to entry are relatively low and government incentives are creating an almost wild west like feel in the industry, anything goes and gurus are popping up everywhere. I wanted to learn about a company that is on the cutting edge of the clean energy industry and see what I could learn from a seasoned industry professional. Finding experienced clean energy professionals with years of experience is a rare and difficult to do, very few of them exist in such a nascent industry. Two months ago, I interviewed Job Abe, VP of Business Development for Nexamp, to learn more about the clean energy industry from his perspective. It was a great interview, I learned a ton about Nexamp, their story, what is happening in the industry and where the opportunities are for growth.

Why Nexamp?

Nexamp is “a full service clean energy solutions company.  Nexamp analyzes, designs, finances, builds and maintains clean energy projects that reduce energy costs and carbon emissions for businesses, governments, and homeowners.  Our solutions include renewable energy, energy efficiency, and energy management.”

There are plenty of renewable energy companies around Massachusetts; Alteris Inc, GroSolar, Sunlight Solar Energy to name a few of the larger ones. In my opinion, Nexamp has one of the most robust business models in the clean energy industry. No, I do not work for Nexamp, nor am I getting paid for saying this. But I do think that their approach to the industry, focus on technical exellence and having a sound business model is on the cutting edge.

I was first introduced to Jon when I worked at the NEXUS Green Building Resource Center in downtown Boston. Over the past two years, I’ve seen him speak at Babson College, and the yearly NESEA conference in Boston. Jon is very friendly and knowledgeable and he is well versed about the clean energy, electric, and renewable energy industries.

Who is Jon Abe?

Jon is a vice president of Nexamp in charge of business development. Prior to joining Nexamp, he worked at the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative Renewable Energy Trust where he managed the $68 million Commonwealth Solar program. He also was responsible for the Small Renewables and Large Onsite Renewables Initiatives which support development of distributed wind, hydro, and biomass combined heat and power projects. He has worked as a project manager and senior consultant at KEMA and XENERGY, where he was responsible for business development and management of renewable energy project development and distributed energy resource consulting projects. He serves on the Board of the Green Roundtable, Policy Committee of the New England Clean Energy Council, and Cambridge Climate Protection Action Committee. Jon received his bachelor of arts from Cornell University where he was an IBM Watson Scholar.

Interview Highlights

In the interview we talked about a number of things.

1. How Jon got involved in clean energy.
2. Nexamp’s business model. What makes them so special and how are the different from the rest of the companies.
3. How they deal with increased competition from the traditional trades.
4. How they created their vision and what their development plan is.
5. What clean energy solutions currently have the best return on investment for their customers.
6. What the obstacles for industry growth are, and insights into the future of the industry.

Jon Abe’s Story into Renewable Energy

• Jon discusses his journey and how he ended up in the renewable energy industry

Nexamp’s Business Model

• Jon discuss Nexamp’s business model and how it compares to other renewable energy companies. Like I said, there are many renewable energy installers and energy efficiency companies and more entering the market every day, so I wanted to learn how Nexamp competes. Jon discusses how Nexamp competes with more specialized renewable energy installers and how their clients are looking for a one stop shop for all their clean energy needs including renewable energy, energy efficiency, financing, planning, and IT.

Nexamps Clean Energy Road Map

• I learned that central to Nexamp’s business model is their clean energy road map. I asked Jon to describe what it is, how it works, and why it’s a key differentiator for them.

Competition from the Traditional Trades

• From my work at HeatSpring, I know that there is a huge influx of companies from the traditional trades entering the clean energy industry as they have a lot of the technical skills and needed licensing to compete in the industry. I wanted to see what Nexamp feels about the increased competition and how they stack up.

Development Plan

• Currently Nexamp operate their integration services mainly out of New Englad, but I wanted to learn how they plan to grow their business beyond this region.

Company Vision

• Vision is one of the most important pieces of culture for small companies. I wanted to find out how Nexamp’s vision was created and established.

Obstacles to Industry Growth

• The industry is growing by leaps and bounds but there will surely be issues. Jon weighs in on what he sees as any potential problems.

Highest Commercial ROI

• Jon discusses what options have the best ROI these days for their commercial clients.

Insights into the Future

• Everyday there’s a new news article about the development of thin film, organic PV cells, and various other technologies. I wanted to hear from Jon if any of these technologies will become commercially viable, if they transform the industry and what his insights into the future are.

Why Nexamp has the best business model in clean energy

1. Stickiness with the customer: More specialized renewable energy companies have very little stickiness with their customers. Their business models are similar to many other construction subcontractors – roofers, plumbers, flooring specialists, etc – in that after the job is completed they move on to the next customer and never see them again. They make money by doing more projects, faster, and don’t have a source of recurring revenue. Nexamp’s Clean Energy Roadmap creates a multiple year relationship with their clients that can extend ten years or more. So when a sale is made they will be profiting from it many years down the road.
2. Clean focus on return on investment: All companies will say this but rarely do they offer the services to back it up. The reality is that customers don’t care about the technology that is being used, they care about reducing their costs (electricity usage) and being moral (carbon reduction), and because Nexamp’s business model offers a portfolio of services including energy efficiency, renewable installations, and energy management, they can offer the services that reduce costs most effectively. A company that only installs solar PV systems cannot do this, because energy efficiency will almost always be more profitable first.
3. Morally responsible. In my opinion, companies that just focus on solar PV or wind are slightly irresponsible in the sense that these technologies are very expensive and energy efficiency should be invested in before renewables are installed. Nexamp’s business model allows them to decrease energy usage in the most cost effective means regardless of the technology being used.
4. One stop shop. The rapid growth of the clean energy industry is creating a lot of mis-information and muddiness in the industry. Everyone is saying different things and it sometimes can be hard to find a straight answer. By delivering all the services in one place Nexamp will make the process much easiesr for their customers.

A Place to Improve?

There are many benefits to offering a host of clean energy solutions. I believe, like Jon Abe that it delivers maximize value for property owners and also the environment, but it also has some implications for branding and sticking out from the crowd. I decided to do an informal survey with homeowners and other strangers around Boston. I wanted to find out if Nexamp was a household name. I surveyed 16 people (granted a small sample size) and only one had heard of Nexamp. However, 9 had heard of GroSolar, Alteris, and Solar City (which doesn’t even do business in Massachusetts). It might be possible that Nexamp isn’t targeting homeowners as heavily as commercial clients but homeowners do go to work during the day. It raises the question how do you stand out when you do everything?

Conclusion

Out of the whole interview the quote that resonated with me the greatest was Jon’s insight into the future of the industry. He said “is the way that energy gets delivered to the home going to drastically change? Probably not, what will change is the business models of how energy gets delivers.” Clearly, Nexamp is creating a new business model in the clean energy space, but I think this is good advice for other industries. There are many more opportunities in new business models then new technologies. After all, technology does not matter if people will not adopt it, and the good business models figure out how to change peoples behaviors.

Did you like the interview?

What do you think about Nexamp’s business model?

Tagged Alteris Inc, Clean Energy, Energy Efficiency, GroSolar, MTC, Nexamp, Renewable Energy |