Posted by Johann Nacario — February 16, 2024 — In an era marked by unpredictable energy prices and escalating sustainability-driven regulatory demands, building owners and operators are under pressure to ensure they are operating facilities efficiently and not 
wasting resources. As the industry prepares for the next wave of customer spending, a new benchmark report of the 15 most prominent energy management software vendors by independent research firm Verdantix demonstrates how vendors are developing their strategies to capture this market.
This Green Quadrant: Energy Management Software 2023 report assesses solutions on their ability to provide comprehensive end-to-end energy management functionality to users and reveals how vendors are enhancing their offerings through incorporating advanced analytics functionality and providing managed services to align with evolving customer needs. Among the software vendors featured in this Green Quadrant, eight firms — Bueno, EnergyCAP, Honeywell, Johnson Controls, MRI Software, Schneider Electric, Siemens and Spacewell — demonstrated market leading capability based on forward-looking criteria formulated by Verdantix.
The report, Green Quadrant: Energy Management Software 2023, provides valuable insights for real estate, facilities and sustainability executives seeking to manage energy consumption, costs and associated emissions. Key findings:
- Vendors are enriching solution functionality by embracing technological innovations such as AI-driven insights, agnostic connectors to existing building hardware and applications, and robust carbon management functionality. Example vendors pioneering these innovations include Carrier, Facilio and Schneider Electric.
- Solution providers are catering to buyers’ needs with a diverse range of business models. Whether bundled or separate, vendors now offer hardware, software and services as part of integrated offerings. For example, emerging models like equipment as a service (EaaS) from Johnson Controls, where equipment is loaned, are gaining traction.
- Impending carbon reporting regulations are driving buyers to increase their investment in energy management solutions to effectively manage operational expenditure, track and reduce carbon emissions, and optimize portfolio efficiency.
- Buyers are prioritizing solutions that are open and integration-rich, capable of seamlessly interfacing with existing buildings featuring diverse legacy equipment and a range of existing software applications. Vendors such as GridPoint and Siemens have developed highly legacy-compatible solutions, to cater to buyers with a range of equipment types and ages.
Harry Wilson, industry analyst at Verdantix, stated:
Business leaders, recognizing the climate and financial risks posed to building operations, are prioritizing energy management. The imperative to operate facilities efficiently and avoid resource wastage is driving executives towards advanced solutions. Vendors have responded to the market’s evolving needs by enhancing their offerings with deeper and richer functionality. The next five years will see a wave of innovation as established and new vendors alike leverage emerging technologies, such as advanced predictive AI and improved application and equipment connectors, to revolutionize functionality and capture market share.
For more information, purchase the full Green Quadrant: Energy Management Software 2023 report at Verdantix.
