by Shane Henson — January 14, 2013—Verdantix, an independent analyst firm based in the United Kingdom that focuses on sustainable business, announced that following a year of acquisitions and investments, five suppliers—CA Technologies, CarbonSystems, IBM, Schneider Electric and Verisa—have emerged as leaders in the global market for energy management software.
The companies’ success is detailed in the report Green Quadrant Energy Management Software (Global) 2013. Verdantix says the report also compares 14 enterprise-class energy management software applications to help corporate buyers save time, reduce cost and mitigate risk in supplier selection. The analysis is based on live product demonstrations, an assessment of suppliers on 134 criteria, and interviews with an independent panel of 15 customers representing firms in 13 industries.
According to the Verdantix report, CA Technologies, CarbonSystems, IBM, Schneider Electric and Verisae have established themselves as the market-leading providers due to the breadth of their energy management functionality, proven integration with a wide range of meters and controls, utility bill management, deep energy and industry domain credentials, established enterprise-scale customer bases, and partnerships with systems integrators and consultants.
Reflecting the need for suppliers to educate the market, a separate Verdantix global survey of 250 energy managers found that Microsoft, Oracle, IBM and Johnson Controls have the highest brand recognition for their energy software despite Microsoft and Oracle not having energy management applications.
The customer panel prioritized functionality for utility bill management, energy monitoring and targeting, energy reporting and certification, says Verdantix. The top three purchase criteria for the customers were evidence of a deployment covering more than 400 sites, proven integration with meters and controls, and domain expertise relevant to their energy assets and industry processes. They ranked specialist software firms and energy services firms as their top two types of preferred supplier, relegating large technology firms to the least favored choice.
