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- Consulting•
- Government Affairs
- Project Development
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- Marketing Strategy and Development
- Access to the DES Buyer’s
Alliance™
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- Objective project assessment
- Buyer-driven approach to project
development
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- Wide selection of
business models
- Access to the DES Supplier’s
Alliance™
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The Components of the Distributed Energy Business
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- Who, what is the experience?
- Contract language is everything. How long?
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| For many operations,
fuel can be the biggest or one of the largest cost
components. Relying on bundled procurement from
the local utility is a recipe for leaving profits
on the table at best and future financial disaster
at worst. There are many ways to manage risk or
save dollars, but you need a person knowledgable
in the fuels business. Find a consultant that has
experience in fuel procurement and risk management.
The dollars spent on their services should pay
back in six months or less and will mean money
in the bank for years to come. |
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- What methodology? What software?
- Who validates? Who monitors?
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Legal, Contracts, Finance, Insurance
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- Who is doing it and what is their experience?
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- 100 "Atta Boys!" are erased by 1 Big,
Fat, Mess
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Engineering, Procurement
and Construction Services |
This
section currently being updated.
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This section currently being updated.
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Understanding early
in the project or program process whether or
not optimization measures should be undertaken
is critical. Valuable
time and resources should not be spent chasing
windmills (unless they generate electricity!).
Having experienced consultants, engineers and
staff is a great first screen. After that simple
screening tools based on energy consumption,
energy budget, seasonality, monthly bills,
load profiles, etc., are important devices
to help you focus on high value projects. DES
has underwritten dozens of projects and has
the tools to assist you in identifying high
return projects. |
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| • Once a project has been given the go ahead based on
a feasibility study, the desire to move quickly
forward can result in the “blinder affect”.
That is, the project engineers and designers are
told to move quickly and are not given a budget
that allows for brain storming. This unfortunate,
as experienced and successful engineers and designers
can usually find several alternatives that allow
a project to be done, smarter, faster, better,
or at a reduced cost. Another important consideration
that is often overlooked is seeking input from
operations personnel and other staff that will
be using or be affected by the project. They often
know best what will and won’t work, yet their
input is often not solicited or worse ignored.
Don’t make the mistake of tripping over dollars
while trying to save a penny! Allow for brainstorming
in the project budget. |
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| Often overlooked or
taken for granted, obtaining permits and entitlements
(or not) can result in costly delays. Working with
engineers, consultants, and contractors that are
familiar with the local codes, requirements, and
perhaps most importantly personnel helps manage
risks inherent in obtaining permits and entitlements. |
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| • The most important area in the design process is the
integration of the project system or equipment
with the existing systems. One must take a holistic
systems perspective to achieve success. Failure
to do so can result in a beautifully planned, drawn
and constructed system that fails to perform when
placed into service. The next most important consideration
is quality control. It is imperative that a second
set of eyes reviews the drawings and specifications.
The budget must allow for adequate review. All
to often, owners or management incorrectly assumes
that local building department will find errors
and mistakes on project plans. This is simply not
true. Building to code and building something that
will work are entirely different concepts. The
local building department is only concerned with
building to code. |
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• The project management process is key to successful
outcomes. You might identify projects
with ROI’s of 50% or greater,
but if they are not executed correctly
you will never realize those returns
or worse, loose money. Project management
is a science and discipline, yet all
too often it is given to a staff person
that has no training in project management
as an ancillary duty. Another common
pitfall is when management fails to
make the necessary commitment and or
provide adequate resources required
for a successful outcome. Creation
of a project team that has been given
authority by senior management to achieve
a successful outcome is the Project
Manager’s greatest challenge
and key to success. A project’s
pro forma return on investment and
expected performance after completion
should be based on a budget that allows
for the deployment of necessary resources.
Once a budget is established and resources
provided, then the project manager
can rightfully be held accountable
for successful results. |
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| • The old adage about an ounce of prevention being worth
a pound of cure is the golden rule. Only when it
comes to projects the values are more like a thousand
dollars of prevention is worth one hundred thousand
or more of cure. Budget time and dollars for QA
/QC! Demand an adequate QA/QC program from your
Project manager and all project team members. |
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| • The key concept is “quality control”.
A quality control plan that is adhered to will
save dollars in the long run and often the short
run as well. Even experienced journeymen make mistakes.
Errors can be micro or macro. Micro errors include
things such as poor welds, incorrect wiring, and
improper alignment. Macro errors include
things such as reverse installation, installation
of materials that do meet specs, failure to allow
adequate clearances or laying pipe where wiring
should go. Often the workers are too close to the
forest to see the trees and an observer taking
a more elevated view will find the mistakes. But
without a quality control plan and the adherence
to the plan these items can and will be missed
until the project is thought to be complete and
doesn’t work when start-up is attempted. |
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- Non-traditional Energy Infrastructure Models Can Bring Substantial
Value For Suppliers and Buyers
- Risks- Identify, Understand, Manage
- One Size Doesn’t Fit All
- Patience Pays
- Energy Infrastructure Brings Greatest Value When Externalities Are Captured
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