When we started building our own tools back in 2010, we had no intention of building a platform. The intent was to automate tasks analysts do that are tedious and repetitious and provide visualizations that are useful to quickly see where and how energy is being used dynamically by buildings.
Over time that set of tools grew, and some of the focus was shifted to integration of the tools to further enhance and augment the human analysts to watch patterns and anomalies in data. Before we knew it, we had developed a comprehensive platform to collect, clean, and aggregate energy data for analysts and energy engineers.
In 2014, we started providing clients with a limited set of those visualizations on demand via a web portal. Being engineers and consultants, we cleverly named it “the portal.” Sometimes when a marketing opportunity struck us we even referred to it as the “Burton Energy Portal.” Now that we have outgrown the simple serving of energy data and are now facilitating processes for clients related to energy, providing client specific energy metrics integrated with other business metrics, the name “portal” is even less appropriate.
So now we move to Burton ESP, or the Energy Strategy Platform. We think the name is more representative of the analytics it provides and how it can help our clients by supporting and visualizing their energy consumption and purchase strategies.
Layered on top of the analyst team and energy engineers we have, this software platform gives us a comprehensive ability to service our clients with all facets of energy – now with a name that makes sense.
This is Part 1 of our new mini-series discussing the Burton Energy Strategy Platform! Stay tuned more posts this summer!