i3 - September/October 2016 - 38

Policy

By Elliot Grimm
G R E E N P O L I CY

The Future of Home Energy

According to a separate CTA study,
these savings are more than consumer
electronics' share of residential primary
energy consumption (8.4 percent).
In addition to saving on electricity
bills, these smart technologies will
significantly reduce our carbon
footprint and can collectively
avoid up to 100 million tons
of CO2 emissions in the U.S.
Research shows the innovation
being delivered into homes through
IoT is significantly improving the
planet's health as well - whether
through reducing household energy
consumption or the carbon emissions
the U.S. produces. Even with more
products entering homes today, these
devices continue to account for less
and less of household energy use.
While connected technology has
been around for some time, new
applications and the reduction
of installation costs mean more
consumers can access and benefit
from this technology. Sales of many
of these devices are projected to rise
over the next few years, according to
CTA's U.S. Consumer Technology Sales
and Forecasts.
Today consumers have several
opportunities to introduce IoT into
their homes - options to make HVAC,
lights, and even appliances smart.
Popular products like the Nest thermostat show how eager consumers are
to make their lives easier. Consumer
technology companies are also now
innovating products not traditionally

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2016

considered "smart," such as refrigerators
or mattresses, allowing more connectivity
throughout the home.
Primary motivators behind purchasing smart products such as blinds,
thermostats, light bulbs and fixtures are
convenience, security and entertainment.
The Potential of Home Automation

study found that further increasing
the marketability of these products
to homeowners by promoting their
energy savings potential could lead
to more energy savings nationwide.
Consumers are also incorporating smart technologies into
their homes as they are being
built. According to CTA, eight
in ten builders now offer clients
features like structured wiring,
home vtheater and monitored
security systems.
Actual energy savings of IoT in
the home will depend strongly on
how consumers choose to control
their smart household devices and
equipment. Intelligent features, when
activated, can enable greater savings.
Smart thermostats, for instance, can
learn when specific rooms in a home
do and do not need air conditioning
or heat in order to save energy
without sacrificing comfort. Savings
can be even higher when automated
devices are used together, as with
whole-home control.
The more consumers understand
the energy consumption of their
electronic devices, the more energy
and money they can potentially save.
With smart home products increasing
in popularity, it's never been a better
time to learn how to save.
n
CTA's website GreenerGadgets.org
helps consumers calculate their consumer technology devices' estimated
home energy usage and find tips to
help reduce their energy costs.

I T I S I N N O VAT I O N

PHOTOGRAPH BY ATOMIC IMAGERY/GETTY IMAGES

s the Internet of Things (IoT) makes its way into homes,
the latest IoT advances change how households use
energy. A recent study, The Energy Savings Potential
of Home Automation Technology, commissioned by
CTA, finds that IoT and home automation will reduce energy consumption in U.S. households by as much as 10 percent.

https://www.cta.tech/Research-Standards.aspx https://www.cta.tech/Research-Standards.aspx https://www.cta.tech/salesandforecasts https://www.cta.tech/salesandforecasts http://www.GreenerGadgets.org

i3 - September/October 2016

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