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BETTER Options for Utility Customers: Response to Today’s Press of Atlantic City Article

by | Apr 6, 2016 | Uncategorized

For those who don’t follow South Jersey News, Today’s Article outlined the options for utility customers who find errors in their utility bills.

The  article outlines the difficulty in dealing with a utility company that can easily get upwards of 2000 complaints a day.

Stefanie Brand, director of New Jersey’s Division of Rate Counsel, recommends that customers  record conversations with a company’s customer service to ensure that proof of a conversation is available. “I would strongly recommend taking careful notes of exactly who you are speaking with and the details of the conversation, and if you have to go to the board, then you can provide that information. You want to know your customer service rep, record what they’re saying, and if you’re unable to resolve it with the company, you have the right to file with the BPU.”

It’s a strenuous process. Especially for businesses who, in addition to billing errors, are often in the wrong rate group all together with no knowledge to know the difference. Luckily there is a better way. If you believe you may be facing billing errors, contact Applied Utility Auditors today and let them deal with the utility’s bureaucracy

5 Questions Every CEO Should Ask About Cybersecurity

by | Apr 4, 2016 | Uncategorized

  1. Is your board of directors fully engaged in cyber-security?

    According to a recent whitepaper by AT&T, 75% of corporate boards are not involved in active oversight of cyber-security despite the threat it poses to brand equity, employees, and customers.

  2. When did you and your board review your last risk assessment?

    Your IT department should be consistently and regularly performing risk assessments with recommendations for upper management. These risk assessments should not be taken lightly and should include oversight from the biggest decision makers in the company.

  3. What makes you a target for attacks?

    One of the biggest errors companies make is thinking their company will be passed up for a “more lucrative” fish. Cyber attacks come big and small – and for a variety of reasons. Do you have access to personal financial information? Medical records? Is your industry controversial in any way making you a target for “hacktivists”? It’s best to assess what value attacking your company has and protect that information specifically.

  4. What data is leaving your company and is it secure?
    The economics of cyber corporate espionage are clear. It’s much easier to steal proprietary information than it is to do research and development on one’s own. Foreign nations themselves have been known to fund the hacking of corporations in order to give industry in their countries a let up. Who has access to your proprietary information and how are they handling that information?
  5. How have I provided my security organization with all the tools and resources they need to help prevent a security breach?

    This is an industry that changes almost overnight. Last year’s technology is not likely to help you – and your risk assessment team should also be regularly reviewing the latest protective measures available. The longer a security method is used, the more time the hackers have to compromise its integrity. Are you sure that you’ve given your IT department the tools to keep one step ahead?

Canada and US Face Similar Utility Bill Challenges

by | Apr 1, 2016 | Uncategorized

Just recently, the Poteck Power Corporation in Midwestern Ontario has paid out a total of $4.3 million to customers across that region for incorrect utility bills. The Maplewood Manor in Seaforth, Canada, just one of the many businesses to fall victim to the utility bill errors has been refunded nearly $10,0000. 

Jill MacCannell, public relations coordinator for Poteck Power Corporation, the company responsible for retrieving the large lump sums of money throughout the province said this phenomenon of “overcharging” utility customers is presently occurring “all over Ontario.”

Locals throughout that region have been appalled at the types of customers falling prey to the overcharges – including many nursing homes and non-profit organizations. 

Had a private Utility Bill Auditing Company not reached out to the organization and encouraged them to examine their utilities, they would never have found the error and could have been paying those high rates for years. 

Don’t want to pay to find errors that might not be there? Applied Utility Auditors offers bill auditing on contingency. 

BlackBerry Bouncing Back? Winner of the 2016 Red Dot Award for Product Design.

by | Mar 30, 2016 | Uncategorized

PRIV by BlackBerry Wins Red Dot Award for Product Design 2016!

PRIV by BlackBerry

03.30.16 /

A new year, a new design, another win. BlackBerry’s PRIV secure smartphone powered by Android, has hit the ground running with rave reviews from journalists, customers and respected third-party testing agencies highlighting its one-of-a-kind design and security features.
PRIV demonstrated its design prowess in one of the most important competitions dedicated to product design, Red Dot Product Design 2016.  Red Dot awarded PRIV the Product Design award for high design quality, where only outstanding products were recognized for their achievements. PRIV was selected from a record number of 5,214 products from 57 nations, where 41 jury members designated the awards.
Blackberry has consistently been recognized by Red Dot for its outstanding work in design. In 2015, the BlackBerry Passport won Red Dot: Best of the Best for its innovative design. In 2014 the BlackBerry Q10 won a Red Dot award and again in 2013 with the BlackBerry Z10. In 2013 Porsche Design won in the “Best of the Best” category for Porsche Design P’9981 smartphone.
Danish fashion designer David Andersen was on-site for this year’s jury session and said: “It is inspiring to see designs from all over the world and to follow the development. It is a pleasure to be a juror in a group of such competent designers who are looking at so many fantastic products and discussing each one individually.”
BlackBerry PRIV redditBlackBerry’s PRIV was designed by a highly skilled team of engineers and architects who brought to life the ideation of an Android-powered device with BlackBerry’s acclaimed physical keyboard, alongside a new world of security functions.
“Our BlackBerry Design Team is extremely excited to be recognized by the prestigious Red Dot, given the time and energy spent on developing this next level design for BlackBerry,” said Scott Wenger, Global Head of BlackBerry Devices Design. “PRIV is an innovative device encompassing a re-imagined form factor while also offering security standards on an Android device that many in the industry never thought would be possible. These design features and security enhancements set PRIV apart from the pack.”
We are so impressed and thankful for the brilliant designers, engineers, and overall team who came together to help us develop PRIV! Giant congratulations to the BlackBerry Design team!

ENERGY EFFICIENCY FOR BUSINESS FROM THE SBA:

by | Mar 28, 2016 | Uncategorized

There are a ton of great ways to reduce your business’s overhead costs. If you employ these tips and tricks, and still find your utility bills are too high, then you’ll absolutely want to perform a Utility Bill Audit. Call 877-209-0021 

 

Tips for Energy Efficiency from the SBA:


Whether you own or lease your building, you typically need lighting, heating, air conditioning, power for office equipment, and other services to stay in business. This guide will help you to maximize energy efficiency, which will save you money while helping the environment.
Heating and Air Conditioning | Lighting | Office Equipment | Food Services Equipment | Vehicles | Water Conservation
Energy Saving Tips: Heating and Air Conditioning

  • “Tune-up” your heating, ventilating and air-conditioning (HVAC) system with an annual maintenance contract. Even a new ENERGY STAR qualified HVAC system, like a new car, will decline in performance without regular maintenance. A contract automatically ensures that your HVAC contractor will provide “pre-season” tune-ups before each cooling and heating season. You save energy and money, and your system may last years longer with minimal costs for yearly maintenance fees.
  • Regularly change (or clean if reusable) HVAC filters every month during peak cooling or heating seasons. New filters usually only cost a few dollars. Dirty filters cost more to use, overwork the equipment and result in lower indoor air quality.
  • Control direct sun through windows, depending on the season and local climate. During cooling season, block direct heat gain from the sun shining through glass on the East and especially West sides of the facility. Depending on your facility, options such as “solar screens,” “solar films,” awnings, and vegetation can help keep facilities more cool. Over time, trees can attractively shade the facility, and help clean the air. Interior curtains or drapes can help, but it’s best to prevent the summer heat from getting past the glass and inside. During heating season, with the sun low in the South, unobstructed southern windows can contribute solar heat gained during the day.
  • Use fans to maintain comfortable temperature, humidity and air movement, and save energy year round. Moving air can make a somewhat higher temperature and/or humidity feel comfortable. Fans can help delay or reduce the need for air conditioning, and a temperature setting of only three to five degrees higher can feel as comfortable with fans. Each degree of higher temperature can save about 3 percent on cooling costs. When the temperature outside is more comfortable than inside, a “box fan” in the window, or large “whole facility” fan in the attic can push air out and pull in comfortable air from the outside.
  • Plug leaks with weather stripping and caulking. Caulking and weather stripping let you manage your ventilation, which is the deliberate controlled exchange of stuffy inside air for fresher outdoor air. To learn more about indoor air quality in your facility visit the Environmental Protection Agency’s EPA Indoor Air Quality.

Energy Saving Tips: Lighting

  • Turn off lights (and other equipment) when not in use. High utility costs often include paying for energy that is completely wasted.
  • Install switch plate occupancy sensors in proper locations to automatically turn off lighting when no one is present and back on when people return. Even good equipment can be installed wrong, so don’t install the sensor behind a coat rack, door, bookcase, etc. It must be able to “see” an approaching person’s motion to turn on the light before or as they enter an unlit area.
  • Adjust lighting to your actual needs; use free “daylight” during the day.
  • To prevent glare, eyestrain and headaches, do not “over-light.” Too much light can be as bad for visual quality as too little light – and it costs a lot more.
  • Install ENERGY STAR qualified exit signs. These exit signs can dramatically reduce maintenance by eliminating lamp replacement, and can save up to $10 dollars per sign annually in electricity costs while preventing up to 500 pounds of greenhouse gas emissions.
  • Consider upgrading to T8 (1″ diameter) fluorescent lamp tubes with solid-state electronic ballasts that are more efficient than older T12 (1.5″ diameter) tubes with magnetic ballasts.

Energy Saving Tips: Office Equipment

  • Always buy ENERGY STAR qualified products for your small business. The ENERGY STAR mark indicates the most efficient computers, printers, copiers, refrigerators, televisions, windows, thermostats, ceiling fans, and other appliances and equipment.
  • Turning off machines when they are not in use can result in enormous energy savings. There is a common misconception that screen savers reduce energy use by monitors; they do not. Automatic switching to sleep mode or manually turning monitors off is always the better energy-saving strategy.
  • To maximize savings with a laptop, put the AC adapter on a power strip that can be turned off (or will turn off automatically); the transformer in the AC adapter draws power continuously, even when the laptop is not plugged into the adapter.
  • Common misconceptions sometimes account for the failure to turn off equipment. Many people believe that equipment lasts longer if it is never turned off. This incorrect perception carries over from the days of older mainframe computers.
  • Consider buying a laptop for your next computer upgrade; they use much less energy than desktop computers, resulting in long-term savings.
  • Many appliances continue to draw a small amount of power when they are switched off. These “phantom” loads occur in most appliances that use electricity, such as VCRs, televisions, stereos, computers, and kitchen appliances. In the average home, 75 percent of the electricity used to power home electronics is consumed while the products are turned off. This can be avoided by unplugging the appliance, or using a power strip and the strip’s on/off switch to cut all power to the appliance.
  • Unplug battery chargers when the batteries are fully charged or the chargers are not in use.
  • Studies have shown that using rechargeable batteries for products like cordless phones and PDAs is more cost effective than throwaway batteries. If you must use throwaways, check with your trash removal company about safe disposal options.

Energy Saving Tips: Food Service Equipment

  • Purchase ENERGY STAR qualified commercial food service equipment. For example, qualified refrigerators and freezers can save over 45% of the energy used by conventional models, which equals as much as $140 annually for refrigerators and $100 for freezers; deep fryers can save between $60 and $180 per year; hot food holding cabinets can save up to $280 per year; and steam cookers can save between $450 and $820 per year depending on fuel.
  • For existing refrigerators, clean refrigerator coils twice a year and replace door gaskets if a dollar bill easily slips out when closed between the door’s seals.
  • Have large and walk-in refrigeration systems serviced at least annually. This includes cleaning, refrigerant top off, lubrication of moving parts, and adjustment of belts. This will help ensure efficient operation and longer equipment life.
  • Consider retrofitting existing refrigerators and display cases with anti-sweat door heater controls, and variable speed evaporator fan motors and controls.

Energy Saving Tips: Vehicles
Save money by improving the fuel economy of your business vehicles. Use the links below to find information and tools that can help you get started.
Fuel Economy

Gas Prices

Alternative Fuels

Types of Vehicles

Tax and Financial Incentives

Tools

Resources

Energy Saving Tips: Water Conservation

  • Fix leaks. Small leaks add up to many gallons of water and dollars wasted each month. Water conservation saves energy and money.
  • Use water-saving faucets and showerheads and urinals to save water.
  • Install an insulation blanket on water heaters seven years of age or older, and insulate the first 3 feet of the heated water “out” pipe on both old and new units.
  • If buying a new water heater, always buy the most efficient model possible. In areas of infrequent use, consider “tankless” water heaters to reduce “standby” storage costs and waste.
  • Set water temperature only as hot as needed (110-120 degrees) to prevent scalds and save energy (check local codes for specific temperatures).

When landscaping, practice xeriscaping by using plants native to your climate that require minimal watering and possess better pest resistance. If local code allows, consider diverting “gray water” for irrigation.

One of the Best Video Descriptions of Cloud Computing… EVER.

by | Mar 25, 2016 | Uncategorized

As Telecom and Cloud Consultants, we may not select Salesforce as the best solution for every business, but we have to hand it to them… they do have the best video description of cloud computing out there…  If you need help navigating through all of the various cloud solutions available, we can help. Call 877-209-0021

http://appliedutilityauditors.com