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                          •  Reporting  Not only is your tracking system good for monitoring your data, it can
                             also be used to communicate your energy performance around your organization.
                             This is an effective method because it can help encourage change.

                         When collecting data, keep these issues in mind:
                          •  Collect data from submeters when possible.
                          •  Use actual, not estimated, data.
                          •  Use data that is current.
                          •  Develop reports that analyze power usage every quarter.

                      Baseline Data
                      The next step is to establish a baseline for your data. This allows you to know where you’re
                      starting and also to establish realistic goals. In order to establish a baseline, you need to
                      keep these issues in mind:

                          •  Establish a base year  Establish a base year or an average of several historical
                             years. Use as complete data as you can.
                          •  Choose your metrics  Select what you are going to measure based on your
                             organization’s performance desires. For instance, if your overall goal is to reduce
                             power consumption, you should be measuring and monitoring kilowatt hours (kWh).
                          •  Share your results  Make sure you share the baseline results with managers,
                             departments, and other stakeholders.

                      Benchmarking
                      You can compare your own organization’s results against others through benchmarking.
                      The procedure doesn’t necessarily propel you toward your power reduction goals; however,
                      it can be useful to monitor your progress and to compare your organization to others.
                         Benchmarking can be performed in a number of ways:
                          •  Past performance  Compare your current status to historical performance.
                          •  Industry average  Compare your organization’s results to an average of other
                             organizations in your industry.
                          •  Best in class  Compare your organization to the best in the industry, not just
                             the average.                                                                   PART V
                          •  Best practices  Compare your organization’s results to established practices that
                             have been deemed to be the best in the industry.

                      Analyze Data
                      Once you get all your data, what then? Sure, a table of numbers looks impressive, but
                      what can you glean from it? There’s a lot of information you can divine from your
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