Heating costs statement with PROMOS.FS – what will the future bring?

Remote meter reading  

According to statements from the major heating meter reading companies, the percentage of apartments/utilisation units that are read using remote reading is increasing rapidly. With this meter reading method, the required data for invoicing is read out by remote meter reading centres, with no need to access the apartments, or by means of walk-by wireless reading on site. Just as when it comes to the question of E record quality, the wheat is separated from the chaff here: Depending on the heating meter reading company, constant read outs throughout the year are an option, meaning data can be acquired continuously for every meter; for example, heat cost allocators, heating meters or water meters.  

Project IBEKO 2.0 by PROMOS.FS  

In partnership with an innovative real estate company and a major heating meter reading company, PROMOS.FS has developed procedures and processes, launched in the fourth quarter of 2015, that can be used to provide meaningful, formatted data to real estate companies from this extremely large, continuously captured pool of data. The data can be called up via mobile device or stationary computer using easysquare. easysquare is the new platform from the PROMOS Group for networked services relating to real estate management. easysquare not only allows effective communication between customers and service providers; it also allows mobile processes to be implemented in a targeted manner.  

Reports from meter readings taken throughout the year  

Monthly reports are created based on the meter readings taken throughout the year. For example, the report in Figure 1 is used for a monthly check to see whether there are significant deviations in the consumption values for a meter. An analysis algorithm that also includes the climate data for the real estate location can then be used to provide the tenants/users with current information via easysquare.

Heating meter reading companies do not have access to their customers’ ERP systems and thus cannot design their analyses based on the real estate company’s master data. In contrast to this, the PROMOS.FS service scope enhances the meter readings with customer-specific SAP^® evaluation groups such as accounting entity, superstructure, building, etc., allowing any number of aggregation levels. With this access to the housing manager’s SAP^® data, it is also possible to comply with data-protection provisions if the real estate company would like to provide its tenants with access to consumption data via the easysquare platform (e.g. via a tenants’ portal).  

Creation of consumption analyses and consumption statements throughout the year  

To allow tenants/owners to save energy and water costs, in the German Heating Costs Ordinance (Heizkostenordnung) of 2009, the legislator provided the apportionable option to provide users with consumption analyses that are sent out together with the annual utility statement. With a view to effective energy cost savings, the disadvantage of this procedure is that users cannot really establish a temporal link to their consumption behaviour over the past year.  

PROMOS.FS creates the prerequisite to provide tenants/users with a monthly consumption analysis, as shown by way of example in Figure 2, that makes a statement regarding the consumption behaviour of the past three months. Provided the utility companies’ handover meters and any meters in sub-distributions (user groups) can also be read out using remote reading functions, the consumption values determined on a monthly basis can be used for a consumption statement that shows the tenants/users their actual kilowatt hour consumption. A trend statement, in which for example the actual costs of the last settlement period are considered incorporating a price increase rate, can then be produced with very little effort.

PROMOS.FS – your strategic partner in all areas of the consumption-based utility statement  

PROMOS.FS Facility Services GmbH had already consolidated all services associated with consumption-related settlement and non-consumption-related settlement in its Immo Service Center. With the new focus on the processing of meter data throughout the year, PROMOS.FS is now continuing to build on its quality partnership with major real estate management companies.