Enterprises and developers often have to learn a lot by installing pure energy technologies, such as photovoltaic installations and electric vehicle chargers. To get an candid offer, they must undergo a elaborate tender process, which includes a request for offers, an evaluation of offers and ultimately concluding a contract with the supplier.
Now the Startup Station A, founded by a pair of myth graduates and their colleagues, improves the process of implementing pure energy. The company has created a pure energy market that helps real estate owners and companies analyze real estate to calculate a return from projects related to neat energy, create detailed project lists, collecting and comparing offers and choosing a supplier.
The platform helps real estate owners and companies implement neat energy technologies, such as solar panels, batteries and chargers for electric vehicles, at the lowest possible prices, in places with the highest potential for reducing energy and emission costs.
“We do a lot to make the introduction of clean energy simple,” explains Manos Saratsis March ’15, who together with Kevin Berkemeyer MBA ’14 founded Station A. “Let’s imagine that you are trying to buy a flight ticket and your travel agency only uses one services carrier. It would be more expensive, and some places could not even be reached. Our clients want to have many options and easily learn about the achievements of everyone they work with. “
Station A has already established cooperation with some of the largest companies from the real estate industry in the country, some with thousands of real estate to reduce the carbon trail of their buildings. The company also cooperates with food networks, warehouses and other enterprises to speed up the transition to neat energy.
“Our platform uses a lot of artificial intelligence and machine learning to transform addresses in the footsteps of buildings and understand the costs of electricity, available incentives and places where you can expect the highest return on investment,” says Saratsis, who acts as the boss of product at Station A “It would usually require consulting dozens or hundreds of thousands of dollars, and we can do it very quickly for little money.”
Building a foundation
As a graduate of the Faculty of Architecture, Mit Saratsis studied environmental projects modeling, using data from sources such as satellite photos to understand how the communities exploit energy and propose the most influential potential solutions in the field of pure energy. He says classes with professors Christopha Reinhart AND Kent Larsen They especially opened their eyes.
“My ability to build a model of heat energy and simulating electricity consumption in the building has begun with the myth,” says Saratsis.
Berkemeyer was the president of Mit Energy Club during studies in the mit Sloan School of Management. He was also a scientific assistant in MIT Energy Initiative as part of the project The future of Solar Teacher’s report and assistant for the course 15.366 (climate and energy projects). He says that entrepreneurship classes conducted by Professor Practice Bill Aulette and sustainable development classes led by senior lecturer Jason Jay were shaping. Before studying at the myth, Berkemeyer had extensive experience in developing projects related to solar energy and storage as well as the sale of pure energy products to commercial clients. The paths of possible co -founders did not cross the myth, but after graduating, they worked together in the public utilities NRG Energy.
“As a co -founders, we noticed the chance to change the enterprise’s approach to pure energy,” said Berkemeyer, who is currently the general director of Station A. “Station A was born from the common belief that data and transparency can free the full potential of pure energy technology for everyone” .
The founders of NRG created software that helps customers identify the possibilities of decarbonization without the need to send analysts for location to conduct personal audits.
“If they cooperated with a large network of grocery stores or a large retail seller, we would use reserved analyzes to assess this portfolio and present recommendations regarding such things as photovoltaic projects, energy efficiency and reaction to demand that would bring positive phrases during the year.” Saratsis explains.
The tools have been a huge success in the company. In 2018, the couple, along with co -founders Jerrem Lucas and Sam Steyer, decided to implement this technology at Station A.
The founders started with cooperation with energy companies, but soon they transferred their attention to property owners with huge wallets and gigantic companies with long -term lease agreements. Many customers have hundreds or even thousands of addresses for evaluation. By using only addresses, the Station A can provide detailed estimates of the financial return on investment in pure energy.
In 2020, the company expanded the scope of its interests in the sale of access to its analyzes to the creation of a transaction market related to pure energy, helping enterprises to conduct a competitive tender process for projects related to neat energy. After installing the Station A project, it can also assess whether it achieves the expected performance and track financial returns.
“When I talk to people from outside the industry, they say:” Wait, this is not there yet? “” Says Saratsis. “It’s a bit crazy, but the industry is still very young and no one was able to come up with a way to carry out the tender process in a transparent and large -scale way.”
From the campus to the world
Currently, about 2,500 developers dealing with neat energy operate on the station A platform. In addition to companies such as HP, Nestle and Goldman Sachs, many gigantic real estate investment funds also exploit its services. Saratsis claims that if Station A was a developer, she would now be in the top ten in terms of annual photovoltaic installation.
The founders believe that the time spent in myth has helped them develop.
“Many of these relationships were born in the MIT network, whether through the people we met in Sloan or thanks to cooperation with the myth,” says Saratsis. “To a large extent, this business is about reputation, and we have developed a really good reputation.”
Since the creation of Station A, he has also sponsored classes at the Sustainable Development Laboratory to the MIT, where Saratsis conducted research as a student. The founders say that when working on the development of the A station’s offer, they exploit the skills acquired as students every day.
“Everything we do around buildings analysis is in a sense inspired by what I did when I was on the myth,” says Saratsis.
“Station A is just starting out,” says Berkemeyer. “Implementation of pure energy is not only a matter of technology – the point is that this process is fluid and available. This drives us every day and we are glad that we can lead this transformation.