Based on this information please complete the two question bel.docx
- 1. Based on this information please complete the two question below Introduction We are currently in the age of information- knowledge is power. Everything around us is driven by data, so why aren’t our homes? Our cellular phones know where we are and provide information, recommendation and directions for us but why aren’t our homes? Technology has been growing and consumer are feeding off of new innovations such as artificial intelligence and vehicle automation but yet smart home automation has remained stagnate for years. While there are some companies that provide smart home automation services, no one provides a true smart automated house that informs you on your energy consumption or provides feedback on how to save on your energy consumption. Net Zero homes has been the closest to providing
- 2. energy efficient homes, no house on the market is truly “smart” in regards to being able to control your individual light switches, individual baseboard heaters or heat pumps, ovens, etc. This would be done by installing an innovated electrical panel that would be similar to the hard drive of a computer and all of the elements of the house could be controlled separately through a software or on your smart phone. Our company, Smart Home Systems will provide consumers the ability to control their homes and reduce energy consumption by the tip of your fingertips, at home or on the other side of the world. Market Research Due to unpredictable climatic consequences of floods, Canadians have diverted their interest towards adopting smart and secure home automation systems, seeking innovative solutions. The revenue generated from the Canadian smart home market presently sums up to US$ 944MM. This revenue is anticipated to reach a growth rate of 19.9% and is
- 3. expected to rise to US$ 1952MM by the year 2022. The penetration in the household market is estimated to be of 13.9% in the current year. This household penetration rate is anticipated to rise about 31.5% by the year 2022 (Statistica, 2018). The Canadian companies, Aartech Canada and Canadian Smart Systems offer home automation services to the natives of Canada. Aartech Canada It offers the most useful smart technologies that are provided by means of products manufactures such as Zwave and Insteon, which are affordable to the middle-class consumers. The devices manufactured by Insteon provide mesh interconnection among the electrical appliances in order to control the smart devices utilizing an alternate current power line and also through wireless means (Aartech Canada, 2018). The products like Zwave provide completely wireless device controlling capability to the consumers
- 4. together with the alarming system. These products have a wide scope in the industrial, as well as residential market. The devices can fulfill the requirement related to secure residences and can attract families and house owners of Canada (Aartech Canada, 2018). Canadian SmartSystems The KEYFOB smart home innovation offered by Canadian SmartSystems allows the consumers to control their electronic appliances by means of programmed systems, which can follow the commands of the consumers, such as turning the lights on or off through a single controlling key on the KEYFOB module. This innovation can assist in computerization of the house as it limits the usage of smartphones. The automation system can be programmed for different appliances ranging from garden sprinklers to home theatres (Canadian SmartSystems, 2018). This technology is also affordable to high income groups of Canada and is observed to have a good scope in setting up smart
- 5. homes and controlling smart devices for energy saving and optimized performance. Who is our Customer? Audience The individuals of Canada have increased their connectivity by increasing the use of smartphones. The consumers at industrial and residential sites are observed to be more inclined towards completely unified, affordable, as well as wireless security and alarming systems. The individuals in Canada of the age groups of 20-65 years, who are home owners and aspire to reduce their power expenditures, are demanding more mobile, supple, and portable means of home security and power consumption regulating devices. The middle and high earning or professional members of Canada can also implement home automation systems as they have minimal installation costs (Pattinson, 2014). Business to Consumers
- 6. Rogers, a multinational communication company is also recognized to provide monitoring services and solutions related to home automation to the consumers of Canada. Rogers provides certified home automation solutions to the consumers. Underwriters Laboratories (UL) provides certification to smart solutions and involves the application of continuous broadband and telecommunication interconnections that are focused on providing wireless controlling capabilities to home appliances. Consumers who are observed to live alone can get real-time updates by video monitoring facilities through a smartphone or computer (Pattinson, 2014). The updates regarding the activities of home appliances are also provided through a text message or mail system. It also provides automation services that can be controlled by a remote-control mechanism. Automation of thermostats, water supply, and switching on/off of electric appliances is also provided as home automation services by the
- 7. company (Rogers, 2018). Market Size, Segment or Niche, Trends The Canadian population is concerned about secure housing facilities, and they are ready to invest in implementation of automated, affordable, and smart services in their residences. This has resulted in the emergence of a trend for Net Zero Homes. The builders are focused on making Net Zero houses more affordable and economically feasible to the buyers. In the initial stages of constructing a house, Net Zero Homes are preferred in the Canadian market as they are highly energy efficient in comparison to the normal residents. Net Zero Homes are observed to utilize renewable energy systems, such as solar energy, which is collected from photovoltaic cells for the production of required energy demands of the residence (Hernandez & Kenny, 2010). These homes are designed in a manner that they are able to maintain end-to-end constant and comfortable temperature in residence. Net Zero Homes are also capable of
- 8. providing filtered indoor air for reducing the inflow of harmful dust and allergens. By establishing a Net Zero Home, the annual power consumption and energy utilization bills are observed to reduce safeguarding consumers from the upcoming rise in the housing prices. Canada is known as the world’s second most socially capable region on the basis of fulfilling human needs and providing growth opportunities (Frisk, 2016). On the basis of demographic aspects, the implementation of Net Zero Homes would be beneficial for the population in the age range of 20 to 65 years. The working members of the family would be benefited from economic feasibility of Net Zero Homes. The need to implement Net Zero Homes is identified by the educated groups. On the basis of psychographic aspects, the living status of Canadians is suitable in order to invest in the Zero Homes. According to Social Progress Index 2016, Canada is identified to lack affordable housing (Frisk, 2016). Net Zero Homes will help to
- 9. improve affordable housing demands of people. Therefore, the target market comprising of residents of Canada, involving people from diverse age groups are inclined towards Net Zero Homes due to their affordability and energy efficiency (Canadian Home Builders’ Association, 2018). The adverse weather conditions in Canada have also directed the consumers towards Net Zero Homes, as they involve low investment and higher future returns. These homes are capable of fulfilling the required energy demands that can be controlled and minimized as per residential power consumption (Doiron et al., 2011). Top Down Bottom Up Bottom Up New
- 10. Home/Renovation $34B market Smart Home $944MM market Net Zero Units 8,023 unit Expected to grow by 33% 5% Market Share $4MM Sales $10,000 per house Bottom Up As we previously stated in our market research, the revenue generated from the
- 11. Canadian smart home market presently sums up to US$ 944MM. Additionally, the home building and renovation market is a US$ 34B (IBIS World, 2017) market however, our target market would be the niche consumer market of Net Zero housing. While this market only consisted of 8,023 units in 2016 (Sisson, 2017), it is believed that the Net Zero industry will continue to grow year over year. The results of the Canadian Home Builders Association Nationwide Home Preference Survey, consumers are demanding energy efficiency in their home with top-10 listed (CHBA Net Zero Home Labelling Program): 1. Walk-in closets 2. Energy efficient appliances 3. High-efficiency windows 4. Linen closets 5. Overall energy efficient home 6. Kitchen islands
- 12. Unit & Sales Forecast •5% of Net Zero Homes •$10,000 selling cost •$4MM Sales Sales and Distribution •Canadian Home Builders Association (training) •Electrical supply stores (training for electricians) •Home improvement stores Competitive Advantage •Trade Shows, Home Shows, Social Media (education) •1st of its kind in a growing and market •Consumers are spending close to $100,000 more for more energy efficient homes 7. Open concept kitchens 8. Large windows 9. 2-car garage 10. HRV/ERV air exchange Penetration and Market Share Penetration into the marketplace will rely heavily upon education and training by
- 13. targeting the Canadian Home Builders Association (CHBA), Governments and Power Companies. The CHBA is an association that lobbies the government for code regulations, are “the voice of Canada’s residential construction industry” and represents one of the largest industries in the country (Canadian Home Builders Association). Our product will be a costly investment initially; however consumers would see their return on investment in 8-12 years, on par with the ROI for a Net Zero home. Consumers ROI would be generated from utility saving as their home would not be generating as much energy if the consumer decided to use the product effectively. Due to the initial investments, it is imperative for our success that we partner with the professionals of the industry. Sales Forecast Sales forecast is slightly difficult to predict for a new product in the market. Narrowing down of target consumers to the Net Zero homes of
- 14. 8,023 units gives us the most feasible metrics to forecast against. 5% of the 8,023 units are approximately 400 units, which we believe is a good number to start with. In our first year, our sales forecast is $4MM. This number will continue to grow to $7.5MM in 5 years and with the growing trend of minimizing energy consumption and smart homes, sales incline at a healthy rate of 5% yearly, while our costs should decrease with improved technologies. Competitive Landscape The competitive landscape is a business analysis identifying the competitors of business. Both direct and indirect competitors are identified at the same time in the competitive landscape which permits the mission, vision, globalization of industry and cost factor's comprehension. Our company security in Canada provides the home automation services. The company is one of the best home automation companies. There
- 15. are many competitors in the market. Top competitions are Rogers, Vivant, and ADT etc. Our competitors compete really well, they also know the competition. They know that what we are offering and they know the company’s unique selling points. They identify the area where they need to compete with us and always trying to differentiate them. They keep them update with the economic conditions and customer expectation. Price competition is always there between our company and its competitions. They try to make their services more premium and flexible than our services. They make effort to tell Our customers that they serve better than us and try to attract company’s best employees as well by offering them high package salary secretly. They are always trying to adapt company’s marketing strategies like social media and overseas services (Krell, 2015). We try our best to get information about our competition so that we could compete. We are setting the team who is always assessing what competitors are offering by visiting
- 16. their websites and analyzing their advertisements. Team gets flyers and list of prices of our competitors. The team does desk and field research on company’s competitors and our team uses social media as a source and checks all the social mentions of company’s competitors (Stark, 2016). SWOT Strengths: There are distinct advantages we are offer low prices to customers and company compensate that price from the cost of raw materials. Environment-friendly services. Company’s products do not harm the environment or create pollution. The lower prices with high quality are the major strength. The team is well aware of the market demands; company's previous experiences in the market are adding the values in company decisions as the team knows what will be the reaction of people towards company’s new strategies. Weaknesses: There is always a room for improvement for marketing and cost reduction
- 17. strategies by maintaining the quality of service. Smart Home Systems does not compromise on the quality so sometimes company face high cost, the company need to adjust prices and quality with the cost for which company need latest technology and marketing strategy (McKEOUGH, 2012). All these factors can affect the business; therefore, we are considering these factors as weaknesses. Opportunities: There are many interesting opportunities in company’s marketplace. We provide a wearable security system in the form of smart watches and smart glass that record the daily activity and routine and keep the homeowner alert with security signals. The company provides security insurance to clients as the company has a contract with the insurance companies. The concept of Smart Home Systems is new in the market. Because of this company can cover a vast market to earn more profit and expand its business.
- 18. Threats: As a home automation service providers there are many current obstacles that we are facing. The major obstacle is vulnerability to hackers. No doubt that Smart Home Systems provides effective and latest security tools but hackers are very smart, they are always working on how to break security. The high cost is also an obstacle because it reduces the demand for company clients if the company raises the price due to the expensive raw material. Disloyalty of employees can be a major obstacle as home automation is a sensitive job and employees are familiar to break the security (Fix, 2016). Company competitors are trying to copy features of the products that can be a threat for the company in the future. Marketing Strategy Marketing strategy is a very important tool for every kind of business. It is important to focus on a marketing campaign to make business successful and efforts for marketing should be highly coordinating with clients. Our company provides proper
- 19. technical education and training to company employees. We need to attract consumers, for that, the company has to identify its consumers first. Many clients can be home builders association and power companies or even individual households. There are different platforms that utilize to market the company services and attract customers such as trade shows, social media and home shows. The company runs an advertisement of our services at the prime time and during high rating programs. We pay to the newspaper and magazine companies to put advertisement on their backside pages in front and the last page of the magazines gain more attention. We are hiring a team for marketing to send door to door of house builders association and power companies to inform and offer company services. (Wolf, 2015). The marketing strategy is to build strong relationships with the customer to increase company’s customer
- 20. equity. Therefore main focus of our company is on the customer satisfaction and retention. Assignment – Technical Feasibility (typical contents) • Is it patentable? Or is it a service? • Point Solution - Flexibility to work within a system? Page 1 of 4
- 21. ME/NSE 312 Thermodynamics Winter 2018 Project Description Submitted as a single PDF to Canvas (GROUPS OF 2). No hard copy or emailed assignments will be accepted. Late assignments will be accepted up to 24 hours after due date with a 50% penalty. Projects from single individuals will earn at most 75% unless approved in writing prior to submission. Projects with more than two students will not be accepted. Project must be completed using Engineering Equation Solver. DESCRIPTION: Geothermal power plants use the heat from the
- 22. earth as the input to a heat engine. In a binary cycle plant, water is pumped into the ground, heated, and returned to the surface where it provides heat to a different working fluid in the power plant itself. Your company is designing a power plant where the water from the geothermal well is returned at 180°C. You and your colleagues have identified the cycle shown in Figure 1 as a promising configuration. The cycle uses reheat and regeneration with multiple feedwater heaters. The cycle uses toluene as the working fluid due to the low temperature of the heat source. Figure 1 – Plant Schematic The boiler pressure is Pb = 260 kPa. The water from the geothermal well is at Tg = 180°C. The
- 23. plant rejects heat to the ambient at TC = 30°C. The fluid is extracted at state 3 from turbine 1 at Pext,1 = 120 kPa and fraction of the flow f1 is fed to the open feedwater heater 1. The fluid is Page 2 of 4 subsequently extracted at state 4 from turbine 2 at Pext,2 = 50 kPa and reheated. The fluid is finally extracted at state 6 from turbine 3 at Pext,3 = 20 kPa and the fraction of the flow f2 is fed to open feedwater heater 2. The remainder of the flow passes through turbine 4 to the condenser. Other assumptions: 0.86, ηt,3 = 0.88, ηt,4 = 0.89,
- 24. ηp,3 = 0.69, ηt,4 = 0.89, and 2 - ∆Tb where ∆Tb is 15 K for baseline condition (code as a variable) - ∆Trh where ∆Trh is 10 K for baseline condition (code as a variable) + ∆Tc where ∆Tc = 5 K for baseline condition (code as a variable) source is 2.5 MW (this is the sum of heat transfer to the boiler and the reheater). hangers Part 1 – Baseline Analysis
- 25. 1. Determine each state associated with the cycle, following numbering in Figure 1. Use the ARRAY table functionality in EES and print an array table showing T, P, s, h, x for each state. 2. Plot state points on T-s diagram for Toluene. 3. Determine the maximum theoretical efficiency of the cycle. 4. Determine the actual thermal efficiency of the cycle. 5. Determine the mass flow rate of toluene passing through the boiler in kg/s. 6. Determine the net power produced by the cycle in MW. 7. Determine the rate of heat transfer through the condenser in MW. 8. Determine the effectiveness of the boiler and the condenser. 9. If electricity is sold at a rate of 0.055 $/kWhr, what is the
- 26. total value of electricity produced over a 10 year period (neglecting time value of money)? Part 2 – Economic Analysis and Optimization of Plant The heat transfer surface area required for the boiler and condenser are directly related to their effectiveness. Your company has tested heat exchangers operating with toluene and developed the following correlation for the surface area (A) as a function of the effectiveness (ε) and toluene mass flow rate: Where KHX = 170 m 2-s/kg is an empirical constant that is appropriate for both the boiler and
- 27. condenser. The cost of these heat exchangers scales linearly with their surface area according to: HX Page 3 of 4 Where CHX = 50 $/m 2 is the cost coefficient that is appropriate for both the boiler and condenser. 10. Using your answer from part 8, determine the area and cost for the baseline boiler and condenser. 11. You have estimated that the capital cost of the balance of the plant is Costmech = $500 × 103. What is the net profit that this plant would be made by building and operating the
- 28. plant (neglecting the time value of money)? 12. Plot the profit over a ten year period as a function of the approach temperature difference for the boiler from 2 K < ∆Tb < 30 K and determine if an optimal temperature exists. 13. You are given freedom to vary ∆Tb and ∆Tc from 2 K to 30 K. Determine a set of approach temperatures that maximizes plant profit over a ten year period. Part 3 – Second Law Analysis of Plant 14. At baseline conditions, determine the rate of exergy destruction within the plant. 15. Plot the rate of exergy destruction, and boiler area as a function of the approach
- 29. temperature difference for the boiler from 2 K < ∆Tb < 30 K and determine if an optimal temperature exists. 16. You are given freedom to vary ∆Tb and ∆Tc from 2 K to 30 K. Determine a set of approach temperatures that minimizes exergy destruction. SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS: General: mes, email, date of submission and project title information. 12 pt. Times New Roman font with 1-inch margin). The narrative should be used to summarize your final results
- 30. and include detailed comments on the parametric trends observed in Parts 2 and 3. Failure to discuss your results in a meaningful way will reduce your overall grade. As Appendices: Part 1 properties (T, P, h, s, x) for final design results. You must use state points indicated in Fig. 1 -s diagram with state points located and labeled. You must use state points in Fig. 1. -9 including proper units. rintout of EES solution window showing final results. All answers highlighted and no
- 31. unit errors detected. Part 2 proper units. Page 4 of 4 including units. (Plot trends and optimized results should be discussed in narrative, above). from Part 1) Part 3
- 32. Summary of numerical answer for #14 a proper units. including units (Plot trends and optimized results should be discussed in narrative, above). ghlight changes from Part 1 and 2) Note that completion of an item does not automatically result in a maximum score for that item. For example, a number of things (accuracy, conciseness, thoroughness, organization, neatness, completeness, communication, professionalism, relevance and usefulness) contribute to the point value ultimately assigned.