Summer is the season when many Valley business owners brace themselves for rising air-conditioning costs. This year, companies have a new way to save with SRP’s Bring Your Own Thermostat Program (BYOT) for Business. This easy, automated program offers energy-saving smart thermostat rebates and puts business owners firmly in control.

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Simple, automated savings

One of the major perks of the BYOT for Business program is that once a company enrolls, SRP does the rest.

“Once you sign up, you don’t actually have to do anything as the customer,” says Josh Logan, senior product manager, Product Development for SRP. “The device just needs to maintain a connection to WiFi, and the events happen automatically. If you need to adjust for comfort, you can opt out at any point.”

Logan explains that BYOT for Business has transitioned from a pay-for-participation model to pay-for-performance. “We saw that many of our business customers were providing substantial amounts of curtailment, and we wanted to make sure they’re getting what they deserve for that participation,” he says.

What happens during a peak event

During high-demand energy periods, called peak events, SRP temporarily adjusts participating businesses’ smart thermostats a few degrees for about two hours to help reduce strain on the grid. In return, businesses receive financial incentives tied to their performance.

According to Logan, these events typically occur on the hottest summer afternoons when air conditioning use spikes. “While events are eligible to be called from May 1st to October 31st, they’re pretty much exclusively called in July and August,” he says.

Customers are typically notified by email about 90 minutes before a peak event.

“We’ll have what’s called preconditioning or pre-cooling,” Logan says. “We lower the temperature set point for the hour preceding the event.”

If comfort becomes a concern, “You can opt out at any point during the event,” Logan notes.

Two programs, one goal

“Business Demand Response means something different than our BYOT for Business program,” Logan says. Companies can choose the program that best aligns with their business needs and desired level of engagement during demand response events.

Demand Response, offered through SRP’s aggregator partner Enel, focuses on businesses reducing operational loads, such as implementing LED lighting and HVAC adjustments.

BYOT for Business focuses specifically on smart thermostat adjustments.

When peak events are called, BYOT for Business enrollees receive an email notification and SRP automatically adjusts their smart thermostats.

“For all of the events called last year, they were aligned with Business Demand Response and Bring Your Own Thermostat,” Logan explains. “We try to stack what we have available to reduce peak energy.”

Who should consider BYOT for Business?

Most midsize businesses with smart thermostats are eligible to enroll in BYOT for Business. Performance is measured at the account level rather than per device, meaning businesses may enhance their results by pairing thermostat participation with additional efficiency measures.

“If they’re in a position where they can run a smart thermostat that’s controlling a temperature set point in a given space, then I would say they should consider this as a rebate,” Logan says.

Businesses unsure whether the program is the right fit can connect with their assigned Strategic Energy Manager to review usage data and determine the best approach. Each commercial account has a dedicated SEM listed on its SRP invoice.

Ultimately, BYOT for Business reflects a broader shift toward smarter energy use, collaborative participation and long-term grid reliability. To learn more, visit srpnet.com/energy-savings-rebates/business/rebates/smart-thermostats.