Hancock Software

Integrated Mobile App for Utility Field Personnel

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Lily Li, Founder & CEO, Hancock SoftwareLily Li, Founder & CEO
Lily Li may be small in stature, but she’s mighty when it comes to the mobile apps her company provides. In an arena where electric and gas utilities are forced to become innovative with their customer offerings, Lily, founder and CEO of Hancock Software Inc., is there to meet the challenge.

Utilities struggle to provide quality data, leading them to seek out new software platforms. According to Lily, scaling energy efficiency operations in the digital era is not just about shifting to a new software platform. It’s about revamping the entire business process and operating models. Constantly reforming to meet technological and social trends, the utility field services arena is going through a profound transformation, and it’s an exciting time for Hancock Software to be selected in the Top 10 Field Service Solution Providers.

Hancock Software develops mobile apps for building energy audits. The apps are integrated into cloud solutions, enabling utilities to add mobile to their already mature software suite. The major challenge for energy efficiency providers, is that energy efficiency evaluation of buildings involves auditors armed with pen and paper, who walk around the facility as they assess and research ways to save energy. It is up to the auditors to come up with an offering that is site-specific, which will include multiple improvements that are unique to that facility.

Therefore, it’s typical that these types of retrofit projects are characterized by an extensive onsite energy assessment and analysis. This conventional approach makes the process of auditing drawn-out and costly. Scanning large portfolios of buildings turns auditing more complicated as the accuracy of data collected during the inspection is questionable. Moreover, this process is characterized by trailing paperwork and fails to provide an in-depth analysis. In order to derive economic gains, finding a solution to the inefficient use of energy, maintaining the assets, and controlling operating expenses are imperative. To this end, Hancock Software offers software solutions that recommend energy upgrades, quantify savings, and automate incentives and retrofit reimbursements. Boasting an industry experience of over fifteen years, Hancock Software has a clientele that includes utility companies, weatherization state government grantees, energy efficiency providers, and contractors.

Hancock Software’s Mint app is the only mobile application in the market that supports ASHRAE Level 2 audits and proposals offline.

The Mint mobile field app makes a complex energy efficiency process seem simple. Step into the building, identifying what’s there, and let the technology tell you what improvement to make. The data aggregation, analysis, it’s all at your fingertips

“The Mint mobile field app makes a complex energy efficiency process seem simple. Step into the building, identifying what’s there, and let the technology tell you what improvements to make. The data aggregation, analysis, it’s all at your fingertips,” says Lily. Mint can be accessed by almost all smart tablets including Apple, Android and Windows platforms. The mobile app is pre-populated with thousands of library items and proposes energy savings recommendations using an advanced algorithm developed by the company. Hancock Software permits using the app in offline mode in addition to tailoring it per the needs of the customer. Lily explains that personalization of the application is essential because of a range of different customer necessities as energy consumption varies from building to building. “We collect structured data rather than gathering piecemeal information of a building,” states Lily. Once the data is collected offline, the user can upload it to Hancock Software’s Energy Efficiency Cloud, which gives them the data analysis and quality of data they want.

The system replaces paper forms and excel data entry with advanced software while enhancing client education in regard to achieving energy efficiency. Facilities that participate in a utility’s energy efficiency rebate program know it to be a drawn-out process for incentives to be approved and verified. Hancock Software’s cloud services take the struggle away from the utility with validating and approving incentives. Hancock’s solution can be used to verify and approve incentives on the go, reducing complications.

Lily, a veteran CEO, recounts the story of the State of Louisiana, a customer of Hancock that deployed a solution to manage the state’s federal LIHEAP and weatherization programs. In the years leading up to then, the government institution was gathering information by hand to then enter into locally developed systems. These data collection systems offered only limited client-data analysis, had no provision for understanding the demographics of the population served, and could not report historical trends. Hancock Software completed the project on time enabling the client to shorten the delay from the client’s application to payment.

The mobile app recently introduced new features such as site sketching and drawing. The process to integrate voice commands and controls is on the way. It’s easy to tell Lily and her company, Hancock Software Inc., are focused on the future of energy efficiency.
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Top 10 Field Service Solution Companies - 2019

Company
Hancock Software

Management
Lily Li, Founder & CEO

Description
Proven energy tech company offering an online platform and integrated mobile apps for the field

Hancock Software News

Hancock Software Announces Support for Home Efficiency Rebates Quick Start Programs

Hancock Cloud energy modeling & program tracking software supports IRA Home Efficiency Rebates, Home Electrification & Appliance Rebates Quick Start Program

FRAMINGHAM - Hancock Software, announce that Hancock Cloud fully conforms to the requirements for a Home Efficiency Rebates Quick Start Program launch in 2023.

Section 50121 of the IRA allocates $4.3 billion to the Department of Energy (DOE) for the implementation of a program aimed at awarding grants to state energy offices. These grants will support the development and execution of a Home Owner Managing Energy Savings (HOMES) rebate program that assesses overall home energy consumption before and after energy efficiency retrofits.

Under this program, state energy offices must provide rebates to homeowners and aggregators for whole-house energy-saving retrofits, with varying benefits available to homeowners with incomes up to 150% of the Area Median Income (AMI). Ensuring compliance with the program's multifaceted requirements is both crucial and intricate.

Thankfully, Hancock Software's energy services program management software, known as Hancock Cloud, has been in use for two decades, offering states a comprehensive solution for data collection, analysis, and reporting. This software streamlines the delivery of energy assistance benefits and ensures compliance with complex program requirements from the outset. Originally designed to aid states in distributing DOE Weatherization Assistance Program (WAP) funds, Hancock Cloud fully supports all regulations governing residential energy efficiency retrofit rebates within the HOMES program. These regulations encompass:

• Verification of household eligibility

• Eligibility of proposed improvement measures

• Compliance with BPI 2400 for DOE-approved energy modeling

• Tracking and reporting of geo-located photos depicting installed measures

• Comprehensive records of quality control inspections, testing, and corrective actions

• Maintenance of data on certified program contractors

• An intuitive, role-based user interface for all program contributors

• Integration of multiple funding sources while ensuring compliance

• Robust data security controls to safeguard personal information

• Full compliance with DOE/PNNL API for rebate processing

By adopting Hancock Cloud's proven software-as-a-service platform, states can expedite the delivery of benefits to homeowners under the HOMES program, taking advantage of the Quick Start provisions outlined in the new legislation. Emphasizing alignment with established DOE WAP methods and incorporating the new HOMES program provisions, Hancock Cloud enables states to achieve faster rebate delivery and promote job creation compared to the development of an entirely new program. Lily Li, CEO of Hancock Software, expressed her excitement, stating, "We are proud that today, more than one-third of DOE funding for income-eligible home weatherization across the country is facilitated with Hancock Software technology. With this announcement, we hope to assist States in delivering HOMES rebates to benefit more families more quickly."

States that utilize Hancock Software technology for DOE WAP program administration have effectively combined federal, state, and local utility funding into single energy efficiency retrofit projects while maintaining adherence to the various rules and measures of multiple simultaneous programs. Hancock Software also provides an offline mobile energy audit tool that guides assessors, installers, or inspectors through the necessary data collection and analysis steps to comply with DOE-approved savings requirements. The streamlined delivery of home energy services with Hancock Cloud translates to reduced administrative efforts and supervision, ensuring that more funding genuinely benefits underserved communities, as intended.