Commercial & Industrial Market Segmentation Data Sources

Institutional Knowledge

Start with what is available from your utility's billing system or planning department.

Rely on the knowledge of field staff or key account representatives that are familiar with your service territory.

If there are a few large end-users in your service territory (significant loads in one or two sub-sectors), it may be beneficial to understand their energy use individually by conducting site-visits and facility audits.

Secondary Sources

The local Chamber of Commerce may be able to help you segment customers by their business activities, particularly area "mom and pop" businesses.

North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) - NAICS is the standard used by Federal statistical agencies in classifying business establishments for the purpose of collecting, analyzing and publishing statistical data related to the U.S. business economy. Note: replaces the Standard Industrial Classification (SIC).

EIA: Commercial Building Energy Consumption Survey (CBECS) - CBECS offers insight into end-use consumption in the commercial sector by principal building activity for the four Census regions and the nine Census divisions.

EIA: Manufacturing Energy Consumption Survey (MECS) - MECS provides data on the energy intensity of different industry segments for the four census regions.

U.S. Census: Annual Survey of Manufactures (ASM) - The ASM statistics on manufacturing establishments by NAICS code including detailed capital expenditures and fuels and electric energy used.

Industrial Sector Data Sources - The following federal programs regularly work in local communities, gathering information on commercial and industrial facilities and operations, and may be able to help you develop a profile of the business activities and energy use of customers in your service territory:

• Universities in 26 states operate U.S. Department of Energy-sponsored Industrial Assessment Centers that conduct energy audits and provide recommendations to small- to medium-sized manufacturing facilities to help them identify opportunities to improve productivity, reduce waste and save energy.
• Regional offices of the Department of Commerce's National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Manufacturing Extension Partnership Program (MEP) are located in 392 locations across the country and employ 1,600 field staff that work every day with companies in their plants and offices.
• The Small Business Association has Development Centers in nearly every state that provide management assistance to current and prospective small business owners, including analyses of similar businesses operating in the community.
• The programs above, together with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Green Suppliers Network and Climate Leaders program, and the U.S. Department of Labor's Employment and Training Administration recently launched E3, a coordinated federal and local technical assistance initiative focused specifically on sustainability and energy efficiency opportunities.

Baseline or potential studies conducted by neighboring utilities or for your state or region can also be used to approximate conditions in your service territory.