A new report from AltaTerra Research presents a comprehensive, six-level information reference architecture for enterprise sustainability, and profiles nineteen leading solutions in a rapidly growing market.

PALO ALTO, California, June 16, 2011 – AltaTerra Research announced the release of its highly anticipated report today, entitled,"Enterprise Sustainability Management Solutions: Reference Architecture and Buyers Guide.” This solution research report describes key market drivers and trends, new operating processes and practices for Enterprise Sustainability Management (ESM), customer needs and segmentation, software vendor capabilities and profiles, and recommendations for implementing an effective enterprise IT architecture for sustainability.

Organizations around the world are elevating resource efficiency and sustainability from a tactical to a strategic concern, and they are moving aggressively to improve environmental performance in facilities, processes and products. For many, this has meant new information management challenges, related to energy and water use, solid waste, toxic materials, carbon emissions, and other factors.

Often, sustainability management requires new types of information not previously tracked—e.g. details of energy and water use, product environmental attribute data, and GHG emissions. Furthermore, for IT, sustainability represents an expanded organizational paradigm, requiring approaches that span traditional boundaries between enterprise systems and facilities systems, design systems, suppliers, and customers.

In the rapidly growing market for Enterprise Sustainability Management software and services, there is no "one size fits all” solution. Establishing an effective information architecture means taking a comprehensive view of sustainability, and putting in place capabilities that serve the organization’s highest-value needs.

This report presents a clear, six-level reference architecture defining and classifying essential capabilities supporting sustainability—from the enterprise level down to the device level. Offerings from nineteen key ESM solution providers are profiled and analyzed, relative tonineteen specific capabilities described in the top three levels of the reference architecture. Leading providers are identified in four distinct market segments. And recommendations are made, for how organizations can begin to establish effective enterprise architectures for sustainability.

"We saw a critical need to develop an information reference architecture for the sustainable enterprise, that spans critical capabilities across IT and facilities systems, from the board room to the HVAC sensor, and considers upstream suppliers, internal operations, and downstream customers. This architecture enables us to articulate what new capabilities are necessary for sustainability management and operations, where vendors offer solutions, and what different customer market segments need,” said the report’s lead author and AltaTerra president, Don Bray.

Sample findings include:

• Over the past few years, sustainability thinking has shifted away from a carbon focus to a concern with general sustainability and energy savings, notably in the US market.
• For many organizations, a combination of powerful market forces has elevated sustainability to a strategic level, with immediate implications for operations, products, and brand value.
• Leadership in sustainability requires organizations to adopt a broad range of new processes, practices and information management capabilities.
• Sustainability requires new types of information not historically tracked in many organizations – e.g. details of energy and water use, product environmental attribute data, GHG emissions.
• For IT, sustainability represents a new organizational paradigm, requiring solutions that span traditional boundaries between enterprise systems and facilities, suppliers, and customers.
• The ESM solutions market is growing rapidly, from 30-100+%, depending on capability sets; it features a range of established players and new entrants, and both broad and specialized solutions.
• Sustainability management requirements can be segmented based on an organization’s industry and operational characteristics; ESM solution providers CA, Enablon, EnerNOC, Enviance, Hara, IHS, SAP, Tririga/IBM and Verisae lead in one or more of four distinct market segments.
• To efficiently meet new, cross-organizational requirements for sustainability management, IT must carefully map and integrate existing IT assets with prospective/new ESM solutions.

Sample figures include:

Figure 0.1. Scope of Sustainable Enterprise Information Systems

Figure 4.2.1 AltaTerra Information Reference Architecture for the Sustainable Enterprise

To purchase the report go to https://altaterra.site-ym.com/store/view_product.asp?id=768777.

Further information and a link to download a free summary of the report are available at: http://www.altaterra.net/members/blog_view.asp?id=272897&post=127209.

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About AltaTerra Research
AltaTerra Research is a research consultancy specializing in sustainable business and the commercial marketplace for clean technology solutions. Through research reports, online conferences and advisory services, AltaTerra helps forward-looking organizations improve energy efficiency and environmental performance in their operations and capitalize on new 'green' market opportunities. From our headquarters in Silicon Valley, we have been serving a global base of major corporations, government entities, institutions, and clean-technology growth companies since 2007. More information is available atwww.AltaTerra.net.

Contact:

Eric Paul
AltaTerra Research

e.paul [at] AltaTerra.net