Strengers, Y (2008) Comfort expectations: The impact of demand-management strategies in Australia. Building Research & Information, 36(4), pp. 381-391. ISSN 0961-3218
Abstract
Australia's residential peak electricity demand is escalating rapidly and causing major distribution and generation challenges for the industry. This rise is largely attributed to converging and rising expectations of comfort in the home, which are being satisfied by Australians' increasing reliance on air-conditioning. Residential demand-management strategies seek to address this by either actively managing consumer demand, or encouraging consumers to act as co-managers of their demand, during peak times. Drawing on interviews with demand-management practitioners from electricity distributors and retailers, the impact of several residential demand-management techniques is considered in relation to comfort expectations. It is argued that utilities delivering demand-management trials are shaping, and being shaped by, 'normal' expectations of comfort. Further social research is called for to assess the impact of demand-management techniques on escalating comfort expectations, and to design and implement strategies that address this fundamental issue.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | adaptive behaviour; air-conditioning; climate change; comfort; demand management; indoor environmental quality; inhabitants; peak demand; residential energy consumption; smart meters |
| Index terms: | indoor environmental quality, utilities, smart meter, electricity demand, adaptive behaviour, comfort, strategy, manager, residential energy, Australia, climate change, practitioner, drawing, demand management, management strategy, consumption, interview, peak demand |
| Subjects: | consumer economics, technical documentation, energy systems, occupational health and safety management, human factors, climate science, environmental health, practitioner, Geography, construction type, data collection methods, management, market analysis |
| Topics: | Design Practice, Engineering Principles, Research Practice, Sustainability, Roles and Professions, Construction Technology, Stakeholder Management, Business Strategy, Health and Safety, Geographical Context |
| Descriptive scope: | 3 PCE |
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