instant discount operations manual - business energy services | … · 2020. 4. 7. · table 1 –...

PowerShift Business Energy Services Instant Discount Manual This manual provides supporting implementation guidelines, processes and controls.

Updated: April 7, 2020

Instant Discount Operations Manual 2

Visit: nvenergy.com/bes Call: 800.342.6335 Email: [email protected]

Contents

1. Overview ........................................................................................................................................ 3

2. Roles and Responsibilities ............................................................................................................. 3

2.1 Functional Positions ............................................................................................................... 3

2.2 Client ....................................................................................................................................... 3

3. Requirements ................................................................................................................................ 3

4. Distributor and Rebate Aggregator Eligibility .............................................................................. 3

2.3 Participation Agreement ....................................................................................................... 4

5. Measure Eligibility ......................................................................................................................... 5

6. Incentives ....................................................................................................................................... 5

7. Database Tool ................................................................................................................................ 6

2.4 Overview ................................................................................................................................ 6

8. Processing and Payments ............................................................................................................. 7

8.1 Validation of Transactions .......................................................................................................... 7

8.2 QA/QC ..................................................................................................................................... 8

8.3 Returns ................................................................................................................................. 10

8.4 Exceptions ............................................................................................................................ 11

8.5 Payments .............................................................................................................................. 11

9. Qualified Product List .................................................................................................................. 13

10. Forecasting Process ................................................................................................................. 14



1. Overview

The Instant Discount Operations manual gives an overview on processes and controls carried out to implement the PowerShift Business Energy Service (BES) Instant Distant program effectively.

2. Roles and Responsibilities

2.1 Functional Positions

Mark Darden, Sr. Operations Manager John Greco, Principal Engineer Evan Farley, Admin Lead Liz Forrest, Program Lead Carly Hamilton, Business Analyst

2.2 Client

NV Energy

3. Requirements

Instant Discount rules and regulations were established that allow the offering to operate effectively. Participating Energy Efficiency Service Providers (EESPs) (distributors), and rebate aggregators agree to follow the rules and protocols by signing an agreement; in exchange, they are able to offer incentives for selling approved products. Established policies ensure that only full-line distributor with direct manufacturer agreements, and rebate aggregators who apply for incentives on behalf of end customers (national accounts), may participate in the Instant Discount offering. Rebate aggregators are required to submit a Letter of Authorization from the customer stating that the aggregator can act on their behalf to obtain the incentives. Contractors and nonresidential NV Energy customers may purchase products at a discounted rate through participating distributors. The criteria and requirements ensure that gray market or inefficient products do not receive incentives. Additionally, processes exist to correctly document energy savings.

4. Distributor and Rebate Aggregator Eligibility

Distributors are companies that deliver products to commercial/industrial end-users or contractors. Distributors must purchase their products directly from a manufacturer. They must



have a warehouse that stocks products that are sold to commercial, industrial, and contractor customers. Their primary source of revenue must come from the distribution of products and not from product installation.

Outreach professionals will engage potential distributors and build the closed network. Potential distributors must complete an application; applications are considered on quarterly basis. Potential distributors must have a

• Direct purchasing agreement with manufacturers. Eligible distributors are emailed a participation packet.

• They must complete the required documents to become a participating Instant Discount distributor.

• Distributors are added as an approved distributor and listed on the Instant Discount Distributor Lists once they submit the required documentation and they complete program training.

New program year training webinars are offered to participating distributors prior to the new program year start. During the program year, if a new distributor enrolls, training will be conducted via webinar or in person by an outreach professional. The Outreach professionals ensure distributors have the tools and knowledge to support all aspects of the program portfolio.

Rebate aggregators for national accounts may also be eligible to participate. The Instant Discount offering treats these rebate aggregators as distributors. The documentation required for rebate aggregators to national account scenario is same as in distributor model. A direct agreement between a rebate aggregator and manufacturer is not required instead a letter of authorization is required between national accounts and rebate aggregators.

2.3 Participation Agreement

Each distributor must fill out and submit a Participation Agreement; it is imperative that they thoroughly understand its terms and conditions. This document allows us to process incentive reimbursements to the distributors. In addition to stating Instant Discount rules, the document details end of program year requirements. Approved distributors are allocated annual funding at the program year start; allocations are reviewed quarterly or when required. Distributors must submit their transactions by the 10th of every month or the next business day in the event the 10th falls on a weekend or holiday. At the end of the program year, the invoice date must be no later than November 15, 2020.



5. Measure Eligibility

Only products that meet Instant Discount criteria are eligible for incentives. Product categories and criteria ranges are established the Business Energy Services Operations Manager. The criteria are based on current market efficiency offerings and Measurement & Verification contractor. Products that meet Instant Discount criteria are included in the Qualified Products List (QPL) and posted on the midstream portal. QPL is compiled and verified monthly by the Business Analyst.

Listed products must be ENERGY STAR® certified or DLC® listed depending on category of the product. For the non-listed products Distributors and manufacturers use the New Product Submittal Form to submit new products for the QPL. The Instant Discount project coordinator sends the form to distributors to solicit submissions when distributors sign up as part of the participation packet or upon request. Additional products can be added but, BES does not intend to add additional products this year. The QPL is compiled and verified monthly, and links are available on the NV Energy distributor Midstream Portal. Customers and contractors can validate the approved products through their distributor.

6. Incentives

Below are the Instant Discount incentives for CY 2020.

Table 1 – Instant Discount measures and incentives for CY 2020

Kitchen Incentive/unit HE Fryer $200 Large Vat Fryer $200 HE Griddle $300 Convection Oven $350 Combination Oven $1,00 Steam Cooker $750 HE Holding Cabinets, Full Size $300 HE Holding Cabinets, 3/4 Size $250 HE Holding Cabinets, 1/2 Size $200

Lighting Incentive/unit T8 4’ LED $4 1’x4’ LED Illuminated Panel $10 2’x2’ LED Illuminated Panel $10 2’x4’ LED Illuminated Panel $10



Table 2 – Instant Discount measures and incentives for CY 2020, continued

7. Database Tool

2.4 Overview

The Instant Discount database tool has four main functions: validation, calculations, payments and tracking. Each function requires tables and relationships to be in place. The most critical tables or reports in the database tool are the QPL; distributor information, including funding requests, weekly transactions table/queries, payments uploads; and, the NV Energy data export. Each of these tables/queries allows weekly transactions to process for payment. Payments will be processed monthly at a minimum.

Refrigeration Incentive/unit Ice Machine ES/CEE I <300 $50 Ice Machine ES/CEE I 300-500 $75 Ice Machine ES/CEE I 500-1000 $125 Ice Machine ES/CEE I 1000-1500 $200 Ice Machine ES/CEE I >1500 $250 Ice Machine ES/CEE II <300 $100 Ice Machine ES/CEE II 300-500 $150 Ice Machine ES/CEE II 500-1000 $250 Ice Machine ES/CEE II 1000-1500 $400 Ice Machine ES/CEE II >1500 $500 Refrigerator SD ES < 15 cf $50 Refrigerator SD ES 15 ≤ V < 30 cf $75 Refrigerator SD 30 ≤ V < 50 cf $90 Refrigerator SD ES ≥ 50 cf $125 Freezer SD ES < 15 cf $60 Freezer SD ES 15 ≤ V < 30 cf $75 Freezer SD ES 30 ≤ V < 50 cf $80 Freezer SD ES ≥ 50 cf $200 Refrigerator GD ES <15 cf $50 Refrigerator GD ES 15 ≤ V < 30 cf $75 Refrigerator GD 30 ≤ V < 50 cf $90 Refrigerator GD ≥ 50 cf $125 Freezer GD ES < 15 cf $60 Freezer GD ES 15 ≤ V < 30 cf $75 Freezer GD ES 30 ≤ V < 50 cf $80 Freezer GD ES ≥ 50 cf $200



8. Processing and Payments

The Instant Discount project coordinator receives distributor transactions via email and enters them into a master database. The coordinator verifies the distributor eligibility as well as the accuracy of the submittal forms. During the application entry into the master database, the coordinator identifies whether a submittal form is missing any information to prevent a complete transaction. If a transaction submittal report is missing information, the coordinator uses a distributor contact process to request the needed documentation and encourage a timely response. Upon successful validation, the coordinator notifies the distributor of payment details. The Instant Discount incentive is forfeited for any transaction line items with missing or incorrect information.

8.1 Validation of Transactions

Project coordinator performs the first set of validations to verify the following for inaccurate and/or missing information:

o Distributor is authorized to participate in current program year. o Model number submitted matches the QPL exactly o Possible duplicate transactions on current submitted transaction report are

flagged. o Valid invoice(s) are uploaded

The business analyst performs a second set of validations to verify the following for inaccurate and/or missing information:

o Service address is in flat file o Product exists in the QPL or is ENERGY STAR®/ DLC listed. There are no blank fields

in point-of-sale (POS) o Product was not sold prior to start of current program year, after the report was

sent or was not emailed before the date of invoice/date of sale o Possible duplicates against transactions previously paid o Distributor has a valid direct agreement with each manufacturer submitted o A series of manual checks are also performed:

POS customer is reviewed for possible residential sales POS customer is marked as end user, contractor or public sector

o Ineligible Transaction Report is created, and project coordinator sends out QC emails.



8.2 QA/QC

The coordinator collects any missing point of sale (end-use customer) information for QA/QC purposes from distributors throughout the program year. All QA/QCs will be done before the transactions are approved for payment.

Business analysts perform a second set of validations with series of manual checks. Distributor inspections and phone calls are conducted randomly for all distributors with the focus being the top tier of distributors in the Instant Discount offering. Outreach will be assigned inspections in the form of phone calls or onsite visits for their distributors on a weekly basis.

QC Triggers:

• Large quantity sale over 1,000 units or $10,000 of incentive to one customer would trigger either an inspection or phone call

• Sudden increase in participation by one distributor • Report of possible fraud • Suspicious activity • Misunderstanding of the guidelines

Distributor inspections and phone calls are conducted randomly for all distributors with the focus being the top tier Instant Discount distributors. Since we anticipate the Top Tier Distributors to make up over 80 percent of the total sales in the Instant Discount offering, the emphasis of time on customer inspections and phone calls will be spent on these distributors. Targeted inspections and calls will be made on transactions from all distributors in the event of one of the QC triggers occur (listed above) or the distributor has been classified as High QC.

Phone Calls: Phone calls are made to 0 to 3 percent of transactions pulled during the QA/QC process, based on the distributor’s participation in the Instant Discount offering and their status in the 9-box strategy, with the focus being on the top tier distributors. End customers are asked the few questions to validate the transactions. Calls are logged in the database. Based on the results of the call, the transaction is either processed or marked dead.

Inspections: Outreach will be assigned onsite inspections for their distributors. Pass/fail inspection reports are uploaded in the salesforce by the outreach professionals. Weekly report is emailed to Team showing previous week’s completed inspections.

Following is the inspection report template:



Figure 1 – Instant Discount Inspection Report (below)

Transactions are processed bi-weekly and uploaded to the Instant Discount database and NV Energy’s Enterprise Resource Planning system. The DNV GL database validates and compiles the data as referenced in Figure 2. Batch payments are processed weekly and mailed to distributors. This process takes place in parallel each week with the standard and custom programs. Validations of Transactions report process is explained in Figure 2

Figure 2 – Validations of Transactions Report Flow Chart

8.3 Returns

When a distributor submits return transactions, they are entered as negative units in the database, which corrects the total incentive and kWh totals. Each week the database totals are cross-checked against the check totals per distributor to ensure the correct total.

Case 1: Sum of total incentive is a positive incentive check amount - When a distributor submits returns with transactions and the total check amount is positive, a correct check is generated. The processed transactions will automatically update the database values and running totals. The negative values will correct the kWh, units, total incentive, and the weekly incentive automatically.

Case 2: Total incentive is a negative incentive check amount - When a distributor submits returns with transactions and the total check amount is negative, the database will have the correct kWh, incentive, and units sold values as soon as the transaction is processed. The check amount will not



be correct because a negative check will not be created. In this case a “credit” is created. This value is tracked during the weekly QA/QC process. The total check incentive versus the database is calculated weekly. To ensure that a distributor does not get overpaid, we will not process and create a new check for the valid transactions until the “credit” is back to zero.

Case 3: Check returns, cancelled checks, or re-issued checks - When a distributor returns a check, the values (units sold) are changed to zero. To distinguish returned, cancelled, and re-issued checks, the transactions are zeroed out and then re-processed so that the kWh, units, and incentive are correct.

Case 4: Duplication Entry - When data is duplicated or entered incorrectly to the database, the QA/QC process will document and correct the units so that it matches the submitted distributor transactions. In some cases, values, will be changed to zero to re-process the correct or updated transactions, or Case 1 procedures will be followed.

8.4 Exceptions

All exceptions must be approved by the operations manager in conjunction with the Instant Discount manager. Documentation of emails and decisions are tracked by transaction in the “notes” field in the database and locally on shared drives.

When the operations manager approves exceptions for individual products, the decision is documented. Documentation of emails and decisions are tracked by transaction in the “QPL table” in the database and locally on share drive.

8.5 Payments

Distributors can submit transactions for payment on a weekly basis. All the eligible transaction incentive values are totaled together to create weekly checks for each distributor. We will reimburse the distributor within 30 days of the distributor’s satisfactorily completing the incentive reimbursement requirements defined in this section, provided the distributor is in full compliance with all other PA requirements. The value of incentives paid by us to the distributor will be based on the product incentive levels defined by the most recent version of the Instant Discount Summary Incentive Sheet.

1. PowerShift BES must receive transaction reports from the distributor by the 10th of every month or the next business day in the event the 10th falls on a weekend or holiday.

• For the 2020 program year, the date of invoice must be January 1, 2020, or later. • Invoices dated through November 15, 2020, will be paid at the 2020 incentive level.



• BES retains the right to decline incentive reimbursement requests received outside the current submittal month.

2. All transactions must include all required information found on the transaction report in order to qualify for incentive reimbursement. A template will be provided.

3. In the event that product is returned to distributor for which NV Energy provided incentives, the distributor is responsible for:

• Reporting the return to BES within 15 calendar days of the return through the Transaction Report process described above, and

• Refunding to BES within 15 business days of the date of the return the value of the incentives received by the Distributor.

4. Any discrepancies or disputes in the incentives amount paid needs to be reported within 30 days of receipt of incentive check

The check amounts are entered to a payment request sheet every week for NV Energy approval before the checks are cut.

Incentives payment process is explained in Figure 3.

Figure 3 – Payment Validation and Process Flow Chart



9. Qualified Product List

A qualified product list (QPL) is maintained in NV Energy’s distributor midstream portal. Products listed in ENERGY STAR® and CEE® are directly updated in the list. Distributors or manufacturers need to submit the non-listed new product submittal form not in the current approved QPL.

Figure 4 – Non-listed New product submittal form

The new product submittal form will be reviewed by the business analyst and if it follows the Instant Discount specification, the products will be updated in the QPL and if not distributor/ manufacturers will be sent an email with the reason for its non-approval. Below flow chart provides the process for a product to be listed in QPL

Figure 5 – Adding new products in the QPL



10. Forecasting Process

Forecasting the results of the Instant Discount offering is based on anticipated participation coupled with sale volume trends. This initial baseline is then discussed with the outreach team to adjust based on what they are observing in the marketplace and information they receive from distributors.

instant discount operations manual - business energy services | … · 2020. 4. 7. · table 1 –...

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