Survey identifies key dimensions of effective energy-management software

A cross-sectional survey of 75 people with academic or professional experience in energy management found that computational capacity, economic-analysis capability and real-world applicability were among the most important attributes of Energy Management System (EMS) software. The study, published in Discover Sustainability, evaluated 11 dimensions of tools used for planning, simulation and decision-making in sustainable-energy applications, shifting attention from simple feature-by-feature descriptions to the relationships among software characteristics.

Researchers asked participants to assess the perceived importance of each dimension and used descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation and Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) to examine how the attributes related. Economic Analysis Capability, Real-World Application and Computational Capacity emerged as the most critical dimensions. Statistical associations were also identified among computational performance, usability and practical applicability, with the significance threshold adjusted through a Bonferroni correction. These relationships were measured within the survey and do not establish that any particular tool produces better energy or environmental outcomes.

The factor analysis grouped the evaluated attributes into three latent dimensions. The first combined performance with usability, the second represented technical and analytical capability, and the third concerned system-configuration flexibility. Together, the three factors explained 72% of the total variance in the responses. This structure suggests that usefulness in sustainable-energy planning is not determined by computational power alone: the study instead points to a balance among analytical functions, ease of use, economic evaluation and adaptability to different system configurations.

The results offer a framework for comparing and developing EMS software, but they should be interpreted in light of the study design and sample. The evidence comes from a cross-sectional survey of 75 experienced respondents rather than a controlled test of software performance, and the participants’ perceptions were not necessarily identical to those of energy-sector decision-makers in every region or application. EFA is also intended to identify relationships among measured variables rather than demonstrate causal effects. Even so, the findings provide a statistically grounded account of how software users value different capabilities, highlighting the need for future tools that integrate rigorous computation with practical usability and credible economic analysis.

Subject of Research: Survey-based evaluation of energy-management system software for sustainable-energy planning

Article Title: Evaluation of functional dimensions of energy management system software tools for sustainable energy applications

Article References: Akbar, M. S., Noon, A. A., Tipu, J. A. K., Beg, O. A., & Khushnood, S. (2026). Evaluation of functional dimensions of energy management system software tools for sustainable energy applications. Discover Sustainability. https://doi.org/10.1007/s43621-026-04731-3

Image Credits: AI Generated

DOI: 10.1007/s43621-026-04731-3

Keywords: energy management systems, sustainable energy, software evaluation, usability, computational capacity, economic analysis, exploratory factor analysis, energy planning, Evaluation, functional, dimensions, energy