– the PowerTab

Since moving to our home in Burnaby, my mother has always had problems with our electricity bills; they were way too expensive! And until now, we still do not know the reason behind it. So when Janice Cheam, the CEO and founder of Energy Aware as well as a fellow BCom alumnus from Sauder, came to my lecture today to discuss her goals and her company, I was especially interested.

Janice’s Energy Aware currently sells a product called PowerTab, and this is essentially “a wireless display that receives real-time information about electricity consumption”. Basically, you can see how your energy expenditure changes depending on what appliances and utilities are in use. As my family is continually suffering from expensive bills, I felt this product is a brilliant idea that can increase people’s energy awareness.

And what was even more inspiring from Janice’s speech was that she had started this idea with her classmates at Sauder in a class called New Ventures Design. Realizing the major issue of the environment and global warming, they started their business geared toward making a positive impact by educating people to be more aware of energy saving. If only individuals could buy this for home use…