Ford Motor Co. says it has begun a strategic collaboration to demonstrate how a typical American family can significantly reduce their electricity bills and CO2 footprint by integrating home appliance technology with a plug-in vehicle to achieve an energy-efficient lifestyle.
The Ford-led MyEnergi Lifestyle collaboration includes Eaton Corp., a power management company; SunPower Corp., a designer and manufacturer of solar panels and systems; and Whirlpool Corp., a manufacturer and marketer of major home appliances. Additional featured companies include semiconductor provider Infineon and Nest Labs, with its latest learning thermostat represented in the research and implementation phase of the collaboration.
Specifically, Ford says MyEnergi Lifestyle showcases how combining renewable energy generation with "time-flexible" loads optimizes energy consumption across a plug-in vehicle and home appliances.
Ford and its business associates worked with researchers from Georgia Institute of Technology to create a computer model that calculates the electricity usage of a typical single family in their home for one year and the associated savings with moving to an energy-efficient lifestyle. Ford says the cumulative results predict a 60% reduction in energy costs saved from a single home.
To create a real-world example of how attainable, affordable and convenient a sustainable lifestyle can be, MyEnergi Lifestyle collaborators also announced plans to award a typical American family with delivery and installation of energy-saving products from each company, along with other energy-efficient products. Ford says all contest and promotion details will be included in a separate announcement soon.
