Eco Labs

Inspiration

After looking into Veolia we were inspired by their commitment to conserving energy and optimizing resources. We looked into Hubgrade, a Veolia software that includes a range of digital services involving data analytics, optimization, and predictive systems for water and energy. During our research, we noticed that Hubgrade was aimed toward corporations aiming to monitor their use of resources at on large-scale operations such as manufacturing. To bridge the gap in this software, our team wanted to implement a software that would allow single home owners to monitor their own energy usage and be able to limit their carbon footprint on the individual level.

What it does

Eco Labs is a web application that prompts users to log in and enter their state and ZIP code. Based on this information, the app generates a comprehensive dashboard with insights about the energy powering their home. The dashboard features a graph that illustrates the different sources of fuel supplying energy to the house. It also includes recommendations for the best times to use energy when renewable sources are most prevalent, identifies the main source of energy powering the house, and provides information on the grid load, which indicates the house’s impact on the power grid based on its energy consumption.

How we built it

We used Python for the backend of the website utilizing different libraries and APIs. We implemented FastAPI to define REST APIs and handle HTTPS GET requests. We used pgeocode for geolocation and postal code querying. We also used an external API, GridStatus.io, to fetch the fuel data to base all of our recommendations.

Challenges we ran into

We initially attempted to use a node.js framework and react.js for the front end of the web app but found that to be not as efficient as other alternatives. We decided to switch to Streamlit Python to simplify allow us to focus on perfecting our manipulation of the data from GridStatus.io. This decision happened later in the development process so, we had to change our plans and regroup in order to finish the project.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

We are proud that we were able to complete the project and be able to provide insightful information that broadens the capabilities of Veolia's Hubgrade software.

What we learned

We learned much about API integration in application development, including how to connect external data sources to our application, handle user authentication, parse and utilize JSON responses, and design efficient endpoints to deliver meaningful insights to users.

What's next for Eco Labs

Upon further development of Eco Labs, we would like to broaden the data set that the web app pulls from and potentially include water usage in the software. This would allow for homeowners to even further track their consumption and lead more sustainable lives.

Built With

• css
• fastapi
• gridstatus.io
• javascript
• pgeocode
• python
• streamlit