Questions about enerXchange

What is enerXchange?
What is a student company?
Wo makes the foundation of a student's company possible?
How is enerXchange financed?
What is enerXchange's business plan?
What goals does enerXchange pursue with it's business plan?
What is CSR?
How does enerXchange put CSR into practice?
How is enerXchange structured?
What does the company's name enerXchange mean?

Questions about changing electricity outlets?

Why should I change my electricity provider?
Can everyone change his/ her electricity provider?
How much money can I save by changing?
How do I assign enerXchange to change my electricity provider?
How does an exchange proceed?
How long does an exchange take?
When does the exchange take place?
Is there the possibility of loosing all my electricity?
Do I have to take the offer enerXchange recommends?
What is green electricity?
Are there different types of green electricity providers?
Who can guarantee I really get green electricity?
Will my electricity have the color green if I change to a green electricity provider and will it come all the way from the Baltic Sea to Baden-Württemberg if I get it from the municipal utility of Flensburg?
Whom can I turn to for questions?
What happens to my given data?
Is independency, concerning the exchange of electricity providers, ensured through enerXchange?


Questions about Thermography

Why should I let enerXchange create an infra red image of my home or facility?
How can I order an infra red image from enerXchange?
How does the process of creating such images work?
What can I see with the help of an infra red image?
What can I do with an infra red image?
Is Thermography possible with all buildings?
Should any arrangements/ precautions be considered before the making of an infra red image?
How does Thermography work technically?
Can an infra red image from enerXchange replace the consultancy of a professional?
Will my inrfa red images be released publicaly?

If your question is not mentioned above don't hesitate to send it to us by e-mailing it to info@enerxchange.de. With all efforts we will respond as fast as possible.


What is enerXchange?
enerXchange is a student company, which is run by 18 students of an economy class. This is a COOP-class of the Otto-Hahn-Gymnasium as well as the Heinrich-Heine-Gymnasium in Ostfildern. Mrs. C. Nonnenmann is therefore not only a supportive teacher but the supervisor also. Herewith we continue our economy's class tradition for 12th graders of founding a student company.

What is a student company?
A student company is a company founded by students and lead by their own initiative. With this in mind it is important to mention that in our case all services  and offers are really carried out and taken seriously. This is not a virtual stimulation.

Wo makes the foundation of a student's company possible?
The ''JUNIOR''-project which is supported by the German Institute for Economy Cologne JUNIOR gGmbH, has made founding a student company possible. Goal is to cultivate the social skills of young adults and to introduce them to the important basic principals of economy. The growth of autonomy, taking the initiative as well as responsibility and working in a team is to be encouraged. enerXchange was found thanks to ''JUNIOR''-projects.
For more information visit: www.juniorprojekt.de

How is enerXchange financed?
Similar to a corporation, every Junior-company receives 90 share certificates, 10€ each. In doing so, enerXchange was able to persuade several well-known personalities from politics and economy to buy shares. The thereby generated 900€ gave us our start-up capital. It is our job to increase this sum through our service offers in order to divide the assets, made until the end of the project, in dividends and to distribute these amongst all our shareholders.

What is enerXchange's business plan?
enerXchange is an energy consulting agency. We offer to search for an electricity provider, preferably with green elecricity, as low-priced as possible.We also take infra red images of homes and/ or facilities. In addition, we are supporting the in planning stage operating Association of the Otto-Hahn-Gymnasium, with the goal of expanding the amount of photovoltaic modules on the school's roof.

What goals does enerXchange pursue with it's business plan?
One of our large goals is to call attention to the problems caused by climate change as well as trying to tackle and minimize these problems, to make a small change and possibly move others to try and do so also. We do this by suggesting the use of renewable electricity. By taking infra red images of buildings we can show our costumers any weak points in their insulation and help them in taking the first step toward repairing these. In doing so they preserve  the environment and decrease the loss of energy and warmth.  Thanks to the construction of photovoltaic modules on the roof of the Otto-Hahn-Gymnasium , which is still in a therefore created Assosiations' planning stage, supported by us, the whole school's consumption of electricity is to be fully cover with solar electricity, which is completely CO2-emmision free!

What is CSR?
CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) is a company's ecologic, social and economic responsibility, which goes beyond the actual business operations.

How does enerXchange put CSR into practice?
Already the business idea brings out an important part of CSR: protecting the environment. We intend on pointing out these important topics through other campaigns also, to take the initiative of stopping climate change. By organizing a Christmas party for 5th and 6th grade students of both schools we were able to give them all a great pleasure. The donation of a large part of the profit made by our student company and given to a charitable project is also part of how we put CSR into practice.

How is enerXchange structured?
enerXchange is lead by a chairman. With him there are several department leaders, each in charge of one of four departments. These four departments can be divided into the service department, the finance department, marketing and the administration department. Each department has various assignment areas. The division of each particular employee can be found under the rubric ''employees''.

What does the company's name enerXchange mean?
Our company's name consists of two words put together. ''Ener'' stands for energy. ''Xchange'' stands for exchange. Put together, this describes a business segment, energy exchange, meaning to change one's electricity provider.

Questions about changing electricity outlets?

Why should I change my electricity provider?
On one hand, by changing electricity providers you could save great amounts of money. Whereas on the other hand you could do your part to help stop climate change by avoiding CO2 in switching to green electicity.

Can everyone change his/ her electricity provider?
Basically everyone can switch electricity providers, if owner of the building, lodger or employer of a company. It could be though, that certain contracts prevent this. Especially with heat pumps and night storage heaters, this is often the case.

How much money can I save by changing?
Principally this question can not be answered. Savings vary, depending on previous electricity contracts, the annual consumption and the new contract.
In most cases this leads to approximately 50-100€ savings a year. Remember though, that this sum is not only saved the first year but the years to come also. By changing to a green electricity provider you could do your part in avoiding CO2. This cannot be compared with saving money.

How do I assign enerXchange to change my electricity provider?
First you must contact us. This can be done on our homepage by filling out an order form in the rubric ''services'' (or ''prices'') or by sending an e-mail to info@enerxchange.de. Otherwise feel free to call 01578/ 755 36 37 or talk to am employee and we'll be happy to help.

How does an exchange proceed?
After contacting us we make sure each customer has his/ her own personal consultant who will contact you (if not already filled-out )with a written order form and a few questions about important information we need to make an exchange possible. Once filled-out it is required to send them back to the consultant. If able to show necessary electricity bills, many questions can be left unanswered. Next is the assignment affirmation. And lastly we will make you a personal offer fitting your needs exactly. It is our customer's decision only whether or not to switch to the electricity provider recommended by us. When having made the decision, we will take over all work necessary to make the exchange as comfortable for our costumer, so that mostly only a signature is needed.
After completing the business transaction we send an account which can be payed back within a two week time frame.

How long does an exchange take?
The time until electricity providers can be exchanged depends upon various factors. Firstly we need a short time until we find offers meeting our costumer's desires. These, then again, should also give themselves a period of time, in which they can ask us any questions.
Furthermore it very much depends on the current electricity contract and it's cancelation period. Generally this consists of 4 to 6 weeks. The new contract also needs a bit of time to add you into it's system. This usually takes about 6 to 8 weeks.
All in all, it takes about 2 to 3 months from contacting us until the the electricity coming from the new provider is drawn.

When does the exchange take place?
The new provider usually accepts new costumers at the beginning of every month. Mostly depending on the down-payments.

Is there the possibility of loosing all my electricity?
No! If for any reason a problem should occur, in which over a period of time you technically don't have an electricity provider, your local provider is forced to supply you with electricity.
Only a mechanic, who disconnects electric cables or dismantles electric readers could interrupt the suppliance of electricity to ones home/ facility.

Do I have to take the offer enerXchange recommends?
Certainly you may choose an electricity provider freely and are not obligated to take the one we recommend. In fact if you want, you can just stick to the current contract.

What is green electricity?
Green electricity is electricity made to 100% of renewable energy sources like wind, water or solar power. Consequently neither CO2-emissions nor radioactive waste is produced.

Are there different types of green electricity providers?
Yes, while several limit to producing CO2-neutral electricity others assist in the construction of new facilities. Our employees will point this out.

Who can guarantee I really get green electricity?
The electricity providers are tested constantly. Thus there are different awards for example from TÜV which tests for CO2 emission-free electricity. We make sure these are presented in our list of offers.

Will my electricity have the color green if I change to a green electricity provider and will it come all the way from the Baltic Sea to Baden-Württemberg if I get it from the municipal utility of Flensburg?
In order to answer this question, it is important to look at the whole electricity network like a picture. It can be compared to a Lake. The water here, stands for the electricity. Every electricity provider fills the lake up with water, meaning they add their part of electricity to the whole network. Each customer takes water from this lake. At this point it is not certain how much of the water comes from whom. So basically it is almost impossible to say how much and wherefrom exactly the electricity, coming out of the outlet, is from. This is not of importance though because the electricity provider is constantly producing enough for all it's costumers and so really it doesn't matter which provider is giving one's own share of electricity into the lake.
This question can therefore be answered with a no.

Whom can I turn to for questions?
In case of questions it is best to turn to your personal consultant. He/ She is already familiar with the current condition.
If not yet made an offer feel free to write us an e-mail (info@enerxchange.de), give us a call (01578/755 36 37) or talk to an employee in person.

What happens to my given data?
All given data is only used for the electricity provider exchange, therefore not given to a third party, and of course terminated after the business transaction. We subject to an anonymous evaluation.

Is independency, concerning the exchange of electricity providers, ensured through enerXchange?
Yes, and we try our best to find a fitting electricity rate just for you without the provision of an exchange from any provider.

Questions about Thermography

Why should I let enerXchange create an infra red image of my home or facility?
An infra red image from enerXchange is a low-priced way of discovering the current condition of your building's insulation, which could help you explicitly lower your energy costs, if any weak points found are immediately repaired.

How can I order an infra red image from enerXchange?
First it is important to get in touch. This can be done by filling-out an order form, easily found in our rubric ''prices'' on our website in the internet or by sending an e-mail to info@enerxchange.de. Otherwise feel free to call 01578/ 755 36 37 or to talk to an employee and we'd be happy to help.

How does the process of creating such images work?
After informing us of interest, we send a written order form (if not already filled-out.) This is then filled-out by the customer and sent back to us. Afterwards we send an order affirmation. Next we ask for a bit of patience before we can give an exact date because generally we wait until enough orders have been made to lease the special infra red camera. We then announce the date, which is mostly set on the weekend, early in the morning or late at night.
After having taken the infra red images, we burn these onto a CD disk and give this to our customer within the next few days. After receiving the images a invoice is sent, which can comfortably be payed or transfered within a timeframe of 14 days.

What can I see with the help of an infra red image?
On an infra red image surface temperatures are made visual using different colors, which can be lead back to an exact temperature using a specific scale. Even minimal differences in temperature can be seen easily. In doing so, poorly insulated areas, through which heat escapes, can be found.

What can I do with an infra red image?
The obtained data, with the current insulation condition of one's building, can help in taking the right steps toward improving exactly that. This then again can lead to large savings, concerning electricity costs and simultaneously help the environment by minimizing the loss of heat. At this point we recommend to continue any further plans with the help of a professional.
Better though, it could just be a reinsurance of the fact that one's house is very well insulated and does not have any loss of heat.

Is Thermography possible with all buildings?
For the most buildings Thermography is possible, although when taking infra red images of rear-ventilated sides of buildings, these must be taken from the inside.

Should any arrangements/ precautions be considered before the making of an infra
red image?
For optimal conditions, it is required that the building is being heated whilst taking an infra red photo. All doors on the inside should be held open, creating an equal indoor temperature, whereas all windows need to be kept closed.

How does Thermography work technically?
Every mass above the absolute zero point (-237°C) sends out electromagnetic rays. Once the intensity is indicated a temperature can be calculated. This is done with the help of an infra red ray detector inside the infra red camera and then converted into an colorful image. Mostly, lighter colors (yellow, red, white) indicate a high surface temperature whereas darker colors (green, blue) indicate a low surface temperature.

Can an infra red image from enerXchange replace the consultancy of a professional?
An image made from enerXchange can show fundamental deficiencies. With all efforts we also try to pass on our knowledge and made experiences. This can not be compared with professional consultancy.
 
Will my inrfa red images be released publicaly?
No, your infra red images will not be released publicly and will only be given to the you. If an interest in the images should appear for demonstrating matters, surely we will ask for your permission first.