Kenya - Startup under 3 years old

Describe your project or startup in a few words

At Ojan Energy we are building a sustainable future one facility at a time, our energy management system enables facilities(residential, commercial and industrial) to reduce their operation costs that result from high electricity costs and downtime costs.

01.01 Describe your startup in more detail

We are in the energy efficiency and predictive maintenance business for residential, commercial, and industrial facilities. We identified a gap in the energy industry whereby there was a lot of focus on renewable energy and going green which is quite capital-intensive but there was little focus on what could be done about the already existing energy and its use. This birthed Ojan Energy and we embarked on a mission to empower our clients to achieve peak operational performance in terms of their energy use and cost while minimising their impact on the environment. Our energy management system works by combining Internet of Things (IoT) and Machine Learning. The system receives data from sensors on connected equipment through the cloud.The data collected provides real-time information on energy consumption, asset health and demand within residential, commercial and industrial facilities. The centralized system provides users with dashboards and reports on the data.

01.02 What is the main problem you are trying to solve?

We are solving the problem of high operational costs in facilities that result from: High electricity bills which are caused by high energy consumption. Electricity/ energy consumption is inevitable however there are areas of inefficiency and wastage which go unidentified and this leads to increased costs. In industries, most manufacturers get into the business knowing it is energy-intensive but they lack the proper means on how to optimize their energy use. In addition, high energy consumption directly/indirectly contributes to carbon emissions. Downtime costs caused by unforeseen machine failure. Despite the scheduled maintenance, machines still breakdown since there lack of visibility into the machine's health/ parameters such as vibration, temperature, pressure and pitch. This results in downtime which costs a lot of time and money. For residential cases a lot of money goes into paying the electricity bills while for the businesses the high operation costs means reduced profits.

01.03 Tell us the major benefits and/or advantages of using the product/service that your startup provides (at least 3).

Reduced costs- our system will enable our clients to reduce their operational costs in terms of energy costs and downtimes. This will increase their profits and savings and enable the to compete fairly on a global scale Centralized visibility- This will provide visibility in real-time and remotely into their energy consumption patterns and machine health. They will identify areas of inefficiency/wastage, implement the necessary solutions hence cut costs that were resulting from the wastage. They will be able to detect anomalies in their machine operations and prevent any breakdowns before they happen, this will save them on downtime costs and increase their machine life cycle. Sustainability- Our system will empower our clients to contribute effortlessly to a more sustainable future. By using our product to monitor and manage their energy consumption, they directly and indirectly contribute to the reduction in green house gas emissions.

01.04 Please describe who exactly your startup’s product/service is aimed at serving. Who are the targeted beneficiaries?

Our product is aimed at serving residential, commercial or industrial facilities to minimize their energy costs. These are homeowners, tenants in apartments, apartment owners, facility managers and manufacturers. To break it further for the residential use case the ideal customer is one who spends 5000kshs and above per month in their electricity bills. Commercial and Industrial use case: consumers falling under any of the 3 bands, Band 1,2 or 3. Our product also aims to cater to facilities passionate about contributing to sustainability. Our product will empower them to do so effortlessly and get recognized for their efforts.

01.05 When was your company established?

2023-09-25

01.06 Are you already selling your product/service?

No

01.07 How many other owners are there within your startup?

0

01.08 Among the other owners, how many are female?

1

01.09 Please describe the profile of the other owners within your startup (skills, experience, etc.)

Team(not owners) Alex Chepkiyegn- Lead Software Developer. Alex brings a wealth of knowledge and skill in front-end development. With over four years of experience, he leads the team in software development from the system architecture, data collection, storage and app development. Denis Maina- Project Manager, Denis is an architect and Software Developer by profession. He brings his experience in project management to ensure the client's needs are met and delivered on time as well as managing all the teams involved in the process.

01.10 If you have a website, a social media page (Facebook, Instagram, Linkedin…), or app, please provide the link(s) here:

01.11 Which industry best describes your project?

a) Energy (equipment, services, sustainable energy and fuel)

02.01.01 My startup contributes to the No poverty goal

4

02.01.02 No poverty - Justification for my startup

02.02.01 My startup contributes to the Zero hunger goal

2

02.02.02 Zero hunger - Justification for my startup

02.03.01 My startup contributes to the Good health and well-being goal

6

02.03.02 Good health and well-being - Justification for my startup

By providing solutions on energy management we empower our clients to reduce their energy consumption and this directly and indirectly contributes to reducing greenhouse gas emissions. This contributes to a healthier environment with better air quality for the public especially for people with respiratory illnesses and the older generations. Our product on predictive maintenance in industries also enhances workplace safety and the well-being of their workers since industries can prevent potential accidents.

02.04.01 My startup contributes to the Quality education goal

1 - Strongly Disagree

02.04.02 Quality education - Justification for my startup

02.05.01 My startup contributes to the Gender equality goal

6

02.05.02 Gender equality - Justification for my startup

Our startup is a female led startup and part of our plan as we grow is to hire more women in the different teams. Our goal is to also encourage young women to get into STEM and we plan on doing this by providing trainings, talks and sharing our stories and experiences any chance we get.

02.06.01 My startup contributes to the Clean water and sanitation goal

2

02.06.02 Clean water and sanitation - Justification for my startup

02.07.01 My startup contributes to the Affordable and clean energy goal

7 - Strongly Agree

02.07.02 Affordable and clean energy - Justification for my startup

At Ojan Energy our main goal marrys perfectly with SDG 7. Our efforts in energy management and energy efficiency directly contribute to access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all. By ensuring our clients reduce their consumption and optimise their resources, we are encouraging them to be more efficient. This translates to less wastage and the energy is therefore available to more people at cheaper costs.

02.08.01 My startup contributes to the Decent work and economic growth

6

02.08.02 Decent work and economic growth - Justification for my startup

We have created numerous employment opportunities since we require different teams; from Energy experts, IoT experts, Electrical Engineers, Data Scientists and Software Develpers just to mention a few. We are also contributing to economic efficiency since we enable our clients to reduce their operational costs while increasing their saving and profits. This helps them to compete with other businesses at a more fair scale.

02.09.01 My startup contributes to the Industry innovation and infrastructure

6

02.09.02 Industry innovation and infrastructure - Justification for my startup

We leverage on the power of cutting edge technologies such as predictive maintenance and this greatly improves the reliability and efficiency in industries. We enhance longevity and sustainable industrialization by using predictive maintenance to increase the machine's life cycle.

02.10.01 My startup contributes to the Reduced inequalities goal

2

02.10.02 Reduced inequalities - Justification for my startup

02.11.01 My startup contributes to the Sustainable cities and communities goal

6

02.11.02 Sustainable cities and communities - Justification for my startup

By reducing energy consumption we reduce greenhouse gas emissions and contribute to cleaner environments and sustainability especially in the urban areas.

02.12.01 My startup contributes to the Responsible consumption and production goal

6

02.12.02 Responsible consumption and production - Justification for my startup

By optimizing energy consumption we reduce wastage/inefficiences and promote efficient use of energy resources. We also encourage our clients to have sustainable practices in their day to day activities.

02.13.01 My startup contributes to the Climate action goal

7 - Strongly Agree

02.13.02 Climate action - Justification for my startup

Reducing energy consumption helps in reducing carbon emissions. This directly contributes to mitigating climate change. It also reduces overreliance on fossil fuels and promotes the use of renewable energy sources that are more sustainable.

02.14.01 My startup contributes to the Life below water goal

1 - Strongly Disagree

02.14.02 Life below water - Justification for my startup

02.15.01 My startup contributes to the Life on land goal

3

02.15.02 Life on land - Justification for my startup

02.16.01 My startup contributes to the Peace Justice and Strong Institutions goal

1 - Strongly Disagree

02.16.02 Peace Justice and Strong Institutions- Justification for my startup

02.17.01 My startup contributes to the Partnerships for the goal

5

02.17.02 Partnerships for the goal - Justification for my startup

At Ojan we can attest to the power of collaborations and partnerships with other businesses and industries as well. This has enabled us to grow faster and create more impact which we could not have done on our own.

06.01 There are a large number of customers who already use a product/service very similar to the product/service we envision creating.

4

06.02 The product/service represents an entirely new type of product/service.

4

06.03 The product/service could be described as a new technology.

6

06.04 The product/service is an improvement on an existing product or service.

5

06.05 The product/service could be described as an extension of a range of products or services.

4

06.06 The product/service responds to a demand or need that has not been satisfied by other products/services.

5

06.07 The product/service is a new version of an old product/service.

2

06.08 Justification for my startup

Our idea is unique in that it combines two solutions in one while using the same technology. In addition it leverages on the power cutting edge technologies such as Machine Learning and IoT

06.09 Competitive Analysis

As mentioned above our solution combines two solutions in one; Energy Efficiency and Predictive Maintenance. Most companies offer only one of the solutions and not both. Our competitors; Turn Axis Africa Professional DIgital Solutions Limited(PDSL) Endustrial Kenya

11.05 Are you initiating actions within your community to promote the role of female entrepreneurs?