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Meter setup scenarios & examples

Meter setup scenarios & examples

A visual reference guide for setting up meters in Scaler, showing which dropdown options to select for common and non-standard real-world metering scenarios.

Last updated on January 27, 2026

Purpose of this article

This article is a practical meter setup reference for users who already understand their on-site metering situation and need help translating that reality into the correct configuration in Scaler.

Rather than explaining meter concepts in depth, this guide focuses on:

  • Common and non-obvious real-world metering scenarios
  • Which fields matter most for correct setup, and which dropdown option to select
  • Visual confirmation using screenshots

It is designed to be used alongside data entry, when a user is asking:

“I know what this meter represents in the building — how do I set it up correctly in Scaler?”

General meter situations

Whole building vs. Common & Tenant area meters

Real-world situation

You need to decide whether your meters represent:

  • Whole building: The entire building's consumption without breakdown by space type
  • Common & Tenant area: Consumption separated by space type (common areas shared by all tenants vs. leased tenant spaces)

How to set this up in Scaler

Choose Area type based on how the meter represents consumption:

For whole building meters:

  • Select Whole building - Landlord controlled or Whole building - Tenant controlled

For common & tenant area meters:

  • Select Common area, Shared services, Tenant space - Landlord controlled, or Tenant space - Tenant controlled
  • If you have multiple meters for the same area type (e.g., multiple tenant space meters), enter the specific Covered area for each meter

Key fields

Meter details

  • Area type
  • Covered area

Screenshots

Whole building

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Common & Tenant area

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Meter versions: When characteristics change but the meter point stays the same

Real-world situation

Something about your meter has changed over time (new supplier, different monitoring method, changed coverage area), but it's still measuring the same physical point of consumption. You want to maintain historical continuity while reflecting the change.

How to set this up in Scaler

When editing the meter and changing key characteristics, Scaler will prompt you to either:

  • Create a new meter version (maintains continuity with a new start date)
  • Save to current meter version (applies change retroactively)

Choose "Create a new meter version" when the change should apply from a specific date forward.

Key fields that trigger versioning

Meter Details

  • Source
  • Covered area
  • Monitoring method
  • Purchased by

Additional guidance

For detailed step-by-step instructions, see:

Screenshots

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Ghost meters: Accounting for areas without consumption data (for correct GRESB reporting)

Real-world situation

You're missing consumption data for part of your building. For example:

  • You have a tenant electricity meter covering 500 m²
  • Total tenant area is 1,300 m²
  • You have no data for the remaining 800 m²

For GRESB reporting, you need to explicitly show this gap.

How to set this up in Scaler

Create a meter for the area without data:

  1. Set Covered area to the floor area with no consumption (e.g., 800 m²)
  1. Select the appropriate Area type (e.g., Tenant space - Landlord controlled)
  1. Select the Subcategory (e.g., Off-site electricity)
  1. Leave consumption data blank

Why this matters

This approach:

  • Shows all floor area accounted for
  • Reveals data gaps through time coverage (ghost meter shows 0 days of consumption)
  • Accurately reflects your actual data collection status for GRESB

Key fields

Meter Details

  • Covered area
  • Area Type
  • Subcategory

Additional guidance

‘Ghost’ meters are specific to each year and subcategory. Ensure your meters cover 100% of floor area for each year and resource type you're reporting.

Screenshot

 
Calculated meters: When Scaler aggregates or disaggregates physical meters

Real-world situation

You have physical meters with known consumption, but you need Scaler to calculate an additional meter by combining or separating that data. For example:

  • You have a whole-building electricity meter
  • You have a tenant-area electricity meter
  • You want Scaler to calculate a virtual common-area meter by subtracting tenant from total

How to set this up in Scaler

  1. Ensure both physical meters have matching Meter type, Subcategory, and Consumption format
  1. In the Scaler platform (not spreadsheet), navigate to the Meters tab
  1. Select "Calculated Meter" from the meter type dropdown
  1. Choose which meters to include and the calculation method (Add or Subtract)

Key fields

Meter Details

  • Meter type: Calculated Meter
  • Subcategory: Must match across all meters in the calculation
  • Consumption format: Must match across all meters in the calculation

Additional guidance

  • Calculated meters can only be created in the Scaler platform (not via spreadsheet)
  • Consumption data for calculated meters is read-only

For step-by-step instructions, see: Setting up calculated meters

Screenshots

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Excluding meters from calculations

Real-world situation

You want to record consumption data in Scaler but temporarily exclude it from analytics and reporting. Common scenario:

You're starting to collect tenant-level data but don't yet have complete coverage. You still have a whole-building meter with full coverage. You want to:

  • Store the partial tenant data without it affecting calculations
  • Keep the whole-building meter in calculations to maintain coverage
  • Switch them later when tenant data is complete

How to set this up in Scaler

For meters you want to exclude:

  1. Set up the meter normally
  1. Turn off the Include in calculations toggle (or set to False in the spreadsheet)

For meters you want to include:

  1. Keep the Include in calculations toggle on (or set to True)

When tenant data collection is complete:

  • Switch tenant meters to included
  • Switch whole-building meter to excluded

Key fields

Meter details

  • Include in calculations

Additional guidance

  • Excluded meters remain visible in the platform and exports
  • Their consumption does not contribute to coverage, intensities, or reports
  • This setting can be changed at any time

Screenshot

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Monitoring method: How the consumption data is obtained

Real-world situation

You need to specify how you actually get the consumption data for this meter. This affects data reliability scoring and transparency about your data quality.

How to set this up in Scaler

Select the Monitoring method that matches your actual data source, not how you use or report the data:

  • Smart meter: Automatically retrieved from a smart meter
  • Invoice: Taken directly from supplier invoices
  • Conventional meter: Manual meter readings
  • Estimation (SJV cluster): No asset-level meter data exists. Consumption is provided by the grid operator as standard annual consumption based on asset or connection characteristics (e.g. Standaard Jaarverbruik in the Netherlands).

      • Although labelled as an estimation, this data is derived from aggregated actual consumption.

  • Estimation (SJV postal code): Consumption is estimated using postal code, neighbourhood, or similar area-based averages.
  • Estimation (calculation): Consumption is estimated using a client-developed methodology, such as floor-area-based modelling performed outside of Scaler.

Why this matters

The monitoring method affects your Data reliability score:

  • Actual consumption data, directly measured at the asset level (Smart meters, Invoices , Conventional meters), or derived from aggregated actual consumption provided by grid operators (e.g. Estimation (SJV cluster)) = higher reliability
  • Estimated data (Estimation (SJV postal code), Estimation (calculation)) = lower reliability

Key fields

Meter details

  • Monitoring method

Additional guidance

The selected monitoring method contributes to the asset's Data reliability score using a PCAF-aligned methodology.

Screenshot

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Green lease with tenant data sharing

Real-world situation

Retail tenant contractually obligated to share energy consumption data quarterly. You need to track tenant consumption for green lease compliance.

How to set this up

  1. Create tenant electricity meter
  1. Create tenant gas meter (if applicable)
  1. Set up recurring Data request

Key fields

  • Area type = Tenant space - Tenant controlled
  • Purchased by = Tenant
  • Include in calculations = TRUE (tenant meters remain in portfolio totals for whole-building reporting)

Additional guidance

Use Data Request Tool for automated reminders. If tenant fails to respond, escalate via lease clause. Meter configuration allows tracking tenant performance while maintaining portfolio-level reporting.

Acquisition mid-year

Real-world situation

Asset acquired in July, giving only partial year data for first reporting cycle.

How to set this up

  1. Request historical data from seller (if available)
  1. Create meters with Meter version start date = acquisition date

Key fields

If no historical data available:

  • Meter version start date = acquisition date
  • Accept partial year coverage

If historical data available:

  • Backfill with consumption recordings
    • Historical data, up to acquisition date will be Meter version 1; Meter version 2 starts with data from acquisition date
  • Note data source in meter comments

Additional guidance

Coverage calculations will reflect partial year automatically. GRESB accepts partial year data—six months of data is better than zero.

Property under refurbishment

Real-world situation

Office vacant for 18 months during major renovation. Construction power is temporary and should not be included in baseline performance.

How to set this up

  1. Create new meter version with Meter version start date = refurbishment start date; make a note of the reason for this meter version
  1. Set Include in calculations = FALSE during construction period
  1. Create new meter version when building re-occupied with updated specifications

Key fields

  • Meter version start date = refurbishment start date
  • Include in calculations = FALSE (during construction)
  • Meter version start date = re-occupancy date (for new version)

Additional guidance

This allows the energy consumption recorded during construction to be exclude from like-for-like comparisons. Construction power consumption is not representative of operational performance.

Energy meters

Combustion fuel meters

Real-world situation

Your building uses natural gas for heating, diesel for backup generators, fuel oil for boilers, propane, or other combustion fuels. These produce direct (Scope 1) emissions when burned on-site.

How to set this up in Scaler

  1. Set Subcategory to the fuel type: Natural Gas, Fuel Oil, Diesel, Propane, Coal, Coke, Wood, or Kerosene
  1. Set Area type:
      • For Scope 1: Must be landlord-controlled
      • For Scope 3: Tenant-controlled

Key fields

Meter Details

  • Subcategory: Fuel type
  • Area type: Determines Scope 1 vs. Scope 3

Additional guidance

According to GHG Protocol, market-based vs. location-based applies ONLY to Scope 2 (purchased electricity, steam, heat, cooling). It does NOT apply to fuels (Scope 1). Energy Attribute Certificates for fuels do not change Scope 1 totals unless the physical fuel itself has a different combustion emission factor.

Screenshot

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District heating or district cooling
District cooling (with different emission factor than heating)

Real-world situation

Your building receives cooling from a district cooling network. Chilled water is produced at a central plant and distributed to buildings for air conditioning. District cooling has different emission factors than district heating based on the chiller technology used, so it needs to be tracked separately.

How to set this up in Scaler

  1. Set Subcategory to District Chilled Water (not DHC)
      • This creates a separate line item with its own emission factor
  1. Set Source based on your provider's cooling technology:
      • Electric Driven Chiller
      • Absorption using Natural Gas
      • Engine-Driven Chiller Natural Gas
  1. Set Area type to landlord control. This will allow you to adjust location and market-based emissions and align with GHG Protocol for Scope 2 emissions.

Why this matters

District cooling emission factors differ significantly from district heating based on chiller technology. If you use the default settings, Scaler applies the same emission factor to both district heating and district cooling, which may not accurately reflect your emissions.

To ensure correct reporting:

  1. Switch to manual location-based emission factors
  1. Enter the specific emission factor for your district cooling supply

If you receive both district heating and district cooling, create separate meters for each.

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Key fields

Meter Details

  • Subcategory: District Chilled Water
  • Source: Chiller technology type
  • Area type: Landlord operational control

Additional guidance

For detailed step-by-step instructions on setting up manual location-based emission factors, see: Configuring location-based emission factors.

Screenshots

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District heating and cooling (DHC)

Real-world situation

Your building receives heating (and possibly cooling) from a district energy network. A central plant produces thermal energy and distributes it to multiple buildings via insulated pipes. This is common in urban areas and campus settings.

How to set this up in Scaler

  1. Set Subcategory to the appropriate type based on what's delivered:
      • District Heating and Cooling (general DHC)
      • District Steam (steam distribution)
      • District Hot Water (hot water systems)
  1. Set Source based on the district provider's energy source:
      • Geothermal heat, Residual heat, Biomass, Waste incineration, Green (unspecified), Mix of green/grey, or Nuclear
  1. Set Generated to Off-site (energy comes from an external district system)

Key fields

Meter Details

  • Subcategory: DHC, District Steam, or District Hot Water
  • Source: Energy source type
  • Percentage green (optional)
  • Generated: Off-site

Additional guidance

The Source field is important for emissions calculations—different district heating sources have different emission factors. If your district provider uses a mix of energy sources, use Mix of green/grey and specify the Percentage green if known. Contact your district energy provider for their fuel mix information.

Screenshot

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District heating/cooling with certified renewable percentage

Real-world situation

Your district energy supplier certifies that a portion of the energy comes from renewable sources (such as biogas, geothermal, or waste heat recovery). You receive documentation stating the renewable percentage, and you want to enter total consumption while Scaler automatically calculates the renewable vs. non-renewable split.

How to set this up in Scaler

  1. Set Subcategory to District Heating and Cooling (or District Steam, District Hot Water)
  1. Set Source to Mix of green/grey (or as specified by your provider)
  1. Enter Percentage green from your supplier documentation (e.g., 30 for 30%)
  1. In Meter consumption, enter total Consumption as shown on invoices/meter readings

For renewable metrics, Scaler automatically calculates: Green consumption = Consumption × Percentage green

Key fields

Meter Details

  • Subcategory: DHC, District Steam, or District Hot Water
  • Source: Mix of green/grey (or provider-specified)
  • Percentage green: Renewable percentage from supplier documentation
  • Generated: Off-site

Meter Consumption

  • Consumption: Total district energy consumed

Additional guidance

This approach allows you to enter exact values from invoices for audit purposes while Scaler handles the renewable/non-renewable split calculation. Note that Percentage green does not impact market-based emissions accounting because the market-based emission factor already accounts for the green/grey mix.

Screenshot

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Standard grid electricity

Real-world situation

Your building receives electricity from the public utility grid. This covers any electricity purchased from an external supplier, whether your contract is:

  • Standard grey electricity
  • Partially green (e.g., 30% renewable)
  • Fully green with renewable energy certificates

How to set this up in Scaler

  1. Set Subcategory to Off-site electricity
  1. Select the appropriate Source:
      • Grey: Standard electricity
      • Mix of green/grey: Partially renewable contract
      • Green (biomass), Green (solar), Green (wind), etc.: 100% renewable with certificates
  1. If you selected Mix of green/grey, enter Percentage green (as whole number, e.g., 30 for 30%)

Key fields

Meter Details

  • Subcategory: Off-site electricity
  • Source
  • Percentage green (when source = Mix of green/grey)

Additional guidance

The Source field determines how Scaler calculates location-based vs. market-based emissions. The Percentage green field affects renewable energy analytics. When calculating emissions, the market-based emission factor from the energy supplier applies to all consumption on that meter.

Screenshot

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On-site solar or wind with known production (instead of consumption)

Real-world situation

Your building has solar panels or wind turbines with metering that records actual production. You know exactly how much renewable energy is generated, and you may track how much excess is exported back to the grid (rather than having consumption data recorded).

How to set this up in Scaler

  1. Set Subcategory to On-site renewable electricity
  1. Set Source to Green (solar) or Green (wind)
  1. In the Meter consumption tab, use the Production and Redelivery to grid fields (not standard Consumption)

Scaler automatically calculates: Consumption = Production - Redelivery to grid

Key fields

Meter Details

  • Subcategory: On-site renewable electricity
  • Source: Green (solar) or Green (wind)

Meter Consumption

  • Production
  • Redelivery to grid

Screenshot

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On-site solar with panel estimation, instead of known production/consumption

Real-world situation

Your building has solar panels installed, but no metering equipment. You want Scaler to estimate production based on panel specifications.

How to set this up in Scaler

  1. Set Subcategory to On-site renewable electricity
  1. Set Source to Green (solar)
  1. Set Monitoring method to Estimation (Calculation)
  1. In Asset Characteristics → Sustainable Characteristics, enter:
      • Solar panels - Total number
      • Solar panels - Avg. of watt-peaks
  1. In Meter consumption, toggle Estimate using solar panel data for each consumption period

Key fields

Sustainable Characteristics

  • Solar panels - Total number
  • Solar panels - Avg. of watt-peaks

Meter Details

  • Subcategory: On-site renewable electricity
  • Source: Green (solar)
  • Monitoring method: Estimation (Calculation)

Meter Consumption

  • Estimate using solar panel data

Additional guidance

Each consumption period can be individually toggled between actual data and estimation. This means within a single meter, you can:

  • Enter actual production values for periods where you have data
  • Toggle on Estimate using solar panel data for periods without data
  • Mix both approaches across different time periods

Recommended workflow:

When starting with estimation:

  1. Set Monitoring method to Estimation (Calculation)
      • This accurately reflects estimation in your data reliability metric
  1. For each consumption period, toggle on Estimate using solar panel data

When you install metering equipment:

  1. Edit the meter and change Monitoring method to Smart meter, Invoice, or Conventional meter (whichever reflects your actual data source)
      • This will trigger a new meter version
  1. For new consumption periods, simply enter actual Production values
      • You don't need to touch the Estimate using solar panel data toggle

Why this matters:

Setting the correct Monitoring method ensures your data reliability score accurately reflects whether you're using estimated vs. measured data. Estimated data receives a lower reliability score, so it's important to update the monitoring method when you transition to actual measurements.

Screenshot

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Heat pumps (GRESB-aligned setup)

Real-world situation

Your building uses heat pumps to provide heating and/or cooling. Heat pumps consume electricity to generate thermal energy. GRESB requires tracking both the electricity input and heat output separately to avoid double-counting.

How to set this up in Scaler

Create two meters:

Meter 1 - Electricity Input:

  • Subcategory: Off-site electricity (or On-site renewable electricity if powered by solar panels on-site)

Meter 2 - Heat/Cooling Output:

  • Subcategory: DHC (District Heating and Cooling)
  • Percentage green: 100
  • Generated: On-site
  • Area type: Same as electricity meter

Why this matters

Setting Percentage green = 100 on the output meter means the heat has zero direct emissions (because emissions are already counted in the electricity input). If you don't know the heat output quantity, still create the DHC meter with blank consumption—this structure is required for GRESB alignment.

Key fields

Meter Details

Meter 1 (Electricity):

  • Subcategory: Off-site electricity or On-site renewable

Meter 2 (Heat output):

  • Subcategory: DHC
  • Percentage green: 100
  • Generated: On-site
  • Area type: Same as Meter 1

Screenshot

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CHP (Combined Heat and Power) systems

Real-world situation

Your building has a CHP system that generates both electricity and heat from a single fuel source (typically natural gas). You need to track the fuel input, electricity output, and heat output separately.

How to set this up in Scaler

Create three meters:

Meter 1 - Fuel Input:

  • Subcategory: Natural Gas (or fuel used)
  • Source: Normal (or Green for biogas)
  • Area type: Based on operational control

Meter 2 - Electricity Output:

  • Subcategory: On-site renewable electricity or custom configuration
  • Source: Based on subcategory
  • Area type: Same as fuel input

Meter 3 - Heat Output:

  • Subcategory: District heating and cooling
  • Generated: On-site
  • Area type: Same as fuel input

Additional guidance

The fuel input meter captures Scope 1 emissions. Be careful not to also capture the electricity output in an off-site electricity meter. Some configurations may use Include in calculations = FALSE to manage totals.

EV charging

EV charging is classified as "non-operational" energy. When you use the EV Charging subcategory, this consumption:

  • Is reported separately to GRESB (not as building operational energy)
  • Does not count toward building energy use
  • Is excluded from analytics like energy use intensity
EV charging (consumption already in another meter)

Real-world situation

Your building has EV charging stations. The electricity consumed by EV chargers is already measured by another meter on the property (such as a whole-building meter). You want to also track EV charging separately without double-counting.

How to set this up in Scaler

  1. Set Subcategory to EV Charging
  1. Turn ON the Consumption included via other electricity meters toggle (*platform only).
  1. Select the existing meter that already captures this consumption using the Include consumption in meter dropdown (*platform only).

Key fields

Meter Details

  • Subcategory: EV Charging
  • Consumption included via other electricity meters: TRUE (toggle ON)
  • Include consumption in meter

Additional guidance

When this toggle is ON, Scaler understands this EV consumption is already captured elsewhere and won't add it twice to total energy consumption. The EV meter will still appear in reports for transparency.

Screenshot

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EV charging (stand-alone meter)

Real-world situation

Your EV charging stations have their own dedicated electrical connection and meter with a separate utility account. This consumption is not included in any other meter.

How to set this up in Scaler

  1. Set Subcategory to EV Charging
  1. Turn OFF the Consumption included via other electricity meters toggle (default)

Key fields

Meter Details

  • Subcategory: EV Charging
  • Consumption included via other electricity meters: FALSE (toggle OFF)

Screenshot

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Exterior/parking energy

Real-world situation

Your property has outdoor lighting, parking garage systems, irrigation pumps, or other exterior equipment. You want to track this separately from building interior consumption, particularly for GRESB reporting.

How to set this up in Scaler

  1. Set Subcategory to Off-site electricity (or appropriate energy type)
  1. Set Area type to:
      • Outdoor / Exterior Areas / Parking - Landlord Controlled, OR
      • Outdoor / Exterior Areas / Parking - Tenant Controlled

Key fields

Meter Details

  • Subcategory: Off-site electricity (or appropriate type)
  • Area type: Outdoor/Exterior/Parking option

Additional guidance

The Area type field is critical for exterior consumption. This affects both scope classification (Scope 1/2 vs. Scope 3) and how consumption is reported in GRESB.

Screenshot

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Setting up meters for Scope 1 or Scope 2 emissions

Real-world situation

You need emissions from this meter classified as Scope 1 (direct combustion) or Scope 2 (purchased energy) under the GHG Protocol. This is for energy where the landlord has operational control.

How to set this up in Scaler

The combination of Area type and Subcategory determines scope:

For Scope 1 (direct emissions from combustion):

  • Area type: Must be landlord-controlled
  • Subcategory: Natural Gas, Fuel Oil, Diesel, Propane, or other combustion fuels

For Scope 2 (indirect from purchased energy):

  • Area type: Must be landlord-controlled
  • Subcategory: Off-site electricity, On-site renewable electricity, DHC, District Steam, District Hot Water, District Chilled Water

Key fields

Meter Details

  • Area type: Must include "Landlord Controlled"
  • Subcategory: Determines if Scope 1 or Scope 2

Additional guidance

For more detailed guidance on GHG emissions scopes and Scaler, see: Understanding Scope 1, Scope 2, and Scope 3 emissions in Scaler.

Screenshots

Setting up meters for Scope 3 emissions

Real-world situation

You need emissions from this meter classified as Scope 3 (other indirect) under the GHG Protocol. This is for energy consumed in tenant spaces where tenants have operational control.

How to set this up in Scaler

Set Area type to any tenant-controlled option:

  • Whole Building - Tenant Controlled
  • Tenant Space - Tenant Controlled
  • Outdoor / Exterior Areas / Parking - Tenant Controlled

Key fields

Meter Details

  • Area type: Must include "Tenant Controlled"
  • Subcategory: Any energy subcategory

Additional guidance

Even if the landlord pays for the energy, if the tenant controls the space, emissions are Scope 3 under the operational control approach.

Screenshots

Manual location-based emission factors

Real-world situation

You need to override Scaler's default location-based emission factors with your own factors. This is most relevant in two scenarios:

1. District heating and cooling

  • No standard database exists for district heating/cooling emission factors
  • District cooling often has a completely different emission factor than district heating
  • If you have facility-specific factors, you should enter them manually

2. Regional specificity (Australia & United States)

  • Instead of country-level factors, you can use state- or subregion-specific emission factors
  • This requires an additional configuration step at the asset level

How to set this up in Scaler

For district cooling with a different factor than district heating:
  1. Set Subcategory to District Chilled Water (not DHC)
      • This creates a separate line item so you can apply different factors to cooling vs. heating
  1. Navigate to Data Collection Portal → Portfolio → Emission factors → Location-based emissions accounting
  1. Switch to Manual emission factor set
  1. Enter your custom emission factor for District Chilled Water
For regional emission factors (Australia & United States only):
  1. In Asset Details, set the Energy network field to your specific region/subregion
  1. Navigate to Data Collection Portal → Portfolio → Emission factors
  1. Enter region-specific factors as needed
For all other manual overrides:
  1. Navigate to Data Collection Portal → Portfolio → Emission factors → Location-based emissions accounting
  1. Switch to Manual emission factor set
  1. Edit emission factor values directly in the table

Key fields

Meter Details

  • Subcategory: Determines which emission factor applies. Must be a Scope 2 energy type: Off-site electricity, On-site renewable electricity, DHC, District Steam, District Hot Water, District Chilled Water
  • Area type: Must be landlord-controlled (manual location-based factors only apply to Scope 2)

Asset Details

  • Energy network (Australia & United States only)

Additional guidance

Location-based vs. market-based is a Scope 2-only construct under GHG Protocol. It does not apply to fuels (Scope 1) or tenant-controlled areas (Scope 3).

For detailed, step-by-step instructions on configuring location-based emission factors, see Configuring location-based emission factors.

Screenshots

Market-based emissions accounting

Real-world situation

You have a contract with a specific energy supplier offering renewable energy products. You want Scaler to calculate emissions using supplier-specific emission factors rather than default location-based grid averages.

How to set this up in Scaler

Configuration is required at three levels:

1. Portfolio level:

  • Add the energy supplier and their emission factors in Data Collection Portal → Portfolio → Emission factors

2. Asset level:

  • Set Energy supplier region in Asset Details

3. Meter level:

  • Enter exact supplier name in Supplier field (must match portfolio configuration)
  • Set Subcategory to Off-site electricity or DHC
  • Set Area type to landlord-controlled (market-based only applies to Scope 2)

Key fields

Meter Details

  • Supplier
  • Subcategory: Off-site electricity or DHC
  • Area type: Landlord-controlled (required for Scope 2)

Asset Details

  • Energy supplier region

Additional guidance

According to GHG Protocol, market-based accounting is a Scope 2-only construct. It does not apply to fuels (Scope 1) or tenant-controlled areas (Scope 3).

For step-by-step, detailed guidance , see Configuring market-based emission factors.

Screenshots

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Water meters

Single meter serving both indoor and outdoor areas

Real-world situation

You have one water meter that supplies both indoor spaces (e.g., restrooms, kitchens) and outdoor areas (e.g., irrigation). You need to split this within Scaler to show how much is indoor vs. outdoor.

How to set this up in Scaler

  1. Set Area type to Mixed indoor/outdoor
  1. Choose primary Source: Indoor or Outdoor (whichever is the larger share)
  1. Select Indoor area type (e.g., Whole building - Landlord controlled)
  1. Enter Percentage indoor (the share of consumption used indoors)
  1. Select Outdoor area type (landlord- or tenant-controlled)

Key fields

Meter Details

  • Source: Indoor or Outdoor
  • Area type: Mixed indoor/outdoor
  • Indoor area type
  • Percentage indoor
  • Outdoor area type

Additional guidance

Note: The Subcategory must be selected before the Source field becomes available.

This setup avoids manually separating indoor and outdoor consumption.

Screenshots

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Waste meters

Estimating waste using bin counts

Real-world situation

You don't know the actual mass or volume of waste, but you know:

  • Number of waste bins
  • Capacity of each bin
  • Approximate fill level

How to set this up in Scaler

Step 1: Create the meter

  1. Set Monitoring method to Estimation - number of bins
  1. Set Consumption format to Consumption recording
  1. Optionally, select Waste type for improved accuracy
  1. Fill in other required fields.
  1. Save the meter

Step 2: Enter consumption data

  1. Navigate to Meter consumption
  1. Enter:
      • Number of waste bins
      • Volume of waste bins (total capacity per bin)
      • Filling %
      • Unit

Scaler uses these inputs to estimate total waste volume, then converts to weight/mass using conversion factors based on Source (and Waste type if provided).

Key fields

Meter Details

  • Monitoring method: Estimation – number of bins
  • Consumption format: Consumption recording
  • Subcategory
  • Source
  • Waste type (optional but recommended)

Meter Consumption

  • Number of waste bins
  • Volume of waste bins
  • Filling %
  • Unit

Additional guidance

Volume-to-weight conversion

Scaler converts estimated waste volume to weight/mass using average conversion factors based on:

  • Subcategory
  • Source

These fields are required.

Using waste type for improved accuracy (optional)

While Waste type is not required to record waste quantities, using it significantly improves:

  • Volume-to-weight/mass conversion accuracy
  • GHG emissions calculations (if waste type is defined, Scaler can calculate emissions)

If filled in:

  • Scaler applies EPA waste-specific conversion factors
  • Volume-to-weight/mass estimates become more precise
  • Scaler can calculate GHG emissions from waste (where applicable)

Screenshots

Notion image
Notion image
Calculating GHG emissions from waste

Real-world situation

You want Scaler to calculate GHG emissions from waste (Scope 3, Category 5).

How to set this up in Scaler

Two conditions must be met:

Step 1: Configure the meter correctly

  1. Define waste type:
      • Select a specific Waste type (e.g., Beverage Containers (aluminum, glass, plastic), Cardboard / corrugated containers, Glass, Pallets)
      • Without this, Scaler will record waste quantities but not calculate emissions
  1. Ensure landlord control:
      • Set Area type to landlord-controlled
      • Only waste under landlord operational control is included in Scope 3, Category 5
      • Tenant-controlled waste meters will not generate emissions

Step 2: Define emission factors

Navigate to: Data Collection Portal → Portfolio → Emission factors → Waste emission factors

In this table:

  • Each row = Waste type × Waste treatment (Source) combination
  • Enter emission factors for each relevant combination

Once both steps are complete, Scaler will:

  1. Convert waste volume to mass using EPA waste-type-specific factors
  1. Apply the emission factor
  1. Calculate GHG emissions in CO₂e

Key fields

Meter Details

  • Waste type (required for emissions)
  • Area type (must be landlord-controlled)
  • Subcategory
  • Source (waste treatment method)

Additional guidance

  • Waste emission calculations are portfolio-specific
  • If Waste type is missing, emissions will not be calculated
  • If emission factors are missing, emissions will remain blank

For more detailed guidance, see: Waste emissions & emission factors.

Screenshots

Notion image
Notion image

Property-type scenarios

Multi-tenant office with common areas

Real-world situation

Office building with 5 tenants plus shared lobby, corridors, and facilities. You need to track landlord-controlled common area consumption separately from tenant spaces, but only know the whole building consumption and the tenant consumption.

How to set this up in Scaler

  1. Create a whole-building physical meter to capture total site consumption
  1. Create individual physical meters for each tenant space
  1. Create a calculated meter that subtracts all tenant meters from the whole-building meter

Key fields

Whole-building physical meter:

  • Area type = Whole building
  • Covered area = leave blank (defaults to Gross floor area)
  • Calculation method = Add (when added to calculated meter)
  • Include in calculations = FALSE

Tenant physical meters (one per tenant):

  • Area type = Tenant area
  • Covered area = each tenant's leasable area
  • Include in calculations = TRUE

Common Area calculated meter:

  • Subcategory and Consumption format must match all included meters
  • Include whole-building meter with Calculation method = Add
  • Include all tenant meters with Calculation method = Subtract
  • Include in calculations = TRUE

Additional guidance

This setup prevents double counting by excluding the whole-building meter from calculations while keeping tenant meters included. The calculated Common Area meter automatically updates whenever tenant or whole-building consumption changes.

 
Single-family residential portfolio

Real-world situation

Portfolio of 200 single-family houses with electricity only and no sub-metering. Each property has one utility meter.

How to set this up

  1. Create one electricity meter per property
  1. No calculated meters needed
  1. Each meter represents total property consumption

Key fields

  • Area type = Whole building
  • Covered area = leave blank (defaults to Gross floor area)
  • Consumption format = as appropriate
  • Monitoring method = as appropriate

Additional guidance

Use the Scaler Spreadsheet for bulk setup with one row per property. No aggregation logic required. This is one of the simplest meter configurations.

Retail shopping centre

Real-world situation

Shopping centre with 40 retail tenants plus common mall areas. You may have either aggregated or individual tenant consumption data.

How to set this up

Choose between two approaches based on available data:

Option 1: Aggregated tenant meter

When to use: You receive one consolidated bill covering all tenant consumption

  1. Create a single "Tenant electricity" meter
  1. Create a separate landlord common area meter

Key fields:

  • Covered area = Total tenant floor area
  • Area type = Tenant area

Pros: Simple setup, minimal maintenance

Cons: No tenant-level breakdown for benchmarking

Option 2: Individual tenant meters

When to use: You have consumption data per tenant (sub-metered or utility split)

  1. Create one meter per tenant space
  1. Optionally create calculated meter to aggregate all tenants

Key fields:

  • Covered area = Each tenant floor area
  • Area type = Tenant area

Pros: Granular data, supports GRESB tenant engagement reporting

Cons: Higher setup effort, requires accurate area allocation

Additional guidance

If you only have aggregated data, use Option 1. If you have or plan to collect tenant-level data (GRESB, CSRD, green lease compliance), invest in Option 2 from the start.

Mixed-use asset (retail + office + residential)

Real-world situation

Urban development with ground-floor retail, mid-floors office, and upper-floors residential. Each use type needs separate intensity tracking.

How to set this up

  1. Use Building Units feature to separate various property types across tenant spaces, with granularity as needed/available; e.g., one building unit for all office spaces if under the same tenant, or individual units for each separately leased office space
    1. Create Building Units (Retail) with linked meters for tenant-leased spaces
    2. Create Building Units (Office) with linked meters for tenant-leased spaces
    3. Create Building Units (Residential) with linked meters for residential-leased spaces
  1. Create separate meters for landlord-controlled common areas (lobby, elevators, corridors) that are NOT assigned to any building unit

Key fields

Meters assigned to building units:

  • Area type = Tenant area
  • Meter ID = used to link Building Units to Meters
  • Assign to appropriate building unit

Landlord-controlled common area meters:

  • Area type = Common area or Shared services
  • Do NOT assign to any building unit
  • These meters contribute to asset-level totals but not to building unit intensities

Additional guidance

Building Units enable separate intensity calculations per use type, which is required for Local Law 97. Landlord-controlled common areas (shared lobbies, elevators, mechanical rooms, corridors accessible to multiple tenants) cannot be assigned to building units—they remain at the asset level. However, tenant-controlled shared spaces (e.g., stairwells within a leased area, tenant-only corridors) can be included in the tenant's building unit if they fall under tenant lease control. This structure ensures intensity calculations (kWh/m²) accurately reflect each use type's performance without distorting results with shared landlord services.

Logistics / warehouse

Real-world situation

50,000m² distribution centre with tenant-controlled operations. Tenant typically pays utilities but landlord still needs to report consumption.

How to set this up

  1. Create whole-building electricity meter (tenant-controlled)
  1. Create gas meter for heating (if applicable)
  1. Create landlord lighting meter for external/common areas only

Key fields

If tenant pays all utilities:

  • Area type = Whole building - Tenant-controlled
  • Purchased by = Tenant
  • Covered area = leave blank (defaults to Gross floor area)
  • Include in calculations = TRUE (tenant-paid utilities still count for landlord reporting)

For multi-tenant logistics parks:

  • One meter set per unit, not aggregated

Additional guidance

Tenants often refuse to share data. Document this in meter comments and flag for green lease renegotiation. Tenant-paid utilities still count toward landlord environmental reporting requirements.

Hotel

Real-world situation

150-room hotel with single operator and central plant. All utilities managed centrally.

How to set this up

  1. Create whole-building electricity meter
  1. Create whole-building gas meter (heating + kitchen)
  1. Create whole-building water meter
  1. Create district heating/cooling meter (if applicable)

Key fields

  • Covered area = leave blank (defaults to Gross floor area)
  • Area type = Whole building , operational control as appropriate
  • All meters typically landlord or operator controlled

Additional guidance

If F&B is sublet separately, create a separate meter for restaurant space, with appropriate Covered area ; adjust Covered area of other consumption meters as appropriate. Meters can be linked to Building units in order to specify different property types for F&B. Hotels report per m² in Scaler, not per room night.

Student housing / PBSA

Real-world situation

300-bed student accommodation with communal kitchens and study areas. Individual rooms are not sub-metered.

How to set this up

Choose your approach based on available metering:

Option 1: Single whole-building meter only

  1. Create whole-building electricity meter (includes all consumption)
  1. No sub-metering available

Option 2: With common area sub-metering

  1. Create whole-building electricity meter
  1. Create common area sub-meter (for communal kitchens, study areas, corridors)
  1. Create calculated meter to derive individual room consumption:
      • Individual rooms = Whole-building (Add, exclude) − Common areas (Subtract, include)

Key fields

For whole-building meter:

  • Covered area = leave blank (defaults to Gross floor area)
  • Area type = Whole building

For common area sub-meter (if available):

  • Covered area = Total common area
  • Area type = Common area or Shared services

For calculated meter (aggregate of individual rooms):

  • Subcategory and Consumption format must match both included meters
  • Include whole-building meter with Calculation method = Add
  • Include common area meter with Calculation method = Subtract
  • Set whole-building meter Include in calculations = FALSE to avoid double counting
  • Set calculated meter Include in calculations = TRUE

Additional guidance

Do NOT create meters per bedroom unless individually sub-metered. If block has retail/café on ground floor, use Building Units to separate commercial space from residential.

Gas for central heating and water meters are typically whole-building only, as these are rarely sub-metered in student accommodation.

 
Data centre

Real-world situation

Colocation facility with multiple tenant cages. You need to track IT load separately from cooling infrastructure.

How to set this up

  1. Create IT load meters (per tenant cage)
  1. Create cooling infrastructure meter (landlord)
  1. Create UPS/power distribution meter
  1. Create whole-building meter

Key fields

  • Create separate physical meters for IT load and cooling
  • Use calculated meters to aggregate tenant cages if needed
  • Tenant meters: Mark Include in calculations = FALSE if reporting whole-building only
  • Covered area = leave blank (defaults to Gross floor area)

Additional guidance

Data centres need sub-hourly data for accurate PUE. Confirm integration supports interval data, not just monthly totals. PUE (Power Usage Effectiveness) = Total facility power ÷ IT equipment power. This calculation cannot be done with Scaler's calculated meters (which only Add/Subtract).

Healthcare / hospital

Real-world situation

Private hospital with 24/7 operations and multiple electricity sources including backup generation.

How to set this up

  1. Create multiple electricity meters (main, backup generator, medical equipment)
  1. Create steam or district heating meter
  1. Create water + wastewater meters

Key fields

  • Use calculated meter to aggregate all electricity sources
  • Generator meter: Only include if running regularly (not just backup)
  • Area type = Whole building
  • Property type = Healthcare

Additional guidance

Medical gases (oxygen, nitrous oxide, etc.) are not energy consumption and should not be included in energy meters.

Parking structure (standalone)

Real-world situation

Multi-storey car park with 500 spaces. Includes lighting, ventilation, and optional EV charging.

How to set this up

  1. Create lighting electricity meter
  1. Create ventilation electricity meter
  1. Create EV charging meters (if installed)

Key fields

  • Covered area = leave blank (defaults to Gross floor area)
  • Area type = Whole building

For EV charging:

  • Create separate meter for EV charging
  • Consumption included via other electricity meters = as appropriate
  • Include consumption in meter= as appropriate
  • If tenant-paid: Set Purchased by = Tenant
Multi-building campus (single asset)

Real-world situation

Corporate campus with 4 buildings, central plant, and shared parking. You need to decide whether to report as one aggregated asset or track buildings separately.

How to set this up

Choose between three approaches:

Option A: Single asset with calculated meters

  1. Create all physical meters under one asset
  1. Use calculated meters to aggregate by building or by system

Additional guidance:

Simplest for portfolio-level reporting. Best when campus operates as single entity with shared systems.

Option B: Building Units

  1. Create building unit per structure
  1. Assign meters to building units

Additional guidance:

Enables building-level intensity analysis while keeping campus as single asset. Use when buildings have different use types or lease structures but share central systems.

Option C: Separate assets with Asset Groups

  1. Create separate asset for each building
  1. Create Asset Group to aggregate the campus
  1. Assign meters to individual assets
  1. Handle shared central plant/parking through allocation or separate meters

Additional guidance:

Best for operational flexibility and building-level reporting. Use when:

  • Buildings will be sold/managed independently
  • Different buildings have different GRESB reporting requirements
  • You need building-level performance benchmarking
  • Buildings have distinct ownership or financial structures

Asset Groups allow you to report both individual building performance and aggregated campus totals.

Key fields

For all options, ensure proper Area type assignment to match intended aggregation level.

For Option C (separate assets):

  • Each asset requires full asset-level details (Status, Property type, Owned since, etc.)
  • Asset Group name should clearly identify the campus
  • Shared utilities (central plant) require allocation methodology documentation

Additional guidance

Decision matrix:

  • Same use type + centralized management → Option A (calculated meters)
  • Mixed use types + shared systems → Option B (Building Units)
  • Independent building management + reporting flexibility → Option C (Asset Groups)

Asset Groups provide the most flexibility for future portfolio changes but require more initial setup and ongoing maintenance.

 
 
 
 
 
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