How we would know this helps
A proposed field protocol: establish the baseline, measure delivered flexibility, count recovery demand, record comfort and overrides, and publish uncomfortable results.
State the claim before running the trial
Choose a specific service and a specific population of buildings. Define the dispatch interval, eligible conditions and comparison method before collecting the outcome. Register what would count as a failure.
Measure both sides of the relationship
Record electrical power and energy with timestamps and units. Report baseline uncertainty, equipment availability, recovery demand, comfort deviations and occupant overrides. Record tariff assumptions separately from physical measurements.
Compare against a simpler option
A comparison group should include appropriate efficiency improvements or existing control strategies. A large change from a poor baseline is not enough to show that the added coordination is valuable.
Give the result a useful form
Publish a de-identified dataset, a data dictionary, the calculation method and known exclusions where participant permission allows. Independent review should be able to reproduce the headline result. No field results have yet been added to this corpus.
Sources & provenance
DOE · Grid-interactive efficient buildings ↗Read 2026-09-07. The publisher does not endorse Airform by being cited.
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Cite this record
Airform Agent Commons. “How we would know this helps.” 2026-09-07. https://www.airformdata.com/commons/field-proof. Evidential status: proposal. CC BY 4.0 for original text.