Gone are the days when electronic appliance manufacturers focused on delivering maximum performance for consumers and disregarded the amount of power consumed or emissions their products were responsible for. Today, the average consumer is more informed and conscious about their purchase decisions for appliances. They take into account not just the performance or usability of the device, but also the long-term maintenance and operating costs they need to endure during the lifecycle of use for the product.
In alignment with government regulations and compliance norms, more and more domestic electricity providers are switching to more sustainable production norms which unfortunately leads to increased tariffs that are passed on to consumers. As such, consumers are tightening the nooks on appliance makers to deliver more power-efficient machines that deliver both superlative performances as well as very low power consumption figures.
The consumer appliance market has seen major transformations on the power consumption front in the past decade, primarily because of the pressure from consumers to lower power consumption. We have seen innovations like Inverter technology being used on refrigerators, air conditioning, and even washing machines resulting in significantly lower power consumption.
However, when newer innovations bring promising market loyalty, there is also a rising number of cases where several companies trick or cheat consumers with bogus claims on the efficiency of their products. To counter this, regulatory bodies like the Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) introduced Star Ratings to the Indian market. The Star Rating of a device indicates the average power an electronic device will consume under standard usage conditions. The estimated value in kilowatt-hours (kWh) can be used by consumers to calculate the running costs of the device according to their daily usage patterns.
Star Ratings brought in a significant revolution as consumers could now make more informed choices when they invested money, especially on large electronic appliances. However, over time the Star Rating label too became a matter of intense debate as counterfeit appliance makers were simply labeling their products with desired Star Ratings, and an average consumer rarely checked for its authenticity. To bring an end to the problem of counterfeit energy labels and to make manufacturers more responsible, the BEE is now empowering consumers with a new holistic QR Code based labeling requirement that will be enforced on top of the present labeling affixing need for all electronic devices. They have also introduced a dedicated smartphone app that allows consumers to verify the authenticity of QR codes via a scanner.
Here are some of the major opportunities for consumers that make the mandate to introduce QR code-based Star Rating labeling a much-needed change in the consumer electronics and appliance industry:
Verify Authenticity
No longer would consumers be cheated with fake labels claiming bogus star ratings. With the mobile app, any consumer can scan the affixed QR code to view the authenticity certified by the BEE. The QR code will be impossible to be tampered with and the BEE database will be updated with the unique QR code of each appliance right from the time it is manufactured by the brand. Hence, only original and authentic products will be labeled with the QR code which ultimately empowers consumers to have more choices of real products with real and proven power consumption benefits.
Informed Choices
In addition to ensuring authenticity, BEE also provides consumers with an option to filter and compare products with specific Star Ratings on the mobile app. This provides them with a list of authentic and informed choices for products and depending on their budgets, consumers can pick the most suitable appliance for their needs. The QR Code system assures them of getting the list of products that are authentically certified by BEE for their affixed star rating.
Custom Configurations
The BEE Star Ratings embedded on each device would be calculated based on standard usage patterns. The QR code system empowers consumers to get access to a verified product. In other words, consumers can be sure of buying an item that performs and consumes power as mentioned in the rating label. The mobile app offers further custom configurations that a consumer can try out to calculate the most accurate cost of operating the device in their respective locations. They can leverage the app to configure the machine’s electricity consumption figures based on usage trends in their homes, the power tariff prevalent in their residential area, and much more. Such custom configurations help consumers gain significant insights into the long-term cost implications of buying an appliance.
The underlying seal of authenticity offered by QR Codes is what makes all of these features very attractive to consumers. As more electrical appliance manufacturers begin to comply with the new mandate from BEE, the market will eventually be free from fake and bogus products.
For manufacturers, this is a brilliant opportunity to improve customer loyalty by offering transparency. The key focus for appliance brands now is to onboard faster and seamlessly efficient QR Code generation mechanisms to help them become compliant with BEE norms. This is where QodeNext can help bring a huge difference. Talk to us to know more.
