Consumption groups are templates that record expected average annual consumption for a specific utility, such as electricity, gas, or water. They are used to group customers, locations, and contracts based on a shared usage profile, such as property type or type of use.
Consumption groups are especially important when:
there is no or insufficient historical measurement data available
forecasts are needed for invoicing or advances
new contracts or moves are created
In those cases, Zero Friction uses the average annual consumption of the selected consumption group as an estimate.
What is a consumption group and what is it used for?
What are consumption groups?
A consumption group is a way to classify customers or locations based on a shared characteristic, such as:
type of property (apartment, family home)
type of use (residential, office, commercial)
expected size of consumption
All entities within the same consumption group:
take the same service (e.g. electricity)
use the same unit of measurement (e.g. kWh, m³, GJ)
share one average annual consumption
What are consumption groups used for in Zero Friction?
Zero Friction uses consumption groups to:
to estimate consumption at new customers or locations
to calculate estimated invoices
advance amounts to be determined
to make consistent forecasts across multiple contracts
In the overview of consumption groups you will see the average annual consumption of that group under Quantity.
👉 This average is used when no reliable historical measurement data is available for a specific customer or meter.
What does this part show?
The Consumption Groups page consists of two sections:
Custom Consumption Groups – Groups managed by your organization
Built-in consumption groups – system-supplied standard groups
The following data are shown per consumption group:
Code / Name – Unique identifier (e.g., RES-001, OFFICE-SMALL)
Description – Short description of the profile
Service – Utility type (Electricity, Gas, Water, …)
Unit – Unit of measurement of consumption
Quantity – Average annual consumption
Layout
Custom consumption groups
You can create and manage custom groups yourself.
Fields upon creation
Code / Name (required, unique)
Description
Service (utility type)
Unit
Average annual consumption (≥ 0)
After creation you can still change:
Description
Average annual consumption
Not editable after creation:
Code / Name
Service
Unit
Built-in consumption groups
Built-in groups:
are predefined by Zero Friction
are read-only
represent common usage profiles
The values of built-in groups:
are calculated based on system data
can be updated automatically
Actions
Create a new consumption group yourself
Go to Configuration → Meters → Consumption groups
Click on + Add under Custom Groups
Enter a name and description
Select the corresponding service and unit of measure
Enter the average annual consumption in Quantity
Save the group
Change or delete consumption groups
Only custom groups can be modified or deleted
Built-in groups cannot be modified
Deletion is only possible if the group is no longer in use
Assign and use consumption groups
Assignment in a new contract
When creating a contract:
When selecting the product, select a consumption group
Zero Friction automatically suggests relevant groups
The order of suggestions:
Default group of the location group
Custom consumption groups
Built-in consumption groups
You can manually adjust the suggested consumption if necessary.
Consumption groups via location groups
You can set consumption groups as default on a location group:
Go to a Location Group
Open Settings
Select the desired consumption group per service
This standard is automatically suggested when:
new contracts
new locations within that location group
Behaviors & Logic
Consumption groups are used as long as no meter history is available
As soon as reliable measurement data is available:
is this used for invoicing
the consumption group no longer plays an active role in calculations
Units are automatically converted if necessary, as long as they are compatible with the product
Why can't I edit a built-in group?
Because it is system managed and read-only.
Can I change the name or code?
No. Create a new group if you need a different code.
Why can't I delete a group?
This is probably still linked to contracts or location groups.
Why don't I see an 'Add' button?
You are missing the right Create forecasting consumer groups.
Can I use the same group for multiple services?
No. Each consumption group is linked to exactly one utility type.
Consumption group – Template with average annual consumption
Average annual consumption – Expected total annual consumption
Custom Group – Organization-created consumption group
Built-in Group – System supplied default group
Utility type – Type of supply (electricity, gas, water, etc.)
Unit of measure – Unit in which consumption is expressed
Location Group – Grouping of locations with shared settings
Moving – Start of a contract at a location